Signing with Megaforce indicates a lot of where
Living Colour are at on 2009's
The Chair in the Doorway, their first album since their 2004 comeback
Collideøscope. Megaforce is known as a metal label and appropriately,
Living Colour plays to this audience, getting so heavy they're often murky, riffs fighting to be heard out of the grinding psychedelic sludge. No matter the tempo,
The Chair in the Doorway remains grinding and heavy, crushing the sprightly blues of "Bless Those (Little Annie's Prayer) under a chorus of thick, leaden guitar and bass, the same sounds that flatten any moment of subtly that tries to rear its head here. However, there is no denying that
Living Colour wields some mighty muscle --
Will Calhoun and
Doug Wimbish provide a locomotive force which
Vernon Reid rides vigorously, adding dashes of color when he tears off solos. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine