Sonik Kicks
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English singer/song writer Paul Weller, formerly of The Jam and Style Council, has just released his latest effort, Sonik Kicks. I couldn’t wait to find out how this album would fare, following his critically acclaimed 2010 CD, Wake Up the Nation.

“The Modfather” as he’s known, has shifted through various styles of music with a voice that is what I’d describe as a soulful Phil Collins. If you’d like a sample, check out his YouTube version of Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On.”

So, you want to know, How about the new album? I was completely caught off-guard by the opening three tracks of electronic music, “Green,” “The Attic,” and “Kling I Klang,” which show a startling departure from some of Weller’s most recent works. It took my ears a while to adjust to this wave of music that made me feel as though I were at a club with strobe lights flashing and people dancing as though they were zombies from the cable smash hit, The Walking Dead.

The CD settles down with songs such as “Sleep of the Serene,” the whimsical “That Dangerous Age,” and the CD’s soulful closer, “Be Happy Children.” I wish there were more of these.

Weller has proved to be a major talent in his homeland for quite some time, but, for me, his talent is first and foremost as a soulful vocalist, which is not highlighted enough for most of this CD. I couldn’t help but think of Neil Young, who, in his long career, has had so many releases of a wide range of musical styles, from acoustic to garage band rock to electronic. Paul Weller is certainly thought of as a major talent—in fact, a superstar—in his homeland. I am a bit skeptical that this current shift in musical styles to the heavy electronic sound will be received as well as the aforementioned Young, who continued to have his fans’ support with the multiple genres of music that he performed. Paul will certainly keep most of his fans, but my instinct tells me that some of his loyal supporters will be disenchanted by the overall sound of Sonik Kicks.

The release of Sonik Kicks doesn’t get Weller any closer to the same level as a Neil Young here in the States, but don’t give up on him totally. Listen to some of his songs on this CD, and you may find that the wise choice is to buy digital downloads of the songs that you like instead of purchasing the entire CD. I’m confident that there will be some songs that you’ll thoroughly enjoy, but, in this economy, buyers need to spend their shrinking discretionary income on things that will totally satisfy them. I’m not sure that this entire CD will.

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