Ball – IRON BUTTERFLY****

In The Time Of Our Lives/Soul Experience/Lonely Boy/Real Fright/In The Crowds/It Must Be Love/Her Favourite Style/Filled With Fear/Belda-Beast

Hard rock group Iron Butterfly's third album Ball eschews the extended jam of their monumentally successful previous LP, thereby enabling a more listenable experience. (US:3)

"This is a very enjoyable album from Butterfly. Most likely their best in my eyes. All around similar to the Doors but with their added 'heavy' approach. A good listen."

"Yes, it doesn't have an extended power-jam like In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, but there's not a single weak cut on the album. Their sound and songwriting are more solid and complex here. Soul Experience and Belda-Beast are both experimental and totally successful. This is not only the best Butterfly album, it's also one of the best psychedelic albums of all time."

"Iron Butterfly's third studio album Ball continues what they started at Heavy and their most famous effort In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida. Though Ball hasn't received as much appreciation as the two albums before, many of the songs are very organ-driven and I consider this to be a plus. It isn't so heavy psych based as the previous two were but it doesn't matter. Iron Butterfly's 60s albums are impressive."

"This album is Iron Butterfly’s first that actually sounds professional. It makes for a varied, interesting and atmospheric listen."

"In sum, this album is a nice listen, and not just a period piece. All the songs are well written. Doug Ingle had a booming voice if not a great range, and even the fuzz guitar holds up reasonably well today." ,p> "It's a very good mixture of heavy(ish) rock, pop and psychedelic soul, if such a genre exists. One beautiful ballad Lonely Boy picks you up and drifts you off into space, and the strange but wonderful Belda Beast defies pigeonholing."

"Iron Butterfly were trying to branch out into different styles, and that is the major problem with this record. With one foot still firmly planted in the hippie era, the quartet nevertheless tries out everything from soul to psychedelic-funk hybrids, and although the results are usually endearing, most songs are not remotely strong."