A-ha
's sixth studio CD (seventh if their greatest-hits collection is included) came seven years after their previous album,
Memorial Beach
, and in that time it seems that
a-ha
mellowed out. They do not seem to have concern about attracting the youth/dance market, but instead seem to be focusing in on how to make perfect middle-of-the-road pop songs with '90s technology. This is not a criticism, as it produces several fantastic songs, such as
"Little Black Heart"
and the wonderful
"I Wish That I Cared."
These, and many others, are full of catchy, beautiful melodies and
Morten Harket
's vocals are near perfect as usual -- his voice has not lowered one octave since their debut. The one problem with this CD is the relative sameness to some of the music. The tempos do not change a great deal, and by the end the songs seem to run together. More variety would have been beneficial. However, in terms of production, this is as close to perfect as a CD can get, and the lyrics keep things interesting throughout. Overall, a good album, and one that fans will enjoy. ~ Aaron Badgley