Canvas - Four Days Awake

Year of Release: 2002
Label: independent
Catalog Number: n/a
Format: CD
Total Time: 48:11:00

This band rocks! If that statement is not enough to get your blood circulating then one listen to the new Canvas album Four Days Awake will having you whistling a different tune. I swear on a stack of bibles that this great music will have you enamored within seconds, or a bolt of lightning shall strike me dead as I sit here writing these words.

This music gets in your face. It has a sharp edge to it that cuts right through to your inner being. With clean and razor-sharp riffs shaping each track, Ben Rada and Julian Mandrake lead the band to the Promised Land with their blistering inspirational guitar playing. In jam band tribe like fashion, faithful listeners will no doubt follow them wherever they go.

The dominating guitars offer variable paces and tones, running the gamut of fast and hard, melodic and funky. Not only do the six-strings pack a knockout punch, the bottom end of Brad Byram (bass, vocals) and Scott Thomas (drums, loops) is as solid as rock. With stellar drums and bass paving the way, the rest of the band has all the momentum that is necessary to direct each track. The lead singer Joseph King fondly reminded me of John Hermann of Widespread Panic, and their music at times did too. It is not as fusion/jam based as WSP though. They definitely have there own sound and style that puts them into a separate categorization, which is a difficult thing to do in the rock genus. Coming from a hotbed of music in Austin, Texas certainly has helped to define their sound and cause.

My favorites are ?Jezebel? and their spiritual ode to rock 'n' roll ?Om/Inside Of You.? Mercy me, these songs grab you with more hooks than a weekend bass fishing contest. Done with oomph and authority, it sucks you right in and does not let go. Those two songs are the shining gems of this entire treasure chest of musical supremacy. Chances are if you play this CD enough, you may find yourself awake for four days, so be careful. This is an astonishing album with outstanding production values making it one of the best I have had the pleasure to listen to this year.

[This Canvas is not be confused with the other Canvas (from Ohio) reviewed here ?ed]

Tracklisting:
Kamala's Garden (1:10) / Break (4:25) / Intertwined (3:16) / All About You (5:03) / Strange Hello (3:19) / FDA (5:42) / Jezebel (4:08) / Om/Inside of You (4:57) / There Is No Light (Anhedonia) (4:29) / Lessons From Underneath The Kachina Woman's Skirt?() / The Kachina Woman's Skirt (3:53) / Carousel (Edge Of A Hole) (9:19)

Musicians:
Joseph King - vocals, acoustic guitars
Ben Rada - electric/acoustic guitars, piano
Julian Mandrake - electric guitars
Brad Byram - bass, vocals
Scott Thomas - drums, loops

Discography:
Canvas (2000)
Four Days Awake (2002/2004)
Painting The Roses (2005)

Genre: Rock

Origin US

Added: August 10th 2003
Reviewer: Keith "Muzikman" Hannaleck
Score:
Artist website: www.myspace.com/canvas
Hits: 2238
Language: english