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Herald Rating: * * *
Label: Fiction
Verdict: Former Stone Rose takes funk, soul, orchestra brother role.
It has been 18 years since the Stone Roses' landmark debut album was released and The World Is Yours is frontman and singer Ian Brown's fifth solo album since then. Though Brown is not the man he used to be, his slothful singing style and laid-back funkiness will still prime you for a shoegazing shuffle on the acid house dancefloor.
But he has matured and the most noticeable change are the lush orchestral arrangements. It is sprinkled with strings that vary from triumphant and stirring (on Illegal Attacks, a politically charged duet with Sinead O'Connor) to soppy and soothing (the reflective Goodbye to the Borken). There are surging breakdowns, that wouldn't be out of place on most modern-day R&B tunes, and the occasional flicker of psychedelic soul, with Brown's lackadaisical drone driving things along.
Lyrically it's a mixed bag: on Eternal Flame there are silly cliches like "beauty's only skin deep" but then over the staunch lope of Sister Rose he rants "I'm at war with all these posers and these frauds" with eloquent laziness.
Stone Roses fans will be intrigued, and for those who have stuck with Brown through his solo career, best summed up on the 2005 collection The Greatest, this will be something new.
