When I got my hands on the promo for Orianthi’s last solo album O (2020) I decided it was time to check out her previous solo career, the one she had before she joined Alice Cooper’s band back in 2011. I knew it was all about Pop then but good Pop shall not be dismissed, right? What I heard was teen-pop aimed at main-stream radio, like the stuff artists like Hillary Duff, Miley Cyrus or that kind of thing. Not my thing at all. That said, she also had a really good album with RSO – Radio Free America (2018) – in her back pocket, an album she did with her then boyfriend Richie Sambora. Without being a bad album, O was a bit of a disappointment. The songs just wouldn’t stick with me. Now, after a pandemic and lock-down, she has written, recorded and released a new record and maybe this one could set the record straight. The RSO album proved that she really knows her way around writing some damn good songs.
The opening intro “Illuminate (Pt I)” is a prelude that holds soft keyboards below Orianthi’s guitar that brings on a slight Joe Satriani vibe which takes us into the single “Light It Up”, a riffy, foot-stomping groover that rocks quite hard with raw guitars and a rhythmic beat. It’s a driving rocker, live-friendly as damn with a chorus made for the stage with its intense catchiness. Good stuff. The straight forward “Fire Together” keeps the edginess up with crunchy guitars and a fat, tough rhythm. There’s a large chunk of pop-rock in the melodies here and the simple chorus is direct and distinct. That said, it’s not really my cup of tea as it leans a bit towards 90’s radio-pop melodically.
Another single, “Where Did Your Heart Go” is a slower, blues-inspired half-ballad. The verses are dark and mellow, quite sparse with a calming vibe and the chorus comes on just slightly more upbeat but still quite held-back with a prominent pop-twist that makes for a nice contrast to the song’s bluesy undertones. It’s an emotional and somewhat tear-jerking break up tune that really grabs a hold. Good one. “Red Light” comes on punchy and slammin’ with a hard-rocking grit and an almost punky attitude. There’s a metal-flirtatious riff that brings on heaviness and the chorus while taking a step back also goes on a heavier path. Another tune made for the stage. Good one.
“Void” starts out stripped down on a bass and drum groove with an almost danceable beat in a mid tempo pace. With whispering vocals and a trance twist the song contrasts with a raw and dirty chorus that holds some down-tuned, ominous guitars and highly distorted vocals. It’s an ok tune but a bit messy at times and I find it hard to embrace as it lacks memorability and a structured hook. “Burning” kicks off with a stompy verses that brings on a crunchy beat with some distorted electronica that gives the tune an industrial vibe. It’s a heavy piece with a bit of a mid 90’s feel to it. The chorus is raunchy and crunchy but also holds an really catchy pop-hook. Pretty good, this one.
“Living Is Like Dying Without You” is a smooth, saddening and chill acoustic ballad, stripped back, low-key and abstemious with a melancholic vocal-line. The vocal melodies are just drop-dead gorgeous and even though this is more a Pop song than anything else, it’s not glossy or slick. Very good indeed. On the opposite side we have “Witches & The Devil”, a heavy, hard, edgy, rough and dark metal-belter – very concise and direct that has an angry Orianthi giving us a fist in the gut. It’s quite a gloomy number and no problem there but unfortunately it lacks consistent melody-hooks and it just doesn’t linger.
“Getting To Me”, on the other hand, is more upbeat, direct and in-your-face, a quite ballsy track, very live-friendly with some catchy riffings and punchy rhythms. It’s a straight forward arena-rocker with a strong main-melody, sharp hooks and a catchy, right-on-the-spot refrain that really catches on. Good. The album ends just like it started, with an instrumental called “Illuminate (Pt II)”. It’s a bit more upbeat and more bombastic than the intro with a bigger keyboard sound, more glistening guitar soloing and some added strings. The guitar work here is really impressive.
It’s a short and concise record we get here with musical contrasts all over the place. While I really like an unpredictable album, this album suffers from the same thing the last one did – it sometimes feels like Orianthi really can’t choose which leg to stand upon musically and it gives the vibe of a compilation album – a bit incoherent. The record never gets bad and Orianthi is a very good guitarist and singer but on the other hand, the album really doesn’t contain any great songs either. Good ones, yes but no great ones. It’s just not memorable enough even though I don’t have any problem enjoying it while listening from time to time. A decent album, no more, no less.
5/10
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Tracklist:
1. Illuminate (Part I)
2. Light It Up
3. Fire Together
4. Where Did Your Heart Go
5. Red Light
6. Void
7. Burning
8. Living Is Like Dying Without You
9. Witches & The Devil
10. Getting To Me
11. Illuminate (Part II)
CD & Festival reviews 