Album Review: Smith/Kotzen - Smith/Kotzen

Some musicians are better when they have someone standing beside them who can either focus or edit their ideas into something better than it would be if they were on their own. Adrian Smith and Richie Kotzen wouldn't be the first combination of players I would put together, but it does make a bit of sense. Both of these guys need someone else to help them get across the finish line, and it seems they are serving that purpose for one another. Adrian's work outside of Iron Maiden has never been great, and Richie releases way too many bland songs that drown his great ones, so letting them bounce ideas off each other and only contribute their best half of an album, might just be the perfect blend.

I thought that immediately when I heard "Taking My Chances" the first time. Adrian gives us a heavy guitar riff with a hint of groove, the sort of thing that is awesome, but wouldn't with with either Iron Maiden or Bruce Dickinson's solo albums he was on. Kotzen throws in a trademark chorus, and it all adds up to a song that is heavy, catchy, and packed with some great guitar playing. That's the recipe for the whole album, and it sure as hell works.

We open with the three singles, which all showcase a different side of the project. After the aforementioned song, we get "Running", that has a dirty and gritty sound, and "Scars", which is a slower bluesy ballad loaded up with guitar solos. They take a time or two before they sink in, but then you realize these songs have legs.

What I love about this record is the shift it provides. Adrian gives Richie the heaviest album he's been on, and Richie gives Adrian more hooks than every before. It really is a case where two guys bring their strengths to the table, and they are complementary pieces that neither would bring on their own. The smooth chorus on "Some People" could easily have been one of the fifty songs on Richie's last album, but the stomping guitar riff is played with a heaviness that is something different for him. It is very much what I wanted to hear.

Another great aspect to the record is how not only do their voices blend together despite being unique, their guitars do the same thing. When they take their solos, it's easy to tell them apart, and hear how their own take on blues-rock leads them in different directions. Adrian has more soul, Richie has more pyrotechnics, and they justify the amount of lead guitar painted all over this album. The sound of this project is each of them doing their own thing and having it come together, not having them change who they are to unite around a single theme. It's a bit lucky to work out that way, but it's damn great.

I complain a lot about bands and projects that see famous names thrown together for no reason. So many of those are manufactured, and they make no excuses for the business nature of it. Smith and Kotzen's combination is natural, and came from the relationship between the two men. That makes all the difference, as this never sounds like an album thrown together to justify the pairing. This is music they made because they wanted to, and then happened to get released. We should be glad they did, because what they've given us is one of the best records I've heard so far this year.