Myssstrey solved as 1994 Japanese album gets UK release 

Toyah's long-lost album is neither a Smile-style tale of artistic exasparation (despite its slightly schizophrenic new and old content) nor, sadly, much of a mystery. All the same, fans will be delighted it's finally seen the light of day. Originally sold at shows on her 1993 tour as a cassette-only album (simply called Leap!), a CD version was released in Japan the following year, but shelved in the UK in favour of Dreamchild's ambient noodlings. 

In contrast, Take The Leap! is straight-ahead (and at times borderline goth) rock, recorded in the wake of a tour with youthful backing band, Friday Forever. The mish-mash album features six (predictably indie) new tunes and eight reworkings of older material, including the ubiquitous I Wanna Be Free and a woefully weak It's A Mystery. If anything showcases the super-tight backing outfit, it's Toyah herself, whose often weedy vocals don't always fit the music. Things work better on the ambient Requite Me and Tears For Elie, two exceptional demos that appear among this expanded reissue's four bonus tracks. 

By Steve Adams 
 

Record Collector
December 2007
Thanks to Zoe Clow