Ben Sollee / New to Us, New to You
Thinking outside the box can be really difficult. Some people get paid to do exactly that. Geniuses. Inventors. Savants. Think Tanks. The writers of DUL (just kidding!). I’m sure it’s exhausting and takes a certain type of person and personality. Ben Sollee is that person. Ben Sollee must have that personality. Armed with a incredible sense of song and a cello (among other instruments), Sollee crafts genre-hopping music that is both beautiful, complex, and ear-catching. He thinks outside the box. He thinks outside the cello. Maybe he doesn’t “think” at all – it just comes naturally.
Ben Sollee / Close to You
Ben Sollee / Something, Somewhere, Sometime
Ben Sollee / A Change is Gonna Come
Sollee is a Kentucky-born, classically trained, pop cellist that dabbles in all things folk, bluegrass, jazz, and pop. When I say dabbles, I mean he grabs a little piece of all those genres, throws them inside his cello, turns it on “high” and voila. More often than not, Sollee‘s songs are packed with complex and percussive, yet approachable, cello work paired beautifully with his smooth, trained vocal work and other arrangements. The guy has a knack for honest and interesting lyrics which adds even more to the already “outside the box” theme we’ve been rapping about. Also, all music aside, the guy is passionately involved with non-profit organizations, environmental awareness, and all that good stuff. It’s nice to know that someone you respect musically and enjoy listening to also seems to be a hell of a good person. Good people rule, amiright? I mean the dude did a bicycle tour in 2010 (Ditch the Van Tour), hauling cello and everything on his bicycle and stopping in small cities along the way, not for sustainability purposes, but just to interact and see parts of the country he’d never had a chance to encounter before. How can you not like that? That shit’s outside the box. My theme holds true!
I became familiar with Mr. Sollee from his duet 2010 release with Daniel Martin Moore entitled Dear Companion, produced and featuring Jim James from My Morning Jacket. Honestly, this album blew me away. Sollee’s cello and vocal work combined with Moore’s guitar and vocals, and awesome lyrics, made for an amazingly interesting study in pop tuneology. The focus of the album was to explore the country and surroundings of their Kentucky hometowns with just a tinge of environmental activism thrown in for good measure. Really amazing stuff that I highly recommend. Sollee also has quite an accomplished and lovely catalog of solo releases. His latest and brand new release (May 10), Inclusion seems to be right on par with his collection of existing work, but seems to bridge the gap between genres even more than past releases. Horns, pianos, and beautiful harmonies are spread over 11 gorgeous songs. I’m currently playing “Huddle on the Roof” on repeat and getting lost in the jazz/classical piano accompaniment in an almost old-timey subject matter tune. How can you not love a song that talk about “rapture” ? Terrific.
From what I’ve heard and read, Sollee’s live performance is something to behold, complete with passionate and aggressive cello work and an always stellar live band. Sound sweet? Well it gets even better because Sollee will be playing Club Cafe in the South Side this Wednesday. Touring with Jordon Ellis and Phoebe Hunt, the trio is sure to put on a hell of a show. Also, please note that Club Cafe is an awesome venue for up close and intimate performances and this is definitely going to be worth it. I’ve seen many a sick show there. Enjoy the MP3s from several of his releases above and check out this video below. Tickets are still available and this one definitely gets our stamp of approval – we’ll be there! See you then.
Close To You from Ben Sollee on Vimeo.
Ben Sollee on the web
Official Site
Store
Twitter
Tickets for the show
Filed under: Live Music, New to Us, New to You?
I enjoyed your commentary about Ben Sollee and his stunning new album, Inclusions. One of the observations I have been offering in response to some of the internet discussion of Ben’s latest work is to draw attention to the respect Ben pays to his listeners by not “writing down” to them. As usual, Ben’s songs exhibit wide compass and the lyrics and music are co-equal in the compositions as a whole. In the new issue, Ben has ramped up the voltage all around. I find the lyrics in many of the songs especially provocative, and sometimes enigmatic, so that they don’t too readily give up all of their meaning. And the musical sound is complex and astringent enough to challenge our ear, with the result that it can sustain repeated listening without saturating. Altogether, it is obvious that this record is the work of a raaturing artist. Ben has been quoted as saying he’s proud of it and there’s little wonder why: It’s a knockout.