One of the best things about music is that, despite some genres being farcically allocated to different races, once in a while an artist will come along and prove that they can transcend racial prejudices by taking a so-called 'endemic' style and making it their own, irrespective of skin tone. Eminem successfully did it and subsequently paved the way for 'white boy rappers'; now Matisyahu has pulled off a similar coup (but don't expect to see an explosion of rabbis into the charts).The 26 year old experienced the Jewish equivalent of being 'Born Again' in his late teens, and consequently underwent the transformation from Matthew Paul Miller to the Hasidic Jewish equivalent 'Matisyahu'. Undoubtedly, the novelty element is a factor. Matisyahu's propensity to don traditional Hasidic gear and sport the obligatory beard has earned him the epithet 'The Rapping Rabbi', but such a moniker, and indeed, such outright branding is both unfair and discrediting to the man and his superb four-piece band. 2004's debut 'Shake Off The Dust.. Arise' was a robust work, both lyrically and musically; and while Youth, his major label premiere possesses largely the same theological/social commentary/political themes, its musical scope is more expansive - fusing reggae with rock, pop, rap, dancehall and Fun Lovin' Criminals-style 'wiseguy' vocals. Matisyahu has both an ear for a rhyme and the lyrical flow to carry it off, and though his influences may be undeniably obvious at times (Bob Marley's spirit is evoked on What I'm Fighting For and Time of Your Song and the Jamaican dancehall/ragga style touted by contemporaries Damian Marley and Sean Paul is lucid on the excellent Indestructible) they remain influences, not sources of blatant exploitation. His true inventiveness is apparent on jaunty love song Unique is My Dove and jangly radio-friendly hit King Without A Crown, and the album is peppered with lyrical nods to the likes of Matthew Wilder and The Police. Strange though it may be to hear an American Jew sing in a mostly Jamaican accent, and even stranger to imagine the same artist stagediving in full regalia, Matisyahu has bridged musical divides with Youth in several ways, and in the process has created an enjoyable, encompassing, if ultimately far-from-perfect album. And for that alone, he should be celebrated. Mazeltov mon, mazeltov.
