Somera Sol＜Yellow Vinyl/限定盤＞

For those who thought that Brant Bjork may have used up all his cards with the 2005 double-disc set Saved by Magic, his follow-up set, 2007's single-disc Somera Sol, shows that there is never a shortage of '70s deja vu tunes for the man with the goatee and seemingly endless curls of hair. Once again, an album of groovy yet laid-back ditties comparable to the likes of Jimi Hendrix and El Chicano is offered up, and fans will notice the inclusion of "Ultimate Kickback," a track that Bjork has been playing live for several years but never got around to documenting in a studio until now. And like many artists who look to the '70s for inspiration, Bjork focuses on jam-heavy material at times, but unlike the others, it's not indulgent or meandering (to his credit), a case in point being the track "Oblivion." If artists such as Lenny Kravitz and the Black Crowes are at the top of the class for re-creating vintage '70s rock sounds, then Brant Bjork is certainly not far behind -- as evidenced by Somera Sol. ~ Greg Prato