There's gentleness at the heart of the title
A Kind Revolution
, a suggestion that
Paul Weller
is getting softer as he approaches the age of 60. In 2017, he's still a few years away from that milestone but he's letting himself take things a little slower, absorbing the spaciness of 2015's
Saturn's Pattern
and reviving the sculpted soulful grooves of
Wild Wood
. This combination means
feels straighter than any record
Weller
has released in the past decade -- in other words, anything he's done since he started his collaboration with
Simon Dine
, who acrimoniously parted after 2012's
Sonik Kicks
-- but where
As Is Now
hit hard, this has an easy touch even when the events kick off with the raver "Woo Se Mama." This isn't the only time guitars are cranked on
-- "Satellite Kid" descends into an extended jam -- but soul is
's guiding star on this record, leading him to the well-manicured upscale
Boy George
duet "One Tear" and the sharp funk of "She Moves with the Fayre," which features a cameo from
Robert Wyatt
. These guest appearances, particularly
Wyatt
's, suggest how
isn't content to settle into a familiar groove -- the lovely vocal harmonies on the closing "The Impossible Idea" are further indication of that -- but
nevertheless feels cozy, a record designed to provide nothing but comfort and that's an unusual twist for
. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine