Ben Harper
Burn to Shine
Editor's Review:
To judge an artist by his influences or the similarity of his sound to
that of others is, quite frankly, unfair, and as a reviewing tactic, a
bit shallow. But sometimes it is impossible to say exactly what kind of
music is on a CD without referring to the old masters, or at least the
tenets of music they set in concrete. Ben Harper and his current band,
The Innocent Criminals, have created a CD full of music steeped in the
ideals of what made rock music great: big sounds, smart hooks and tried
and true formulas of song construction that, when used properly, can create
all kinds of wonderful room to move.
Burn To Shine employs a full and colorful, wide-ranging spectrum of sounds,
from the perfectly placed, assertive acoustic guitar strums of "Two Hands
Of A Prayer" to the barely audible but seemingly desperately needed, high-pitched
bell and weeping guitar that pepper the chorus on "The Woman in You."
The music here runs the classic gambit, from Sabbath to The Beatles, but
each number definitely has its own Harper flavor.
Still, operating within a set of guidelines—drawing heavily from influences
and relying on the good old rock structure—can be somewhat confining,
and some of the music on Burn to Shine suffers from predictability. A
few of the tracks, like "Steal My Kisses," are even downright unlistenable—sugar
pop-y numbers that chip away at the nerves until the finger reaches for
the track forward button.
– Quentin Price
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![]() Record Label Virgin Released April 2001 |
Tracks1. Alone2. The Woman In You 3. Less 4. Two Hands Of A Prayer 5. Please Bleed 6. Suzie Blue 7. Steal My Kisses 8. Burn To Shine 9. Show Me A Little Shame 10. Forgiven 11. Beloved One 12. In The Lord's Arms |
