Posted on 12/15/2008
Raise your hand if you had Musiq Soulchild as the last neo-soulster standing in the coffee house pool. Without the vocal chops of Bilal, the instrumental dexterity of D’Angelo, or the conceptual vision of Maxwell, the stocky cat from Philly with the lazy eye carved out a stable niche by living within his means. Unburdened by the grandiose aspirations and expectations that crippled his more virtuosic peers, Musiq harnessed hummable melodies, soaring hooks and plain spoken sentimentality to keep a catchy tune on the radio for the better part of decade. His fifth offering promises to extend the string.

Onmyradio opens with a contrivance, the unnecessarily Auto-tuned “Backagain,” and ends in a train wreck with the ‘when keepin’ it crunk goes wrong’ title cut. But in between the incongruous bookends, Musiq hangs in his comfort zone and delivers the most consistent album since his debut. Like his past releases, Onmyradio is buoyed by a pair of obvious standouts that will eventually land on what will be a very stellar greatest hits disc. This time the honors go to “Until,” a hook-heavy mid-tempo burner that will keep the steppers on the floor through the last drop of holiday eggnog, and the lush, falsetto driven “Sobeautiful,” a soon to be Quiet Storm staple. Less characteristically, the album also contains a few stylistic deviations that pay dividends. The feel good vibes of the island inflected “Iwannabe,” featuring a jubilant Damian Marley are rewind worthy, while “Moneyright” a dynamic, 808 driven pop confection provides a welcome respite from the album’s primarily slow to mid-tempo grooves.

Musiq’s albums have never been quite bold or distinct enough to achieve timelessness, but they always seem to hit right on time. As hostile weather dictates more nights in, accessibly romantic R&B is a must in any CD changer, and Onmyradio packs more then enough heat to keep yours percolating.

- Jeff Harvey