vote
7.5
- Bands:
SONIC UNIVERSE - Duration: 00:50:23
- Available from: 10/05/2024
- Label:
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earMusic
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Corey Glover has had a craving for metal in recent years.
Not that in the past the genre didn't interest him, because in the kaleidoscope of influences wittily handled by his Living Colors it has always been there and made itself felt in all its strength and splendor; except that, in recent years, the legendary New York singer, instead of looking to the past and to 'elderly' sounds, as often happens – even understandably – to artists of a certain age, both chronological and artistic, on their backs, has turned to sounds that are very current.
Thus, after the decidedly metallic “Shade” (2017), the latest effort by his main band, and “Pragmatic Sanction” by Disciple Of Verity (2020), it is once again time to tackle a record of sparkling, energetic and sparkling heavy metal. Where Glover is the epicenter and, around him, he has a series of musicians who follow him, bringing a good load of inventiveness and energy.
Together with Glover there are guitarist and producer Mike Orlando (known for his militancy in Adrenaline Mob), bassist Booker King and drummer Taykwuan Jackson. A quartet with a fairly heterogeneous musical past and present, whose union results in a direct and chameleonic style, capable of combining powerful and chrome sounds with the funky, soul and fusion heritage of Glover and King.
The first thing that remains imprinted about this debut is how Glover's voice has (not) aged: if already for “Shade” we had noticed how much sparkle he still possessed, grappling with pieces that require even more energy and enthusiasm the singer of Living Color shows off a resounding performance. Whether he has to act as a pure metal singer, or delve into the warmer and more persuasive tones of his timbre, Glover juggles with the same success, blending very well with Orlando's virtuoso textures, good at balancing exaggerated solo moments with the need to keep the songs concise and dynamic. tracks.
Wanting to do just a flyby within the tracklist, the impression of being in front of more metallic Living Colors is rather pressing, and this is not a flaw at all, quite the opposite: the bass work, already from the first moments of “I Am” lets you enjoy the typical undulations of funk, over which Glover makes his voice jump to perfection, accompanied by effective second voices in the background. The underlying theme of the album is immediately recognizable and never betrayed: the warm and persuasive feeling of the 'black' sounds, strengthened and accelerated by an acrobatic guitar playing that gives broad prominence to the virtuosity without sacrificing impact. It is in this dualism that each episode is born and spreads, trying to conquer in the space of a few births and focusing, at the end of pressing verses, on captivating and obsessive refrains.
In our opinion, there isn't the depth and finesse of what can be heard on average in a Living Color album, we don't perceive any real genius in the compositions, which remain at least a couple of steps below, overall, what the main group of Glover can normally express.
Having said that, we are far from a standardized and laminated product, and the level of writing, despite a few moments of automatic pilot inserted, remains very good. There is a tendency to lengthen the running time a bit, when a few prunings here and there wouldn't hurt, but we're not talking about anything that annoying.
The three singles presented in preview stand out in the collection (the title track, “Higher” and “I Am”), which contain the essence of Sonic Universe and enhance the union between the compressed heavy metal and the fragmented times of today , and the attention to the reworking of classic genres in a more direct and updated version for current times. A explosive production and Jackson's furious and groovy drumming always keep the adrenaline high, making even the less relevant passages flow well, even if Glover's voice alone would be enough to cover some small shortcomings.
Sonic Universe seems like a good project to us, perhaps destined to end here, perhaps directed towards other evolutions in the future. For now we can only enjoy the excellent music put together by the Glover-Orlando duo.
Daniel D`Amico for SANREMO.FM