Crowbar - Lifesblood For The Downtrodden (2005)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal

Label Number: CDL0158CD

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© 2005 Candlelight Records
AllMusic Review by Johnny Loftus
Crowbar stalled out after the 2001 LP Sonic Excess in Its Purest Form. Leader Kirk Windstein was dealing with Down, membership was in flux, and Crowbar's infamous label woes were a constant headache. But the long-running New Orleans sludge metal outfit wasn't going to go out like that, and Windstein started the resuscitation process in summer 2003. He tapped original drummer Craig Nunemacher, and Pantera vet Rex Brown offered to handle bass and production. Down II producer Warren Riker also signed on. The result is Lifesblood for the Downtrodden, a typically pummeling tribute to the Art of the Riff, but an album that also finds new methods of mayhem. Windstein's vocals never waver from a raging and vengeful wronged-soul growl. But his guitar work searches out tense melodies amidst the animalistic main riffs, and Nunemacher and Brown are relentlessly rhythmic without sacrificing dynamics. "Slave No More"'s slight shifts of time signature are incredible, increasing the song's power while highlighting its pained chorus. "Coming Down" suggests the Deftones, "Fall Back to Zero" shuttles between a swirling limbo of sorrow and an explosively percussive chorus, and "Dead Sun" alters the tempos yet again behind one of the album's most ferocious Windstein riffs. (The guitar line, roughly tabbed: "Da-na-da-na-DA-naah-[space]-da-deh-deh-deh-deh....") Lifesblood isn't an album to change minds about Crowbar. It spits out chunks of sludgy metal with plain and simple intent, just like all the band's records have. It gives Windstein the room and the reason to scream oaths like "I got a call to rule the underworld -- that passion burns in me" and "Dirt underneath me but light up above/Destroy what's in your way and never lose love for yourself." It's Crowbar's return to recording, and fans will love it.

tags: crowbar, lifesblood for the downtrodden, 2005, flac,

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Crowbar - Sever The Wicked Hand (2011)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal

Label Number: EOM-CD-2336

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© 2011 eOne
AllMusic Review by Eduardo Rivadavia
Given Kirk Windstein's busy schedule as a member of the highly successful Down and persistent reports about his struggles with alcohol abuse, the prospects of his original band, Crowbar, ever releasing another album looked relatively grim during the second half of the 2000s. But after finding a new record label (eOne Entertainment) and new management (with friend and Hatebreed frontman Jamey Jasta), and cleaning up his act, a sober Windstein was actually ready to attempt a comeback by the time 2010 rolled around. And before you knew it, Crowbar's ninth studio album, Sever the Wicked Hand, was arriving in stores on February 8, 2011 -- precisely six years to the day since the group's dispirited eighth effort, Lifesblood for the Downtrodden -- and one can earnestly say the wait was worth it. Not that anything has changed cosmetically speaking about Windstein's patented NOLA-style sludge; no great revelations or revolutions are in store here, but his spirit and inspiration have clearly been revitalized, and the end results amount to a quintessential Crowbar album. Whether showing unexpected bursts of speed (the title track, "The Cemetery Angels," etc.), slowing things down to a near standstill ("Liquid Sky and Cold Black Earth," "Symbiosis"), or marching to massive grooves somewhere in between ("Isolation [Desperation]," "As I Become One," etc.), Windstein's riffs are consistently twisted into gloriously misshapen form, just like in the days of old. They're also at their titanic, messianic best when interlaced with woeful melodies that give his tormented howls the poignancy needed to sustain his pleas for absolution on the stunning "Let Me Mourn" and "Echo an Eternity." All of which brings Crowbar and their rehabilitated leader back full circle, in a sense, to the place they started from -- philosophically speaking -- all of 20 years prior, with Sever the Wicked Hand one of the strongest efforts of their career.

tags: crowbar, sever the wicked hand, 2011, flac,

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Crowbar - Symmetry In Black (2014)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal

Label Number: EOM-CD-9386

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© 2014 eOne
AllMusic Review by Gregory Heaney
In a genre as prone to flights of fancy as heavy metal, Crowbar have always felt like a grounding presence, anchored to reality with their seemingly impossible heaviness. Keeping up their good works, the New Orleans sludge metal masters return with their tenth album, Symmetry in Black, an exercise in consistency that proves the band is still up to the task after 25 years of brooding sonic devastation. The album finds the band shifting gears from the pummeling assault of 2011's excellent Sever the Wicked Hand to something slower (though with Crowbar that's a fairly relative term). Some things haven't changed, however, namely the powerful playing and singing of Kirk Windstein, whose anguished bellows and penchant for lumbering riffs continue to act as Crowbar's bellwether. While this consistency has been key to their longevity, what really makes Crowbar special is their relatability. When other bands are off telling tales of demons and black rituals, Windstein and company take on earthly woes like addiction and fearing our own mortality. Despite their delivery over a brooding, glacially paced riff, lines like "Reject the thought of losing what is mine/Ascend above your own demise," from "Reflection of Deceit," feel like they're meant to empower listeners rather than bring them down. Symmetry in Black is an album that shows us we don't have to waste our time fighting imaginary enemies, because the real world is plenty full of darkness that, much like Crowbar themselves, is always there.

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Shadows Fall - Somber Eyes To The Sky (1997)

*U.S. pressing. 

Contains 10 tracks total.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Death Metal
Style: Melodic Death Metal
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© 1997 Lifeless Records
Reviewed by Ultimate-Guitar.com

Sound — 10:  This is Shadows Fall heaviest album ever created, and the sound has some uniqueness of Metal music. The style blends in with american death metal, old-school thrash metal, and Gothenburg metal (Swedish melodic death metal), which creates something new which makes the music both brutal and melodic, also this is one of the heaviest metal combination I ever heard. the two guitarist Matt Bachand and Jon Dionais creates the crushing metallic guitar riff with lots intensity and brutality makes sound crunchy and heavy, and the melodicness also flows well. The drumming is like very fast and sometimes the drumming use blast beats. 01. Revel In My Loss - a good song with a cool intro, then goes into a fast heavy riffing and some parts remind me of Morbid Angel and Death style, espcially the ending, but the bridge is slow and melodic. 02. Pure - this is also good, with a cool intro and stuff, this song is very long and the songs is based on melodic death metal with brutal touch, the solo in this is sick. 03. Lead Me Home - very nice acoustic intrusmental song Similar and the nice emotional solo flows well with it. 04. To Ashes - a good and long song, but gets a little to boring, because it's kind of like traditional melodic death metal of Dark Tranquility, I'm not a big fan Dark Tranquility. The riff is mostly Melodic and acoustic parts with both harsh and clean singing, but I like the harsh chorus along with a thrashy riff. 05. Nurture - this is a killer death metal song, with a wicked sick riff and a very harsh growling and screaming vocals it's fits into the style what they are doing. The solo is great, it's a fast shredding solo. 06. Fleshold - a decent song not the type of song that they should make, well I just hate Labonte clean singing and it does kind of sound dull like most vocals sounding in the Of One Blood, the harsh vocals is good and the heart pounding breakdown and the riff will just suit it. 07. Eternal - an awesome song in this album, this is a death metal song, it's very brutal, intense, and fast The guitar work is totally death metal, it's heavy as you think. Matt Bachand doing the background vocals in this sound, and also Jon Donais adds some screaming into, also Phil fills the vocal works in, like He did a very nice low death growling in the chorus. 08. Suffer The Season - another awesome song, this is another death metal songs they make really well I love the guitar work it obviously sounds death metal because it is also heavy as you think I mean it's brutal, and Matt Bachand did a excellent job doing the backup vocals especially in the bridge, his very low death growl blow me away, at the end of the song is a killer, very fast intense riffing along side Matt - death growling, Jon - screaming, Phil - growling really fast. 09. Somber Angel - this song is a amazing long song, starts out with nice acoustic intro then the goes wicked fast, it's starts a little bit of clean singing then it jumps into a brutal death metal riffage with all 3 vocals doing death growling and screaming, man this songs shows a lot of intensity and brutality, the bridge is very sick as with the crushing riff with a very crunchy death metal sounding along side with Matt Bachand doing the very low Death Growling, Jon Donais doing the old-school death metal screaming, then after it goes to a clean singing, then a nice beautiful fast shredding solo, then it goes back that crushing death metal riff again with Matt and Jon doing the vocals. 10. Lifeless - a good sound pretty melodic and brutal, but the bridge is like really stomping riff, then comes the nice solo coming along with it.
 
Lyrics — 10

The lyrics very long, and it was written in many desciptive words and poetry. The vocals styles are various in many ways, it's both harsh and clean but it's mostly sung in a very harsh vocals. Matt Bachand does a very low death growl and sometimes goes to midrange style of death growling. Jon Donais does the old school death metal screaming/growling style. Phil Labonte of All That Remains was the main vocals that time before he was replace by Brian Fair in late 2000, his vocals was harsh with growling and screaming, and it sounds similar to Randy Blythe of Lamb Of Gods vocals.
 
Overall Impression — 10

If you like death metal and thrash metal, I strongly recommend this album. This Shadows Fall most impressive album ever made, my songs on The album are Somber Angel, Suffer The Season, Nurture and Eternal. When I heard this album it blew me away completely it reminded some bands I heard like Suffocation, Immolation, Perpetual Doom, Cannible Corpse, Lamb of God, Hate Eternal, Vital Remains, Morbid Angel, Slayer, At The Gates, Soilwork, and a lot more bands.

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Shadows Fall - Of One Blood (2000)

*U.S. first pressing. 

Contains 10 tracks total.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Death Metal
Style: Melodic Death Metal
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© 2000 Century Media
AllMusic Review by Anthony Tognazzini
While Shadows Fall perfected their ferocious, technically sharp brand of death metal on later albums like 2006’s FALLOUT FROM THE WAR and 2007’s THREADS OF LIFE, OF ONE BLOOD establishes the blueprint on which the group’s later successes are based. On cuts like “Pain Glass Vision” and “Root Bound Apollo,” listeners will hear Shadows Fall’s unique blend of thrash backbone, progressive metal precision, and classic metal influences (the dual guitar attack on many tracks recalls Iron Maiden or Judas Priest). Yet the double bass drum pummeling and the alternately growled and yelled vocals attest to Shadows Fall’s place (and subsequent rise) in contemporary metal.

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Shadows Fall - The Art of Balance (2002)

*U.S. first pressing. 

Contains 11 tracks total.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Metalcore
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© 2002 Century Media
AllMusic Review by Andy Hinds
In The Art of Balance, Shadows Fall has created a modern heavy metal album that is both brutal and highly musical, traditional yet forward-thinking. Songs like the complex "Stepping Outside the Circle" demonstrate not only crushing heaviness, but an impressive grasp on dynamics, melody, and arrangement. Brian Fair's vocals oscillate from articulate melodicism to sheer, throat-tearing menace, while Jonathan Donais' guitar work combines pounding, metallic crunch with careful virtuosity. Amidst the full-throttle rockers that make up the bulk of the album are a couple of short instrumentals ("Casting Shade," "Prelude to Disaster") that offer a few well-placed moments of quiet atmosphere. The cover of Pink Floyd's "Welcome to the Machine," placed at the end of the disc, is stylishly well-executed, but seems a tad out of place nonetheless.

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Loud Lucy - Breathe (1995) ☠

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Post Grunge
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☠: Selected by Lass

© 1995 DGC
AllMusic Review by Tracy Frey
In the mid-'90s, major labels scrambled to sign alternative bands in Chicago in hopes of finding the next big thing. However, most of the bands signed during this frenzy fizzled out after only one or two albums. Loud Lucy was one of those bands. Known more for their connections with other bands, such as Alanis Morissette and Veruca Salt, than for their talent, Loud Lucy released their only major-label album, Breathe, in 1995. Comprised mostly of three-minute songs, Breathe features the band's bland guitar-driven alternative pop. Each song is built around a repetitive guitar riff and has lyrics describing relationship troubles, which singer/guitarist Christian Lane hoarsely delivers. Although the album is mediocre, one of its catchier songs, "Ticking," enjoyed modest success with both MTV and radio airplay

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Kingdom of Sorrow - Behind The Blackest Tears (2010)

*U.S. standard pressing. 

Contains 12 tracks total.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal
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© 2010 Relapse Records
AllMusic Review by Greg Prato
As evidenced by the amount of touring and albums that Crowbar's Kirk Windstein and Hatebreed's Jamey Jasta have each individually racked up over the years, it would be completely understandable if both gentlemen decided to take a breather during off-time from their full-time gigs. Not a chance. 2010 saw the sophomore effort of their ongoing collaboration, Kingdom of Sorrow, titled Behind The Blackest Tears. And like their self-titled debut effort two years earlier, it sounds just like you think it would -- Jasta's hardcore drill sergeant barking doing battle head-on with Windstein's brutal/sludgy guitar riffage. It's certainly not pretty -- but that's the whole point. In an era when more and more metal bands are softening their sound or experimenting, you have to respect Kingdom of Sorrow's commitment to 100-percent pure, unadulterated metal. Forget about toe-tapping tunes here -- what you get is a non-stop flurry of grinding metal, especially on such tracks as "Enlightened to Extinction," "God's Law in the Devil's Land," and the title track. Even when the group attempts to slow things down for a tad (namely the track "From Heroes to Dust"), it's only a matter of time until the gears shift back to a metallic roar. They may not be breaking a whole lot of new metallic ground, but it's always reassuring to know exactly what you're going to get from Windstein and Jasta when their schedules coincide.

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Kingdom of Sorrow - Kingdom of Sorrow (2008)

*U.S. standard pressing. 

Contains 11 tracks total.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal
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© 2008 Relapse Records
AllMusic Review by Greg Prato
That Jamey Jasta is one busy gentleman. In addition to all his other projects (Hatebreed, running Stillborn Records, and up until recently, hosting Headbangers Ball, etc.) in 2008, he somehow found the time to unveil his latest musical venture, Kingdom of Sorrow, which turns out to be a collaboration with Crowbar/Down riffmeister Kirk Windstein. The group's self-titled debut is equal parts hardcore metal (the vocals) and sludge metal (the music), as evidenced by such pummeling, heavy-duty tracks as "Grieve a Lifetime," "Lead into Demise," and "Begging for the Truth." Consistently midtempo and burning with rage, Kingdom of Sorrow doesn't present very many musical surprises, but fans of Hatebreed, Crowbar, and Down should find it all very appealing.

tags: kingdom of sorrow, kingdom of sorrow album, 2008, flac,

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Crowbar - Odd Fellows Rest (1999 Re-release)

*Re-released in 1999 by Spitfire Records. 

This pressing contains the bonus track 

"Remember Tomorrow" and 13 tracks total.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal

Label Number: 6-70211-5005-2

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© 1998-1999 Spitfire Records
AllMusic Review by Jason Ankeny
Despite the change in labels, Crowbar's fifth album differs only imperceptibly from past releases -- Odd Fellows Rest is as thick and slow as molasses, with titles like "...And Suffer as One," "December's Spawn" and "Behind the Black Horizon" clear tip-offs that the group takes itself way too seriously.

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Crowbar - Equilibrium (2000)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal

Label Number: 5016-2

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© 2000 Spitfire Records
AllMusic Review by Steve Huey
Equilibrium is a typically heavy, slow, doomy album from Crowbar, breaking in new drummer Sid Montz (the band's third). It's also a good one, featuring just the right balance between melody and the band's signature, sludgy instrumental attack. There are a couple of novel touches as well: "To Touch the Hand of God" is a haunting dirge arranged only for piano and harmonized vocals, and the band also borrows a page from the Type O Negative book, covering a '70s pop chestnut in gothic-doom fashion (in this case, Gary Wright's "Dream Weaver," which is actually pretty effective in spite of the inherent irony, thanks to the haze of desperation imparted by Crowbar's trademark style). Still, this release doesn't radically reinvent the band's sound; rather, it's another solid example thereof, and a worthy addition to the band's discography.

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Stillborn - The Permanent Solution (1991)

Country: Sweden
Language: English
Genre: Doom Metal, Heavy Metal
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© 1991 Century Media
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

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Crowbar - Obedience Thru Suffering (1991) ☠

*U.S. first pressing. 

Contains 10 tracks total

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal

Label Number: 89802-2

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☠: Selected by Buccaneer

© 1991 Grind Core
AllMusic Review by Bradley Torreano
After a decade of metal where speed and fury were emphasized, Crowbar stepped into the '90s with a sound directly reacting to those ideas. Equally influenced by the robotic approach of Helmet, the razor sharp riffing of Exhorder, and the brutally slow pacing of Melvins, Obedience Thru Suffering shows a band who is not afraid to stand out with a bizarre mix of influences. The production is the roughest part of the album, robbing the riffs of their punch, bringing the bass too high into the mix, and attempting to pass the band off as a Tad-esque grunge group. But the songwriting overcomes many of the weaker moments, as tracks like "Subversion" unveil a warped take on the Sabbath sound that would later gain the nickname sludge metal. The incredible roar of Kirk Windstein doesn't hurt matters any, as his brutal vocals are one of the key elements to the record. They would follow this up with a more impressive effort and continue a successful career into the decade, but this is where the group introduced the first true recording of the Louisiana sound. Fans will want to hunt this down, and any follower of Louisiana metal would do themselves a favor by giving this a listen -- it is one of the key releases in the formation of that scene.

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Crowbar - Crowbar (1993) ☠

*U.S. first pressing. 

Contains 10 tracks total.

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal

Label Number: 72445-15000-2

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☠: Selected by Buccaneer

© 1993 Pavement Music
AllMusic Review by Vincent Jeffries
Bands as one-dimensional as Crowbar usually don't deserve much recommendation, but when stylistic imperatives are mastered so thoroughly, even the most single-minded deserve credit and respect. Crowbar will never get any credit for subtlety or diversity, yet they are one of heavy music's most obscure and delightful gems. Purity has its value, and New Orleans' all-time sludgiest exports have plenty of it on display within each of their recordings, and this eponymous second full-length from the group is no exception. Released in 1993, Crowbar features a lineup of Kirk Windstein on guitars and vocals, Craig Nunemacher on drums, Matt Thomas on guitar, and bassist Todd Strange. It's hard to pick any superior songs from the track list, as each is nearly identical in its dirge-riff absolutism and lyrical negativity. They're all completely uncompromising and catchy in a slowed-down Black Sabbath-meets-Melvins-meets-Pantera kind of way. Crowbar isn't for everybody, but fans of the band or listeners fond of anything that values heaviness above all else will enjoy this solid offering

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Crowbar - Time Heals Nothing (1995)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal

Label Number: 72445-15007-2

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© 1995 Pavement Music
AllMusic Review by Vincent Jeffries
Crowbar was never afraid to share their pain, and Time Heals Nothing exemplifies the New Orleans doom purveyor's well-practiced aching out loud. The final recording before a series of lineup changes and side projects tested the band's focus, this disc might qualify as the sludge rocker's most punishing collection. Songs like "Through a Wall of Tears" typify the depressing, densely textured morass that the group's small but loyal following spent almost a decade wallowing in. Time Heals Nothing's ten tracks could possibly sound nondistinct to new listeners. Patient fans, however, are rewarded by Crowbar's uniquely catchy tunes after repeated listening. The interesting melodies that emerge from singer/guitarists Kirk Windstein's damaged vocal chords are surprisingly hummable. Pulling double-duty, Windstein (along with co-guitarist Matt Thomas) crafts the thickest of sludge-guitar grooves that nicely complement the vocals and Craig Nunemacher's solid drumming. Bitter howling and the thickest of slow-metal riffing combine to make this 1995 Zoo release as powerful as any of the band's attempts at sour self-evisceration.

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Crowbar - Broken Glass (1996) ☠

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: Sludge Metal

Label Number: 76962-32236-2

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☠: Selected by Buccaneer

© 1996 Pavement Music
AllMusic Review by Steve Huey
Broken Glass finds Crowbar stirring a bit more experimentalist noise rock into their cauldron of doom-laden, grungy dirges. The songs flow into one another like molten metal, balancing punishing atonality with thunderous guitar riffs that help keep things structured. The result is one of the group's best albums, as challenging as it is pummeling.

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Bachelor Girl - Waiting For The Day (1998)

*Australian first pressing. 

Contains 15 tracks total.

Country: Australia
Genre: Pop Rock

Label Number: GOTH99032
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© 1998 Gotham
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

tags: bachelor girl, waiting for the day, 1998, flac,

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Bachelor Girl - Dysfunctional (2002)

Country: Australia
Genre: Pop Rock

Label Number: GOTH02062
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© 2002 Gotham
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

tags: bachelor girl, dysfunctional, 2002, flac,

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Blasphemy - Fallen Angel of Doom (1990)

*U.S. first pressing. 

Contains 9 tracks total.

Country: Canada
Language: English
Genre: Black Metal
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© 1990 Wild Rags Records
Review by Matt Butler for Echos & Dust.com
Way back in 1990 I used to while away my time listening to Pop Will Eat Itself, Jane’s Addiction and the final throes of The Ramones. My only window into heavy music was through a friend of my brother’s named Colin, who would delight in sneaking into our house (not nearly as creepy as it sounds) and waking us up with the likes of Slayer’s Reign in Blood at ear-damaging volume.
The odds are high he’d have had Blasphemy‘s savage début, Fallen Angel of Doom…. when it first came out in 1990. If he didn’t, it wouldn’t have been through any lack of trying.
Because this, apparently a massive influence on black metal as we know it, is nothing like anything that was around back then. Sure, Seasons in the Abyss from Slayer and Cannibal Corpse’s Eaten Back to Life were both released that year, but compared to Fallen Angel…, they sound like the Backstreet Boys – whose biggest album was also released then, in case you are wondering.
And anybody who bought this album in the year of its spawning would have spent the next couple of decades disappointed that very little surpasses it in terms of sheer evilness or heaviness, not to mention scary amateurism. In this cosseted 21st century bubble we live in, Fallen Angel… sounds more like a demo tape from a death metal band that can’t play very well, rather than what we’ve come to call
It’s full of blast beats, death roars (and plain angry ones), skin-shredding, all-fingers-and-thumbs guitar solos – the sort that you’d thrash out when handed a Flying V and a Marshall stack if you couldn’t play a note – and also boasts the occasional neck-wrecking, riff-filled breakdown. And it all sounds as if it was recorded in a brimstone cave. By a person with no knowledge of how music is supposed to sound.
There is nothing to be gained by looking deeply at each song – they are uniformly offensive. I swear that sometimes the vocalist actually utters “yuck”. Or at least “yeuurgh”.
So why are we reviewing it now? By rights, this album should have been locked up: it’s raw, it’s angry (about something, although song titles like ‘Hoarding of Evil Vengeance’, ‘Desecration’ and ‘Weltering in Blood’ suggest their fury wasn’t focused) and at times it sounds bloody awful.
But for all that, it’s awesome. And apart from anything else, it served as a huge influence on metalheads of an extreme persuasion, so it deserves to be heard by anyone too sheltered or young to have enjoyed – no, that’s the wrong word – experienced it the first time around. Yes, this album may have given rise to the occasional guitar-wielding pyromaniac, but then again, once upon a time Elvis Presley was accused of corrupting minds.
And, in this age of post, blackened, doomed, math, god-knows-what metal, it’s good to hear a source of all that music which is just plain furious. And now that it’s being re-released, on vinyl, CD and cassette, on a label headed by R Förster of fellow Canadian black metal merchants Conqueror, you have no excuse not to hear this relic.
Put it this way: despite (or maybe because of) its teenage anger and sonic limitations, I can’t stop listening to it. Wish I’d heard it in 1990.

tags: blasphemy, fallen angel of doom, 1990, flac,

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Nemesis - The Day of Retribution (1984)

*U.K. first pressing on CD. 

Contains 7 tracks total.

Country: Sweden
Language: English
Genre: Doom Metal
Style: Epic Doom
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© 1984-1990 Active Records
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Sharon Benson - Sharon Benson (1994) ☠

Country: United Kingdom
Genre: R&B

Label Number: LEAP 001 CD

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☠: Selected by Lass

© 1994 Leap of Faith Records
*No professional reviews are available for this release.

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Anita Baker - Rhythm of Love (1994)

Country: U.S.A.
Genre: R&B, Soul

Label Number: 61555-2

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© 1994 Elektra
AllMusic Review by Alex Henderson
As the 1990s progressed, Anita Baker was sounding more and more contrived. One hoped that someone with so appealing a voice would challenge herself and try something different -- perhaps recording more standards or exploring straight-ahead jazz (which she's obviously quite capable of doing). But instead of gambling with inspiration and risking a decline in sales, Baker tends to play it safe and offers a disc that often sounds like formula at work. Though Rhythm of Love is a generally decent album and even contains a few gems (including the dusky "Wrong Man," the torchy "Sometimes I Wonder Why," and heartfelt interpretations of "My Funny Valentine" and "The Look of Love"), Baker is capable of a lot more. The diva gives the impression that she desperately needs to follow Natalie Cole's lead and get away from catering to radio.

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