Michael Franti & Spearhead

All Rebel Rockers (ANTI-)

By Niema Jordan
Published: August 30th, 2008 | 9:00am

Since 1994, Michael Franti & Spearhead have been creating music that inspires listeners to question their surroundings and make a change. All Rebel Rockers maintains some of the political formula that Franti is known for — with more dub than before.

In an age of single-song downloads, All Rebel Rockers plays as a full album. On “Rude Boys Back In Town,” Franti tells listeners exactly what he has been up to in the four years between albums. The song, which lists locations and experiences without sounding like the bragging of an international jetsetter, is a dance-worthy introduction to the groove-filled album. By the CD’s midpoint, songs like “All I Want Is You,” “Say Hey (I Love You),” and “I Got Love For You,” give samples of the troubled and exciting phases of romantic relationships.

Just as they fall in to the flow, however, listeners are reminded of the Michael Franti & Spearhead staples of reflection and examination of one’s self and surroundings, “Tell me why it’s OK / To kill in the name of the Gods we pray / Tell me who said it’s OK / To die in the name of the lies we say,” he pleads on “Hey World (Don’t Give Up Version).” The album ends with an inspiring version of John Hiatt’s frequently covered “Have a Little Faith,” and in this age of war and recession, the song comes as a dose of hope.

All Rebel Rockers is a soundtrack for those who are willing to be called rebels in the name of peace. But it’s also an album for people who like music with a message or people just looking for a dub riddims to chill to.

—