Even though I know who Orianthi is, I must say I knew very little about her musical career. Orianthi Panagaris was born in Australia by Greek parents but moved to Los Angeles as an adult to pursuit a career in music. She was spotted by agents of one Michael Jackson while performing on stage with pop-country star Carrie Underwood and got to audition for Jackson’s then upcoming tour and got the gig. Unfortunately for her, Jackson passed away before the tour hit the ground. Better days were coming, though, as she got the gig as Alice Cooper’s guitarist in 2011, replacing Damon Johnson (Black Star Riders, Brother Cane), a gig she had up until 2014 when she left to start the band RSO with her then boyfriend Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi fame and the couple released an E.P – Rise – in 2017 and a damn good full-length album called Radio Free America in 2018. The couple are now split-up but are still friends. If there will be another RSO (Richie Sambora Orianthi) remains to be seen, though.
But Orianthi has always had a solo-career going as well. Her debut album Violet Journey was independently released in 2006 but was officially released in 2007 for the Australian market. Orianthi wrote, produced and played most of the instruments on that record. Geffen Records signed her the same year and marketed her as a pop-artist with the pop-charts and a teen-audience as the main-focus, she released her debut major album Believe which sported the hit-single “According To You”. Her last solo-effort came out in 2013 and was called Heaven In This Hell. None of her albums has exactly set the world on fire sales-wise, something she hope might change now that her solo-career – she was signed by Frontiers – is in main focus with no other projects lurking on the side.
The upbeat opener “Contagious” brings on some darker laden verses, a bit rough around the edges on a meaty foundation. Slightly blues-inspired and a driving rhythm the tune takes us into a striking and direct chorus with a juicy hook, somewhat reminiscent of the RSO album’s tougher parts. “Cause the hate is contagious”, she sings. Ain’t that the truth in this day and age. A really good song. The leading single pre-released to the album, “Sinners Hymn” kicks off with a distinct keyboard/guitar riff, a bit down-beat and darkening. The tune continues as heavy and tough and the beefy guitars goes right in your face with a chunky punch. Rhythmically headbang-friendly, the tune sends a muscular blues-rock solo our way and a distinct chorus that catches on right away. Good one.
“Rescue Me” begins with an acoustic guitar and a held-back arrangement, quite moody and a bit dark. It’s slow, rootsy and blues-rock fueled with a slightly soulful and when the chorus comes around the tune explodes into heaviness with a crispy crunch and for the rest of the tune, it alters between big, rough and heavy and softer passages which builds up a nice contrast. It’s a good song but nothing extraordinary. “Blow” is more alternative driven, quite laid-back but with a crunchy beat and a rougher groove. Again, the song gets more upbeat and heavy as it goes along and holds a punchy and direct main-melody but even though the refrain is quite striking with an almost poppy vibe it never lifts. Ok tune, though.
Latest single “Sorry” is stripped down yet big on synthesizers – and a synth-bass – and it also brings on a swinging, dance-beat, bringing on a dance-floor groove. The chorus is quite smooth and pop-laden with hooks all over the place, something that makes this tune perfect for mainstream media – this could very well become a radio-hit. An Eddie Van Halen flavored solo and a catchy chorus is well enough but the song just isn’t all that convincing. Not bad per se, though. “Crawling Out Of The Dark” is a stripped, slow and saddening ballad that holds both a crunchy guitar and some sombre synth-strings. It’s quite an emotional track with a bluesy and heartfelt solo with a tear-jerking chorus with enough hooks to stick well after first spin. A great tune and my favorite so far.
Second single “Impulsive” is a pumping, mid-paced, pretty straight forward rocker which lies on the noisy/messy side of the production here, something that makes it feel both unstructured and unfinished with a lack of hooky melodies and the chorus doesn’t catch on at all. Add that it’s both mellow and somewhat grungy which in turn makes it a weird choice as a single. A filler in my book. The Nikki Sixx co-write “Stream Of Consciousness” is a slow and heavy number with a pounding rhythm and some fat riffing all over. It’s groundy yet groove-laden in the verses but the refrain is effective, direct and ballsy, not hit-laden but still very catchy. It’s a powerful tune, a bit on the sleazier L.A. rock side from back when but quite raw and not very smooth or slick. I dig this one.
Going back to the alternative side, “Company” holds more gloomy and dark vibes and the synthesizers return on a larger scale – yes, a synth-bass is around here as well. It’s modern sounding with lots of programmed stuff but it gets more rowdy and rough where the chorus brings on some raw guitars. The vocal-melodies are pretty held-back and taciturn and they’re quite good but I’m not enamoured as they really don’t stick. While the groove-laden, closing track “Moonwalker” is slow and laid-back with a smooth main-melody, the tune is on the verge of balladry, it holds a juicy, blues-rock guitar sound and some immediate pop-hooks. The chorus catches on splendidly without going radio flirtatious or commercial. And no, according to Orianthi, it has nothing to do with Michael Jackson at all. A very good song.
Without any bad songs, I still must say that the record is somewhat disappointing, especially as I have the RSO album in the back of my mind. The album is uneven and it lacks direction – at times it feels like Orianthi hasn’t made up her mind where to go musically. Orianthi is a great guitar player and a very good singer, that’s not even under discussion and lots of the melodies and arrangements is reminiscent of her project with Richie Sambora but there are a few fillers too many here and the production isn’t direct enough and a bit too modern slick which takes away some of the crunch and power. That said, I do enjoy most of it and to chainsaw it is totally out of the question. It’s a good album, no more no less but I’m sure Orianthi has a better album in her.
6/10
Tracklist:
1. Contagious
2. Sinners Hymn
3. Rescue Me
4. Blow
5. Sorry
6. Crawling Out Of The Dark
7. Impulsive
8. Streams Of Consciousness
9. Company
10. Moonwalker
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