Rusted Root - Welcome to My Party

Welcome to My Party is an apt invitation to the stirring, often festive songs that populate Rusted Root's fourth record. From the funky, joyful "Union 7," where the vocals of band founders Mike Glabicki and Liz Berlin intertwine and shine, to the lovely instrumentation of the title track to the reggae strains of "Women Got My Money," Rusted Root augment an already expansive musical palette. The multi-instrumentalist sextet fuse elements of Latin, African, Eastern, soul, rock, and traditional American music into an uplifting, intelligent, melodious whole. Discrete yet cohesive, the wonderful percussion and Middle Eastern vibe of "Artificial Winter," the bluesy Band-like ballad "Sweet Mary," and John Buynak's enchanting pennywhistle melodies on songs like "Too Much" make for an enjoyable journey. Although they've toured with the Grateful Dead and Santana and support environmental and social causes, Rusted Root are not a retro jam band or overly New Age-y. Rather, their timeless, well-crafted, and multidimensional tunes provide enriching ear candy for a stressed soul. --Katherine Turman Amazon.com

Terribly disappointing cd

I've seen the band live 5 or 6 times since the mid 90's. Everytime, except for the last time I saw them (on tour for this record) was exceptional. Not only was the concert lackluster, but the cd was worse. Honestly not a single song on this cd impressed me enough to want to listen to it again. The songs seem ...forced. After a few weeks of giving it a chance, I gave up. I can't recommend this cd to anyone. Get Cruel Sun or When I Woke and leave it at that. May 22, 2006

Hmm.....

I am actually quite disappointed in their albums after their big "Ice Age" break. I feel like they lost their roots!!!!
And in 2003 I saw them in concert.... I could not believe how trendy and popish the girls were dressed. I have been a long time fan of their music. I saw them in '96 when I was a young teenager and loved them!
But I could not believe when I saw them in concert that the girls sold out like that. Their more recent songs sound so "poppy" and not so much of their old stuff. There are maybe one or two songs but the rest.... they might as well have asked Britney Spears to join the group.
If you want to fully taste and embrace Rusted Root at their finest, purchase When I Woke... and stay away from the pop albums. December 16, 2005

not as earthy

I never thought i'd see the day when Rusted Root used a technopulse. I thought they were pretty comfortable with themselves seeing that their past albums have been consistent as far as mood and style, and i know it's healthy for musicians to venture out of their norm, but I definitely prefer the good'ol-good'ol.
NOT that the whole album is comprised of technobeats... it's really only the last song that surprised me. There is definitely some old school Rusted Root blood flowing through this body of songs... however there were a few mediocre songs on here as well;
I feel that these unsuccesses may have been a result of trying to fuse their old technique with stark new ideas without a middle man there to help.

..so out with the negative and in with the positive...

The song "Blue Diamonds" (sung by Glabicki&Wertz), which was a most beautiful composition, did make it onto a few mainstream radio stations and frequented the college stations... I actually had a friend who used that song on her wedding day.
This album also has the predicted injections of funk (#3-Woman Got my Money), blues (#5-Weave), and other very interesting mixes of musical flavor.
Despite any negativity given this album, Rusted Root always holds their harmonies amazingly tight (Glabicki's 'trilling' falsetto is mind blowing!) and their skillful use of many odd and wonderful percussion instruments will never get old.
The combined talent of these six musicians will definitely keep me tuned in for whatever they have coming up next.

and if you ever get the chance, SEE THEM IN CONCERT! July 21, 2004

remember "remember"?

For those of you who think this is RR's worst release, what about "Remember"? Yes, this CD is multilayered, but they all are. Yes, it is mellower than usual, but hey, the band has aged. It is richer melodically than most of the others, and the lyrics are evolved and intelligent. Each song still gives me goosebumps. Mike still wails, especially on "welcome to my party". Although it's no "When I Woke," compared to similar bands who have slid into mediocrity (such as Phish, STI, and Santana), this album proves to me at least that we still have quality music even nowadays. Don't let the subtlety fool you. May 27, 2004

over produced

This is my least favorite RR album. The raw natural acoustics which was their signature is no where to be found on this album. This album is over produced and sounds like the music was copied and pasted verse by verse. The percussion has gone from physical to digital and what happened to the artwork? Overall this album is still better then most of the stuff in music today but if their albums continue to follow the rest, thats exactly what they will be. Please go back to the traditional roots of music and leave technology for the techno artists. June 12, 2003

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