Artist description Acoustic Rock

Music Style Acoustic Rock

Musical Influences Rennaisance, Mike Oldfield, Maggie Riley

Similar Artists Rennaisance, Mike Oldfield, Maggie Riley

Artist History Formed in 2000 and recorded one album entitled Nowhere Land

Group Members Sherry-Lee Jones (Vocals) and Peter Hanmer (Guitars, Keyboards, Bass and Drums)

Instruments Female vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards and drums.

Albums Nowhere Land

Press Reviews Age of Innocence -- 'Nowhere Land' -- AOI 2001 New choice music from Peter Hanmer, sans Off the Edge, but with a new singer, Sherry-Lee Jones. The listener gets double everything with this CD: excellent technical guitar playing, with feeling and warmth, and wonderful singing of intelligent lyrics. Either the singing alone or the guitar work alone would have been worth the price, but they're both here on one CD. Sherry-Lee Jones has a fluid and mobile voice. Peter associates himself with fine singers. Off the Edge female vocalist Judy Marshall-Schutte will be missed, having moved to Australia, but Sherry-Lee is not a replacement for anybody. Witness the fact that this (first CD?) with Sherry-Lee is neither an Off the Edge project nor a Peter Hanmer solo work, but rather a new musical enterprise called Age of Innocence. Sherry-Lee has a nice emotional range, capable of conveying drama, thoughtfulness, melancholy, and affection. Two songs on 'Nowhere Land' are Off the Edge material that is given a more acoustic treatment here. 'Ascend' and 'St. Aidans' are beautiful pieces, and it is a pleasure to hear them again, but reworked. 'St. Aidans' is a big song that climbs to heights (which does not mean it gets shrill). It becomes huge and spacious, like a cathedral -- a monumental song. While there are hefty acoustic doses here, 'Nowhere Land' is remains a rock album (okay, "melodic rock"). An excellent rock guitar, steady drums, and lovely melodies sung by Sherry-Lee make for intense beauty and listening pleasure. In the rockier numbers, a sharp electric guitar incises a path, and the drums, appropriately strong in the mix, beat their determined way. Overall, there is a searching and yearning quality to this musical work. There are wistful thoughts on the past, some optimism for the future, regret and hope; all pure in emotional intensity, and all the better for being slightly understated. Throughout this artful yet accessible work there is a tone of lost dreams, of hopes that never came true. The overall mood of the CD conveys a mature rock sensibility. However, the last song, titled 'Wild and Free', conveys a sort of optimism. The title track, 'Nowhere Land', is a powerful tune, one both electric and acoustic, though without drums. Deceptively simple, it has profound lyrics. Is Sherry-Lee singing of herself, South Africa, or of everyman? 'Nowhere Land' talks of the past and the future in general ways that I find nonetheless very personal. At one point on this CD, Sherry-Lee sings, "If only I could shout the words out loud..." and I use those words, too, to proclaim myself in this rave review a big fan of Peter Hanmer's music. Fortunately, he's fairly prolific, and equally fortunately his standards of quality are high. The music of Peter Hanmer and Sherry-Lee Jones strikes a responsive chord in me. (A couple of thoughts for a coda: As with all previous Off the Edge and Peter Hanmer projects, the accompanying artwork and design is stunningly beautiful, which makes the case a perfect match for the music within. For an extra treat, Peter sings on 'The Winter and the Summer', a song written by Dave Lambert of the Strawbs, and does well.)

Additional Info Cover design by Mark Raats

Location Johannesburg, Gauteng - South Africa

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