Bobby Caughron 
Critically acclaimed guitarist and singer Orianthi will release her new studio album Some Kind of Feeling via Woodward Avenue Records digitally on June 27, on CD on August 15, and on vinyl on September 19.
Orianthi produced three songs from the new album, including “First Time Blues,” “Ghost,” and “Bad For Each Other.” The remaining seven songs on the album, including the new single “Attention,” are produced by Kevin “The Caveman” Shirley (Beth Hart, Joe Bonamassa, Joanne Shaw Taylor).
Though the lyrics of Orianthi’s latest fiery, kick-ass single “Attention,” exposes an annoying ex-lover’s habit of drunk texting to rile up her cooled passions, its title, on a deeper level makes us think about the kind of attention we’ve been paying to the singer/songwriter and virtuoso electric guitarist over the past 20 years. Seems nothing can ever be written about the multi-talented veteran artist without mentioning her collaborations with Alice Cooper, Dave Stewart and Richie Sambora, and the fact that Michael Jackson hired her for his London performances the year of his untimely death.
Equal “Attention” should also be paid to her success as an artist in her own right, starting with her Top 20 Billboard pop hit “According to You” and gold-selling Geffen album Believe, released in 2009. While playing with legends over the years, she’s continued to build her discography with numerous albums on different labels.
Her prolific streak of stylistically diverse singles in 2024 on Woodward Avenue – “First Time Blues” with Joe Bonamassa, “Ghost” and “Some Kind of Feeling” – launches a fresh, adventurous new phase of her solo career, an era of exciting creativity and powerhouse contemporary rock and roll.
Penned by Orianthi, Don Miggs and Gregory Hansen, “Attention” is a classic styled power rocker that marks her second track produced and mixed by the legendary Kevin “The Caveman” Shirley, whose surreally extensive resume includes Bonamassa, Journey, Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Dream Theater and countless artists from his home country of South Africa and his later adopted home of Australia.
After an edgy, rhythmic electric guitar intro, Orianthi uses her silky, sultry vocal tone to bring us into a compelling scenario where she’s free from a complicated relationship and living life on her own terms now: “I ain’t at the Whisky/Waiting on you/Or staring at the ceiling/Sitting in a hotel room…” Then the groove, propelled by bassist Justin Andres and drummer Demian Arriaga, kicks up, and over more rhythmic, crunchy guitar energy, she tells her former significant other, “I’m sipping on tequila/With someone you knew/And you’re out on tour/Doing what you always do.” She doesn’t specify, but it feels like code for “screwing around like you did on me.”
As the track develops, Orianthi’s increasingly emotional vocals convey frustration and exasperation, then everything explodes on the killer hook where she really lets the guy have it: “You’re so predictable/You do it every time/Drunk checking on me/In the middle of the night/You know what you put me through/U just want attention.” She wraps the chorus with the mic drop line: “I’m done thinking about you,” which is followed by a cool melodic earworm of wordless background vocals.
After some clever wordplay in the second verse (“Ambien and alcohol/Swearing I’m the love of your life”) and another romp through the high-octane chorus (where he repeats “I’m done thinking about you” a few times for good measure, Orianthi gets to the magic that every fan waits for – her blazing solo action. It’s 30 seconds of wild abandon, pure hyperkinetic rock and roll bliss, an effortless fire with a blaze of high notes that allows her to say with her axe something deeper that even the biting lyrics can’t: I’m so over you! “Attention” is best appreciated via its dynamic performance video, which shows a few close ups of her intricate guitarisma. After another run through the hook, Orianthi repeats “I’m done thinking about you” over and over as her guitar wails behind her vocals for heavier emphasis.
With every new single, Orianthi reminds us that she’s at the top of her game in every way, finding fresh, vulnerable yet attitude-filled musical stories to tell, and allowing us to experience the guitar chops that have made her a modern-day rock hero.
Album Track Listing
1. Attention (3:48)
2. Some Kind of Feeling (4:44)
3. What I’ve Been Looking For (5:15)
4. Sharp Dressed Man (2:46)
5. Ghost (3:29)
6. First Time Blues (feat. Joe Bonamassa) (3:48)
7. Dark Days Are Gone (3:43)
8. Bad For Each Other (3:12)
9. Call You Mine (3:56)
10. Heaven Right Here (4:12)
photo credit: Noble PR
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