Everclear
In A Different Light
429 Records – 2009

Band Line-Up: Art Alexakis, Vox, Guitar/Davey French, Lead Guitar/Josh Crawley, Keys/Sam Hudson, Bass/Tommy Stewart, Drums
Track Listing: Everything To Everyone/Wonderful/At The End Of The Day/Santa Monica/Summerland/Here Comes The Darkness/Father Of Mine/Fire Maple Song/Rock Star/Learning How To Smile/I Will Buy You A New Life

Everclear frontman Art Alexakis returns to the studio (for two “new” tracks, “Here Comes The Darkness” and “At The End Of The Day,” both of which were originally recorded for 2006’s Welcome To The Drama Club,” then shelved) both as producer and songwriter on In A Different Light.

Though the album features the group’s classic 2003-2009 line-up (listed above,) Everclear’s new touring line-up includes Alexakis, bassist Freddy Herrera, drummer Jordan Plotsky, Keyboardist Sasha Amith, and guitarist Johnny French. The outfit will back Art on his current tour as well as make their recorded debut with Everclear on their highly-anticipated upcoming all-original album.

Basically, In A Different Light does exactly what the title implies: Finds Art gently re-working a plethora of Everclear standards (Why, oh why, is there no updated “Heartspark Dollar$ign” here though?!) which is great in that you can really HEAR the lyrics if you’re an Everclear novice, but is a bit of a let-down in that the original energy and passion inherent in the originals (Example: when Art originally sang “Summerland,” he almost SPAT out the words, “No one really gives a fuck about us anyway!” On the version of that song included here, he sounds like he’s just giving up altogether when he shrugs, “…we can just get lost in the sparkle and fade…”) That’s not to say this recording is a waste of time, though- it IS interesting to hear what the ravages of time and the continued hard knocks of life have brought to Alexakis’ renditions of his own work, and kudos to him for continuing to revel in the studio and take pleasure in life on the road.

The album also allows Art’s two newer cuts to take their rightful place in his mighty canon of “everyday people” songs- “At The End Of The Day,” while driven by a soft, melancholy keyboard riff, is also righteously funkified by hair-raising, gospel-inflected backing vocals of Portland-based underground soul singer Liv Warfield, and like the best of Art’s material, leaves the listener with a taste of welcome hope, as he sings, “…I know, I would do it all over again/at the end of the day.” “Here Comes The Darkness” finds its author taking the brunt of the weight of past mistakes made with lines like, “I got noone to blame but myself…” and neatly wraps up a chapter in the band’s history with a softly strummed fade-out and the key words, “I can see the light at the end of the tunnel…” A must-have for Everclear fanatics and a nicely-done tide-over for more casual listeners.

-Kelly Mungovan

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