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Soul's Core
09/15/1998 3:00 AM, Yahoo! Music
Mike Lipton
The path that took Atlanta singer/ songwriter Shawn Mullins from a well-entrenched indie road warrior to the roster of Columbia Records is the stuff that, for decades, has caused teenagers to buy guitars, quit school, and hit the road. Less than six months ago, Mullins, who had locked in a regional following with boring, Indigo-influenced folk-pop, had his song "Lullaby" placed in regular rotation by a local radio station (a miracle in itself). Within minutes, major labels were hovering like so many sharks. Just as surprising as his quick signing and Columbia's speedy re-release of Soul's Core, is the dramatic change in Mullins's persona. Leading off with "Anchored In You," he has forsaken the wimp-rock and taken a few steps into white southern soul. It's a muscular, assertive tune, reminiscent of ex-Arc Angel Doyle Bramhall's 1996 Geffen debut--and packed with more cojones than a pair of Mullins's early CDs. "September In Seattle" is another soulful rocker with rangy female background vocals while "Soul Child" uses a Hammond to good effect. Beyond that, including that drum-looped, folk-trance of "Lullaby," things are more low key but there's a noticeable maturity in Mullins's voice and delivery. "Tannin Bed Song" offers welcome shades of darkness in the vein of Lucinda Williams or Richard Buckner. And even on the solo, half-spoken "Twin Rocks, Oregon," you can feel Mullins's strong presence. "Shimmer," recorded for the Columbia re-release, is one of the disc's strongest cuts lyrically and musically, a sign that Mullins is tough enough to hang with a full-on band and, more importantly, that he's hungry enough to keep growing.
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