AUDIO-VISIONS (1980)"As the power grows, darkness spreading
Hope is still alive, though we're dreading
What the future holds"1. Relentless (Livgren) 4:57
2. Anything For You (Walsh) 3:58
3. Hold On (Livgren) 3:54
4. Loner (Walsh) 2:31
5. Curtain of Iron (Livgren) 6:12
6. Got to Rock On (Walsh) 3:21
7. Don’t Open Your Eyes (Walsh, Williams, Livgren, Ehart, Hope) 4:06
8. No One Together (Livgren) 6:58
9. No Room For a Stranger (Williams, Walsh) 3:00
10. Back Door (Walsh) 4:24
The band also self-produced the next album,
Audio-Visions, which was released in September 1980. Kerry Livgren’s spiritual seeking came to an end, as he became a born-again Christian, (as did bassist Dave Hope), and that came out in his lyrical output on this album, which caused some contention with some other members of the band.
The album’s first track is “Relentless,” an uptempo rocker. As an opener, it is fairly uninspired, with rather bland riffing and a simplistic chorus. For me, it’s a pretty boring and disappointing song. Definitely below the band’s standards.
Up next is “Anything For You.” This is a piano-driven song which to my ears almost sounds like something Steely Dan might have written. This is a very tastefully written song, showing musicianship without unnecessary flash or pyrotechnics, with pretty good lyrics. Easily one of my favorites from this album.
“Hold On” is the track that most clearly displays Livgren’s new religious focus. “Everybody thinks it’s a boy-girl song, but it isn’t,” he says. “If you examine the lyrics, you’ll see it’s about man’s relationship to God.” It’s not a typical boy-girl song, true, but he
was writing the lyrics to his wife, who at this point had yet to join him in Christian faith. It was released as the album’s first single on September 20, 1980, and peaked at # 40 in October. It would be the final Top 40 single from the band’s original lineup.
“Loner” is a weird little song. It has really generic-sounding riffage and lyrics, but has some interesting musical passages otherwise. Overall, not really satisfying; another disappointment.
“Curtain of Iron” is actually a pretty interesting song. It has some nice musical composition, with some mysterious, almost prophetic-sounding Biblically-derived lyrics. It doesn’t have a lot of “prog” characteristics, but it definitely has that big majestic feel to it. Definitely one of the best selections from this album.
The next song, “Got to Rock On,” is another rocker, obviously written to be a single. It actually starts out OK, before devolving into a cheesy, derivative chorus, with a title seemingly designed to appeal more to average music fans rather than the Kansas fanbase. Another disappointment on an album rife with them. This was the album’s second single, released on December 27, 1980, peaking at # 76 in January 1981.
“Don’t Open Your Eyes” is just not very good. Bad lyrics contained within uninspired music, other than the obligatory instrumental section, which isn’t bad. Again, the best word is probably “disappointing.”
“No One Together” was originally written for the previous album
Monolith, but was dropped from that album because Kerry Livgren lost an argument with Steve Walsh about whose song should make the cut (Walsh won with “How My Soul Cries Out For You”), so this track wound up falling to this album. The song features some of the intricate musical arrangement that is the trademark for Kansas. The song overall really hearkens back to the musical foundations laid down by the band in their first three albums much more so than any other track on this album. Easily the standout from this album, but that isn’t necessarily saying much.
“No Room for a Stranger” is, well, not much. It’s a short little song that screams “filler!” Not much to say about it, really.
The song’s final track, “Back Door,” is a piano-driven song that also hearkens back to older Kansas, in a way. The music marries well with the lyrics, that are foreshadowing the immediate future of the band. A satisfying end to an unsatisfying album. The major drawback for the song is Walsh’s synthesized bagpipes. *shudders*
The album was certified Gold in December 1980, but was the last album by the band to be so certified. Reviews of the album were also not good. The band toured the USA in the fall of 1980 and spring of 1981, then headed to Europe in the summer before returning to the USA for some final tour dates.
The album marked the end of an era. With the new lyrical emphasis of faith as embodied in Christianity, Steve Walsh was decidedly uncomfortable and left the band to start his own new group, Streets. This marked a huge chink in the band’s armor, with the band losing not only its keyboard player, but also lead vocalist and second main songwriter, and laid the ground for massive changes to come. To be honest, after the last two albums, some change was probably necessary, but not necessarily the ones that actually happened.