Barefoot Rebellion

Somewhere between the Jammy-Award winning mellow grooves of Steve Winwood and the poignant storytelling of Jim Croce you will find the latest work of Buck's Barefoot Rebellion. On Joshua, it's difficult to find a balance between reveling in the calming grooves of the album's musical undertones
and contemplating the full weight of the political messages found
within the lyrics of the songs. In many ways, the constant contrast between the optimism of the Rebellion's sound and the darkness of their lyrics is what makes this album so particularly interesting.

The opening tune "Lessons Forgot" sets the stage for the rest of the album: one man's story of the world spoken atop the delicacy of the Rebellion's neo-folkish grooves. It quickly becomes clear that BBR is about music from the roots. Extraordinarily genuine in its intentions, the music is both simple and complex at the same time. The songs are very simple: three chord
progressions carried by soothing rhythmic beats. Yet the real value in this album lies in its texture both musically and lyrically. Mixing an
eclectic blend of musicians including Stephen Keith on bass, Chris Domenico on drums, Lani Meyer on flute, Alex Reisenwebber on lead guitar, and Clint and Talon Hutchens on percussion with the Woody Guthrie-esque lyrical prose of Tony "Buck" Buckner, this music is ideal for enjoying some beers around a relaxing campfire.

Moving on to "I am," a Jim Morrison-like spoken word epitaph, Buckner
delivers the message of "live life to the fullest as I have so proudly
chosen to do," which establishes a context of optimism underneath the much heavier and darker lyrics that appear throughout the rest of the album.

Joshua really begins to pick up with the third track's combo punch of
"Feed You From Within/Paradise Found," where musically, the album begins to take on a tropical kind of feel to it. Subtly funky, the melody of Meyer's flute-playing decorates a tune that conveys the feel of sixties discontent channeled through the optimism of the latter part of the decade's hippie-ish
folk grooves. It's just the sort of song that I imagine would be heard emanating from the huts of the breakaway society in the Leonardo DiCaprio's 2000 flick "The Beach" as they basked in the happiness of a simple life.

As the record progresses with "Another for His Pride," it becomes more and more apparent that the quality of BBR's music is, indeed, in its texture. No single element particularly stands out in an individualistic sense. But together, each part produces a good mix of tranquil rhythms and
introspective storytelling, which is why I suspect that Buckner readily
uses the term "collective" to refer to this musical outfit. One certainly
can see a collective vision in Joshua.

"Faith in You," a Tahitian sounding melody is one of the album's highlights. Showcasing greater range in Buckner's vocal abilities, this is where he really seems to break out on the album. Beginning with a country, southern
rock sounding guitar/flute intro, this song tells the story of the pain
of losing faith in one that you love. And it is here again that we see
this continuous clash of dark lyrics with upbeat music, producing an overall "everything's going to be alright" feel.

The next few tracks carry on in a similar fashion. Hidden in here is
the politically culminating "24 Hour American Dream," a testimony of issues currently pervading American culture, such as the profiling of Muslims in a post-September 11 world. As one of the more rocking songs from BBR on
this album, it exemplifies the band's belief that they are here not only to provide musical entertainment but also to set the stage for a new era of political consciousness.

Joshua comes to a strong close. "Action to the Reaction" offers some variety in BBR's sound by offering more of a southern-esque rock/soft funk groove
that is guaranteed to get the listener's head nodding while "Demigods"
opens with a percussive tribal beat as the guitars slowly fade in and Buckner declares "Free your intellect. Free your spirit!"

Overall, Joshua's sound is distinctive. The subtle complexities of their sound offer the listener a unique blend of neo-political folk and contageous grooves that are guaranteed to provide an excellent backdrop to any relaxing evening. While lyrically introspective, telling the story of one man's spiritual journey on earth in coming to grips with the terrible suffering of
the world, one element that I would like to hear more of is the talent of the individual musicians. A close listen to this album affirms their skill levels. Yet, there does not seem to exist much of an effort to showcase these individual talents. However, one could also easily say that the raw
simplicity of the music itself, in creating an almost effortless
feel-good groove, is what makes it so pleasant to listen to. Any which way you decide, one thing is for sure: this band is a great reassurance tha - midwestmusic.org