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Keller Williams - Buzz Audio CD

A fair review of the Keller Williams "Buzz" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Keller Williams reviews here, or go back to the Keller Williams tabs.

Keller Williams Band: Keller Williams
Title: Buzz
Rating:
Release Date: 2001-09-18
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Sunny Rain 2: Sally Sullivan 3: Relaxation Station 4: Fuel for the Road 5: Stinky Green 6: Yoni 7: Over Dub 8: Anyhow Anyway 9: Inhale to the Chief 10: Killer Waves 11: Best Feeling 12: Same Ol' 13: Molly Malloy

A fine line between goofing off and having fun...
The latter can be good for the audience, but the former is only really good for the performer. There is a fine line between goofing off and having fun. When Keller Williams is at his best, he is one of the more fun and interesting performers around, combining a Michael Hedges/Preston Reed acoustic guitar technique with the irreverence of Frank Zappa (but without Zappa's acerbic streak). However, he has developed a fondness for a rather dangerous technique in recent years. He uses a looping device to lay down a rhythm on one instrument, play it on a loop, and either improvises around it, or keeps adding layers. The technique can work well, and others like Xavier Rudd use it to good effect. The danger is that it is easy for someone like Keller Williams to treat the looping device as a toy rather than an instrument. As someone who is as motivated by his sense of humor as much as an artistic vision, Keller Williams has been known to cross the line, and just goof off. However, this album presents Keller Williams in a well-grounded setting, backed brilliantly by the now-defunct progressive bluegrass group, Magraw Gap. Magraw Gap was one of my all-time favorite bluegrass groups, led by brilliant flatpicker Larry Keel (who would later collaborate with Keller Williams on the project, Keller & The Keels: Grass). Bluegrass is all about fun, but not goofing off, and while this is not a bluegrass album by any stretch of the imagination, Keel and his band do an admirable job of keeping Keller Williams from straying too far from the music, much the way String Cheese Incident would do a few years later on Breathe. This is not serious music in the sense of being humorless, but it is serious music in the sense of close attention to melody, rhythm and structure. You don't get as much of Keller's flashy, slap-n-tap Hedges-influenced guitar here as you do on, say, Loop, but there are also fewer goofy flights of fancy. For me, that makes it hold up a bit better to repeated listening.

At this point, I have to put in an obligatory plug for Magraw Gap, and Larry Keel. While the Magraw Gap album has sadly gone out of print, Keel is still releasing albums on his own. He is more of a straight bluegrass player, but one of the most innovative bluegrass flatpickers around.


What's the buzz? This is probably Keller's best!
Perhaps it's the old paradigm that jambands shine on stage and stumble in the studio. While I'm a big Keller Williams fan, I'm generally disappointed with his growing discography. As exciting as his music is, Keller Williams' sound tends to get old quickly. Coming from a one man band, perhaps it's forgivable that Keller's songs sometimes sound a bit too similar. Having all of his studio albums, "Buzz" is the one that earns the most rotation. So what's so different about this CD compared to his others? These songs are especially compelling. 'Freeker by the Speaker,' 'Inhale to the Chief,' and 'Best Feeling' have become staples of Keller Williams' live shows. Other highlights include 'Relaxation Station,' 'Anyhow Anyway,' and 'Fuel for the Road. ' These songs resonate and have serious staying power. The production is similar to Keller's other studio work in that he overlays different instruments including guitar, bass and percussion. Along such lines, 'Over Dub' is a brief track that shows off Keller's vocal talents -including the mouth trumpet. When it comes to the stand outs, I've listed most of the songs and that's the point. Given Keller's large and uneven discography, a compilation may be needed. Until that time, we can enjoy "Buzz" as Keller Williams' strongest studio release. .


I dropped like a bee into a brick wall
It's got that eccentric quality that anyone can appreciate from bluegrass fans to musicians themselves. When I first heard this CD, I was blown out! This is top-notch acoustic rock. His playing style and song lyrics are so smooth and contemporary - the farthest thing from cliche.

It seems like "Best Feeling" seems to get the most play, but my favorites are the bluegrass song "Sunny Rain," and a song about "Sally Sullivan," a story spinner. Keller's vocal talent is the kewlest in "Over Dub. "

"Anyhow Anyway" is one of the most peaceful pieces of music I have ever heard. It's on the same level as Moby's "God Moving Over the Face of the Waters. " There is a ton of good material here, and this is some of Keller Williams' best stuff for sure. The only thing better than this album is his performance live; you'll be dancing for sure.


You can see a complete list of all Keller Williams discography, or go back to the Keller Williams tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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