(This review first appeared in issue #81 of Shindig! magazine.)
The Paul Steel back-story is a cautionary tale. Chewed up and spat out by the major label machine while still in his early twenties, the desire to make daringly creative music remained thankfully intact. Ten years on from his ambitious first LP April & I, this second offering continues the story narrative of the now April-less “I”. It's a richly packed affair, a 15-track gap-less song cycle full of stylistic shifts. Everything from rock, baroque-pop, muzak and computer game sounds gets a look-in including a “Yacht-rock dream sequence”.
SMiLE-era Brian Wilson is the strongest and most recognisable influence, but Steel's precocious skills as a writer and arranger take him into many other musical realms. There's the sense that nothing is beyond his capabilities. That said Carousel Kites is a challenging listen, the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink barrage of ideas makes it an album easier to admire than to truly love.
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