Josh Groban is an anachronism, similar to Barbra Streisand. He found great success in the noughties putting out a series of albums that sound like the kind of pre-rock pop that crooners like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, or Johnny Mathis released in the mid-20th century. Twenty-five years after his debut album, Groban has released his tenth studio album, his first in six years. Titled Cinematic, this set collects a selection of film tunes. It’s an eclectic mix, ranging from 1942’s Casablanca’s “As Time Goes By” to 2017’s “Remember Me” from Coco.
It would be a stretch to call Groban’s musical taste on Cinematic adventurous, but one doesn’t listen to Josh Groban for musical innovation. The strength of his music lies wholly in his voice—a large, voluptuous instrument that is infused with earnest emotion. It’s a beautiful voice that rarely loses control—the singer applies a studied, measured exactitude when singing. It’s not a subtle way of singing, but there’s a precision. It’s an impressive handling of a gigantic voice but it can start to sound similar, stretched over ten tracks.
Choosing to open the album with “As Time Goes By” is a smart choice because it displays Groban’s facility with pop standards. He doesn’t bring anything especially novel to his rendition, but he cannot be blamed—it’s a song that has been covered so many times it has become cultural wallpaper. But it’s a good starting point as the earliest composition on the record and one that would seem somewhat expected from Groban.
He then follows that up with a cover of Adele’s “Skyfall” from the 2012 James Bond film. That Josh Groban is covering a James Bond tune isn’t all that surprising: what is surprising is that he never recorded an original Bond tune of his own. He is exactly the kind of singer that would shine. Like Shirley Bassey, Groban attacks a song with his full lung power. Unlike the other selections, “Skyfall” is penned by Groban’s contemporary, though his musical point of view skews older than Adele. In his hands, in front of a lush, full orchestra, the song retains some of its ominous sinew (the brassy horns remain, reminding listeners that this is a Bond song).
The other contemporary song on Cinematic is another Oscar-winning hit, “Remember Me” from the Disney song Coco. In the animated film, the song is performed in various renditions, from the sprightly uptempo version by Benjamin Bratt to sadder versions by other cast members, including García Bernal, Gabriella Flores, Libertad García Fonzi, Anthony Gonzalez and Ana Ofelia Murguía. Groban’s version is closest to the mournful “lullaby” version in the film, but it isn’t a particularly sad performance. Instead, it feels recast as a large, stately ballad that could have been performed at an Oscars telecast. It’s a well-performed song but points to the main issue with Cinematic: it’s far too serious and sincere, leaving out humour, excitement, or electricity.
When Barbra Streisand recorded a similarly themed album in 2003, she had the good sense to shake up her record with an unexpected rendition of “Calling You” from Baghdad Café.
There are no niche or surprising choices here, even if Groban takes meticulous care in representing several generations, thereby appealing to a large audience. It’s clear that he feels very comfortable on swoony ballads, so he sounds typically excellent on classic like “Moon River,” “When You Wish Upon a Star” and “Unchained Melody” (which features an equally competent Jennifer Hudson).
The closest Cinematic gets to stirring things up is the inclusion of Phil Collins’ ’80s power ballad, “Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now).” Like the other songs on the record, this ballad is given a plush, orchestral makeover, so it fits into the sonic theme of the album. It’s a shame because it would have been interesting to hear Groban take on the song but redone as a 2020s icy synth-pop ballad. Still, despite the respectable, elegant bombast of the arrangement, Groban sounds impassioned and gives a fiery performance in the song’s climax, his heartfelt belting overwhelming the over-the-top orchestration.
More interesting selections and committed performances like his take on “Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)” could have made Cinematicsomething really interesting. Instead, Josh Groban chooses to be safe and the end result is a very beautiful if somewhat dull record.
