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IV
08/29/2003 7:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Dan Leroy
Seal's fourth album bears all the hallmarks of Lost Artist Syndrome, requiring five years, a change of continents, and one scrapped version to complete. Def Leppard, Scritti Politti, and music legend aside, work that involves such a lengthy and/or troubled genesis is seldom worth the fight. What makes IV different is the return to form of the singer's partnership with producer Trevor Horn. After an uneven third outing (1998's Human Being), the pair's pristine soul is breathtaking as ever, as Horn once again surrounds Seal's smoldering voice with arrangements that have orchestral intricacy and a jeweler's precision. The folk-into-futuristic R&B of "Loneliest Star" is classic Seal, and even dubious stylistic stretches--the reggae of "Where There's Gold," or the disco-fied "Get It Together"--are glossed over. Horn's work is so effective that it takes several listens before you notice how often Seal's songwriting depends on it. That trifles like "Touch" and the disturbingly banal musings ("Pray to God or something/Whatever you do") can be spun into pop symphonies is impressive, but Seal is far too talented to be just another client with weaknesses masked by Horn's Oz-like glory.
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