Winans Return CD

The frustrating truth about a lot of R&B and soul that's being made today is that everything tends to be so identi-kit that it's difficult to tell one label from another, one act from another. A soul act on Motown sounds like one on Epic sounds like one on Qwest -- all twinkling synthesizers, obnoxious drum machines doing the same programmed beats, all low smooth bass, all the same neatly arranged vocal harmonies. It's all very professional, all very formal, and one wonders, even with gospel acts like the Winans, whether there's any soul left after the gloss has leeched out the interesting wrinkles. It's a sad truth that most of the technology that's been developed since the introduction of MIDI has wound up backing up either R&B acts or new age performers. That major gripe aside, what about this new Winans album, Return? Well, it's a nice enough affair, despite the fact that they open the album with one of those mutant rap songs that's also meant to be a forceful number about it being time to stand up and be counted. After that it's a not-too-obnoxious mix of standard-sounding modern R&B and Isley-flavored ballads in which the floating harmonies of the Winans are a constant key. ...