Cleopatra 2016
Capture The Sun
Revitalizing hard rock, sunset supermen stroll down the Strip with some swagger.
What started in 2014 as another congregation of legendary artists around an unknown one, Steph Honde, has entered its second phase. An album that adds modern touches to a classic palette of memorable riffs and robust hooks, “Capture The Sun” doesn’t adhere to a strict template, yet stellar guests reflect their host’s vision. It’s fleshed out most impressively on the title track, where Tony Franklin and Vinny Appice lock in for the tightest of grooves, and Jenny Haan and Darren Crisp’s vocals create a tremendous dynamic, while raga inflections of “It’s A Lie” are given a sway by Tim Bogert’s runs on the fret before glam gears get set in motion.
With Neil Murray‘s bass propelling “Evilution” to the speed of light and Tracy G’s six strings blitzing on it, energy levels are set high on this record to feed into Honde’s filigree delivery of tunes, but “Don’t Let It Happen” is unraveling into a minimalist dialogue between guitar and piano which stage a drama in “Dreams” to contrast the piece’s moving balladry. Brimming with details that may be hard to capture on the first spin of the record, there’s much to like here, albeit a cover of Bowie’s “Sweet Thing / Candidate” for a finale sounds like an anticlimax to an otherwise solid work. Yet the sun needs some gloom to shine brighter, so the vision behind the music is a bridge to a nice view.
***1/3
