A couple of years ago while I was visiting my best friend, she gave me a CD she purchased, telling me she thought I'd like it. She enjoyed it, too, but thought the boyfriend and I would like it a bit more, and she was spreading the music love, something I totally agree with. 

She was spot on. Turns out she bought the CD because it was related to Jack Johnson, and back in the day she collected almost everything he produced. This happened to be a soundtrack that was done for one of his many surf movies (Thicker Than Water, The September Sessions). I quickly fell in love with it, and have listened to it on and off since. Since this month is one of those 'on' times, I thought I'd share the prettiness with you.

Sprout Soundtrack @ JackJohnsonMusic.com

Buy Sprout Soundtrack // Film 

Banderilla - Calexico MP3

[audio:http://lovethemusicreviews.com/audio/10%20Banderilla.mp3]

Spanish Flowers - Sprout House Band MP3

[audio:http://lovethemusicreviews.com/audio/12%20Spanish%20Flowers.mp3]

Practice Twice - Sam Prekop MP3

[audio:http://lovethemusicreviews.com/audio/01%20Practice%20Twice.mp3]

I'm sure everyone's noticed that this is going to be Summer of the Sequel part III, the most prominant being Spider-Man 3, Pirates of the Carribean: At World's End, and Shrek the Third.  The latter I had no intention of seeing, as CG films have lost a whole lot of their lustre for me.  However, because I was quite bored today, I broke down and finally watched Shrek 2.  It may have changed my mind about watching the Third.  Not because it was especially funny or that I was impressed by the animation [I quit caring], but because of the music.  If you can forgive the Counting Crows for not being good anymore and Chris Carrabba for crying in his beer, and can look past the songs that the director wanted to used ["Funky Town", "Livin' La Vida Loca"], then you've got a surprisingly indie soundtrack.  Eels, Tom Waits, Frou Frou, and a few others that I don't remember right now.  Then, thinking back to the first film you had Eels [again], Rufus Wainwright, and the Proclaimers.  This in mind, I may just be persuaded to check out the new one.

Ben Folds and Waso Live in Perth

Ben Folds  // Waso 

This isn't the first, nor most infamous occasion in which an attempt to merge rock and roll with an orchestra has taken place.  Heck, that was the whole point of ELO, but stick with me here.  What Ben Folds has done here is interesting in that the release before this was a live album with just Ben and a piano, and we got a chance to hear songs in a stripped down way.  Now we get to hear some of those same songs with the ninety-man Western Australia Symphony Orchestra backing them up.  Again, neither of these things is earth shattering.  But what makes these projects work, most specifically the orchestral job in question, is a combination of the quality of the music and Ben's attitude towards it.  Yeah, yeah, yeah, cliche.
This is, the performance is incredibly genuine.  Ben has a great respect for WASO and expresses it between most songs.  He makes sure that the local composers who did the arrangements get credit for it.  The audience are included (as always), even participate in "Not the Same" the same as they do on Ben Folds Live, forming an impromptu choir.
The arrangements are usually excellent, but some are going to be a matter of taste.  The use of a tenor on "Narcolepsy" for example.  It really threw me off the first time, but since then I've come to accept, and even embrace, it.  It adds to the feeling of pandemonium in the climax of the song.  "Evaporated" sounds incredibly natural, as it has a string arrangement on the album, the horns and everything makes it even fuller [more full?], "Boxing", "the Luckiest" and "Lullabye" are the same way, the latter getting a dose of saxophone solo.  "Zak and Sara" and "Annie Waits" get a healthy boost in bombast.  The chatter between songs is great, but maybe the most exciting bit is when somebody calls out for the improv/joke number "Rock this Bitch".  Ben proceeds to lead the whole orchestra in it, and calls for solos.  Brilliant stuff.
Good arrangements, great performance, amazing atmosphere.

Final verdict: happy times with a giant band.  Great for fans of either Ben Folds or concert DVDs [or both!]

Related Links:

Ben Folds Official Website

Waso Official Website

Buy This DVD

Buy Ben Folds Live 

Related Audio:

Not the Same

[audio:http://www.lovethemusicreviews.com/audio/Ben%20Folds%20-%20Ben%20Folds%20%20_%20not%20the%20same.mp3]

Rock This Bitch

[audio:http://www.lovethemusicreviews.com/audio/Ben%20Folds%20-%20Ben%20Folds%20%20_%20rock%20this%20bitch.mp3]

Zak and Sara

[audio:http://www.lovethemusicreviews.com/audio/Ben%20Folds%20with%20WASO%20-%2001%20Zak%20and%20Sara.mp3]

Matisyahu - No Place To Be 

Miguel de Cervantes is quoted as saying, "The pen is the tongue of the mind." I think that's a ridiculous notion, as the tongue is, quite literally the tongue of the mind. I'd love to be really pretentious and tie that into the Matisyahu review, but it's really just on the wall of the writing lab here, and it really bugs me. Anyhow, Matisyahu's "Youth" album, his studio debut, was one of the highlights of 2006, following on the underground success of 2005's "Live at Stubb's" and appearances at Bonaroo and other festivals, so it lifted my spirits considerable to see there was a new release available. I was disappointed that the CD portion of this CD/DVD combo is only EP length. New versions of "Jerusalem (Out of Darkness Comes Light)," "Warrior," and "Chop 'em Down", and a cover of the Police's "Message in a Bottle" play opposite remixes of "Jerusalem" and "Youth," and a dub version of "Message." The studio tracks are great, except "Message," which might've been a treat live, sounds kind of stale. The real weakness comes from the remixes, which are sadly unoriginal. "No Place to Be" verdict: Not very good. The "Live in Israel" DVD is a different story altogether, though. It's a combination documentary/concert film capturing an entire concert performed in Tel Aviv, Israel, and also follows Matisyahu and his band around the town to fill in the exposition. It's a very balanced piece, and Matis' performance is on point. This is for sure the highlight of the package, and well worth the price of admission. "Live in Israel" verdict: Superfantastic.

Final verdict: If you think of it as a DVD with a bonus EP, then it makes much more sense. For sure worth it for the DVD

MP3's

Jerusalem

[audio:http://us.video.aol.com/video.index.adp?mode=1&pmmsid=1778416&referer=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.singingfish.com]

Chop 'Em Down

[audio:http://www.yekayeka.com/shnazzle/03%2520Chop%2520%2527em%2520Down.mp3]

Rastaman Chant

[audio:http://ia310115.us.archive.org/3/items/matisyahu2004-12-25/matisyahu2004-12-25sbdt01_vbr.mp3]

Related Links:

Matisyahu Official Website

Buy This Album! 

 Meeting People Is Easy // A Film by Grant Gee about Radiohead

Second part of my Radiohead final fix [until the new disc drops sometime in this young year] is a film that followed Radiohead around while they were touring in promotion of OK Computer. It is, by no means, a typical "follow a big rock group around and partake in their hijinks" film. But then, Radiohead aren't a typical hijinksy rock band. What you get here is Thom Yorke looking really bored during some dull interviews and really, really, really bored during "Creep." You get to see Colin speak French. You get to hear a lot of b-sides ["Big Ideas (Don't Get Any)" and two remixes of "Climbing up the Walls"] and then-unreleased songs ["How to Disappear Completely (and Not be Seen)" and "Life in a Glass House" ended up on Kid A and Amnesiac respectively]. You get several really good live bits. And you get a glimpse of the dull side of writing an album so worthy of my praise. At first the film may seem slow and incoherent and dreary, but I think that's the point. I feel it gives a great impression of what it must be like for those poor boys from Oxford. The inane interview questions, the blur of one city after another, the hype over "Creep." I must say that this is one of the few band documentary/concert DVDs that doesn't inspire me to pick up my guitar and follow my dreams of rockstardom. If you want that, check out Pearl Jam's Touring Band 2000 or Weezer's Video Capture Device . You might want to check those out anyway. But no, what this film made me aspire to is music journalism. Just so I can ask reasonable questions and not be another moron comparing the band to Pink Floyd and asking how they fit into the BritPop scene.

Final Verdict: It's not necessary to be a die-hard Radioheader to dig this, you just have to be interested in this sort of look at a band.

Related Links 

 Radiohead Official Website

Buy This! 

The John Butler Trio is my all-time favorite band. I never had a favorite band until I heard these guys. They're brilliant. The band consists of 3 members, duh, John Butler, Shannon Birchall, and Michael Barker. John Butler is the frontman, leading vocalist, and lead guitar. Shannon plays the stand-up bass and bass guitar, and Michael Barker is percussion. I use the term percussion because he doesn't just play the drums, he plays all sorts of stuff and is brilliant at it as well.

JBT and Me

I first discovered JBT through my best friend, who was referred to it through a boyfriend of one of her friends. The first tracks I heard were "Mist (MP3)" and "Peaches and Cream (MP3)". I wasn't very impressed with "Peaches and Cream", mostly because it is a slow song, and thats not usually a good introduction to a band who does mostly upbeat music. I really enjoyed "Mist' though, because of its simplicity and intricate guitar, as well as the combination of bluegrass and traditional Irish styles. So, I was curious, and obtained more of their music, the whole album, Sunrise Over Sea. After that, I was hooked. I spun that CD hundreds of times over the next year. This was in 2004.

John Butler Trio and their Music

They have several albums, two of which are Live compilations: Live at St. Gallen and Living 2001-2002. The others are:

Studio LPs:

• Searching for Heritage (1996)
• John Butler (27 December 1998)
• Three (18 April 2001)
• Sunrise Over Sea (8 March 2004)

EPs:

• Pickapart (31 July 2000)
• Zebra (1 December 2003)
• What You Want (9 August 2004)
• Somethings Gotta Give (6 December 2004)
• Funky Tonight (December 2006)

Source: Wikipedia

Sunrise Over Sea was their greatest success, particularly in Australia. They have not become as popular in the U.S., due to (I think) the mainstream music that is prevalent in the U.S. I don't think the U.S is ready for their sound.

Sound

John Butler Trio has truly created their own style of music. There are many labels for what it is, but what it is is original lyrics, ideas, and technique. They combine rock, ska, reggae, hip-hop, bluegrass, and much more to achieve their unique sound, and I believe this is why their music never sounds 'old'.

Lyrics

JBT is known for its 'activist' lyrics, which usually pertain to issues in government, policy, the environment, Australia, and general injustice. Many of John Butler's lyrics pertain to current events, such as Hurrican Katrina and global warming/climate crisis. A number of their songs feature such lyrics, like: Treat Yo Mama, Something's Gotta Give, and Good Excuse (brand new track, available for watching/listening here). One of his more famous songs, Ocean, is a long instrumental played by John Butler solo on his 11-string guitar, and refreshingly is different everytime he plays it.

Performances

I was lucky enough to attend a concert by JBT, in Mobile, Alabama. What a bloody good show. It was free, as a promotional event through a local radio station. This didn't matter however. I would have paid to see them. I was in the front row, and had Michael Barker grinning at my dancing. There are pictures from it here. They are known for their shows; they keep them intimate and always give their best, and as a result of their live show following, many of their live shows have been recorded by fans and are hosted for download at archive.org. ** As it is difficult to review an entire band, this has become more of an informative post. I think that is fair; when we come across breakthrough artists I expect posts like this. It is hard to encompass my entire John Butler/John Butler Trio experience in a few hundred words, so I'll say this: I think JBT is excellent because of their music, lyrics, and relationship with their fans. They are rootsy, down-to-earth people who produce music that is original and not made with the intent of selling records. They make music because they love to, because their fans love it, and because they have great messages. I never have been particularly fond of lyrical content as much as the music in any musicians case, but here I find myself shocked at the similarity between what I believe and think about particular topics, and how JBT communicates that to thousands of people through their music. They're not extremists, they are just a band that makes damn good music, and I think their philosophy and image are things that I wholeheartedly relate to. I have provided several easy links for you throughout this post, so you have no reason to not check 'em out.

Here's more:

John Butler Trio

JBT on Myspace

JBT Live JBT France

The JB Seed Fund (excellent for independent artists in Australia)

JBT Fans (they're awesome)

John Butler playing slide guitar in a tree in Australia.