Gio turns out to be a strong-spirited artist, mostly bolstering his reputation as a tasteful and inventive singer-songwriter.
His new album “G STAR” balances rousing energy with nonchalant chumminess. It becomes another collection of bold choices for a Pop-R&B star in the making, mainly singing about love, never too deep or personal but Gio puts out some compelling tunes that sound captivating and well polished.
Gio sinks into bubbly smooth grooves that are sure to get him noticed. The opening track “Day by Day” carries with it inadvertent weight, like a banal conversation with a loved one just a few hours before a fatal accident. At his best, he can be effective while being a good storyteller.
A lovely chorus is memorable for happier reasons and on tracks such “Love You Tonight” and “Body On Body” Gio sings, sounding carefree amid glimmering keys. Like so many emerging Pop-R&B stars trying to be the voice of the next generation, they make attempts at mixing the hard and the soft in their songwriting.
Gio manages to accomplish that, creating sonic elements with polar opposites and rams into every mood and feeling. This makes it irresistible for the audience to pick apart the songs and obsess over their favorite parts, wondering what makes it feel so good.
His most honest and most unvarnished track on the album “Fy Away”, allows Gio to get real, narrating pieces so familiar in striking you when you most vulnerable. It’s a sublime performance that follows its own rules, both strange and conventionally beautiful.
Whether singing about relationship strife or airing opposing views, G STAR is a lush and preeminently sex-positive album that deserves recognition. Gio could come off as conscious, pensive, concerned, sexy, urbane, hypnotic, blunted and compassionate, giving him the chance to let his personality shine fervently from time to time throughout the album.
