I think it is absurd to give this plate of disappointed love only one point. I can but despite her love and understanding not give more than three points. This plate is a solid matter, played well, sounds like Saga, but the songwriting leaves to be desired in my ears very left. To put it heretical to say: Many have picked on the previous album "The Human Condition" with Rob Moratti as a singer. I say this album was the present from her songwriting streets ahead, at last you have again a little bit daring, even in Groove area was once again what is going on, what was normal in the earlier saga, later something was forgotten. The vocal performance was convincing, but for the most part this is because Sadlers voice drowned in the current album in a little too highly compressed production and overloaded means deep set chants. To make it even heretical to say: almost all hate the album "Pleasure and the pain". I say: On this album, there are some things to complain, but it is over long distances much fresher and stimulating than 20/20. Unfortunately, many old Saga fans want to get in the first place their usual stuff served, and which they have them now: cultivated boredom, but it's all in there, what used to the Saga albums of noughties, but was not very exciting: The little cheesy choruses. The not exactly stunning keyboard sounds - everything zuschmierende Röchelflächen, extremely unnatural sounding strings and piano. The cool guitar solos with accompaniment boring. I just hope that this album was there to make the stubborn Altfans satisfied, and that then comes back something exciting. However: some of the songs work live certainly good, it is not so that the plate does not rock. But no song is really a few centimeters above the ground, as I know the Saga. To clearly say: I love this band, and not just "the early years". Matter of principle, because I hate it when all always nachheulen only the great 70s or 80s, and without principle, because they have repeatedly conjured Great off the cuff. My favorite Saga albums are: "Images At Twilight", "Silent Knight", "Heads Or Tales", "Generation 13", "House Of Cards" and "The Human Condition". I remain curious and positively biased for the next album!
