Leaving a group behind to venture out on your own is sometimes risky. With Nick stepping out of the "boy band" shadow to do his own thing, he has made the transition very well worth the risk. Proving that he has the goods to do it on his own, he sort of makes you think 98-who? I hope two things: one, that everyone can give "Soulo" a fair listen before saying negative things about it and two, that just because Nick was once part of a 'boy group' that his awesome talent isn't automatically discredited. "Soulo" is an awesome solid solo effort that deserves ample airplay and ample time in the spotlight. Here's a run down of the tracks:

1)Shut Up: the version here is much better that the cd promo. More edgier sounding. 5 out of 5

2)Let's Go: one of those songs you would cruise down the freeway to. 4 1/2

3)This I Swear: a slow jam, Nick's strongest asset. 4 1/2

4)Could You Love: one of my faves. an awesome grind-to song. 5

5)Carry On: love the intro and outro with the instruments! a departure from the 98 Degrees sound. a feel good song. 4 1/2

6)You're The Only Place: a very emotion-building ballad. 4 1/2

7)Can't Stop Loving You: up-tempo, in-your-face song. 4

8)Edge Of Eternity: very Richard Marx sounding, not bad. 3 1/2

9)It's Alright: another favorite! very cool and full of attitude! 5

10)I Fall In Love Again: a great ballad for that special someone. 4 1/2

11)Open Your Eyes: another safe ballad. 4

12)On And On: a piano-only ballad that is awesome and full of emotion. one of my faves. 5

13)Think I'm Losing You (bonus track): another safe slow song. 4

14)Uh Huh (bonus track): an all-around fun song. 4

Before the release of Nick Lachey's new album, "SoulO", I had recently downloaded the entire CD 2 months before its release date (shame on me). All of the songs that Nick recorded are phenominal, with a few exceptions.

1. Shut Up - Nice, up-tempo song. Great first single.

2. Let Go - Interesting story for an interesting song.

3. This I Swear - Best ballad on the album! Very heart-warming.

4. Could U Love - Pop sound with some techno.

5. Carry On - Nice acoustic guitar. Not one of the best songs on the album

6. You're The Only Place - Another nice ballad. Somewhat of a tear-jerker...not really.

7. Can't Stop Lovin You - Great song to learn on the guitar. Nice pop song.

8. Edge of Eternity - Ok song. Not the best song.

9. It's Alright - Dance, kind of song with some techno, drums, and trumpets!

10. Fall In Love - 3rd ballad. Nice ballad. Not the best ballad on the album.

11. Open Your Eyes - Probably the best up-tempo song on the album.

12. On and On - 2nd best ballad. TEAR-JERKER! PASS THE TISSUES!

A solo career was inevitably in Nick's future-he was, well, basically, the ONLY vocalist of 98 Degrees-and there is no denying that he has a stunning voice-one of the most beautiful male voices I've heard in a long while-but he needs to heavily rethink his music's content before he can catch my attention. The relatively catchy "Shut Up" is easily the album's biggest-possibly ONLY-highlight, but its embarrassingly corny lyrics-'when we take our clothes off, don'tcha know the world stops/you bite my neck, I pull your hair, next thing we know, no underwear'-serve as an effective turn-off. The album then delves deep into a seemingly endless pool of lovelorn balladry, which, though beautifully sung, could not keep my attention for long. "Shut Up" is the only fairly upbeat song on the whole album, so those hoping for some 98 Degrees-esque get-downs will be left cold with the sadly titled 'SoulO.' Nick's powerful voice profoundly outshines whoever else he sings with, whether that be wife Jessica or the rest of 98 Degrees, but if what he's singing is uninspired in all other areas, where's the appeal? I must admit, I do admire the fact that he co-wrote almost every single song here (with the exception of the album's biggest hit, the Newlyweds theme song "This I Swear"), and he wrote "On And On" by himself. But the dull, uninteresting content and foolish lyrics are what cause this album's true downfall-and its dreadfully slow pace, mixed with ho-hum beats that fail to lift it off the ground make it ultimately unfun. This is a flop, Nick.....try again, though, that voice of yours could be put to far better use. And you might wanna hurry, before your star is entirely eclipsed by your wife.

Now, we all know that Nick and Jessica's antics have been milked to death, but I just want to point out that earlier this year, Nick appeared in an interview where he expressed his dismay on the low sales of his solo debut album, SoulO (cheesy title, isn't it?). Well, maybe that's because a lot of people were in the same boat that I was in; until a few months ago, I didn't even know this album existed.

This is basically an average album. Nick still has a great voice, but a great voice can't cover up not-so-great lyrics. Take the single "Shut Up", for example. Nick uses stupid lyrics to get the mood right like: "You bite my neck/I pull your hair/Next thing we know/No underwear." There are also some cheesy ballads like "You're the Only Place" (well, the first verse, anyway) and especially "This I Swear". The only one that really works is the very last one, "On and On".

There are a few other questionable songs on here too, especially the techno vibe of "It's Alright". As I said before, Nick's voice is still impressive, but what he has to work with really isn't. This album is strictly for diehards.

Anthony Rupert

Contrary to common opinion, I found Soulo to be a mix of both amazing, soulful songs, and bad cheesy songs.

There were some tracks like "Carry On", "This I Swear", and "Edge of Eternity" which were very catchy had had good rythm and beats. In some cases however, I had to listen to a song a few times over before I liked it (in the case of "This I Swear").

Other songs such as "Shut Up" weren't very good at all. The back ground music was aweful and the lyrics, which were very original, weren't very good.

Overall I rate the album a 3/5 because of Nick's excellent singing voice, great three songs (mentioned above), and well-rhyming lyrics (in most cases).

In regards to the "sappiness" of some of the songs, I found that only people who had actually experienced emotions which relate to the songs could truly understand and empathize with the words Nick sings.

All in all, the good songs were great and the bad songs were okay. Overall an album definately worth having!