Wilson, Ann & Tripsitter: Another Door

After a few little (in my opinion) false starts with her post Heart output - although maybe Heart are set to rise once more - Ann Wilson roared back into view with 2022’s rather excellent Fierce Bliss. Now, with co-billing with her band Tripsitter, one of rock’s most expressive voices returns, and this time offering us Another Door. Does that album name and cover suggest that when one door closes another opens, or that there are always options beyond the ones we initially see? Well, I’m not sure, but what it sure ain’t is an artist who some may have written off in recent times taking things easy. What else Another Door is, is an album written and produced solely by Tripsitter and Ann Wilson and as such, one way or another, a bold statement.

The song from which Tripsitter seemingly take their name opens the album’s account, lightly strummed guitars and metallic percussion laying out an enigmatic soundscape and one immediately owned by the jaw droppingly rich vocals from Wilson. Positively dripping with emotion and sincerity, what was an interesting beginning is made utterly vital by a voice that seems not to have aged a day in the last 30 or 40 years. “This Is Now� then takes up the mantle, the pacing noticeably easy going across the first two tracks, with the voice and clever arrangements holding centre stage even once a forceful beat whips up track two and propels it forward in ever so steady fashion. Just when you think you have a handle on what’s going on, the bold, near bombast of guitars that rush towards you in bluesy, heavy fashion on “Rain Of Hell� proves clever counterpoint, even if the main body of the song pulls things back in again.

Already different from anything you’ve heard Ann Wilson sing before, from there Another Door proves a constant stream of different ideas and approaches. “Stranger In A Strange Land� is almost adult pop like in it’s grown up positioning, while “Waiting For Magic�, quite amazingly - and convincingly - lands like a near power-pop punch, although the masterful vocals steer things back into more readily anticipated territory. With “Still� a near country-like lament and “Rusty Robots� a raucous growl of grungy gang busting, not only can Ann Wilson turn her vocal hand to pretty much anything, but alongside Tripsitter, this strange but welcome mix can land with real authority.

In a good way, Another Door is most definitely not the album most people will have been expecting from an artist who debuted some 54 years ago. Many could learn from the lessons unintentionally handed out here because this veteran of the hard rock scene never sounded more fresh or vital.

Track Listing
1. Tripsitter
2. This I Now
3. Rain Of Hell
4. Stranger In A Strange Land
5. Waiting For Magic
6. Ruler Of The Night
7. Still
8. Rusty Robots
9. What If
10. The Little Things
11. Miss One & Only

Added: October 20th 2023
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Ann Wilson online
Hits: 2162
Language: english

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