michael franti and spearhead

they are AMAZING! i was recently turned on to them by a friend, and i can't stop listening to Stay Human and Songs from the Front Porch.

www.spearheadvibrations.com <---learn more

 

I saw them once..it was entertaining, but had a little too much of a religious edge for me.

I saw the disposeable heroes of hip hoprisy a long time ago too, that was pretty good...lost of metal and chains and sparks

 

i have a keller williams cover of a michael franti song called all the freaky people, or something like that., its a good tune. what ive heard of them rocks.

 

they strike me as, not so much "religious" but "spiritual"...and there IS a difference between the two. their music is just so real, relevant, and soulful. not to mention just fucking groovy and funky the freaky people song is actually called "stay human" and i have not heard that cover, but franti's version blew me away the first time i heard it. this music brings me to tears it's so wonderful...

 

i saw them twice i believe...great show but sometimes he uses the words"bush","mass destroction""war" and "love" too much man! he played like 4-5 songs (and they weren't even that great) and for the rest f the hour I felt like i was listening to some cult leader...
i respect the man cause his music rules and he's got the right mindthginkig but maybe sometimes he needs to sing some more....

respect!!
candy sue

 

I love their stuff... the BSC was great.

 

quote: and for the rest f the hour I felt like i was listening to some cult leader...


I sort of got that vibe too when I saw them Candy, lots of preaching

 

hmm, i've never thought of them as religious or anything..

what exactly did MF say when you went to see them?

 

He was just talking a lot about spirituality and humanity feeling the love etc. I can't really remember any specifics, this was probably 6 or 7 years ago now.

Sonador is pretty right, it wasn't "christian" but it seemed like he might start talking about Jesus any second. The girl next to me said "what is this, church?"

 

ahah.. well, I've yet to ever see him live. I keep putting it off for lack of money.

i've had chances to see him.. oh well.

 

i saw Spearhead up at SKI JAM, and i now going to see them in Oregon, at SHAKEDOWN FEST......

 

seamonster, i definitely agree that there's too much of a religious edge going on in their lyrics. franti doesn't come right out and say, "praise jesus!" but there is definitely more of a religious edge than just a spiritual one. when you look at his overall lyrics, it's kinda obvious.

lines like, "don't fear your family, because you chose them a long time before your birth."

if you exist as a conscious being before you have a physical body, then you will continue to live after you leave your physical body, as well. implications of that sort. in the line before that, he says not to fear your preacher.

and then there are song titles like, "oh my god," and "pray for grace." not like, "oh my god, there's a radioactive spider on my sandwhich!" but more like, "oh my god... stealin' dna samples from the unborn!" too bad his feminism doesn't extend to our right to choose... (sigh). cause you know, if you're against stem-cells that can save the lives of the living, you probably dont want women to have the right to choose.

don't get me wrong, there are a lot of his lyrics that i really do appriciate. and he says more things that i agree with than i disagree with. i like how he sings about vegetarianism, legalization, peace and love, (wow, it sounds trite when you type it!) but the religious vibe just kinda kills (or at least weakens) the message. i appriciate good ideas when they have a strong foundation.. the religious foundation is just bunk to me, and things based off of a weak foundation won't stand strong. you should do good and be peaceful and love because they are good in and of themselves... no need to bring god into it.

on a side note, i read an interview with him where he says he doesn't consider himself a follower of one specific religion, though he does pray all throughout the day, "to the Creator," for guidance. so we can at least conclude that he's monotheistic (praying to the Creator -- with a capitol C) and that he thinks his god is conscious and all knowing, as it can provide him with guidance.

 

well, think what you will, i find him absolutely amazing...and what's wrong with the fact that he has a spiritual edge or that he's monotheistic anyway? i don't feel like he's trying to be preachy. music is about expression, and if you don't like what someone has to say, you don't have to listen...peace

 

I had no idea he was one of those god-fearing christian lunatics.

 

I don't know, the only monotheistic religous type musicians I generally accept refer to god as "jah"

 

i'm the most un-christian person...but who cares if he preys to god, or sings about god...its good music, that lifts the soul.....if someone elses religion freaks you out that much..then your just scared.... and you don't know what you believe......

 

i didn't say that i dislike him or his music.
you quoted my whole post, but you must have missed the part where i said, "don't get me wrong, there are a lot of his lyrics that i really do appriciate. and he says more things that i agree with than i disagree with."

i didn't say that his religion -- or any, for that matter -- "freak" me out.
no, i am not scared, and no, i am not confused about my beliefs (or lack thereof). i don't know where you got that idea.

i was simply saying that i don't think that particular aspect of his music is necessary to make his point. i think it weakens his message in a certain way, but it doesn't mean i dislike his overall sound. no artist is perfect, and if you don't truly listen to lyrics or question what is being said, that's just sad. when you sing along to music, it's good to know how you feel about the words coming out of your mouth. there are only a few lines of his that i just can't bring myself to sing... but that doesn't mean i refuse to shout out the rest.

 

hah, not to mention that he says "yo" a LOT. a whole lot.

 

When I was on a trip to the mountains a year ago, during the van rides we would listen to a cd that had stay human on it. It quickly became our "theme song" and we listened to it a ton. When I got home I couldn't find the same version of it, but the one I found was pretty good too.