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by Kristi Kates LIVE
The Distance to Here
UNI/Radioactive Records
Well known for their memorable rock songs and “serious” stance as a band, York, Pennsylvania’s Live are once again selling their particular brand of serious drama with their latest album, The Distance to Here.
The artwork on this disc is terrific - the brightly-colored cover is reminiscent of India’s Mendhi/henna art, and the theme continues on the disc itself, a black-and-white rendition of same. You’d think they would have used more
water representations on the artwork, though, as much of Distance’s song titles seem to deal with a watery theme.
Opening with “The Dolphin’s Cry,” the first track catches your attention right away with singer Ed Kowalczyk’s near-acapella vocal, and continues on through the catchy “...can you hear the dolphin’s cry...” chorus. Kowalcyzk’s
vocal darkens just as the band begins Track 2 “The Distance,” and then kicks back into his higher range, a good contrast to the slightly funky backbeat and the harpsichord-like keyboard parts.
“Sparkle,” Track 3, has a catchy guitar track, but falters a bit on the chorus, which doesn’t quite have that sticky quality that many of Live’s anthemic tunes do. Track 4, “Run to the Water,” is quite reminiscent of Live’s earlier hit album, Throwing Copper, with
its propellant drumming, uplifting melody, and soaring chorus - this is one of the best tracks on the disc, and Kowalczyk’s singing is strong and nicely emotional.
Track 5, “Sun,” has a strange little starting bit that makes you think your CD player is malfunctioning (but, hey, I guess it at least gets your attention) and the unusual approach continues through the song, although it has more of an experimental, self-indulgent effect than
it does that of a solid song structure.
Moving on to Track 6, “Voodoo Lady,” Live takes a turn for the unusual, at least for them - the song begins with what is almost an electronica drum loop, but never really veers out of the usual Live territory - it might have been nice to see them take a slight left-field turn
for a change.
“Where Fishes Go” is Track 7, and, once again, although the beginning is promising, the track quickly goes back to that familiar Live sound, and actually takes itself a bit too seriously in the meantime. Track 8, “Face and
Ghost,” is pretty, but something of a throwaway, again not one that is easily hummed later.
Track 9, “Feel the Quiet River Rage,” does effectively bring forward the sense of rage that Kowalczyk is trying to convey, both through his powerful, effect-laden vocal and through the thickened guitar track; the backing vocals to this song also add a nice bit of density.
“Meltdown,” Track 10 is another one of the better tracks on “Distance” - it’s got a bit of an ‘80’s sound to it, like something The Alarm might have recorded, and the vocals are lifted up nicely by the arrangement and by
the ringing guitars.
“They Stood Up For Love” is Track 11, and, once again, an interesting start - a bit of a funk feel and a sassy, whiny little keyboard part - but much of the tune goes right back to the familiar “Live sound.” Another acapella
jaunt for Kowalczyk on the beginning of Track 12 - “I... was wrong...” he sings, to kick off “We Walk in the Dream” - but, unfortunately, that beginning is the most interesting part of the track.
Closing “Distance” is Track 13, “Dance With You,” another typical Live track - this one is quite reminiscent of the beginning of their previous hit, “I Alone” - which is not entirely bad, just nothing surprising. What is
surprising is that Live seems almost afraid of their own talents on this album.
While they have had previous very successful albums, and the entire band obviously has their musical chops down - including Kowalczyk, who is quite a consistent and emotive singer - it seems as if they begin many of these new songs by dipping a toe into unfamiliar waters, and
then jumping out before they’ve even been able to tell if it’s too cold to swim or not.
Many of the songs on “Distance” show promise at their beginnings, as Live tinkers with different sounds and feels - but it would be nice to see them jump fully into some of their new ideas, instead of just splashing around for a few seconds and then going back to their now
well-worn formula.
It might just take another album for Live to get brave enough to travel away from what they know - we’re not saying that we don’t appreciate who they are - they have brought some terrific songs to rock radio - but as they grow and change as people, you’d think that their
music would, too. For fans of: U2, Better Than Ezra, Collective Soul
John Popper
Zygote
UNI/A&M Records
Clocking in at over an hour, John Popper’s Zygote is an ambitious effort. The first thing you notice is that the vocals don’t sound quite like the Popper that we’re used to - the one that anchors the noodle-dance-favorite band
Blues Traveler.
Vocally, he stretches a bit into higher ranges and different styles than he usually performs with his full-time gig band, so he is definitely to be commended for the attempt. The first track, “Miserable...” starts off with a nice funky, jazzy little groove - it gets your feet
moving right from the start, and gets your hopes up, too - but it’s actually the only standout on the album. It’s not long before that familiar Popper harmonica kicks in - but he smartly doesn’t overuse it on this disc, even as
it is often a bit overused on the Blues Travelers’ material.
Track 2, “Once You Wake Up,” recollects the ‘50’s a bit, with a sensibility that harkens back to something that might have been heard at a prom in, say, 1956; it’s effective for this slow number, although you’ll find yourself waiting for the “Popperettes” or some
such backing group to chime in with extra harmonies.
“Growing On the Dirt” is Track 3, and, despite the fact that Popper rhymes dirt and hurts, it’s got a nice 4/4 feel to it. Unfortunately, things go downhill from here. Track 4, “Tip the Domino,” begins in typical jam-band
fashion - a little peek into the recording studio, as it were - but quickly deteriorates into a pretty typical ‘70’s-flavored little throwaway. Apparently “...a man can’t dance without a chance” on Track 5, “His Own
Ideas,” and it would have been nice if the man had had some different idea than what is executed here.
“Home” is the title for Track 6, and ‘subdued’ is the word that comes to mind for this tune - not a standout, not a crash-and-burn, “Home” is simply a pleasant ballad, performed well by the musicians involved. Track 7, “Love For Free,” and Track 8, “How About
Now” both make adequate fillers - and then there’s Track 9, “Evil in My Chair,” an amalgam of bad rhyming and attempted over-avant-gardism.
Track 10, “Lunatic” is another throwaway tune - sorry, Mr. Popper - and Tracks 11 and 12 never manage to pick the pace back up, although Track 12’s melody isn’t too bad.
Now, John Popper isn’t lacking in technical musical talent. His skill on the harmonica is practically legendary, and his vocal work fits in very well with the band structure of Blues Traveler. But
perhaps he needs a little more songwriting and/or studio experimenting time before he will find himself crafting a solo album that lives up to his potential.
Zygote sounds much like a series of not-quite-polished demo tapes; the ideas are there, but they just need a little more development - typical of a cell on its way to becoming a fully-formed embryo.
It will be interesting to see what Popper evolves into next.
For fans of: Blues Traveler, Sister Hazel, early Santana
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