Orianthi
O
Frontiers Music s.r.l.
November 6, 2020
Album Review By JD Rich
Boston Rock Radio
Here we are, desperately clawing our way to the end of this dumpster fire of a year, and YES, there is a light guiding our way. After seven years of studio silence, a big welcome back goes out to Australian musical protégé Orianthi. This is the perfect way to plunge into National Inspirational Role Models month! Just take a little time to Wikipedia her and read up on her extensive professional resume. It’s way too long for me to delve into here, and I doubt I could do it any justice. However, I will share what can be found on Orianthi’s upcoming fourth release, simply titled O. Easy to remember.
For those of you who want a decisive category of what kind of Rock to put this under, I hate to break it to you: it’s not that simple. There is no one specific genre O can be neatly filed under. Throughout the 10-track collection, there is something that can fit into just about every format. Yes, there is some hard(ish) Rock stuff, but there are also tracks that could fit under the Top 40/Pop umbrella. Country/Rock hybrids can also be found. Hell, one or two tracks could feasibly slide into the modern definition of Country. Don’t get the wrong idea. It’s not that twangy, sappy, “oh-woe-is-me” type of stuff. There are empowering bites with touches of southern style. Another way to put it is to imagine if Pretty Reckless teamed up with Miranda Lambert, or if Carrie Underwood jumped behind the mic with Halestorm. Orianthi refuses to fit comfortably into any one category. Why should she? She has the chops, the experience, and the drive to do whatever the hell she wants. For that, I am grateful.
Multiple styles are touched upon with influences from her previous gigs with a jaw-dropping line-up of music legends. This makes O an intricate spider web of different arrangements and audio textures, guaranteed to delight established fans. Vocals are consistently smooth, from the effervescent “Contagious” to the Fleetwood Mac-like ballad “Crawling Out Of The Dark," with a little bluesy action added for good measure.
Orianthi takes us on her musical journey as she tells us stories we can relate to through our own experiences. Find your connection when O drops November 6th. My O my, what a great way to start kicking 2020 to the curb!
Keep up with Orianthi:
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter
Official Website
Line-up for the album:
Orianthi Panagaris (Guitars, Vocals, Programming)
Evan Frederiksen (Drums, Bass)
Marti Frederiksen (Percussion, Programming, Bass on Track 3)
