Artist:     United State of Mind

Album:     United State of Mind

Label:     Manhaton Records

Release Date:     4.15.21

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Whether it’s televised or not, if United State of Mind has its way, the revolution will be as calming as their quietly soulful R&B pleas for harmony and change. Blood won’t run in the streets, and if anybody’s going to take up arms, it’ll be progressive-rock icon Robin Trower weaponizing his crafty, slow-burning guitar work, producer extraordinaire Livingstone Brown unspooling airy, delicately arranged strings and reggae crooner Maxi Priest gently prodding whoever is listening to look inwardly and grow and get in touch with their humanity. This war is not hell, nor is the debut LP of this unlikely collaboration.

Thrown together by fate, through a serendipitous meeting at Brown’s studio, the trio luxuriates in silky, smooth grooves and velvety beds of sound, softly lit by the spreading warmth of burnished horns. Seductive and moody, the uplifting “Sunrise Revolution,” a contemplative “Are We Just People” and “Bringing It All Back to You” are soothing, immersive experiences, summoning the spirituality and social consciousness of Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield’s cinematic artistry and Bobby Womack’s soulful insurgency.

In their transcendent, if still low-key, presence, a bluesy, after-hours crawl like “Walking Wounded” might slink off into the shadows, but its smoky liquor is so alluring that it earns a lonesome seat at any VIP table. The light, sophisticated funk of the joyful, yet mellow, title track feels just as good as it does in “Good Day,” although the sweet, easy swing of “Hands to the Sky” gives off an even more pleasing glow. Made of stronger stuff, “On Fire Like Zsa Zsa” struts confidently into the picture, its insistent, throbbing rhythms flashed by wah-wah effects.

Therein lies the beauty of United State of Mind, where giants like Trower and Priest use every trick they’ve learned, but never hog the spotlight, opting not to overindulge, but choosing quiet subtlety and substantive, graceful expression instead. They let the songs breathe. They understand the importance of leaving space between every well-sculpted note. Priest’s singing is gentle and yielding, yet it has conviction and passion. As Brown’s bass lines burble and glide, Trower strikes only when the iron is hot, unhurriedly branding maps of the routes his gripping leads take into the album’s thick hide. United, they stand.

—Peter Lindblad