Rock is rife with musicians who, even after reaching enviable band success, went solo with the zest of a prisoner loosed from shackles. Peter Gabriel "walked right out of the machinery" of Genesis; David Byrne left Talking Heads and never looked back; George Harrison exploded from the Fab Four with a triple album (featuring many songs rejected by John and Paul). Perhaps the last example best fits dc talker Michael Tait. For all those gold records and packed arenas, he has long labored under the shadow of bandmate Toby McKeehan. So it’s little surprise that he’s the first of the dc talk three to release a solo album, Empty. How sweet this liberation must be for Mr. Tait, even if it’s temporary shore leave before returning to the dc talk mothership. For on Empty, Tait pours out intensity and musical blood-sweat until the cup runs over and he is left, true to the title, a vessel spent.

Empty is a solid, enjoyable album with forgivable flaws tempered by Tait’s enthusiasm and charismatic artistry. With Pete Stewart on guitar and the Chapin brothers, Chad and Lonnie, on drums and bass, Tait’s band creates taut arrangements that allow him to showcase his sing-along melodies. Tait wears his musical influences (Lenny Kravitz, Seal) proudly at some junctures, while mixing up his grunge, pop and funk wardrobe at others. "Bonded" is one Kravitz salute that works well, segueing from a drum machine and power chord kickoff into heavy sunshine pop that dissolves in a whirlpool of guitar rumble and feedback. Alas, on "Tell Me Why," the homage to Lenny is too obvious; the chorus strings and verse groove sound lifted from "It Ain’t Over ’Til It’s Over."

Earnest and plainspoken, Tait’s lyrics don’t break much new ground, though some songs rise above. The mock-James Bond tune "Spy" riffs on suspicion deliciously, while "American Tragedy" explores prejudice like a minor-key flipside to dc talk’s "Colored People": "The questions in you are the questions in me/I’m no closer to answers than you are to me."

From the supple title track, to the pale "Looking for You," to the tender piano ballad "Unglued" (a natural concert closer), Empty shows amazing versatility. Tait says dc talk will be back, but it’s hard to imagine him sitting on the creative sidelines after crafting a disc like this. If the title weren’t taken already, you could call it Free at Last.