Glenn Kaiser

Item: Spontaneous Combustion
Author: Steven L. Roth

Spontaneous Combustion

(1994)

Reviewed by Steven L. Roth

Discogs Bandcamp Apple Music TIDAL Amazon Music Spotify YouTube Music

Label Grrr Records / R.E.X. MusicSyndicateAug 1994

blues blues rock gospel blues

It's quite obvious and volatile at the same time. Take the city of Chicago, complete with that definitive blues vibe at the core of its very heart, and add the emotional rasp of Glenn Kaiser, a man who's no stranger to those streets. Plug them both in and you're guaranteed to get Spontaneous Combustion—real life urban blues.

Setting aside the acoustic guitar from his last two blues-oriented albums and picking up something a little more amplified, Kaiser lets his hair down. It almost sounds like he's oblivious to the world outside of the notes and words in his head, as they work their way down through his soul and spirit, out from his lips and fingertips.

While the album is true to its blues nature, ("I've been broken, I have lost in love ... been cheated, mistreated ... "—"Ain't Much Different"), it is also not shy about incorporating the power of God into those blues ("I've seen my share of trouble, but God ain't failed me yet; He's my savior and deliverer, I'm just as saved as you can get"— "If I Leave This World Tomorrow").

A couple of love songs pitched towards his wife, Wendy, and a couple of instrumental jams round out this collection that checks in just under 60 minutes. Conspicuously absent is harp-man Darrell Mansfield and featured Cornerstone blues guitarist, Larry Howard. Impressive album art completes the package.

Spontaneous Combustion is not a blues hybrid. It's the genuine article, best described in non-musical language: gritty and smoky, sweaty and hoarse. Oh, yeah: Glenn has got the blues.

4/5