It has taken
Joe Strummer
ten years to follow up on his first solo album,
Earthquake Weather
, with
Rock Art and the X-Ray Style
, and while the vocals and occasional moments in the music are identifiable as the work of a man who was once a singer, guitarist, and songwriter in
the Clash
, no one should purchase this album expecting to hear a direct extension of his old band.
Strummer
, who helped lead
beyond punk rock to a variety of rhythmic styles, has only expanded his range since, and
is an album of songs built on often exotic, funky beats, few of which rock very hard. Over those rhythm tracks,
sings highly poetic, apparently freely associative lyrics whose meanings usually seem to be either private to him or just not literal. Unfortunately, the vocals are high in the mix and the musical tracks are subservient to the lyrics (which are printed in the booklet) so that one is left to ponder what
is talking about. Coming back after a decade, even on an independent label, it might have been hoped that
would return to action with a more accessible effort than
, which is unlikely to re-establish him as a major force in popular music. ~ William Ruhlmann