The younger expressions in Metal, Hard Rock and Rock ‘n’ Roll can sound hard to be swallowed by a great part of fans of Old School genres, but no one can deny when a band or musician is working on a higher level of quality, or when the result is something really good. Love it or hate it, one can’t deny if things are good or not, it’s a matter of maturity when one is able to do it. And to deal with “Higher Power”, the latest solo album of Scott Stapp, demands a lot of detachment of early opinions. The production was done by Marti Frederiksen and Scott Stevens, with co-production by Scott himself. The sonority of “Higher Power” is abrasive, modern and heavy, but always done with care to make things understandable, and as everyone can expect of Scott’s music, his level of exigency boosts things up to a high level. And the mixing of Chris Baseford and the mastering of Ted Jensen complete things up.

Musically, it’s not a sin to say that “Higher Power” fits on modern tendencies into Metal and Rock, but in a way that is different. Imagine if a band as SLIPKNOT or KILLSWITCH ENGAGE would play Hard Rock, or known acts as KANSAS and JOURNEY could play into a modern Metal tendency. Influences of Hard Rock, Country Rock (as heard on “When Love is Not Enough”), Rock, Metal and more is into the mix. And Scott has the presence of Steve McEwan on some credits, along with the guests musicians Dorothy (a Hard Rock star) on “If These Walls Could Talk”, and the guitar hero Yiannis Papadopoulos on the six strings on “What I Deserve” and “Quicksand”. Trying to speak straight: this album can go from introspective moments (as heard on “What I Deserve”) to frantic ones.

Known for his days as singer of CREED, and for his introspective and observational songwriting, Scott created a masterpiece with “Higher Power”, with all the songs being great. But for mere reference, “Higher Power” (a modern and weighty song filled with intense instrumental and excellent singing), “Deadman’s Trigger” (a song with modern groove filling the spaces and with many melodic hooks), “When Love is Not Enough” (plenty of introspective moments and excellent Country Rock chords), “What I Deserve” (a more melancholic and introspective moment, with excellent guitar arrangements and thunderous rhythms of bass guitar and drums, but what lovely chorus), “If These Walls Could Talk” (another deeper moment of the album, with excellent contrasts between the male and female vocals), “Black Butterfly” (another moment filled with groove and tons of weight), and… Well, the best is to hear and enjoy what’s offered on “Quicksand”, “You’re Not Alone”, “Dancing in the Rain”, and “Weight of the World” as well.

It’s clear that the fans will ask if “Higher Power” has resemblances with CREED or with ART OF ANARCHY. The answer is that works with Scott can have the same features, but here is a different whole new world.