From the first soul-burnished growl of her guitar to the unapologetic lyrics of “Attention,” Orianthi shows she can be a sideman to rock gods, a prodigy called up by Michael Jackson and many others, and a fierce artist reclaiming her narrative, one lyric and solo at a time. Some Kind of Feeling is her statement record where she combines rock and the full of bluesy bravado to meld a swagger with sincerity.
The title track, “Some Kind of Feeling,” is the album’s spiritual center. With its sultry blues-rock verses and gospel-tinged chorus, it testifies to the redemptive power of love. When Orianthi sings, “All the ghosts are gone that used to keep me up at night,” it’s a lyric that reflects her power. Her vocals glow with resilience, flanked by warm keys and swirling background harmonies that carry us, almost liturgically, into a vibrant sonic bloom. It’s a heart-song that transforms pain into light, and it showcases what she does best in matching her voice to feeling, tone to truth.
“Attention” has a the gritty pleasure of telling someone off for good. Orianthi sings with knowing exasperation, a woman who’s lived through the games and come out the other side not just older, but sharper. Her guitar tone is warm and bitting, cutting through a wall of rhythmic energy from the rhythm section. The lyrics “Drunk checking on me in the middle of the night,” slice with delicious venom. It’s breakup blues for the digital age, swaggering and anthemic.
This duality of heartache and heat, grit and grace, defines the record. “Ghost” is a contemporary slow-burn with moody vocals and minor-key haunt, evoking the emotional residue of love long lost. “Call You Mine” shimmers with longing with gritty guitar and slow groove, the vocals ripe with melodic ache. Even a cover like “Sharp Dressed Man” finds new texture here, not because it reinvents the wheel, but because it’s filtered through her uniquely feminine fire.
And then there’s “First Time Blues,” the scorcher with Joe Bonamassa. Their guitar conversation is electric, crackling with unspoken competition and camaraderie. The track throbs with classic blues phrasing, but it’s Orianthi’s vocal phrasing, husky, half-taunt, half-testimony, making it feel vital. Her voice dips and curls through the verses like smoke from a cigar, and then rises in flames during the solo, where she and Bonamassa trade licks like punches in a barroom brawl.
On “Bad For Each Other,” she leans into a minor-key moodiness, the guitar crying out between lines like a wounded witness. The organ hums beneath the surface like a pulse. And in “Heaven Right Here,” a softer, acoustic track, she strips things down without losing the album’s heartbeat. The acoustic groove is playful, grounded, and sweet, a glimpse of quiet joy after the storms.
What lingers after the last note fades is not just her playing, which is impressive as ever. It’s her voice. There’s a woman in full control of her story here. Her phrasing, whether it’s full-throated rage or whisper-soft vulnerability, carries weight. She delivering the songs with noticeable emotion and passion.
Backed by a tight band (Justin Andres on bass, Nick Maybury on second guitar, Demian Arriaga on drums, Carey Frank on keys, and harmonies from Sharlotte Gibson, Maiya Sykes, and Allison Iraheta), the sound throughout is rich, roomy, and alive. Kevin “The Caveman” Shirley’s production gleams without ever sterilizing the raw edges. Orianthi produced three tracks, “First Time Blues,” “Ghost,” and “Bad For Each Other.”
With Some Kind of Feeling, Orianthi takes the spotlight with a deeply personal blues-rock record that feels universal, leaning into singing and playing with equal passion. That’s the short of it!
