Youth

This album is one that was a great follow-up to his live album, and also his debut album, Shake Off the Dust...Arise. There are definitely a ton of Jewish themes here, also there is a definite rise in production values compared to his first studio album, although I'm not quite sure if that is a good thing or not. I'm sure those of you who loved his debut album will think this album is a bit overproduced, but the message still rings loud and clear. Since this album, he has become more and more mainstream, with Spark Seeker being his most pop-sounding album. This album still has the elements of reggae, but this is where it starts to fade a bit. He's done a lot of experimenting since this album, and most of it has been good. I'll give you a track-by-track rundown: 1. Fire of Heaven/Altar of Earth: Great opening to the album, a nice introduction to his new sound. 8/10 2. Youth: The title track of his album. It is a great song with a great chorus, and one of the best on the album. 9/10 3. Time of Your Song: I love this song. It is one of my favorites on this album. The chorus is very strong, and the beat and instrumentals are wonderful. 10/10 4. Dispatch the Troops: This song is good, and it has all the elements of a good Matisyahu song. 8/10 5. Indestructible: I really enjoy this song, it has so much soul to it, definitely recommended. 6. What I'm Fighting For: A short acoustic song that really encapsulates the soul of what Matisyahu is trying to get across in his songs. 9/10 7. Jerusalem: This song is great on all levels. It is catchy, soulful, and a song you can truly dance to. This is the best song on the album IMO. 10/10 8. WP: I guess this is a song about Matisyahu's roots, when he was younger, and it is totally enjoyable, not to mention showing how he came to be interested in music with one of his childhood friends. 9/10 9. Shalom/Saalam: I'll be honest, this one I don't listen to much. It is an instrumental, and I'm not quite sure what it means, being a non-Jew. 7/10 10. Late Night in Zion: Another one of my favorites. It is a great song about a man is just a man filled with faults and weakness. Sounds incredible. 10/10 11. Unique is My Dove: About his wife, a nice pleasant song about how his wife is the other half of his soul. 9/10 12. Ancient Lullaby: I'll be honest. I never liked this song until I heard a different version of it on Live at Stubb's 2. It's a little light, and I would recommend Mist Rising as a better version on the live album. 7/10 13. King Without a Crown: This version of this song sounds more like the live version, which makes it more rock-sounding than the original. I think it is better like this, but nothing compares to that live one. Still, excellent version. 9/10 Well, that's it for me. I recommend that this album is definitely worth buying, because it is a great album with songs that almost anyone would like. Very spiritual, and very catchy.

Amazing album, Ancient Lullaby, Youth, and King Without a Crown are truly masterful soulful reggae-funk rock.

The perfect customer to buy this CD is a Hasidic Jew who has enjoyed the sounds of Sublime, 311, No Doubt, and maybe a little Phish, Grateful Dead and Bob Marley. While characterized as reggae, Matisyahu's music isn't really packaged into a genre. If you are Jewish don't expect Carlebach, and if you are into reggae, don't expect anything Jamaican. Overall, the CD is good, but the sound departs from Matis' earlier work. If you liked 'Refuge' on Live at Stubbs,' or 'Shake off the dust ... Arise,' you will really like this album. If you thought he was a bit too reggae before, but liked his music nonetheless, you will really like this album. This album is a bit more rock, but generally slower. You will still find some beat-box, some double-time rhymes, and some jump-up-in-the-air music, but it is not 'King Without a Crown' remixed into 12 new songs. I've always like Matis' music and I still do. I always thought it was because I am Jewish, but once I pulled out my old 311, Sublime and Bob Marley albums, I realized why I like Matisyahu. He combines those sounds with a positive message. If you are not familiar with Judaism, some of the lyrics will be lost on you, but the same could be said of a lot of secular Jews. Admittedly, in order for me to get all the lyrics I had to get out my Hebrew Bible and Google a few things ... the bottom line is that even if you are secular, you probably won't object too much to Matisyahu's message. His most religious messages should be easier for the most secular listener to tolerate than the misogyny one can hear in similar sounding music.

Matisyahu is a great live performer. I caught his show at the Austin City Limits music festival in September. He rocked a crowd of 15,000+ and had them in rapt attention, not only for his music, but also when he made a blessing over a snack. This CD, though, is a studio CD. It doesn't have the energy that his live performances do, and if you had to pick one of Matisyahu's CDs to buy, it probably ought to be Live at Stubbs. That said, this one really grows on you. There are a lot of nice hooks throughout. The melodies and the words will stay with you. There is a lot you can do in the studio musically that is hard to do effectively in a live performance. The arrangements are solid, but the album does not feel overproduced. This is a band that can flat-out play. So, buy the CD and enjoy!

I enjoy this cd so much…I purchased a second copy. It never leaves my workout cd player!

King Without a Crown-5/5 Dispatch the Troops-5/5 Youth-4/5 (the stylized version in No Place to Be is 5/5) The rest of the songs are 4/5. The album is a solid effort by Matisyahu and his band. These guys transcend the so-called cultural barriers and just rock the house. If you like or have started to discover Matisyahu, this is a must-have ( and so is the Live at Stubbs CD ). I would love to watch him live-

This review comes from the perspective of a Christian who likes rhythm, but has not really participated much in other or mainstream Reggae. The novelty of a Hassidic rapper and my heavy study and love of and for the Old Testament (which Matisyahu is forever quoting) drew me into buying the Album Live at Stubbs. I have not heard their other album. Compared to Live at Stubbs, Youth shows excellent growth for an already talented and passionate group of artists. Live at Stubbs has very much the same sound, and to some extent, tempo in each song and one can only listen to it so many times. The present album shows grand variation with the established 'vibe.' Clearly, a lot of good production went into this album and it is well worth the purchase!

Matisyahu's apparent randomness of identity--a Jewish reggae singer--becomes less random the more you listen. Rastafari and Judaism both study the same book, and when it is interpreted as Matisyahu does--with universal compassion and amazing lyrical rhythms--you get an outstanding force of goodness.

fantastica performance lo ascolto ogni giorno da piu di 10 giorni incredibile molto bello lo consiglio vivamente a tutti eccezionale

Très bon album, très bon artiste, ça change de ce qui ce qu'on écoute touts les jours ! C'est parfait !

Wurde schon alles zu geschrieben, als CD Version natürlich nochmal bessere Soundqualität als bei Youtube o.ä. Für jeden Fan oder der es noch werden möchte zuschlagen ;).

Looks brand new, great price. Thanks a lot

I had never heard of Matisyahu until a few months ago when I read that the Boycott, Divest and Sanctions (BDS) crowd had pressured a reggae festival in Spain to cancel Matisyahu's scheduled appearance because Matisyahu is Jewish. The festival complied and cancelled his appearance until international pressure and criticism forced the festival organizers to reconsider and put him back. Matisyahu performed at this festival while members of the BDS crowd waved large Palestinian flags at him from the audience to protest the fact that he was performing. I saw the video of him performing Jerusalem (his opening number and obviously his response to the BDS crowd) at this Spanish festival and I thought, "Good for him." I'm not a big reggae fan but I am an Israel supporter who disagrees with the BDS crowd, so I bought this CD as a way of both checking out Matisyahu's music and showing support for him against the BDS movement. It turned out to be a very good album. Thanks to the BDS crowd for introducing me to Matisyahu's music. I liked this CD enough that I'll check out some more Matisyahu music.