Several reviewers Have listened to Habitat and immediately pronounced it to be a mediocre effort. Yet after repeated spins, those same reviewers are now lavishing high praise on the album. So if you take nothing else from this review, take this message: You really have to listen to this many times over before formulating an opinion.
Habitat is a concept album with a difference: It describes the lives and events of the people living within one city block. And a diverse block it must be, with penthouses and offices and tenements. As the band puts it, 'Twelve tracks, ten lives, one block'. Point is - within that context, there's plenty of scope for a diverse set of songs depicting a huge range of emotions, events and lifestyles - and it all hangs together under both musically and thematically. Kudos to Man On Fire for the imaginative idea and the unconventional music, and to Steve Carroll's rich lyrics that describe it all so effectively.
Musically, Habitat is somewhat different from the band's previous CD. It is far more assertive, yet there are subtleties and complexities throughout. It's been described as power-pop - but that's unfair. Yes, it has incredible melodic hooks, and yes, some songs are fairly approachable, but keep listening. There are all the time signature and tempo shifts, recurring themes, varied instrumentation and thematic complexities you'll find in the best of the genre. Adrian Belew (King Crimson, David Bowie, Talking Heads) and Davis Ragsdale (Kansas, Smashing Pumpkins) add guitar and violin lines respectively that add important textures to the music, and rather than simply putting on the occasional cameo performance of a guest artist, their contributions are woven into almost every component of the record.
Founding member Eric Sands's fretless bass is less prominent than it was onThe Undefined Design, but it is still features strongly and students of that instrument would do well to study Sands. Frontman and keyboardist Jeff Hodges is clearly in control here, and his vocals are strong and confident, and somewhat unusual. He sings in a relatively high-pitched voice delivered with a belligerence that suits the cynicism called for by many of the lyrics. Several choral pieces and the varied instrumentation keep your interest throughout, and the piece is punctuated with sound samples that advance the concept of each song. These snippets are tastefully short, though, and consequently do not get in the way of multiple listens.
"What The Canvas Hides" is a favorite - not only because of the liberal doses of Ragsdale's violin, but also for the incredible catchy, lilting theme that takes over about halfway through. This piece alone will have you nodding your head and reaching for the replay button. Listen to Belew's guitarwork in "Street Game". No soaring gymnastics a la the guitar gods of today. It's a subtle, melodic piece that could easily fit onto an early '70s Cantebury piece, yet his solos are so tightly integrated into the music here that it's hard to believe he hasn't been playing with the band for years. The sign of a master. "Never Lost" is a soft, appealing ballad driven by a prominent bass and that Ragsdale violin line permeating every passage.
So listen to Habitat, and listen again - and again. And when one of these tunes runs through your head consistently while you're walking through an airport or driving your car or simply sitting around idly, you'll know you've been hooked.
Oh - and if you get a chance to see Man On Fire live, do so. They're as tight as a drum, and their live show is a rewarding experience.
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Originally Posted by 3LockBox
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