The band of the year (2004), Soul SirkUS, is a real all-star group - the band consists of Jeff Scott Soto, Neal Schon, Marco Mendoza and Virgil Donati. As one may expect, the outcome of these talented musicians presents melodic hard rock that is both diverse yet memorable. Titled as "Worldplay", their debut album contains both harder straightforward rock tunes and laid-back melodic ballads. In addition, there's some experimental playing included on this album as well. By the way, Soul SirkUS is actually Planet Us, but the band needed a change of name since only one original member is left (namely Neal Schon).

Although the overall quality of material on "Worldplay" is of rather high standard, not all of the songs are as successful as one would expect. Nonetheless, the majority of compositions are great, and thus this is an album that appeals to listeners so much that it'll find its way to the CD players on a regular basis. The emotional playing of the Journey guitarist Neal Schon as well as Virgil Donati's (Steve Vai, Ring of Fire) and Marco Mendoza's (Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy) groovy rhythms back up Jeff Scott Soto's (Talisman, Yngwie Malmsteen) vocal performance seamlessly, and actually all the performances on this album are flawless (which only shows how proficient these guys are).

The production of Worlplay was skilfully handled by Jeff Scott Soto and Neal Schon. All the recordings are clean yet atmospheric, and the sounds have been mixed to good effect. However, there are some small details that could have been further honed.

Soul SirkUS is a band worth checking out, in case one listens to melodic rock. World Play is an album full of memorable and refreshing rock songs that are just a delight to listen to. In addition to the album itself, this release contains a bonus DVD, which unfortunately has been excluded from the promotional copy. So you'll definitely get your money's worth on this release.

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- MAGE (May 9th, 2005)

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LINE-UP:
Soto, Jeff Scott: Vocals Schon, Neal: Guitar Mendoza, Marco: Bass Donati, Virgil: Drums
Producer:	Soto, Jeff Scott & Schon, Neal
Mixing by:	Unavailable
Mastering by:	Unavailable

	TRACKLIST:
	01. World Play 02. Highest Ground 03. New Position 04. Another World 05. Soul Goes on 06. Alive (Bonus Track) 07. Periled Divide 08. Peephole 09. Abailar to' Mundo (Bonus Track) 10. Friends to Lovers 11. Praise 12. My Sanctuary 13. Coming Home 14. My Love, My Friend (Bonus Track) 15. Close the Door 16. (silence) 17. (silence) 18. James Brown (Bonus Track) Length: 72:49