Richie Kotzen | 24 Hours

Tweet

by Alissa Ordabai
Staff Writer —

There was a time when Richie Kotzen was a teenage prodigy, and his strutting self-confidence spoke volumes of his natural musical gift, the hard work behind his astounding chops, and his youthful inexperience in exploring his inner realities. There was also a time in his later years when raw emotion took over, seeping entire albums in a disquieting, deeply personal heartache, making music a channel for exorcising personal demons.

A complex creative journey with its triumphs, detours, revelations, setbacks, and discoveries has now produced a new release. Brilliantly – and intriguingly – the new album portrays Kotzen in perfect inner equilibrium and in a stridently good mood which surfaces so vibrantly perhaps for the first time since his 1994 gem Mother Head’s Family Reunion.

Kotzen’s most self-assured album to date – and effortlessly so – 24 Hours is a seamless combination of deep-running emotion, an expanded vocal technique, and a newly discovered way of combining formidable virtuoso chops with non-obsessively vivid songwriting.

The opener’s dizzyfying guitar fireworks at first nearly knock you out, but turn out to be a deceptive introduction, as tracks that follow are less about the technique and more about the songs and nuanced, surprisingly versatile singing.

Hypnotic, bitter-sweet hooks such as on standouts “Get It On” and “Bad Situation” show Kotzen making a new emphasis on diversifying his songwriting. He is also mining more classic rock styles than ever before with such unexpected highlights as the eerily quirky synth solo on “OMG (What’s Your Name?)” – an inspired pay-off to ’70s prog which wouldn’t sound out of place on some of the best albums by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band.

Add to this the high-voltage, stratosphere-bound guitar solo on “Love is Bind” which tips the hat both to Hendrix and to the 60s West Coast psychedelia, and vocal parts on “Bad Situation” which nod to Emotional Rescue-era Mick Jagger, and you see that a bolder, more experimental take on production, songwriting and ways to entertain your listener have been just some of Kotzen’s priorities this time around.

Kotzen’s old penchant for funk and soul is, naturally, also there. But the interpretations he gives to the styles of his childhood do not define him, no matter how often he goes back to the end of ’60s and ’70s vibe. It is his own vision, his unique approach to the guitar and his singing that make his music instantly recognizable, even when he is using an odd old standard as a songwriting prop.

And while on this album Kotzen’s view on human condition remains far from rosy, he treats his fans to a mature, elegant, unexpectedly unified and even-handed album full of instrumental gems, gorgeous melodies, bouncy grooves and – as ever – moments that make you feel that we are all blessed and doomed at the same time. The album is a brilliant new stretch of a creative journey which proves that sincerity, perseverance and willingness to experiment always pay off, and are – in fact – the only way to continue growing as a musician.

Featuring:
August Kotzen
Jerry Cantrell

Track listing:
1. 24 Hours
2. Help Me
3. OMG (What’s Your Name?)
4. Get It On
5. Love is Blind
6. Stop Me
7. Bad Situation
8. Don’t Know Why
9. Tell Me That It’s Easy
10. Twist of Fate

Label: Headroom Inc.

Online: www.richiekotzen.com

Hardrock Haven rating: 8/10