In this day and age, when plastic, cheesy pop music rules the airways and the video channels, it’s nice to hear some music that is warm and fun. On its latest album, Live … At The End Of The World (Butros Butros Groove), local group Baba Seth gets heads bouncing and feet tapping.
Hailing from Charlottesville, Va., Baba Seth is part roots rock, part reggae, part ska, part funk. Listening to the eight tracks on the album, you can hear influences of Bob Marley, Sly and the Family Stone, Santana, the Grateful Dead and even the Clash. All these sounds come together to make the perfect spring or summertime album. It’s an album that should be blaring from open car windows as you cruise down the streets.
The album opens with Big Belly. One of the first things you notice is that for a live album, the production is pristine. It sounds just like a studio album – clean and polished. Except for the intro crowd noises you can hear on this track, only the music shines through. Big Belly comes out in full gallop. The beats fly out from the speakers, creating a high level of energy right from the start. Sharp horns give the music a punch while lead singer Dirk Lind lets his vocals flow in a style that is part Joe Strummer and part Buster Poindexter.
Crazy slows down the pace a bit. It has a more laid-back Caribbean feel to it – something that sounds like music from a late-night beach party. It has a sultry groove with lyrics reminiscent of the Police’s Don’t Stand So Close to Me. Here, Lind greatly resembles Strummer on the Clash’s attempts at reggae such as the song Armageddon Time. And sounding like Strummer is definitely not a bad thing. The album also has an African feel like Paul Simon’s legendary Graceland.
Other songs are slower, almost like ballads. Ballad of the Rise and Fall, has a darker feel to it. It’s a melancholy song with the horns providing a mournful tone. Coming on the heels of the more fun party songs, it’s a shock, but a pleasant one. It’s good to see that the band can do both styles of music without losing anything. Getting Ready For War, is probably the most obvious Marley-esque song. It sounds like a cross between Marley’s anthem War and Crazy Bald Heads.
The only flaw with the album is that many of the songs break into long, extended jams, perfect for a party or a concert, but it gets dull listening to it at home. Still, Live … At The End Of The World is a great album to listen to on a warm day and just enjoy the music – a rarity when most music seems manufactured, not made.
