It takes an awful lot of hubris to go on a first-name-only basis your first time outta the music industry gate, but at first glance this Spokane, WA, native would appear to have all the right ingredients necessary to cook up a heady stylistic brew that would put him in the elite ranks alongside artists like
Madonna and
Beck. Leroy has all the right influences, including
Parliament-Funkadelic,
Stevie Wonder, and
the Beatles. He blends all the right sounds, including elements of old-school funk, soul, rock, hip-hop, blues, and electrified country. He's got all the right connections, including the same producer as
Alanis Morissette and
Green Day and the same mixer as
No Doubt. And even before his debut album was released, his music had already been placed in all the right spots, appearing in hit teen films and popular TV shows. Unfortunately, the whole does not equal the sum of its promotional parts. Sure, Leroy takes the same sort of everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach that made
Beck an alt-rock superstar, but where the latter integrated his disparate influences to create a wholly new fusionary sound, the former simply comes across as a moderately talented kid playing dress-up, trying on genres for fun just to see how they fit. Songs like "Good Time" work effectively enough, riding a laconic funk-hop groove that recalls
Lenny Kravitz at his least derivative, but too many songs sound prepackaged to reach their target audience. On the country-blues rock of "Away," Leroy's voice sounds so unnatural it's almost laughable, while the stoner funk of "The Way We Carry On" strives for sociopolitical consciousness, but you're far too distracted by the weirdly modified vocals and pathetic rap break to pay attention to the lyrics. Leroy is a multi-instrumentalist with undeniable talent and an ear for the sounds of what's going on in contemporary pop music, but he won't live up to his impressive influences until he finds his own distinctive sound. ~ Bret Love