The 1986 Listening Post - Box of Frogs - Strange Land

Box of Frogs - Strange Land

#468/2118

1986 Housekeeping

Box of Frogs

Strange Land

Genre: Rock

3.75 out of 5

Highlights:

Get It While You Can

Trouble

The lesser known Yardbirds guys are back but this time they are joined by…Graham Parker and Ian Dury for vocals and what they come up is a perfectly uneven collection of instruments and words playing uninteresting (for the most part) songs. 

It’s all over the place. Some of it sounds like Power Pop. Some of it is goodwill rock. Some of it straight out of the Zeppelin songbook. Some of it is 80s pap.

Which makes it uneven but accomplished. It’s bizarre. Impossible for me to hate, but I can’t say I would go back to it.

The BoF experiment ends here and, with it…maybe…the sixties? Please?

https://music.apple.com/us/album/strangeland/432704834

The 1984 Listening Post - Box of Frogs - Box of Frogs

Box of Frogs - Box of Frogs

#2

January 1 1984

Box of Frogs

Box of Frogs

3 out of 5

Highlights:

Back Where I Started

Two Steps Ahead

In name only, this is where the 90s really start. I mean, come on, has there ever been a more 90s sounding band? Did they inspire and ultimately tour with Toad the Wet Sprocket? If not, how did promotors miss that opportunity?

After all that synth-pop and blue eyed soul I actually forgot that good old blues rock existed. When it’s good (“Back when I Started”) it’s delicious. The “Ah-ha” backing vocals echo Led Zeppelin’s screaming in “The Immigrant Song” but, when it’s brought down to earth, as it is here, it’s more ominous and comforting. Should be noted that this group is made up ex-Yardbirds players with guys playing by Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton and others. 

Beyond that opener there’s a lot of solid playing but not enough meat on the song bones. The exception being the somewhat blistering “Two Steps Ahead”.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/box-of-frogs/1272842650