Pros: Iona adds some pop flavor in some of these songs and they work well
Cons: More ambitious instrumentals sometimes wander too far
The Bottom Line: Journey Into the Morn is the Iona album I listen to least often - though it certainly has some excellent moments, for the most part, it doesn't grab my attention.
bob_tomato's Full Review: Journey into the Morn by Iona
I hope you're enjoying this series on Iona's studio discography - I know that I am having a wonderful time listening to these albums again and again. I truly do love this band's sound, their dedication to their unique vision, and I appreciate the marvelous level of skill they display in each of their recordings. However, nothing is ever perfect, and for me, Iona's fourth studio recording Journey Into The Morn is a weak link in the chain.
________________________________________
Going Beyond Beyond These Shores
Iona's third studio album was a sublime exploration of one man's journey of discovery, an adventure across the North Sea, and a search for a place of rest for weary souls. Beyond These Shores is one of my very favorite recordings by any band, and in 1995, I looked forward to the release of Iona's new album, Journey Into The Morn.
The lineup of the band stayed largely the same for this recording, including the assistance of King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp on two of the songs. Once again, many of the sounds featured on the album fell to multi-instrumentatlist David Bainbridge and woodwind player Troy Donockley, and the two proved once again that they are masters of their chosen crafts. Joanne Hogg's gorgeous alto voice is strong as ever on this album, and she is the focus of several songs that seem tailored more toward vocals than the overall sound of the band.
_______________________________________
Heaven's Bright Sun
As always, the lyrics rely on the natural beauty of the North Sea islands, and also sometimes speak in the voice of the medieval monks who lived on the isle of Iona. Thematically, the focus of the album is just that: focus. Leading off with an Irish language version of the hymn Be Thou My Vision - Bi-Se I Mo Shuil - and ending with another hymn of vision, When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, the album is also the most overtly "Christian" of any of Iona's recordings. Some songs are reminiscent of the Psalms of David, and they echo many of his themes as well - the search for inner peace, wisdom and, ultimately, redemption. The songs ask for a clearer sight within and without, invoking the presence of God symbolically as the light of Heaven's Bright Sun - without His light, vision is impossible. Here, the light of day, and the dawning of a new morning are shown to represent the illumination of the soul.
Quietly You arrived
Never forcing me to choose
Bringing Your perfect light
Into this sunless room of mine
So make Your home inside my heart
Fill this empty house of stone
Make Your home inside my heart
Let me dance in the brightness of Your throne
Of Your throne
One of the stronger prog-rock tracks on the album is Encircling, a nearly twelve minute work that includes a strong guitar solo as well as a haunting rendition of the ancient Celtic talisman for God's protection. I especially enjoy the synthesized arpeggios after the first verse; they set up the atmosphere for the rest of the song. Bainbridge's guitar solo seems obviously influenced by David Gilmour, which is a big plus for me. Hogg's voice is also used as more of an instrument, blended and mixed in as an ethereal chorus in some places, and even the verses seem to be more instrumentation than solo.
I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead
His eye to watch, His might to stay
His ear to hearken to my need
The mighty Three my protection be
Encircling me, You are around
My life, my home encircling me
Oh sacred Three, the mighty Three
One of the interesting things about Iona is how they shift the purpose of the vocals from that of a lead singer to another instrument in the band in some instances. Quite often, Joanne will sing in Irish and these vocal sounds are woven into the fabric of the entire musical tapestry. Her voice comes back to join the sound of the band, rather than remaining solidly out front. It's a nice effect that Iona uses judiciously, but for a few songs on Journey Into The Morn, the band reduces itself to a backing unit for her voice. This is notable because Iona sometimes seems to be an instrumental prog-rock band that happens to have a singer. In the consecutive tracks Irish Day, Wisdom and Everything Changes, and in the song No Heart Beats, it seems like Iona has shifted solidly to being a pop rock band.
I think that this was a good move by the band - it added some interest to their catalog of songs, providing them with stronger material for radio, and the opportunity to reach a wider audience. The songs are definitely Iona material, using Irish flute and pipe, crashing guitar chords and big drums, and they keep the album from bogging down under it's own weight. There was really only one of these songs on Beyond These Shores (Treasure) and that album may suffer slightly from not having at least one other song of this kind.
Irish Day is a bright uptempo song, light and lively with flute and pipes, a dynamic dance under the light of heaven's bright sun. Wisdom is a bit more introspective, though no less lively in it's own way when it reaches the chorus. Everything Changes is a big change in sound for Iona; it is minimally atmospheric with a strong groove - think Sade's No Ordinary Love and you're close to the sound of this song.
Another change, and the reason I don't like this album so much, is the leeway given to the instrumentals on this recording. Iona never shied away from long instrumentals, and in the first three albums, they maintained some focus and complement the rest of the album. The Book of Kells did have some passages that went fairly long, but this seemed more appropriate given the theme of the album in it's highly artistic bent. In Journey Into the Morn, the instrumentals are strong musically, the themes well crafted and delivered, but there seems to be a lot of empty space between these themes where the band moves through some ethereal keyboarding before moving on to a flute or guitar solo or some new vocals. The sounds are interesting, sometimes breathtakingly so (Heaven's Bright Sun is the best example), but on some songs there is too much setup in the introduction, or the intervals are just too long. I know that some people find these passages to be some of Iona's finest, so this is definitely a personal preference of mine.
________________________________________
Clearing Skies
Iona's fourth album is a bit of a disappointment to me - the progressive-rock sounds found in their first three albums got continually more interesting and of better quality with each successive recording. Journey Into The Morn is no exception to this rule, but this time, I think the band lost some focus. Though stunningly played, the instrumentals tend to linger too long in their own cleverness, instead of making their thematic statement and then moving on to the next theme or song. The album contains a few really good songs that come as close to pop as Iona had gotten to date, and the sound works well. I do recommend the album as I find it far more interesting than a lot of music coming out today. There isn't a truly bad album in the Iona catalog, but to me, Journey Into The Morn is not their best effort.
(P.S. Iona's fifth studio album would change everything. Keep your eyes on the Open Sky for my next review from Iona's fabulous discography)
________________________________________
Iona - Journey Into The Morn
Originally released in 1995 by Authentic Media.
Track Listing
Bi-Se I Mo Shuil, Part 1 / Irish Day / Wisdom / Everything Changes / Inside My Heart / Encircling / Journey Into The Morn / Lindisfarne / No Heart Beats / The Search / Divine Presence / Heaven's Bright Sun / Bi-Se I Mo Shuil, Part 2 / When I Survey
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.