Up From Below (Community /Fairfax, June 2010)

Posted by AGM

If you take it from him, Edward Sharpe descended to earth to travel the world and “heal and save mankind.” With brown hair tangled into a crown floating over his thin, shirtless frame and a traveling choir of apostles always in tow, he surely evokes images of a certain savior. But the man that fans so lovingly call Edward, was actually born Alexander Ebert. Though it may seem as though he surfaced from the skies, he was raised in Los Angeles and is not new to the music scene, but rather toiled in and out of indie fame for years in the unfortunately named band Ima Robot. Yet like a Broadway production, the Edward Sharpe story better fits the spectacle you see on stage than the tales of the actor who plays him.

A Magnetic Zeros show starts with chaos – an improvised jumble of stomps, claps, shakes and notes that somehow find their way to rhythm. Flanked by an endless clown car of players – a bountiful horn section, fiddle, even an accordion — Alex’s baritone soars above all as he croons Neil Diamond-like ballads or falsettos through Bowie-trippiness with a dash of hippie folk.

The man can certainly sing and lyrics like “she’s got jumper cable lips and sunset on her breath” show that he’s no slouch with the pen either. The majority of songs on their folksy debut album, Up from Below, are about love. Alex spews good vibrations in all that he does and this bold cocktail of instruments and harmonies harks back to the free love era of five decades ago (or so I’m told).

Edward, er, Alex ably plays the lead in this organized chaos, but what is any man without his muse? His beloved Jade — Lloyd Christmas bowl cut aside — is a worthy object of his affection. Bopping back and forth with an eyes-closed smile that teeters between oblivion and engagement, Jade’s grainy wail is the perfect compliment to Alexander’s boom; the June to Alex’s Johnny.

They are at their best when focused on each other, Alex’s serenade entranced so deeply into Jade’s eyes that you imagine he can see her soul. (Never mind the couple split up after a few months of performing together, their stage presence echoes nothing but the deepest affection in songs like “Jade” or the cult hit “Home”). Jade’s vitality is contagious and keeps a crowd smiling even as Alex delves into darker parts of his soul (‘I was born the devil’s son’) or farther off his spiritual deep end (and occasionally forgetting to sing).

What sets Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros apart is their connection to the audience; the mutual adoration a two way street that winds through their yellow brick performance from the first chord till the last fan has his picture taken with the fedora-clad keyboardist after the show. Ambitious songs of love and spiritual happiness somehow manage to avoid cliché or overkill and instead bring a strange unity and euphoria to the room. Sharpe shows are always collaborative whether Alex is changing lyrics to match the occasion, giving up the mic so fans can shriek the chorus to “Home,” or demanding that the entire crowd sit Indian style as he leads a sing-along like a hippie camp counselor playing kumbaya.

From the get go, fans have the sense they are all in this together, and it is not odd to see Alex casually chatting with admirers while seated on the edge of the stage or inviting 50 plus guests to join his choir for the encore. It is these moments that make the Edward Sharpe experience so invigorating. Sure his shtick can be a little over the top and at times the anarchy on-stage is difficult for even the avid observer to follow. But what the Magnetic Zeros lack in organization, they surely make up for in creativity. Shows remain exciting, unpredictable and dare I say…uplifting. The circus is coming to your town and at least in one fan’s mind, it is the most entertaining show of the summer.

“40 Day Dream” Live at the Regent