Reviewed by Andy Shaw

After the release of their first two albums the members of Number One Gun went their separate ways leaving lead singer Jeff Schneeweis to take it on as a solo project. His first solo effort 'The North Pole Project' really showed off his talents as a musician, songwriter and producer. 'To The Secrets And Knowledge' sees Schneeweis experimenting with the use of synth and electronic elements adding to his pop rock sound. "Noises" is a good example of this new direction with instrumentation kept to a minimum and the use of vocal delay and drum machine beats. This simplicity is also found on acoustic track "The People" again with the use of vocal delay to give a soothing chilled out vibe. This is not a complete departure from the previous album however and tracks like lead single "Forest" show a skill for making perfectly crafted pop rock songs. There is a good variety on the album from the simple and very chilled to the driven rock of "Try It". The album then closes with a cover of Journey's "Don't Stop Believing". This is a reasonable if not particularly inspiring cover sticking much too close to the original. I always like to see bands exploring new sounds and not just churning out the same album over and over again and so to that end I think this is a good move. Some of the experimentation doesn't quite work but when it is kept simple 'To The Secrets And Knowledge' is a thoroughly enjoyable listen.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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