Hip Hop/Rap and Funk Rock and Jam and . . .: Michael Franti & Spearhead Live in Sydney DVD/CD

Watching Michael Franti on the new Live in Sydney DVD/CD DualDisc you realize that Franti is leading a polytheistic worship service complete with a liturgy of highs and lows, crowd participation with hand movements like any youth gathering, and plenty of singing along. Within this interfaith service, there are kernels of truth (from a Christian perspective) which form a common ground with Franti’s perspective. Meanwhile, watching Franti you realize the passion and excitement that could be applied to the worship of Jesus. Franti looks like he’s completely focused on leading the crowd in a freeing hop through riddim, rhyme, and message.

These observations of Franti’s worship leader-like position come from watching the DVD. The filming suffers at times from poor lighting, but it still transports you to Sydney. As Franti and MC Radio Active hop to the beat, asking the crowd to scream, you’ll find yourself hopping in front of the TV and screaming.

The audio side of the disc makes this impressive set portable. It’s a nice feature considering that once you’ve seen a concert DVD, a lot of times you’d like to listen to the music even when you can’t watch the DVD. However, the audio levels are a bit low at times, especially on Radio Active’s mic. A couple of times when Franti turns it over to Radio it sounds as if we’re only hearing his beatbox through other mics and not his own. Radio Active’s beatboxing shouldn’t be missed either. From just adding some light atmospheric sounds to full-on beatboxing to doing his own vocal turntable scratching of his own vocals, Radio Active brings the house down. The audio level problems seem like a dis on Radio’s valuable contributions to the sound of Michael Franti & Spearhead, but the DVD does make up for it some in the Extras with an extended beatbox that was edited out of the main film/audio.

Franti, working with Spearhead, blend rap, reggae, hip hop, R&B, soul, rock, and folk in a funk rock and Jam Band groove. Perhaps because it was filmed in Sydney, the crowd appears to mainly be white, but perhaps that serves as a reminder that Franti’s message transcends color lines, a message of reconciliation for all races. This is one of the kernels of truth that resonates with Christianity. The closing song, “Never Too Late,” is like an absolution song. Franti’s lyrics act almost as if words of Christ letting us know that it is never too late to be forgiven and reconciled with one another and with Him. Like the words of the father to the Prodigal Son, the chorus says, “It’s never too late to come home.” Plus, it is a song about transforming our views of one another.

Another kernel of truth comes on “Every Single Soul” where Franti sings about “every single soul is a poem written on the back of God’s hand.” It’s a beautiful image to think of God being the Poet, and we are His work of art.

Now Franti departs from Christianity on many other matters. The DVD Extras also includes a video from the recording of “Ganja Babe,” a song about loving a woman who smokes pot. There’s the crux of the problem with Jam Band culture: the ideals of the message sound a lot like Jesus until they don’t—and then they really don’t.


Weeds Soundtrack
“Ganja Babe” is featured on the soundtrack from the Showtime series, Weeds. I don’t have Showtime, so I can’t even speculate about what kind of weeds we’re talking (OK, so I know from the show synopsis that the main character is a widow who becomes the pot dealer to support her family). However, I can tell you that the soundtrack is a great mix of jazz standards, new artists like Sufjan Stevens and Nellie McKay, some rockers, but mainly leaves you with a Jam Band collection feeling. Franti fits right in! Drug references aside, this is a great selection of music that will make you enjoy a wide-range of styles. Music from the Original Series: Weeds is available on Rykodisc.

Thank you to the Michael Franti & Spearhead and MVD – Music Video Distributors for the review copy.