This is the newest album by The Extraordinaires, and it has shortly become one of my newest favorite albums, that I have discovered. I first discovered these guys a year or so again, by finding their previous release, Short Stories. The Extraordinaires have a wonderful way of telling stories vocally, while they mix different genres and tempos to give you something new to hear everytime you listen to the album. I find myself being very picky, my wife calls me an elitist, when it comes to music; I want to be entertained, have the music be intriguing enough to keep my attention, so I don't skip the song to find a good one, and feel like the musician more or less knows what they are doing; and these guys, they have all those qualities.
This album has a cleaner sound then their 2 previous releases, but it doesn't lose any of the eccentric build and quality that they had before. I can't really come up with any complaints; but I will be honest, I am not a fan of the vocals on track 4, Consummation of Lights, for some reason, the vocals make me think of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, which for me, totally sucks. Every other song, has multiple changes in timing and instrumentation, and then folds back into a great melody that makes you want to sing along; which I usually do back and forth on my daily commute. The vocals themselves are really appealing, and each song contains its own story or dialogue; and like I said before, this helps with being able to find something new, either vocally or instrumentation wise, each time you listen to it.
Electric and Benevolent is a great album, totally worth the price if you can get a copy, 10 tracks in all and lets not forget the awesome and inventive packaging these guys have with each album they do. (book and cd, that covers the stories that are being sang!) As of right now, they are on tour, so go out and find a way to go see them.
Official score: 4/5
Update: The Extraordinaires are wanting votes for them to go to Bonnaroo, download their stuff here.
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