Contrary to what the title may suggest, Bravo Johnson’s Come Taste The Sun has a melancholy vibe throughout. Though the release opens with “Spell,” a fairly cheery tune with charming guitars, from the first note of “Honda/Fonda” the listener can prepare themselves for a classic country lament with extra sadness.
The narrative that is “Magnolia” becomes a little difficult to understand at certain points when Rick Amurrio mumbles a bit, though the tune itself has more of an uplifting sound. The guitar solo at roughly the midpoint of the song compensates for the mumbling. Come Taste The Sun gets a classic rock kick with “EZ Chain.” The arrangement adds to emphasize the anger and frustration of being held down. The mood is changed slightly with “Ship.” Although the cut starts out with a slick guitar riff, the jam breaks into a smooth, Latin jazz-influenced piece, which stands out from the rest of the release.
Another song that stands out is “Sun Song.” The mellow ninth track starts a run of similar sounding pieces until the album ends. “Run” is the longest and most diverse sounding song on Come Taste The Sun. The dreamy piece sends the listener into another world for an instrumental break that lasts for a good chunk of the song before ending by repeating the word “run.” The jazzy “Something” and Americana-infused “Sway” impressed me as far as Ammurio’s vocal performance, both were strong as far as the delivery was concerned.
Come Taste The Sun blends Americana, Latin jazz, classic rock and the blues together providing a healthy dose of each to form the perfect stew of a Midwest sound from a band based in L.A.
In A Word: Doleful
