Issue date: 4/19/02 Section: Features

In one magical week, the whole of campus unconsciously joined together in their realization of the coming of spring. The green-yellow pollen dusted the campus and cast a spell much like that put on Dorothy as she skipped through the poppies towards the Emerald City. And just in time for spring, Rusted Root have released their new album Welcome to My Party.

Albums that I purchase tend to become associated with the time period during which I buy and listen to them. The release of spring onto the world completely changes my mood; my activities venture outdoors and studying becomes lackluster. Sure, it's easy to study a lot, stay indoors, contemplate suicide and listen to dark music during winter term with its 40-degree or below rainstorms. But spring term requires a complete overhaul, and part of that overhaul is the right CD in my stereo. It has to be warm, full, have a good beat, and convince me to put the cyanide pills away until next winter term.

The first three songs of Welcome to my Party set the mood of the CD with bluesy riffs and bass lines.  With a modern jazz flair, the album's opening track, "Union 7," starts the listener off bouncing. Rusted Root's sound mixes flavors from a large range of musical genres and turns them into solid pop songs. No, I do not mean pop like 'NSYNC; I mean pop as in enjoyable, listenable and catchy music. Yet the label "Pop" does not really do justice to Rusted Root, either, because it usually implies formulaic songs with boring instrumentation. Welcome to my Party delivers far more.

As my friend Tim Hiller has said, this is a groovy album, in the sense that the songs actually groove. When everything blooms this time of year, we call it spring and enjoy it without focusing on all the details that make up the parts of spring—the budding trees, the blooming flowers, the fresh greenness of the grass, and so on. It is easy to take in the songs on this album in the same way; they carry you along in such a manner that you fail to notice the solid grooves and beats playing just underneath the music. All six members of Rusted Root work together to create whole, solid music.

The gems on this album are many. The title song "Welcome to my Party" bemoans unrequited love in its lyrics. It starts out sadly and builds its layers up into a powerful chorus that avoids what could have been a very cliché and whiny song.

My personal favorite on the album, "Too Much," draws out the spring theme of this article. The verse comes out in light, staccato phrases and leads into a more fluid chorus that retains the beat and rhythm of the lyrics. A tin whistle, congas, bongos and shakers add to the light and relaxed attitude of the song. The chorus itself, "Cause it's too much thinking / it's too much worrying / rest your head aside me now," describe my feelings about the need to relax this time of year.

Rusted Root balances the upbeat songs with slower and sexier songs like "Cry." Singer Michael Glabicki does wonders with his falsetto in this love song. The final track, "People of My Village," takes its cues from techno and club music, drawing the album back into a dance mood. With variety, solid and tight music, clever lyrics and all around enjoyable songs, Rusted Root will see many a spin as the weather heats up into summer.

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