Matisyahu - Youth - Music & Performance - CD

When Matthew Miller discovered both God and reggae music as a high school student, the two interests took him down an unlikely path. Today, the 26-year-old is better known as Matisyahu -- the Hebrew name for Matthew -- and he's storming the charts with an unlikely but likeable new sound. Sporting the beard, sidelocks and garb of a traditional Hasidic Jew, Matisyahu's music is anything but traditional.

After a couple of indie releases, the artist has released his major label debut, Youth, on Epic. Fueled by some high-profile appearances at reggae festivals, as well as a guest spot on the album of fellow religious reggae flavored artists P.O.D., Matisyahu's arrival has been anything but quiet.

The music adds an unexpected contribution to the mainstream music world. With lyrics that are always uplifting and enlightening, Matisyahu is preaching what he practices, and vice versa. The lyrics are wholesome and free of worldly ambitions, while the music is a reggae-roots mix infused with hip-hop and free-flowing jams.

Delivering his message in English, Yiddish and Hebrew, Matisyahu's songs talk of spirituality and kindness to others, with varying scenarios of these themes presented from one song to the next. On the title track, "Youth," he looks at the trials and temptations facing young people today, and encourages them to stick to the straight and narrow.

He loses the hip-hop backbeat and goes acoustic for "What I'm Fighting For," a song that serves as a sort of explanation as to why he feels compelled to continue on his mission. He explains that his riches are not on this earth, and looks at those who have walked this path before him.

"Jerusalem" is a reverent reggae number that vows not to forget where he came from. With references to the Holocaust and persecution of the Jews through the years, he vows to observe the roots of his family tree and continue honoring his past in addition to preserving those memories the future. Despite the solemn nature of the song, he manages to drop in a line from Matthew Wilder's sunny '80s hit, "Break My Stride," before closing out the last verse.

"WP" -- the name stands for White Plains, where Matisyahu grew up -- is a realistic, autobiographical track that looks at the challenges he faced at school. It's a fitting representation of teenage frustrations, and he again urges listeners to serve only one master. He notes that you can't keep it together when you're picking up habits that will only tear you apart.

Standing out as the album's love song is "Unique is My Dove," which talks of finding the woman that he wants to be with for the rest of his life. Together, they will create a strong relationship built on a pure love, and he cherishes the moments they have and all that is yet to come.

To close out the album, Matisyahu gives us his best song, the catchy "King Without a Crown" that earned him radio airplay last year and pulled him out of obscurity. It's understandable to see why even the MTV crowd jumped on this one; the song has a hypnotic beat that is impossible to overlook. But it's also Matisyahu's statement of faith, a sincere vow of devotion and a song of complete surrender to his Lord.

Matisyahu is more than a singer with plenty of built-in marketing hooks, although it's hard to deny that the Hasidic Jews' hip-hop answer to Bob Marley is a pretty powerful angle to overlook. But once the novelty fades, what remains is an artist who has a sincere love for God and wants nothing more than to express it in a manner that is nearest and dearest to his heart.

By Paula Felps