Many are the rock fans who still find the 44-year-old former frontman of grunge-era heroes Soundgarden pleasant to look at. But if you didn't think his Gen X take on Ronnie James Dio was goofy enough musically in that band, Chris Cornell undeniably has been morphing into Spinal Tap's David St. Hubbins ever since, starting with his misguided attempt to reinvent himself as Jeff Buckley on his solo bow "Euphoria Morning" (1999), continuing through his lame James Bond theme and the cover of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" on "Carry On" (2007), and building to his ill-fated stint fronting Audioslave.
Now comes "Scream," Cornell's third solo disc and an audacious bid to redefine himself, salvage his career and/or conquer whole new worlds with that histrionic four-octave wail. Worthy ambitions, perhaps. But this psychedelic dance record crafted by superstar R&B and hip-hop producer Timbaland, featuring tracks co-written with Justin Timberlake and Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic and boasting a cover image of the singer smashing a guitar (lest anyone miss the point) fails so miserably in every way, you'd swear it was some sort of postmodern parody, if only our hero wasn't infamous for having no discernible sense of humor or any ability to laugh at himself.
As Timbaland cements his sad decline from cutting-edge sonic genius to lazy purveyor of soulless, generic dance-pop full of cliché-ridden electronic grooves and pointlessly percolating synthesizers, Cornell layers electronic effects on his voice and spouts lyrics that, when they aren't merely inane ("I should've looked back some time alone," "I should have left that side of town a long time ago," etc.), often are downright offensive ("No, that bitch ain't a part of me," he sings again and again in the opening track presumably because, well, every hip-hop-flavored album has to have a few anti-woman tracks, right?).
"Pick it up, pick it up, watch out, now pick it up," goes the endlessly repeated and endlessly annoying chorus of the closing track, "Watch Out"; if only the words had been "Put it down, put it down, watch out, now put it down," we could at least commend the artist for warning listeners away from this mess. No such luck, however, so this review will have to suffice. (And I'm going with half a star versus none simply because of the slim possibility that this really is all a put-on; I know I laughed a lot more while listening to this disc than I have during any comedy I've seen in recent memory.)
Chins up, Jim. Maybe if you wait long enough the price of Whoppers will crash and grunge will make a comeback.
Chris Cornell covered Billie Jean on Carry On, not Beat It.
That said, as a long time fan, I am completely repulsed by this new turn he's taken.
But do you say "soulless" or "generic" when, say, Rihanna or T-Pain pick up the mic?
this review fails
another predictable derogatis review. more potato chips jim?
damn, dude -- hate much? this is 2009, not 1992 so get with it. would you prefer he was stagnant instead of trying something new? good lord. why not open your ears and mind and shut your piehole.
A gen x Dio?
Cornell wasn't influenced by Dio. His influences came from classic R&B and other rock singers such as Plant (who he didn't actually listen to until he was actually in Soundgarden).
Dio and Cornell have two completely different techniques and styles.
New is fine.. this is garbage. Heather 232323 if you like the new garbage you belong on an album review panel for walmart.
This review is either a troll or a joke.
Ill fated stint at Audioslave ? What are you smoking man ? He is one of the most talented rock vocalists in recent times. And my guess is you love Kelly Clarkson and the dummies on American Idol.
That being said, I do find his new album somewhat different in a bad way. But then I am not a huge fan of the Timbaland variety of pop.
The article is total crap. The man doesnt know what the hell he is talking about at all. Cornell is a freakin genius and Scream is proof of that. If you dont see the musical boundaries he has crosses, than you're a dumb ass.
Sorry Jim DeRogatison, I have no words to explain my anger on you and I have no respect for you at all.
Man, that was one harsh review. 1/2 a star?! Ok, I understand how people can hate CC's 'Scream' album, but to give it 1/2 a star is slightly... despicable. Show the man some respect.
And to bash his Soundgarden and Audioslave career is just unheard of. He is NOT a Dio ripoff, like Joe said, and I'm pretty sure many will agree that he was never "goofy", 'Euphoria Morning' was not a Buckley ripoff and his Bond theme was not "lame".
Have you ever heard the music you're writing about?
Come on, someone who compares Cornell with Dio and Buckley doesn't know anything about any of these guys.
Pretty late to the party here, but this review is a steaming puddle of ostentatious word-vomit. Sure, the album pales in comparison to his other work, there's no doubt about that. But the factual inaccuracies - Audioslave had long since been together and indeed imploded around the time Carry On was released, but I guess that would have interrupted the flow of witty banter - combined with the incessantly obnoxious low-blows, reek of a shallow attempt to flatter some misguided sense of cleverness on the author's part. It's also infuriating that this drivel is sourced on Wikipedia, which was no doubt the author's doing. Go masturbate in private, asshole.