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Title: Ricky Fanté, "Rewind"
Review: Everything appears to be okay coming in. You have Ricky Fanté, a guy who can carry a tune over some throwback old soul record tracks. You have the lovely percussion and horn arrangements as well as some Motown-esque background singers. But something feels very wrong here. There isn't much substance. The lyrics themselves are as clichéd as they come (especially in 'I Let You Go': "I'm down on my knees/Begging you baaaaaby...") while Fanté's gritty voice sounds more annoying than nostalagic. Of course artists like D'Angelo, Bilal, Musiq and Donnie take a cue from soul legends like Stevie, Hathaway, and Otis Redding but without much above the surface, Fanté comes off as more of an imitator than a successor to a soul legend. If you're craving for real old-school-sounding soul in today's world of boring R&B, check out something like Al Green's recent album, "I Can't Stop", and accept no substitutes.
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