Ben Harper’s latest album, “Both Sides Of The Gun,” hardly breaks new ground since 2003’s fantastic “Diamonds On The Inside,” but it does present a delicious supply of new songs. The album consists of two genres of music, one soft and one hard, but one thing is clear: Ben Harper is pissed about the current political situation.
Disc one consists of softer ballads that either have Harper’s melodic guitar strumming and picking or the crunchier sound of production. The lyrics are insightful and moving, giving a window into Harper’s more personal and private side.
“Both Sides” is not too sappy or sentimental. Harper spins poetry into one beautiful song after another, including the sad and haunting “Picture In A Frame,” a song about missing the past: “Now all that’s left of us/ Is a picture sitting in a frame.”
Disc two is for fans looking to hear more of his upbeat style. Harper allows his political views to seep into, but not overpower, his lyrics. In “Gather ‘Round The Stone,” Harper comments on Hurricane Katrina and about young men and women dying for their country: “You’re too young to know/ That you’re too young to go/ There’s no freedom to be found/ Lying face up in the ground.”
“Both Sides Of The Gun” showcases the best of Harper’s abilities and has enough folk and funk to please both musical ears. It’s an album with some flavor and emotion to help topple the recent lackluster mainstream music mania.