Soul Asylum
Change of Fortune
Entertainment One Music
2016
Remember Soul Asylum and their probably one hit “Runaway Train”? What you might not realize is that they’ve been a going affair since the mid-80s, touring relentlessly up and down the states and that they’ve so far released some eleven albums including this one.
The sole remaining original member is singer, drummer & guitarist, Dave Pirner since the band’s co-founder, guitarist Dan Murphy retired in late 2012, and an early bassist died in 2005 of cancer. While I hadn’t checked a Soul Asylum album in years, I did check their previous “Delayed Reaction”, which seemed to me a bit more solid than this newest offering. See with Murphy gone, new guitarist Justin Sharbono, while he’s pretty good, hasn’t got quite the same chemistry and probably having the sole responsibility of songwriting falling on Pirner’s shoulders is probably a bit too much, resulting in overall softer songs that seem reminiscent of the band’s sound, but more diluted. A clear focus and direction seem to be missing, this is a pretty confused album with its moments…
“Can’t Help It” is a funky Zep inspired number, “Ladies Man” might be too wimpy, but sort of works and “Moonshine” is s-punkier in its rootsy swagger… obviously there are flukes of tracks too… ie the voco-effect ridden and almost dance like “make it real” that might have been OK, if it didn’t have all this “extra production” to try and make it “contemporary”.
I didn’t mind getting re-introduced to these weird, alt-also-rockers and I was surprised to see that they’ve been this active through the years… but obviously flying under the radar past their platinum 1992-5 heyday…
The sole remaining original member is singer, drummer & guitarist, Dave Pirner since the band’s co-founder, guitarist Dan Murphy retired in late 2012, and an early bassist died in 2005 of cancer. While I hadn’t checked a Soul Asylum album in years, I did check their previous “Delayed Reaction”, which seemed to me a bit more solid than this newest offering. See with Murphy gone, new guitarist Justin Sharbono, while he’s pretty good, hasn’t got quite the same chemistry and probably having the sole responsibility of songwriting falling on Pirner’s shoulders is probably a bit too much, resulting in overall softer songs that seem reminiscent of the band’s sound, but more diluted. A clear focus and direction seem to be missing, this is a pretty confused album with its moments…
“Can’t Help It” is a funky Zep inspired number, “Ladies Man” might be too wimpy, but sort of works and “Moonshine” is s-punkier in its rootsy swagger… obviously there are flukes of tracks too… ie the voco-effect ridden and almost dance like “make it real” that might have been OK, if it didn’t have all this “extra production” to try and make it “contemporary”.
I didn’t mind getting re-introduced to these weird, alt-also-rockers and I was surprised to see that they’ve been this active through the years… but obviously flying under the radar past their platinum 1992-5 heyday…