SPUN: Lenny Kravitz

By Kenzie MacLeod

Twenty years after his debut Let Love Rule, Lenny Kravitz gives us It is Time for a Love Revolution. He’s still on message, baby. Love is your king–bow to the throne!

Kravitz is Hendrix filtered through a Prince-Mayfield distillery. The only time he severely missteps is when he dabbles with any genre approaching modernity. He’s an anachronism who willingly makes all the mistakes of his influences from “hey, excess and debauchery feels really good,” to “but Jesus is pretty neat too.”

Through it all Kravitz has preached love, if at times a bit sleazily, and that’s nothing but commendable. Although it’s a little disconcerting for someone to say something like It is Time for a Love Revolution in 2008. To say “Love Revolution” without irony–and to mean it–in a time when cynicism is smothering enough to stop any revolution in its cradle.

Love Revolution is not revolutionary in itself. It’s the same unapologetic revivalism which he’s built a career on, but the attitude is what sets it apart. When The Beatles sang “All You Need is Love,” it’s hard not to imagine a few eyebrows rising. Even still, if they pulled that stunt today they’d be crucified. Lennon got away with it before, Lenny’s trying it now.