Soul SirkUS: World Play

Journeyman singer Jeff Scott Soto has worked with some impressive musicians over the years: Axel Rudi Pell, Yngwie Malmsteen, Marcel Jacob. So it only seems natural that he would team up with longtime Journey guitarist Neal Schon for a project that'll force listeners to hear both of the artists in a new dimension. Born out of the ashes of the much-publicized Planet US project, which originally featured Schon, Journey drummer Deen Castronovo, singer Sammy Hagar and Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony, Soul SirkUS evolved after Hagar and Anthony joined the Van Halen reunion tour. Soto replaced Hagar and veteran player Marco Mendoza (Ted Nugent and Whitesnake) replaced Anthony. The result: World Play, a record that will surprise you.

Granted, opener "Highest Ground" is a soaring melodic rocker that sounds like Journey with an edge, but "New Position" is full of revved-up, tongue-in-cheek sexual energy. "Soul Goes On" and "Periled Divide," on the other hand, are introspective mid-tempo songs from which younger bands could learn plenty, and "Friends 2 Lovers" happens to be one of those rare songs in which every line sounds like a chorus. Many of these tracks (all but one written, arranged and produced by Schon and Soto) are augmented by some of Schon's most aggressive playing. His fluid solos often meander into dark corners or work themselves into furious fits of rage, and the riffs to "Praise" and the album's lone Hagar/Schon composition "Peephole" might clear the room of soft-core Journey fans. Some of the songs on World Play sound like raw demos while others shine with more polish. All of them have bite, though, and Soul SirkUS creates the illusion that these guys have been playing together for a long, long time. One quibble: Soto might have been better off not aping Hagar's vocal histrionics or ex-Journey singer Steve Perry's milky voice on some tracks, but who really cares?

This is what American rock 'n' roll is all about, and World Play -- despite the hype -- sneaks in as a late entry in my Top 20 of 2004 list.

Track Listing:
1) Highest Ground
2) New Position
3) Another World
4) Soul Goes On
5) Peephole
6) Periled Divide
7) Praise
8) My Sanctuary
9) Friends 2 Lovers
10) Coming Home
11) Close the Door

Added: May 4th 2005
Reviewer: Michael Popke
Score:
Related Link: Official Soul SirkUS Web Site
Hits: 3805
Language: english

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