Uriah Heep - Wake The Sleeper

It’s been ten years since Uriah Heep released their expertly crafted ‘Sonic Origami’ although as one of classic rock’s truly great acts it never felt as though they were far away.  Throughout this time they continued to tour, bringing their unique energy to audiences around the world (including playing at a prison in Germany!). In all this time there has been but one change to the fold (!) since ‘Sonic Origami with legendary drummer Lee Kerslake relinquishing his stool due to ill health. His replacement, Russell Gilbrook plays his parts as if to the manner born with flair and authority.

The first thing that strikes you about ‘Wake the Sleeper’ is the stunning cover art; a stormy and atmospheric depiction of a Buddhist statue of a type as may be found at the temples of Angkor Wat. The next thing is the astonishing force with which the title track erupts from the speakers. It’s as if ten years of pent up enthusiasm are unleashed in a single three-minute burst. It’s a melodic roar of freedom, mostly instrumental as if mere words would detract from the pure energy being let loose. The chanted litany of “Wake the sleeper…” says it all.

Having made their intentions quite clear the band settle down to deliver ten more songs of subtle yet muscular melodic hard rock as only they can. The whole album has a wonderfully organic “live” feel and it may come as no surprise to hear that pretty much everything was indeed recorded with all the members playing together in the studio. For some bands this might be ambitious bordering on reckless but not for Uriah Heep. This is a band which is all about energy; the energy being traded between the members as their parts interweave and, when playing live the energy exchanged between band and audience.

Uriah Heep’s music is not a procession of riffs and solos but rather a swirling series of musical tableaux where light shade and colour are applied by the different instruments.  Mick Box for example doesn’t launch into scurrying solos which leap up in the mix before coming to a squealing halt. He and keyboard player Phil Lanzon paint their musical pictures with softer colours, the wah wah pedal blending with Hammond organ and keyboard textures to enhance and enrich each song. Russell Gilbrook’s drums and Trevor Bolder’s bass possess a musicality almost unique in rock music and Bernie Shaw’s vocals are almost literally the icing on the cake; his warm high baritone resting sweetly atop the rich mixture of the music.

On ‘Wake the Sleeper’ not a single song bears even the remotest whiff of “filler”. Each track with its own unique statement and emotion blends in with the overall sound and energy to provide another facet to Uriah Heep’s visions of human pain, joy, war and peace. You’ll note that I’m not singling any particular track out for special mention because in ‘Wake the Sleeper’ Uriah Heep have produced a work of extraordinary cohesion. They sound like a band where the members are in harmony both personally and musically with a stimulating balance of craftsmanship and energy. As Mick Box himself might say; “’Appy Days!”