Enchant is one of the more pop-oriented bands from the Magna Carta label. They sound like a combination of
Toto,
Kansas, and
Marillion;
Ted Leonard is a dead ringer for
Kansas' Steve Walsh on vocals. Douglas Ott is a fine guitarist whose influences seem to be more from fusion and rock than heavy metal. Drummer Paul Craddick has received a fair amount of praise for his playing; however, there isn't anything too spectacular here. The pop orientation can tend to be grating, as each song features an abundance of singing. Most of the songs contain decent melodies and interesting moments, but they usually fall into a standard song structure, making this more like a standard pop/rock session. There are several moments that border on sap, especially on the awful "Look Away." Nevertheless, there are decent moments such as "Below Zero" and "Missing," the latter being the best tune on the disc. The talent level seems to be here for this band, but their penchant for standard song structures does not allow for expansion. On
Wounded, they merely sound like a continuation of '80s
Kansas. ~ Robert Taylor