New release solid effort

IN MY SOUL
Al Lukas
Dining Room Studios
6-out-of-10

In My Soul is Al Lukas' third album, but a first for this reviewer, and initially he caught my attention.

The Answer is the lead song here, and it's a solid guitar-based blues song. It left me with some high expectations for the disk.

Wild Child was the follow-up song and Lukas maintains a pretty steady approach to the blues.

Didn't Get Lost In Losing You is song three, and Lukas starts to slip. The song just doesn't match the level of the first two songs. Even the hook on this one comes across as boring, and Lukas delivers it like he knows the song isn't quite up to par. It sounds uninspired.

Lukas tries hard on It's Not Hard (It's Simple) to get the disk back on track, but he just doesn't manage it. The guitar work is all right. The lyrics and vocals don't match the guitar work though.

The trumpet opening, and work throughout, by James Langridge helps Wolf Like Me rise higher than the average on the disk. The lyrics are not deep, but they do suit Lukas' voice.

In My Soul is a slower piece, and again, solid. On many CDs it might not get mention, but here it stands out for Lukas.

The rest of the album continues the ebb and flow of the earlier part of the disk. It's a case where some songs dip below the average, while others step a bit above the average.

Overall, not a CD to be highly recommended by this ear though.

Check it out at www.lukasproductions.com

- CALVIN DANIELS

TO THE STARS WE'LL RETURN
Amy Cunnigham
Indie
7.5-out-of-10

Hailing from Brampton, Ont., Amy Cunningham offers up one of those CDs that really surprises.

The opening song is a bit country, although it has elements some will associate with pop, one of those strange-crossover songs created as both genres have expanded what they deem fits them.

Then Cunningham heads into Real, and it's wow, this gal knows bluegrass. It catches you off guard a bit, but darn it's a nicely done song.

Similar Soul is less bluegrass and more contemporary country, but it is performed with the emotion to make it the best of the 11-songs here.

Onelife moves back to a more country-crossover piece, although it is very well done.

Don't Say A Word is another slower-paced country classic in the making, pushing hard for a share of the accolades of being the best song on the disk.

At its heart this is a country CD, and Cunningham seems most comfortable with the songs which are most clearly pure country.

By contrast Saving Grace is less recognizable as country, and while Cunningham puts her heart into it, it doesn't quite come across as well as other cuts.

One thing which comes through on all the cuts is that this girl can sing. That said, Cunningham needs to give herself over fully to country, and maybe even bluegrass given a cut like We Are the Ones.

A new voice with a disk worth checking out at www.amycunninghammusic.com

- CALVIN DANIELS

Past reviews are archived online at http://calmardan.blogspot.com/