Long overdue, Slim, of 112 fame, finally releases his solo debut album Love’s Crazy (Asylum). With a solo release on the cards for many years now, it’s fair to say that this album has been highly anticipated by R&B fans of yesterday. While this may be true, what about the fans of today’s R&B?Vocally attractive, Slim has never had a problem enticing a track into romantic submission. His days as the frontman of112 proved vital to the Atlanta group’s success. Slim’s soft-spoken words were always the key to unlocking their female fan base – that and Diddy’s on-point production direction, but can he cut it on his own? Surprisingly yes.Adapting to what’s hot right now – voice decoders (“Leave U Alone”), rapper/singer pick and rolls (“Good Lovin’” featuring Fabolous and Ryan Leslie), and club one two step-type joints (“Stay Fly”) Slim’s ability to blend into his environment is top notch. Not forgetting his roots of ballad-esque records, “Sweet Baby” hears the crooner deliver some touching vocals over a mid-‘90s R&B backdrop. Reminding listeners that he’s still here to stay, his clean chord projection could have caused a s**t storm back in the day, but today’s listeners are more concerned with fashion sense, and as Joe Budden puts it, “that funny voice s**t.”Slipping up with “Heels On”, the track features a sluggish verse from everyone’s favorite chainless rapper, Yung Berg, and seems like a desperate recreation of a Plies joint. Beat-wise it knocks for a slow jam, but it has absolutely no substance. Another song that fails to deliver is “So Gone” alongside longtime friend Faith Evans. Surprisingly it just doesn’t work. The weak and off-key production leaves nothing for the listener to relate to, leaving it like a throwaway Chris Brown record. Faith’s vocals do nothing to draw you in, and Slim sounds like he’s singing to his mother instead of his lover.In all, Love’s Crazy is a mixture of dance-worthy beats, polished vocals, and the occasional step in the wrong direction. Better than average for the vintage fan, it’s good to hear a familiar voice.
