Relish

RELISH
"WILDFLOWERS"
(EMI/Ireland, 2001)


"Rainbow Zephyr"


Hailing from Ireland, three-man band Relish (not to be confused with the lesser-known American metal band of the same name) was something of a cross between Lenny Kravitz and Blessid Union of Souls. Their sound combined the best elements of both: the soulful rock of the former (indeed, Ken Papenfus' voice is almost a dead ringer for Kravitz's) and the quasi-spiritual pop sensibility of the latter.

Relish were equally adept at breezy love songs ("You I'm Thinking Of"), bouncy pop numbers ("Natural High"), sweet ballads (the title track), and solid rockers ("Heart-Shaped Box" -- not a cover of the Nirvana song, by the way), but they still give me goosebumps with the soaring anthem "Rainbow Zephyr", which would sound completely natural being sung by a large gospel choir. Westlife fans may recognize this song (with altered lyrics) under a different title, "Hey Whatever", recorded by the group two years later -- but I find the original to be far, far superior.

Relish has thusfar only released one other album ("Karma Calling" in 2003), and have never formally announced a breakup, but their official website hasn't been updated at all in nearly two years, so I'm not holding out much hope. I discovered this band through a happy accident, when I picked up their debut CD from the Virgin Megastore clearance bin on a whim, so if they have quietly disappeared into music history, I suppose I should at least be thankful that I was able to enjoy their two albums rather than never having found them at all.