Published on Jan 5, 2000
If you thought that the field of all-boy bands was crowded
enough, then grab a crowbar and make some room for yet another
claimant to the throne.
Another Level has a few things going for them that sets them
apart from other bands. First, they’re very much R&B, while
others like Backstreet Boys and 98 Degrees could arguably be
classified as pop bands. Another Level is multi-cultural, something
that some bands would be hard-pressed to prove just from looking at
them.
But the biggest difference is in the music on their self-titled
debut effort. Another Level remind me of what would happen if Boyz
II Men and 2 Live Crew ever decided to merge. Okay, maybe that’s
exaggerating a bit, but the subject matter that Another Level
choose to sing about on more than one occasion is not your typical
teeny-bopper stuff. But for that, this album is quite passable.
Now, I’m no prude by any means of the word; I enjoy porno as
much as the next guy. (Of course, my idea of porno is trying to
watch the scrambled signal of HBO on weekends, but that’s another
story.) But there’s a difference when it comes to songs like “Freak
Me” and “Ain’t Nothing Going On But The Sex” and knowing that the
typical listener of boy-bands is in their early teens. I have a
daughter who will be four years old in a few months; if she was 10,
I honestly don’t think it would be appropriate for her to listen to
her latest poster-boys crooning, “Let me lick you up and down till
you say stop. Let me play with your body make you real hot.” Ex-
cuse me?
Ah, but some people will claim that Another Level is not meant
to be the latest boy-toy flavor of the month, and are actually more
of an R&B group that is unfairly getting labeled. Okay, I can
buy that – but still, on the surface it feels like they’re being
marketed towards the same group who listen to Backstreet Boys. And
if that’s the case, a line has to be drawn somewhere.
I know the question: “Are you going to do more than bitch about
some song lyrics?” Of course; I’ll happily give credit where credit
is due to these four young men – Bobak Kianoush, Dane Bowers, Wayne
Williams and Mark Baron. There are several cases that strongly
suggest that Another Level could take over the slot left by Boyz II
Men’s sudden absence from the scene. Tracks like “Bomb Diggy,”
“We’ll Meet Again,” “Summertime” and “From The Heart” all hint at
wonderful things in the future of Another Level.
Yet there’s something about
Another Level that makes me think that this band is still
very much in the development stages. I’m not certain that they know
which direction they want to take their music in right now. Do they
want to be the next Blackstreet, or do they want to try and
cannibalize some of the fans from other boy-bands? Do they want to
be the next R. Kelly, or do they want to be the next Boyz II Men?
Of course, they don’t need to answer these questions right now, but
there’s no denying a little bit of tentativeness in the album,
especially near the end.
Another Level has the chops to make it, though they may want to
drop some of the sexual bravado. Otherwise,
Another Level is an entertaining listen that dares to hint
at greater things for this group.
2000 Christopher Thelen and “The Daily Vault”. All rights
reserved. Review or any portion may not be reproduced without
written permission. Cover art is the intellectual property of
Northwestside / Arista Records, and is used for informational
purposes only.