Nova Scotia

Cousteau are in the skies rather than under the sea and in the main the vocals on this album seem less 'fathom' deep, the lyrics heartfelt and meaningful with the music soaring rather than plunging (with a couple of exceptions). If you are an original Cousteau fan be ready for the change in sound. There seems to be a little less vocal from Liam McKahey and a little more music in the tracks giving the musicians a chance to be at the forefront.Sadness has a surprisingly upbeat sound for what is a song about the sorrow of losing a parent, first to drink and then to death. This lifts the mood of the song. Sometime is written and sung by bassist Joe Peet, with backing vocals by Liam.She's Not Coming Back was written for Paula Yates. The song has excellent lyrics, and flexible vocals with characteristic Robin Brown guitar, and Craig Vear's drums brushed a little more heavily than in the past.There She Goes has a very full musical backing, with much stronger drums than previous Cousteau records and To Sail Away starts slow, builds into something stronger with a fine melody.Echoes sends shivers down your spine with the vocals. It has a very gentle start, with a slow build up to a slightly stronger melody. An excellent fade out with keyboards gently takes the song out.The stand out track is Black Heart of Mine which has superb guitar from Robin Brown. Understated drums and stronger keyboards (and vibraphone) underlie the darker lyrics. This track marks a definite, and welcome, change in direction of musical sound and lyrics from the group. It is more 'electric' than previous recordings and stands up to anything Cousteau did before. The song ends with a long, long fade out - gradually settling down until a subtle, ethereal finale which has hints of Riders of the Storm. Highly is another 'classic' track with spine tingling vocals (andas Gary points out in his review, the vocals were even better live).PIA is a sad song inspired by the death of a child. It is less immediate than the other songs. Partially spoken, partially sung - a hymn like paeon of unimaginable loss. The closer is Happening which is not the climactic final song we've come to expect from Cousteau - but this album doesn't follow the same formula as the previous two.It has been a long wait for this release, the group has been through some change in that time, but the change has been for the better.

After a three year period which included the severance from their indie CD label, the legal threat over the loss of the group name and the exit of their primary songwriter, most fans would have seen the writing on the wall for any further musical insights for the group Cousteau. But since 2003, the group has been putting together the new era in a most satisfying manner."Nova Scotia" is a gem of recording worth discovering for new fans and for fanatics who crave the emo-crooning of Liam McKahey.The new release offers many personal insights instilled into themusic that Liam has created for his devoted fans who desire a full sounding aural experience that grows on your senses with every listen. Please don't expect a re-hash of the songs from the past two releases....but you can expect a maturity of soundand insight that the previous releases have had prior success upon. Expect songs of loss and sadness mixed in with regret andmidnight madness without the one(s) you love...but I hope that this description doesn't infer one downbeat song after another.I view this aspect as sadness for the moments that have passed that allow for the open possibility of hopefulness for the future. This release is a worthy follow-up to the previous CD releases...and hopefully with allow greater worldwide exposure tothe Cousteau sound. Considering the obstacles of the past, I feel comfortable looking forward to Cousteau's growth of sound and fan base...and I feel certain that the future is once again looking very bright for the worthy indie group. I sincerely hope that the UK and US audiences of discriminating musical taste will now notice what Italy has recognized since 2001! If you have the opportunity to see Cousteau live in concert, you will be awed by the vocal prowess of the lead singer that only seems to get stronger and deeper over time with a sound that could never truly be enhanced in a pre-recorded manner. Cheers to the continuing growth and success of Cousteau!

I've been a fan of Cousteau since the beginning and think this is their best work so far. They deserve a lot more exposure. I recently saw them live, and they were excellent. Catch them if you can!