Live
The Distance to Here

THE REVIEW

It's October 1999 and the Live, a band originally from York, Pennsylvania, composed of Ed Kowalczyk (vocals), Chad Taylor (guitar), Pat Dahlheimer (bass), and Chad Gracey (drums), release this "The Distance To Here." This is their fourth release, following their debut "Mental Jewelry" (1991), "Throwing Copper" (1994), the album of success and acclaim; and the controversial "Secret Samadhi" (1997), where the band had veered towards a harder and more grunge sound, with songs having less commercial appeal. With this work, Live perhaps seek definitive affirmation, putting a bit aside the grunge and hard streak that had characterized songs like "Iris," "Stage," "I Alone," "Waitress" and "Top" (from "Throwing Copper"), and several moments of "Secret Samadhi"; and they often flirt with broader and more commercial sounds, with greater use of electronics.

The opener "The Dolphin's Cry" proves to be a truly successful opening song, as were the previous "The Dam At Otter Creek" and "Rattlesnake"; after a calm and relaxed start, the song manages to successfully coexist a certain hard charge with the new more pop sounds, especially present in the chorus, which is still truly captivating. This hard rock sound is also found in songs like "Sparkle" and "Sun" which, although two successful tracks overall, lack the freshness found in previous albums. One absolutely cannot forget "Run To The Water", the second single from the album, a very shrewd song, where Live wink at certain sounds more typical of bands like Creed, yet the song is still very beautiful and definitely one of my favorites from the band, almost a modern reinterpretation of "Lightning Crashes", at least for the intensity and passion that Ed pours into singing.

Unfortunately, following songs like this, there are others like "Voodoo Lady", "Where Fishes Go", and "Feel The Quiet River Rage", which have never thrilled or convinced me completely; while "Face And Ghost (The Children's Song)" is a nice piece, albeit partially ruined by excessive use of electronics in the verses, with the insertion of filtered vocals. Instead, "Meltdown" and "The Distance" are overall two decent tracks, though the latter has a slightly too pop vein. A separate discussion must be made for the three concluding songs: "They Stood Up For Love", the last single, starts with a riff halfway between funk and reggae (in the version played at the concert "Live At The Paradiso" there is also space for a verse of "No Woman No Cry"!) and yet presents an "epic" and very successful chorus that stays imprinted in the mind; the pause before the last chorus is also beautiful.

"We Walk In The Dream" is a beautiful song that remains halfway between a ballad and a rock song; and finally, it concludes with "Dance With You", perhaps the true masterpiece of Live: it is a simply perfect ballad, which encompasses a very heartfelt interpretation by Ed, with almost subdued singing, and a wonderful text that evokes really evocative scenarios, especially at the end, as Ed sings "I wanna dance with you, I see a sky full of the stars that changed our minds, and lead us back to a world we would not face", and Chad's guitar marks a calm and intoxicating rhythm that conveys unique sensations. Perhaps it must really be listened to while sitting by the sea at dawn on a summer day to fully understand it.

Well, so ends this "The Distance To Here", perhaps the last great record by Live, although not all the pieces are up to standard; indeed, what follows is "V" in 2001, which I found horrible; "Birds Of Pray" (2003), which contains at least another great song to remember, "Heaven"; and finally "Songs From Black Mountain" (2006), which had good songs, although tending a bit too much towards pop. And this also risks being the band's last work, at least understood as the historic lineup; in fact, according to the (few) news present online, it seems that singer Ed Kowalczyk has not been part of the band since 2009, and indeed it seems he will release a solo album during the next summer. I still hope for a reconciliation, because honestly, I can't even imagine Live without Ed, otherwise, I will console myself with their last official song, that "Forever" (taken from the album "Live At The Paradiso" from 2008), which luckily is a really great song, indeed what am I still doing here, I’m going to listen to it again!

 Tracklist:

1. "The Dolphin's Cry"
2. "The Distance"
3. "Sparkle"
   
4. "Run To The Water"
   
5. "Sun"
6. "Voodoo Lady"
7. "Where Fishes Go"
8. "Face And Ghost (The Children's Song)"
9. "Feel The Quiet River Rage"
10. "Meltdown"
11. "They Stood Up For Love"
12. "We Walk in The Dream"
13. "Dance With You"