John Brown's Body of work on display at MontBleu
Reggae band’s sound changes with the times
Tahoe Daily Tribune
3-26-09
By Tim Parsons
John Brown’s Body is a lot different than it was in the 1990s.
“I would be hard-pressed to call what we do roots reggae anymore,” said drummer
Tony Benedetti, one of the two original members remaining in the eight-piece
band.
A change in sound began with “Pressure Points” in 2005. Tragedy created a change
in personnel a year later: Bass player Scott Palmer was diagnosed with cancer
and died in just six months. Band co-founder and singer-songwriter Kevin
Kinsella and others left.
“That was a traumatic bunch of months and something that was a challenging
situation,” Benedetti said. “But Scott’s passing turned out to be a point for us
to stop and (reflect). And also me and Elliot (Martin) wanted to see the band
progress. We were heading in a different musical direction more geared toward
his compositions. It was time for people that were sitting on the fence to move
on or move forward.”
Martin, indeed, had taken over the band’s creative reins, writing eight or nine
of the songs on “Pressure Points.” According to the band’s Web site, Martin and
Kinsella had their creative differences since they were childhood friends.
“Kevin’s songs tended towards religious themes and roots reggae sounds, more in
line with the group’s beginnings,” the Web site johnbrownsbody.com reported.
“Elliot’s writing emphasized futuristic and atypical rhythms, as well as dense
metaphorical imagery.”
Benedetti described the new sound:
“To me the music we’re playing these days has a cutting-edge kind of vibe to
it.,” he said. “It’s a little more difficult to put your finger on exactly what
it is. I think we’ve integrated a lot more of (reggae’s) sonic influences and
beats and different lyrical textures. I think it’s a really fresh sound that
were coming onto right now.”
Right around the time of Palmer’s illness, Martin developed some serious throat
problems. He finally had surgery in January 2008. The release of “Amplify” nine
months later proved that Martin had regained his pipes.
“I think he feels and sounds a lot better, and thank goodness for that,”
Benedetti said. “It surely could have been catastrophic. He’s got a lot of noise
to project over. We’re a pretty loud band. It’s a big sound that he’s got to get
over. But he’s got more than enough ability to make it happen. He always has.”
“Amplify” was an instant success, hitting No. 1 on Billboard’s reggae charts
upon its release. Artists throughout the world were so taken with it, that remix
of the album followed last week. It includes Australia’s Blue King Brown, U.K.
producers Goldielocks and Wrongtom, and Canada’s Dubmatix.
“It’s really got this cool international vibe,” Benedetti said. “It’s a lot of
different sounds that we haven’t touched on before. I think its pretty slammin’.
It’s good to give fans a new twist on the music, and hopefully bring some new
people to the music.”
Blue King Brown, of course, will open for John Brown’s Body on Wednesday, April
1, at MontBleu Casino Resort and Spa. Benedetti’s conversation with Lake Tahoe
Action took place just before the two bands’ first show together last week at
the Fox Theatre in Boulder, Colo.
Will the two bands jam together?
“Oh my goodness: That sounds horrifying, but stranger things have happened,” he
said. “I just realized, wow, they have more people than we do. We are definitely
open to having people up if the vibe is right, and I have no reason to think the
vibe ain’t gonna be right. Maybe by the time we get up to Tahoe we’ll be doing
some crazy stuff.”
Who: John Brown’s Body and Blue King Brown
Where: MontBleu Casino Resort and Spa
When: Doors open at 8 p.m., show starts at 9 p.m. Wednesday, April 1
Tickets: $20
Purchase: MontBleu box office, or online at ticketmaster.com