Omnidirectional4 Out Of 5 Stars
A slight comeback from the uneven "Stay On These Roads," A-Ha's "East of The Sun West of The Moon" started with the clap of a thunderstorm and ends with a fading rainstorm and more thunder. That should be enough to warn us all that the disc is off to some pretty moody territories, and you'd be correct in that assumption. It also was A-ha's total fade out from the American market, failing to break onto the US charts, although the terrific cover of "Crying In The Rain" did get some adult contemporary airplay. It doesn't diminish the band's chemistry in the slightest, though. Core duo of Morten Harket's falsetto vocals and Pal Waaktaar's guitar with Magne Furuholmen keyboards maintain the trio's overall sound.
Yet that sound, while unmistakeably A-ha (due mainly to Harket's incredible voice) is reaching out the bounds of synth pop. There's the moody and extended "Sycamore Leaves" and the guitar driven "Cold River." The harmonies of "Crying in The Rain" are more subdued than soaring, and the title track is a great story of looking for lost love. "Rolling Thunder" always felt like the end of the album to me, but there's a melancholy coda to follow..."Seemingly Nonstop July" ends the disc on a barebones acoustic guitar and modest keyboard line as Harket croons a hopeful, if brief, paean to younger lovers while a voice in the background yells "You better wise up, endless pain!"
It makes "East of the Sun" a middling A-Ha album, on a par with "Scoundrel Days", maybe a little under the follow-up "Memorial Beach." They were still making decent albums, even if the US had stopped paying attention.
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