On his third, self-titled effort, Ben Kweller takes the notion of "solo album" to the extreme, playing all of the instruments himself. For many artists, this would result in an album that's quiet and insular. However, Ben Kweller is nearly as immediate and direct as Sha Sha and On My Way were, but with a little more focus. Kweller's eternally boyish voice is perfectly suited to his tales of young love, hanging out and heartache, whether he frames them in giddy, impatient pop like "Run," earnest tone-poems like "Thirteen," or a sound somewhere between the two, as on the single "Summer Dress." To his credit, though, Kweller sounds a little more mature on several songs, particularly "Penny on the Train Track" and "Red Eye," which asks the surprisingly direct question, "How long will it take before I have your heart to break?" Equally divided between thoughtful allads such as "Until I Die" and half good-natured, chugging power pop like "Gotta Move" and "Magic" -- with the occasional feisty rocker like "This Is War" thrown in for good measure -- Ben Kweller treads the same path as Kweller's other work, but fortunately, it still sounds genuine, not formulaic.
Is it me or does it seem "homemade" videos that look like they could be on Youtube are all the rage right now. I feel this phenomenon started with the Fat Boy Slim, "Praise You" video and the ball seems to be rolling faster and faster. Youtube has become the place anyone can get their 15 minutes of fame, and it amazes me just how many hits some videos seem to get. I know Ok Go can attribute a l...
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Ben Kweller's last full length "On My Way" was a total breakout, we all agree, or at least we better. Ben's new self titled album proves it was because after "On My Way" he seems to have quite a bit more production involved in the album. For the first time though Kweller plays all the instruments so you can't negate his musical ability one iota and his lyrical prowess is still amazing. He's cur...
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Here's the daily OM Music review of Ben Kweller and a link to his Myspace page with music.http://www.myspace.com/benkwellerJanuary 31, 2007Ben KwellerBen Kweller 2006Ben Kweller became interested in rock music before he entered kindergarten, thanks to his dad being friends with Bruce Springsteen's guitarist Nils Lofgren. Kweller was playing guitar and writing songs by the time he was eight and ...
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The thing I love about music is that sometimes you run across a song, totally by chance, that just describes exactly how you are feeling in that moment."I Don't Know Why" by Ben KwellerCheck me out.I'm losing control.I wanna rock and roll.But everything I planned just slipped right through my hand.I don't know why.I'm a nice guy.I wanna take it easy babyBut every time I start my world falls apa...
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I cannot decide if it's worth paying $20 to see Ben Kweller in a few weeks, considering I just saw him last month. I kind of really want to see him in a small venue (last time was Lollapalooza). everytime I walk into work the new album is on, so I feel like it's a sign. at the same time signs don't take $20 tickets into account. sometimes I feel like I'm not indie enough to call myself indi...
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Ben Kweller's newly released self-titled record is...good. Really good, actually. His best yet. And it's not that his songwriting has drastically improved (although it is getting better) so much as that he's making much wiser decisions these days with his arrangements. His loud, overdriven rockers on previous albums are fun enough in concert, but they've always caused me to reach for the sk...
More >
Is it me or does it seem "homemade" videos that look like they could be on Youtube are all the rage right now. I feel this phenomenon started with the Fat Boy Slim, "Praise You" video and the ball seems to be rolling faster and faster. Youtube has become the place anyone can get their 15 minutes of fame, and it amazes me just how many hits some videos seem to get. I know Ok Go can attribute a l...
More >
My digital camera does not function so well when the operator(me) has had several big 32oz beers...so here are two of the pictures that actually look like something from last night's Ben Kweller show. Good show, big fun...and the fact that he did an acoustic cover of 'Ice Ice Baby' made my week!!
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Every Christmas is usually spent away from home. Usually we drive down to Fresno, where I was born and raised, to celebrate the holidays with my family. My parents, long since divorced and remarried, are patient as we celebrate the holidays twice, opening gifts, not necessarily on Christmas day, and eating our fair share of goodies and treats. In fact this Christmas Day was spent in transit ...
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(for when you have spring fever) Sorry about the delay. Today's song comes from Ben Kweller, a Texas singer-songwriter. He currently has four studio albums out, his most recent being Changing Horses which came out in February. Not too bad for a guy who's only 27 who just got married and had a kid. Mr. Kweller also has a legendary Austin City Limits appearance under his belt in which he pla...
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Here's the daily OM Music review of Ben Kweller and a link to his Myspace page with music.http://www.myspace.com/benkwellerJanuary 31, 2007Ben KwellerBen Kweller 2006Ben Kweller became interested in rock music before he entered kindergarten, thanks to his dad being friends with Bruce Springsteen's guitarist Nils Lofgren. Kweller was playing guitar and writing songs by the time he was eight and ...
More >
I cannot decide if it's worth paying $20 to see Ben Kweller in a few weeks, considering I just saw him last month. I kind of really want to see him in a small venue (last time was Lollapalooza). everytime I walk into work the new album is on, so I feel like it's a sign. at the same time signs don't take $20 tickets into account. sometimes I feel like I'm not indie enough to call myself indi...
More >
Ben Kweller's newly released self-titled record is...good. Really good, actually. His best yet. And it's not that his songwriting has drastically improved (although it is getting better) so much as that he's making much wiser decisions these days with his arrangements. His loud, overdriven rockers on previous albums are fun enough in concert, but they've always caused me to reach for the sk...
More >
The thing I love about music is that sometimes you run across a song, totally by chance, that just describes exactly how you are feeling in that moment."I Don't Know Why" by Ben KwellerCheck me out.I'm losing control.I wanna rock and roll.But everything I planned just slipped right through my hand.I don't know why.I'm a nice guy.I wanna take it easy babyBut every time I start my world falls apa...
More >
Most bands I see on the tonight show sound terrible, but BK pulls it off! Even as a 3-piece, BK and his band sound great.
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Ben Kweller's last full length "On My Way" was a total breakout, we all agree, or at least we better. Ben's new self titled album proves it was because after "On My Way" he seems to have quite a bit more production involved in the album. For the first time though Kweller plays all the instruments so you can't negate his musical ability one iota and his lyrical prowess is still amazing. He's cur...
More >
| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Run |
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| 2 Nothing Happening |
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| 3 Sundress |
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| 4 I Gotta Move |
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| 5 Thirteen |
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| 6 Penny on the Train Track |
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| 7 I Don't Know Why |
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| 8 Magic |
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| 9 Red Eye |
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| 10 Until I Die |
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| 11 This Is War |
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Click to purchase…
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 "Ben Kweller")
