Review Text
Soul Package is a band from the Hawaiian island of Maui in Kula . Songwriters Luke D. and Dave Bond had quite a few original songs and they got busy developing their sound in 1999. All of these recordings were done between 2001 and 2008 by me, Franklin Russell. The fact that it was two sets of brothers in the band; Dave and Phil Bond, and Luke D. and Josh Maynard, gives the band a cohesive sound. Also since there is a 25-30 year difference in their ages the styles are blends of old and new. Phil's drumming style is a rather 60's approach with plenty of ride cymbal and fills. Luke's style is newer in the tradition of Sublime and at the same time Jethro Tull'ish. Luke D. has developed into a great songwriter and singer over the years. He now plays a Hofner violin bass and flute as well as singing. You can hear his violin bass on Overflow, Can't Deny and others. The sound is easy to listen to with Dave Bond's acoustic guitar and Luke's flute. Luke has a unique singing style that goes from mellow to an AC DC harshness. My favorites are Love Like Revolution,Overflow, One Lucky Girl, Little Box and Volga Jam. The Bill Gets In The Way is great too, for the Ian Anderson-ish intro and the great lyrics by Dave that suggest the possibilities for a better world. Thanks to Phil Bonds practice room and plenty of rehearsal time Soul Package was born. The band was a good way for all of them to blow off steam and get some creativity out. This album is dedicated to Luke's brother Nicky who we love dearly. Angel song was the first tune recorded in Phil's studio. Volga Jam, Soul Package/ Seed Song were tracked there as well. The rest were done at Franklin Russell's studio the Bamboo Room in Kanaio. Luke did a great job sculpting art for the package and for the on-disk art. Some of the songs like Hard Workin' Woman and Little Box were written by Dave about a woman on Maui, of whom he had a bit of a crush. We left in almost all of the recordings for art's sake even though some of the lyrical content may be controversial. The cover tune "What About Me" was by Chester Powers AKA Dino Valenti of Quicksilver Messenger Service. Comparing them to the original there is only a few lines that went in unaltered, nonetheless it's still clearly a cover tune. To this date Luke (the singer) has never heard the original cut from the Hawaiian recording done in 71 by Quicksilver. I think that is way cool. I love the guitar and flute on the song and the protest nature of it has validity today. The sound is rich and a treat for your musical/lyrical ear. If you are on Maui or an island anywhere you'll love it. All in all it's a great stereo recording and historical in nature. Listen to it with headphones to hear the stereo guitar tracks and all of the backup vocals. Thanks to all of you that have helped us along the way. Mahalo, Franklin Russell 2008 (recording,production,mixing,keys)
