White Lies For Dark Times

Combining shuddering, groove-laden funky soul and folky, handcrafted acoustics, singer/songwriter Ben Harper cultivated a cult following during the course of the '90s that gained full fruition toward the end of the decade. Harper combined elements of classic singer/songwriters, blues revivalists, Jimi Hendrix, and '90s jam bands like Blues Traveler, Hootie & the Blowfish, and Phish, which meant that he was embraced by critics and college kids alike. Though he never had a hit album, his body of work sold consistently and he toured constantly, building a solid, dedicated fan base.

A native of California, Harper grew up listening to blues, folk, soul, R&B, and reggae. As a child, he started playing guitar, and began to perform regularly as a preteen. During his adolescence, he began playing acoustic slide guitar, which would eventually become his signature instrument. After steady gigging in the Los Angeles area, Harper scored a deal with Virgin Records in 1992. He released his debut album, Welcome to the Cruel World, two years later to positive reviews.

Released in 1995, the politically-heavy Fight for Your Mind made for a strong sophomore effort, an obvious growth in musical experimentation and individual declamation. Harper's third album, 1997's The Will to Live, pushed his blues-oriented alternative folk into the middle mainstream, becoming a mainstay at college radio and making inroads at adult alternative radio. Recorded over two years of touring in support of Fight for Your Mind, The Will to Live introduced the Innocent Criminals, Harper's supporting band. The Innocent Criminals -- who are bassist Juan Nelson, drummer Dean Butterworth, and percussionist David Leach -- solidified Harper's musical rhythms and emotional diversity.

Aside from working on his own material, Ben Harper has built a strong rapport with other artists, playing guest spots on records by Beth Orton, John Lee Hooker, and Government Mule. He played 1997's and 1999's Tibetan Freedom Concerts, and opened for R.E.M., Radiohead, Metallica, Pearl Jam, and the Fugees. Harper's career gained momentum throughout 1998-1999. His most successful album thus far, 1999's Burn to Shine blended Harper's fondness of '20s jazz compositions and urban beatboxing, resulting in a clever and passionate collection of songs. "Steal My Kisses" and "Suzie Blue" were radio favorites, landing him two headlining world tours and an opening spot on the Dave Matthews Band's summer trek of 2000. In spring 2001, Harper issued Live from Mars, a double disc of live electric and acoustic material spanning the previous year's tour and including covers of material by Led Zeppelin, the Verve, and Marvin Gaye.

When it came to recording his fifth studio effort, Harper went back to his drawing board of life's pleasure and pain. He'd circled the world countless times and naturally, he brashly sang about it on the worldbeat-inspired Diamonds On the Inside, which appeared in March 2003. After a European tour withthe Blind Boys of Alabama in 2004, the two acts entered the studio together and laid down ten tracks in two different sessions at Capitol Records basement stuidios. The resulting collaborative album issued under both names, There Will Be a Light, was released in September of 2004.

While it's always been true that Ben Harper has been a musically restless soul with a penchant for changing up his groove from album to album, most of them have been recorded with his longtime unit the Innocent Criminals. As a result, both live and in the studio, a particular vibe existed. Familiarity breeds that, and it also sets up a dynamic. For White Lies for Dark Times, Harper put the Innocent Criminals on hiatus and hooked up with a new group: three Austin, TX transplants to Los Angeles called Relentless7, comprised of guitarist Jason Mozersky, bassist Jesse Ingalls, and drummer Jordan Richardson. The end result is, to say the least, explosive. While it's true that this 11-track collection does have some beautiful acoustic balladry on it, and a touch of Harper's brand of soul in its grooves, most of what we find here is balls out Rock with a potent dose of ragged, modern Texas blues thrown in. Indeed this may be the most electric sounding recording Harper has ever issued. He co-wrote six of the tracks with his bandmates, and those he wrote himself have been arranged and/or written to be played with this band. It's in the mix from the opener, "Number with No Name," the slow slide guitar playing an electric blues stomp that's pure Harper, but the drums are pure thud and whomp rather than snap and crackle. The bassline is enormous and the second guitar matches both volume and nastiness with that slide. In other words, this sounds like a band playing this jam, not Harper and his band. One can hear traces of Jimi Hendrix, early ZZ Top, and Johnny Winter in the attack, but it's pure rocking blues thunder and lightning spit out via Texas and the Delta.

The more spacy rock of "Up to You Now" is more directly a "Harper" tune with its stretched rhythmic sense and soulful vocal, but the utterly popping bass and wooly distorted guitar mix move it beyond his sensitive singer/songwriter frame. "Shimmer & Shine," the set's first single, begins as a double-timed rocker with Richarsdon's drum break, but kicks in with a staggered set of power chords that blend angsty punk and anthemic rock. "Why Must You Always Dress in Black" is pure blues-rock venom, the overdriven distortion (engineer and co-producer Danny Kalb did a brilliant job on this set, and on this track in particular) makes the guitars sound like they're breathing fire. The scattershot breaks from Richardson are impressive, especially as underscored with a syncopated bass pattern that marries blues, rock, and funk by Ingalls. Harper's slide chops -- especially when matched against that screaming blues riff of Mozersky's -- marks the toughest cut on the set. And that's saying something, because there isn't a throwaway here. Whether it's the shimmering, gospel-tinged balladry of "Skin Thin," the crunchy wah-wah electric funk-rock of "Keep It Together (So I Can Fall Apart)," the tripped out voodoo-psych, percussion-driven skronk that is "Boots Like These," or the straight up gorgeous, midtempo soul-rock ballad "Faithfully Remain," that closes the set on an uplifting (if reserved) note; it's all inspired and executed flawlessly. And while it's true that many of the tunes have lyrics that reflect anger, disillusionment, and sometimes bitterness, the snarling yet joyous attack in the music balances them. This is the record that finally matches the excitement Harper generates in a live setting and is not to be missed.