Live - Songs from Black Mountain

By nature, I am a person who resists change. I’m really trying to work on this, and I think I’ve come a long way. Still, to hear an album like Live’s seventh effort Songs from Black Mountain makes me sad. It’s because when I was in high school, bands like Live were the tip-top. Now, ten years later, they’ve all either broken up or gone through some change, and my instinctual reaction is one of distress. Live may have matured in their growth, but part of me thinks they’ve gone a little soft.

Ed Kowalczyk and his crew can be considered the spiritual gurus of rock and roll. Groups like Creed can pretend, but Live’s spirituality goes a lot deeper than a few camera-ready Christ poses. They walk the wandering walk, instead of just talking the Jesus-like talk. The journey Ed Kowalczyk has taken in his lyrics and the place he has come to is fascinating to me, and does at least a little to help me form my connection to God and the spiritual world. But now, I fear the journey is nearing its end, as Ed seems to be getting more and more satisfied with each Live album. That’s great for Ed, but not so great for me. It’s good to be spiritually satisfied, but more often than not it makes for some pretty boring music.

But I’m being unfair to this album; despite some rather vapid spiritual revelations, it is pretty good. It’s just not of the caliber I’ve come to expect from Live. They’re one of my very favorite groups, so it’s a little disappointing to get an album from them that’s just okay. The problem is that when I wasn’t looking, they went and grew up. I could sense it a little on Birds of Pray. But that album still had enough bombast to make it appealing to my young eyes. That album worked because it combined high-energy anthem rock with deep philosophical statements. With Songs from Black Mountain, the deep ruminations are fully intact, but the rock part seems very damaged.

The song “Get Ready” is a perfect example. This has the potential to be a loud, triumphant Live-style anthem, but as it is, it seems neutered and stale. They’ve mellowed in their old age, and they’re still really good. But I miss the version of Ed Kowalczyk that drove to the hoop every night, that offered himself up as a living sacrifice to the gods of rock and roll. This newer, calmer version who’s a parent two times over is nice, but it makes me yearn for the past.

Unlike other Live albums, there are no really great songs, but instead a bunch of pretty good ones. It’s hard to tell them apart from each other, actually. “The River” is the first single, and it sets the tone for the rest of the record, with little deviation. “Love Shines” is basically a Sunday school lesson, but quite often the most meaningful statements are couched in pretty simple things. And “Sofia” is a good tribute to a woman we would all like to marry. Like I said, the album is good, even if there are no surprises. While from lots of other bands that’s pretty good, Live are held to a greater standard, and it’s sad to see them falling just barely short of it.

Prime Cuts:
Mystery
Sofia
Love Shines (A Song for My Daughters about God)

22 Rating: 7