Former Jane's Addiction bassist/songwriter Eric Avery released his first solo record in the spring of 2008 and the record features guest musicians such as Flea(Red Hot Chili Peppers), Shirley Manson(Garbage), Taylor Hawkins(Foo Fighters) and former collaborator/bandmate from his Polar Bear project, Harold "Barefoot" Saunders III. With a dozen tracks, most of the music contained is somewhat esoteric, mirroring a style that was made famous during his time in Jane's Addiction, however there are influences of Trent Reznor(Nine Inch Nails) in as far as the approach and crafting of the music. "Revolution" is a piano melody led by Avery's "spoken-sung" style that is adopted throughout the recording, but the level of experimentation and Eric's philosophy of layering instruments results in quite an original and innovative piece of work. There are heavy uses of synthesizer, sequencers, "industrial" approaches within the vocal treatments as well as guitars, bass and drum tracks. "UnExploded" is a fine example of this melodically interesting, yet abstract approach within Eric's composition and the opening number, "Belly of an Insect" offers a foretaste of what this record contains, featuring powerful drumming by Taylor Hawkins and strong guitar accompaniment courtesy of Jason Orme. "Beside the Fire", uses a hip-hop rhythm sample beat with sequenced keyboard textures, angular guitar lines and Avery's standard "sing-speak" approach, utilized succinctly. 

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"All Remote and No Control" features a John Bonham influenced drumbeat played wonderfully by Hawkins and is an alternative/industrial mix that definitely pays homage to Nine Inch Nails and Trent Reznor with some goth-like backing vocals and heavily mixed synthesizer treatments. "Maybe" features Shirley Manson(Garbage) and the song contains synth arrangements that would not seem out of place on an early Brian Eno album, of which the quiet strength of this number thrives upon with a beautiful vocal pairing of Avery and Manson. There is an interesting triad of songs that are subtitled and tied to a possible concept known as "The Man Who Can Fly"; these songs are "Walk Through Walls(pt. 5)", "Chicken Bone(pt. 2)" and "Song in the Silence(pt. 7)". Though these numbers contain different levels of interpretation and style arrangement, they do add to the record's ambient flavor, even though they seem mysteriously sparse and perhaps, disconnected from one another. "Porchlight" is possibly my most favorite number on this release and it "borrows" from "Wiser Time" by the Black Crowes in its main rhythm and melodic structure, driven specifically by Wurlitzer organ, drums and a wonderfully forceful and distorted guitar arrangement as played by Zac Rae, Matt Tecu and David Levita, respectively. "Suns Gone" closes out the recording in a grandiose style; not necessarily epic, but definitely features a grand arrangement of sampled beats, synth and midi effects, led in tandem by Eric's innovative vocal arrangement with some delightful acoustic guitar accompaniment.

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Within the following year, Eric would reunite with his former colleagues in Jane's Addiction after many years and it appeared to look promising with his inclusion back into the fold, but unfortunately, the proper reunion album never came to pass as Eric decided to leave the group, again. This solo record certainly pointed towards what we fans could have expected from Avery's input into the reunion album that never was and I have always maintained that the union of Perry Ferrell and Eric produced most of Jane's Addiction's classic and innovative moments and the work on this solo record solidifies that claim. Help Wanted is a solid record and shows what Eric Avery is capable of in terms of his innovative creativity and artistic merits as a composer/musician. 

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Rating Grade- B+