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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 21, 2006)
BY MOLLY TEMPLETON Experienced Ben Kweller belies his age. B en Kweller ’s self-titled third album begins with Kweller rambling, “When I was a movie star an asteroid had hit the earth and is rich with the imagery of long- prematurely ended my career.”) On My Way standing love, a decade’s worth of expands on Sha Sha’s energetic, playful traveling and the strange interactions that charm, alternating rock songs full of dirty result when you cross paths with really old guitars with Kweller’s signature heart-on- friends. A logical progression from his first sleeve piano ballads. But it also offers up the record, the endearing, off-kilter Sha Sha, and title track, a sweetly unassuming campfire 2004’s more ’70s-influenced On My Way, singalong about surprising yourself with the the new album features the singer-song- things you can be and do. writer on every instrument, from piano (on This third album gently stretches the BK the lovely ballad “Thirteen,” a tonal cousin sound — the rhythms are dif- to Sha Sha’s soaring “Falling”) ferent, the lyrics broader, the to triangle. Ben Kweller, charm laid on thicker. You could call it Kweller’s Sam Roberts Band Kweller oh-ohs his way most mature album, though 9 pm Wednesday, through “Magic”’s bridge, that description would be a lit- 9/27 • WOW Hall throws in a “momma” here tle early in coming for a musi- $15 adv., $17 door and a “baby” there on “I cian all of 25 years old. But Gotta Move” and comes off young BK (as he refers to him- unabashedly besotted on the sweet first sin- self in Sha Sha’s “No Reason”) has the gle, “Sundress.” Maybe “Red Eye,” a career and experience of an older man. He mopey downtempo track, and some of the left high school to play with his mid-’90s alt- sillier lyrics to the bombastic “This is War” rock band Radish, then headed to Brooklyn, (“I can’t be your friend/’cause I gotta knock started playing solo and eventually signed to you out”) aren’t among Kweller’s brightest Dave Matthews’ ATO Records. moments. But in a way, even the less imme- But don’t let the DMB connection put diately appealing songs make sense; it’s all you off. Sha Sha is a youthful masterpiece, part of Kweller’s Brooklyn-by-way-of- 11 quirky, obscenely catchy pop songs that Texas, hip yet unironic appeal, and if every mixed Weezer’s nerdy, distorted sensibility single song doesn’t win you over on first with a James Tayloresque, classic-rock piano listen, that might just mean they take a little underpinning and a notebook’s worth of longer to sink in and stay. rambling, goofy, earnest lyrics (the album ew 32 SEPTEMBER 21, 2006
