Customer Reviews

Edible Darling

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

What a great record!

"Edible Darling" by is an insanely catchy, melodic rock/pop CD by a talent that really bears watching: Ben Arthur. If you like John Mayer and Howie Day, or Crowded House and Elvis Costello, you will love this CD. Clever rock, pop and acoustic-flavored songs with great hooks that will work their way into your brain. Ben Arthur's "Edible Darling" is highly recommended.

Ben's music is fun, smart pop with amazing hooks that will be playing in your head long after the CD comes out of your player. The songs range from straight up pop, to rock, to Americana and he does all those styles very well. They all seem to come very natural to him. His voice at times reminds me of John Linnell from They Might Be Giants but is not quite a nasal.

"Tonight" is a lovely ballad. "Broken-Hearted Smile" is the most radio friendly song I've heard in ages. "Instrumental #3" is ear candy for anyone who loves the sound of the guitar. But my favorite is probably "Keep Me Around", but ask me again tomorrow, it could change. They're all really good songs.

I can imagine nearly every song on here being played on the radio and being very well received. I think "Edible Darling" and Ben Arthur have a big future. ...

I saw Ben Arthur live by accident and didn't buy his album after the show because I didn't want to pay $12. I subsequently bought it used for ~$3 and it's been a really really worthwhile purchase.

Ben is a very clever songwriter and has an extremely listenable voice. His guitar playing isn't especially complex (perhaps a perk if you want to play/sing along) but that's more of an observation than a complaint.

Keep Me Around makes me exceedingly happy. There is also an instrumental track (not usually a fan) but it's somehow just perfect in it's position at track 6. It's a nice break and very pleasant on the ears. Mercy is a great song; MaryAnn is an easy first favorite with entertaining lyrics.

I would definitely recommend the album; I've found it's something I can listen to over and over. If you want more about my tastes to help you decide whether or not to buy, I like the Counting Crows (a lot), the Wallflowers, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Vienna Teng, Sheila Nicholls, Ben Folds, Audioslave, No Doubt, La Oreja de Van Gogh, Dave Matthews, the Goo Goo Dolls, Live, Switchfoot, Robbie Williams, Vanessa Carlton.

I bought "edible darling" the week of its release. I have no regrets! Each track on this album narrates an allegory presented in intelligent, delicate morsels of juicy musical splendor.
I love it!

I was lucky enough to have Ben Arthur come and perform at my school recently. (my Latin teacher knows him personally) He was great! It is so refreshing to see a singer/songwriter who actually writes his/her own music and plays an instrument! While I don't actually own this CD, I would be willing to buy it. One of my favourites is "Keep Me Around" and there was another song he played about a cat exploding...it was hilarious but I don't think it ended up on the album unfortunately. Yeah, so anyway, do yourself a favour and buy this CD instead of someone like Hilary Duff's, who neither writes her own music nor plays an instrument. This guy really deserves your support; he truly loves music and isn't in it for the fame or the fortune, which you have to admit, in this day and age, is very admirable. =)

I was at an outdoor concert series in Portland Oregon a few days ago... and before the band took the stage Ben Arthur's song "Mary Ann" was being played through the sound system (the sound person told me who it was). The song is total ear candy... fat bass and slamming pop production. It got stuck in my head and when I got back to work I came here and bought it.


I am looking forward to getting the record and playing Mary Ann on eleven. As the kids on American Bandstand used to say... "it's got a great beat and you can dance to it". `Nuf said.

If you are the type of person who complains about filthy language or if you yell at cars in your neighborhood to slow down, you will LOVE this album. Devoid of any lyrics that portray real feeling, this album was a disappointment.

It just doesn't get any classier than, "All this dry-humping / must lead to something" from Mary Ann. Keep Me Around is kind of catchy musically, until you hear the lyrics that sound like they were written by Shel Silverstein or Dr. Suess: "And you can hang your clothes / from hooks made of my toes". Or finally, how about the title line from Broken-Hearted Smile, "I would walk 1000 miles / To see your broken-hearted smile". That's exactly what I was looking for--ANOTHER played out exposition about walking long distances to prove your love.

Again, this album doesn't completely suck. If I were a fourteen-year-old girl I might be able to get past the stale, adolescent lyrics and enjoy the VERY radio-friendly sound. Perhaps we can look forward to Ben Arthur's sophomore album--maybe he'll try not to be such a sell out.