Rez
XX Live
Reviewed by Doug Van Pelt
Rez starts off this smokin' set with "Waves" (cut one from album one) complete with Tom Cameron's wailing harmonica. Then they tear into an inspired version of "Military Man." "Zuid Afrikaan" is next, which is preceded by a nice explanatory intro by Glenn Kaiser giving the song, as he does others in the set, a logical/historic framework that presents REZ as a well-rounded package. Written long before it was "politically correct" to lament over racism in South Africa, this song bleeds the statement that "God makes the color, but the color doesn't make you God!" The band seemed well-paced that night, as they quickly segued from tunes like "Colours" and kicked into a big bass groove of "Players" without a hitch, only pausing momentarily to receive the animated applause from the appreciative crowd. One cut from each album shows up here, which is very cool. Some of these old tunes really had some new life pumped into them, like "The Struggle" (from Rainbow's End). Talk about passion...Yeah! This song oozes with it! You can tell the band was having fun this night. One proof text is Glenn joking about slowing things down right as the band stagedives into "Alienated." Rock Dinosaurs? Not! "Paint a Picture," with its pouting piano and Glenn's vocals is the showstopper of this two-disc/two cassette collection. Afterwards Wendy gives a gripping testimony of her innocence lost and regained again several years later by Jesus--a fitting intro to "Right On Time." "Love Comes Down" rocks with a great big, giant groove. Stu Heiss takes his own sweet time on his surprisingly subtle "White Noise" solo. "Bargain" comes off with lots of energy. Pete Townsend would be proud. The one song that had to be on this album, "Shadows," sounds as great as ever, complete with nice duo guitar textures. The band's cover of the Jefferson Airplane classic, "Somebody to Love," rekindles the power of the original. Another great big highlight of the evening was "Everytime it Rains." Wait 'til you hear the sax solo in the middle of it...oh yes! What passionate lyrics...they mean as much today as when they were written over a dozen years ago. Longtime concert fav "Lightshine" shows up here in energized form, making one realize the awesome amount of quality tunes the band has at its disposal. A great sermon about following Jesus seriously and not being distracted from Him by materialism closes the album, along with a simplified worship song. This second installment of REZ live surpasses the band's Bootleg effort and sure was recorded well. Way to go REZ!