JEFF SCOTT SOTO - review added 2nd March 2009
Album Review: Beautiful Mess (2009)
For fans of: hard rock... and album titles that definitely don't refer to the singer's hair
Jeff Scott Soto has had one of the most amazing careers of any rock performer. Hitting the big time as the singer on Yngwie Malmsteen's early albums, he has sung with numerous other bands, had solo releases and even provided the vocals for film characters. Oh, and he was the front man of a little band called Journey for a few months. Not bad for someone who is barely halfway through his working life.
Beautiful Mess features, unsurprisingly, Jeff on vocals, with various guests including Paulo Mendonça contributing the music and rhythms. The sound throughout is intriguing and adventurous, varying from leather-and-denim rock, soft blues, introspective funk and film score pop to... well, strange sound effects.
JSS's voice has never sounded better than this. He truly explores the outer reaches of his abilities and is hugely experimental. Whether this makes for his best ever album is very much open to debate.
'21st Century' hints at modern Def Leppard. It's a reasonably heavy track and works well. 'Cry Me A River' is a groovy little number with a sublime sounding chorus. It's more RnB than rock, but a fine track nonetheless.
'Gin And Tonic Sky' is a beautiful contemporary love song with a chilled air and sensual vive. 'Hey' is a medium paced, upbeat, laid back fun track. Listening to it is like watching a firework in slow motion - a mesmerisingly unhurried adrenaline rush.
'Mountain' has a very catchy chorus, but spends too much time brooding, not rocking. 'Our Song' has an even better chorus and is much more of a full-on rocking ballad. It has an instant classic-feel and is arguably the best track on the album
'Eye' contains all sorts of crazy sound effects. The main one is just like the noise of a Transformer... transforming. 'Bring It Home' has a sublime funky tone. It could have escaped from an episode of Shaft or Starsky And Hutch. Again, it isn't rock but it is utterly fantastic.
Beautiful Mess is a fabulously written, intelligently constructed album with oodles of character and numerous stand-out moments. It's also a little bit too clever for its own good and not always that rocking. Jeff Scott Soto has never produced anything this good before, but he has made stuff I'd much rather listen to.
Check out... The variety of sounds and styles throughout the album.
Track List:
1. 21st Century
2. Cry Me A River
3. Gin And Tonic Sky
4. Hey
5. Broken Man
6. Mountain
7. Our Song
8. Eye
9. Bring It Home
10. Testify
11. Wherever You Wanna Go
12. Kick It
13. Heart Starts Healing
14. Take U Over With Me
Label: Frontiers Music
Artist's websites: JSS , MySpace
