There are times when a man might need to give his ears some respite from his sonic diet of thrash metal and find a more mellow alternative that might satisfy his musical cravings. Something, perhaps, like “The Test of Time” by Stuart Mick Macfarlane.
Eleven songs are what you get on this album. Eleven songs that are so elegantly produced that you can guess the next note before it is played. Stuart Mick Macfarlane is clearly a seasoned performer and, with no small measure of sentimentality in his toolkit, he ploughs a musical furrow that is fertilised with both the casual pacing of soft rock Scottish style and a bag of those special traditional influences. No doubt about it, his is an album that will find friendly ears even amongst those who purport to have no musical knowledge whatsoever.
“The Test of Time” isn’t the kind of album to challenge anything nor, I would imagine, was it ever meant to be yet it successfully provided more than adequate proof that Stuart Mick Macfarlane can keep you on a safe path all the way from start to finish.