Ben Kweller - Sha Sha

Ben Kweller is cooler than you. Yeah that's right, he is cooler than you. Not only was he the front man of the heavily under-rated band Radish when he was only 16, but now at the ripe old age of 20 he has released one of the happiest, most fun albums of the year. When I heard that Ben Kweller was releasing a solo album this year my mind drifted back to his former band Radish and seeing them live in Charlotte, NC. At the time the band's album was released Ben was only 16, but for those of us who were able to appreciate the band's music, it was obvious that this was just the beginning for Ben. Four years later Ben is a little more grown up and still goofy as ever, however his debut solo album Sha Sha is somewhat different that the music of Radish. While Radish had a strong alternative rock feel to it that was very characteristic of the time period it was released, Ben's latest offering has a more pop feel to it. The first thing that came to my mind was the music of Ben Folds. The similarities between the two move beyond the fact that both of their names are Ben, and they both use the piano as one of their main instruments, they also both manage to create really catchy melodies that you sing to yourself long after the disc has left the changer. Kweller manages to incorporate quite a bit of guitar in the album, but while at times he is working the distortion like on "Commerce TX" on other tracks like "In Other Words" it is all about the acoustic, the piano, and some really pretty string arrangements. It is this ability to combine the more solemn piano tracks with the rock that makes Ben Kweller really stand out as a musician. I have to admit, I am a little biased when it comes to Mr. Kweller (as if it isn't obvious). I think it is great that even though his first band fell through, he was able to take another stab at the music business, and at the same time take his music in a new direction. I just hope the rest of the music world is able to see the talent that lies behind that 20 year old and allows Ben to keep making new music to impress me. [www.benkweller.com]