Terrible. Morbid, gloomy, fatalistic, depressing songs, and worst of all they are not interesting, either. Small wonder Sting's career hit rock bottom. This kind of material seemed au courant in the early to mid '80s, but by Soul Cages' 1991 release date, the public -- quite understandably -- was tired of this. Listening to it in 2018? High-gloss gloom doesn't age well. There's a fabulous bagpipe solo by Kathryn Tickell at the start of Island of Souls, and after that it's downhill all the way.

Sting wrote this album after his father passed away so it is melancholy. However, my absolute favourite song by Sting, Why Should I Cry for You, is on this album. It isn't as lighthearted as Dream of the Blue Turtles album but you get a glimpse of Sting's soul.