|
"Tribe Of Judah" Gary Cherone |
|
Been a while since we've heard from Cherone. Certainly one of Rock's more poised of frontmen, Cherone's departure from the poorly received VH experiment, now four years ago, certainly wasn't through fault of his own. In fact the record had its moments, if examined from a purely musical perspective, but overall failed to carry the expected weight that a Van Halen should. And as things stand now, definitely a sad ending for one of the greats. Cherone's been keeping a low profile of late, but the once active singer finally arrives back on the scene with his Tribe Of Judah gathering and the eclectic "Exit Elvis" record. For those who remember the groundbreaking work he did with Extreme back in the day-and to remember that, one needs go considerably farther than hit radio-"Exit Elvis" should not make heads spin for not bowing to the old school. It is in fact a healthy serving of Hard Rock at the core, particularly early on, with various production elements in place to spice up its modern relevance, which, added to Cherone's already appreciable knack for envelope pushing, makes for an expectant yet intriguing listen. Expect no guitar Gods this go round but the playing is purposeful nonetheless; no anthemic bantering or make shift "More Than Words" medleys just because… And I'll quickly offer my thanks for resisting any potential call for an Extreme reunion during the downtime. Highlights here include the chunky "Left For Dead," fusion-duced and catchy "No One," the thunderous progression of first single "Thanks For Nothing," which chorally closely approximates a heavier Extreme track and lead choice along with either of the previous; "Celibate" is more production technique at play-sampling and so forth in what is among the larger of stylistic deviants with its electronic incandescence, which mindful of the performer, is a luxury he can afford and pulls it off well on one of the more radiant album tracks; And the effect gains in potency the further we go; Ditto on "Ambiguous Headdress" which again delves deeply into the electronic realm, heavy on the ambient effects-a skillfully presented departure into new age developments. Cherone's voice is the constant source of acknowledgement and strength, save for the handful of familiar heavy Rock tracks, he sounding in still fine form, and still the alternate Sammy Eddie V was looking for but obviously much less concerned with the there and then. "In My Dreams" comes away as one of the best cuts of this retreated cloth with a strong chorus and mutative drumbeats; And for song eight, all I can say is… funny! "Exit Elvis" is a departure from the past and after a few years it's good to hear Cherone back doing his own thing. He's embraced technology and on
his own opts for a new beginning and steps far and away from yesterday's
news. We're not hauling out the heavy artillery for the next dub war yet
but he's definitely stepping onto the cutting edge floor with what amounts
to an experienced experiment that's bold and not the least bit shy…
in fact "Exit Elvis," which much as it might hurt me and kill
others to hear me say it, is reminiscent in beat to VH's "Once,"
as the closing track, and is the most ambitious of the bunch yet with
little to do with twisting and tweaking but plenty of momentum shifts,
scaling, and chanting. Released by Spitfire Records. Review by Vinnie Apicella [va85@columbia.edu] P.O. Box 20252
|