You can trust Louder
British faux-gospel prog rockers Church return with this splendorous fourth album. It’s an entirely enigmatic project led by singer/ guitarist Bill Fisher, and the band’s mystical origins and white-robed stage attire carry all the trappings of an early-70s hippie sex cult, but their sound is rooted firmly in crunching classic-era arena rock.
It’s like Ghost and the Polyphonic Spree proselytising in some high-watt megachurch. One More Step, the album’s lead single, is a mesmerising entry point into their world, both sinister and inviting, building from a stoner-rock organ groove into a pocket symphony of heavenly choirs and crashing guitars.
Elsewhere the band channel the grandeur of Queen (Seven Rays Of Colour) and the acid-burn of Hawkwind (Valley and Hills Part 1). Even the more intimate numbers, such as power-ballad closer We Lost It Somewhere, have an expansive, cinematic quality to them.
There Is No Time is a frequently enthralling collection that balances doomy invocations with life-affirming positivity.
Came from the sky like a 747. Classic Rock’s least-reputable byline-grabber since 2003. Several decades deep into the music industry. Got fired from an early incarnation of Anal C**t after one show. 30 years later, got fired from the New York Times after one week. Likes rock and hates everything else. Still believes in Zodiac Mindwarp and the Love Reaction, against all better judgment.