Raoul And The Kings Of Spain
Minneapolis Star Tribune: December 31, 1995
by Chuck Campbell
©1995 Star Tribune

Tears for Fears has a tradition of shimmering albums with thoughtful lyrics, breaking through with the album Songs From the Big Chair a decade ago and sustaining ever since. Shedding his traditional angst, Roland Orzabal loses his way on Raoul and the Kings of Spain, however. The album sounds as good as usual, yielding a stately mix of sweeping synth-oriented music and fetching melodies. But Orzabal isn't saying much, and provocative lyrics have been his mainstay. This time he sings vaguely about love and religion and he seems, well, at ease.

Raoul and the Kings of Spain isn't a sunny free-for-all by any means, but the gripping soul-searching that has been an Orzabal trademark is watered down, and he sounds flat. Enigmatic, well-crafted songs such as the title track and "Humdrum and Humble" are eminently listenable, as are the disarmingly uncomplicated "I Choose You" and the melancholy love song "Me and My Big Ideas" (a duet with Oleta Adams). Yet the album goes wanting for a soul, and Orzabal sounds more trite than meaningful.