Silk & Steel heralded a dramatic change in
Chi Coltrane's style -- there's not a trace of the syrupy sweetness of
Road to Tomorrow. In fact, this is the sound of an artist who's fed up and doesn't care who knows it. During the course of eight hard-edged rock songs, she bemoans the demands of touring and travel ("Jet Lag"), being messed about by love interests ("Goin' Round"), and the constraints of relationships ("Anymore"). None of this makes
Silk & Steel a disappointment -- it's a fairly solid effort. What does let it down is a noticeable decline in
Coltrane's melodic skills, and a coarsening of her vocal cords -- she sounds raspy and hoarse. At the center of the album is"Don't Forget the Queen," a "Bohemian Rhapsody" rip-off, complete with mock-operatic backing vocals, and a grandiloquent guitar solo. It's a relief to say that "Leaving It All Behind" and "Blinded by Love" both recall
Coltrane's stronger '70s work, and bring
Silk & Steel some semblance of a coherent musical vision.