Peter Elizalde – THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR

Peter Elizalde – THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR – Album Review

Is a heathen beast like myself the right person for this particular record?  Buckle up y’all.  We’ve got twenty tracks and one heck of an adventurous & ambitious lineup of songs to get to here in review.

The bass-lines and guitar in “Overture – Eli Lama Sabachtani” are well worth tuning in for.  Almost has that like…dramatic delivery you’d find in something like “With A Little Help From My Friends” at the beginning, before it goes on to morph into a more widespread & adventurous sound.  I mean…this is Prog at the end of the day…not sure if that’s how Peter himself would feel about it, but there’s not much really getting around that label with so much involved in the musicianship and massive structures you’ll find at the heart of the composition.  As it heads into its most Jesus-inspired parts towards the end, it probably loses a few people like myself in terms of content & all, but I’d be the first to tell you that it still sounds plenty pleasant.  Dig the birds and ambience added in too.  All-in-all, there’s a lot to be admired from the execution of these songs, and whether you consider yourself to be a faith-based person or not, I think there’s a lot of enjoyable moments to be found throughout THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR as a whole.  It’s clearly played capably and competently with notable skill, so I think at the end of the day, that’s the best access point/selling feature for those outside of the religious realm, like myself.  Definitely a lot of time & effort put into a tune like “Overtune – Eli Lama Sabachtani” for sure.

“Hello My Name Is Joseph.”  Hello, my name is Jer @ SBS.  It’s nice to meet you Joseph.  Now that we’re formally introduced, I can say that this cut pretty much confirms about what I felt towards the opening song…I can appreciate the composition & musicianship, and I think that’s fairly easy for any of us to do.  I like the layers of vocals being used in this song, the added drama as it heads towards its second minute within the music, and the solos to follow.  There is the theatrical element to what you’ll hear on this song and certainly throughout this record…which probably doesn’t personally appeal to me too much, but there’s a whole lot of folks out there that dig their musicals & such, and album this would be more for you than me in that regard.  I still appreciate the challenges that composition has inherently, and I can definitely vouch for the fact that what Peter’s attempting to so with the songs on this record is by no means any kind of easy task.  You might question that for a moment with the low-key piano-led melody that starts up “Hello My Name Is Joseph,” but trust me, nothing stays as simple as it might first appear.  From the cleverness in the production in how the vocals move through your speakers, to the fireworks generated within the instrumentation as it carries on, there’s lots involved to stimulate your interest.

Of course, this all tells a grander story, which is indicated by the title.  Some tracks like “The Guard’s Report” will dive into that aspect a little more than others through Spoken Word inclusions & whatnot, but the songs do also serve that overall storytelling nature of this concept record too if you’re paying close attention.  I’ll tell you this much…if you’ve spent at least a little time listening to stuff like Iron Butterfly or Strawberry Alarm Clock in your lifetime, then it’s absolutely reasonable to expect that you could pull something outta “The Guard’s Report” you’d dig on.  For myself personally, I liked the Spoken Word part at the very beginning…which is odd, I know – you’d think someone like myself that is about as resistant to theatrical stuff as a person could be would almost not enjoy Spoken Word at all really, but I genuinely do appreciate the dedication to the material here.  Plus, you get that break from the music for a moment, and to hear how effective that is when it comes bursting back into your speakers with such throwback/psychedelically-tinged sound, is honestly nothing short of a really kickass and cool moment.

So look…I think it’s almost obvious that it’s going to be extremely tough to get people outside of the faith-based community to even click play on an album called THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR to begin with, so I don’t want to make any illusions about that.  With so much music out there to click on, it’s just not easy to get people outside of their own comfort zone, or trying things that might have a more niche appeal to pieces of it, as opposed to being able to enjoy the whole enchilada.  When I hear a track like “Mary At The Tomb” and can appreciate the Carpenters-esque sound it has at points, I can still also hear the kind of Jesus-y type-tune that people tend to associate with religiously based music, and that’s gonna be an obstacle for those outside of the religious realm.  Essentially, just because I can acknowledge that something’s done well, like the execution of “Mary At The Tomb,” still doesn’t equate to me necessarily wanting to reach for – make sense?  I like what singer Brigitte Renee Shewbridge brings to this song very much…she’s clearly a great singer, and there’s no doubt about that.  Melodic chord-progressions like you hear around the two-minute mark are absolute flawless and great to listen to.  Are they making a convert outta me?  Not a chance on that, but hey, it’s still a good song.

Yeah…for me, I think a lot of the comments I’ve already made are going to apply pretty relentlessly to the majority of the material.  I listen to a track like “Two Angels” and I can instantly recognize that this is way too inside the overall concept to appeal to myself directly, but I still can’t help but appreciate all that goes into making music as monumental as what you’ll find throughout this whole record.  To say this is ambitious is almost doing it a disservice – most artists/bands would never even dare to take on something so massively involved as what you’ll hear on THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR.  In that respect, Peter and his many guests deserve real credit for the conviction and commitment they display, and I suppose in some ways, all I can really say is that I hope all this effort isn’t for nothing.  I know it’ll be a huge hit with the Christian crowd & such…but I don’t know how much reach it’s going to honestly have outside of that.  Dig the…what is that…sitar?  That’s a sitar in “Two Angels, right?”  I think it is.  Whatever it is, I like the sound that adds to this particular cut.  Plus, c’mon y’all…you gotta give it up for the drums you hear on this song as well, right?  Amazing stuff there.  Other than that, we’re heading a little too much into the theatrical side of sound for me to get behind this cut.

Realistically, I think it’s fair to say that Peter’s main strengths aren’t really in the vocal department.  Don’t get me wrong, he does well enough to hold his own on a song like “Let It Be Me,” but at the same time, I think it’s equally fair to assume that good enough probably isn’t the mark he’s going for.  I can certainly understand that desire to be involved on that level, because let’s be real here, there’s so much else that he’s capably taken on that it’s almost a natural decision to make…but I think by comparison to his strengths in composition and his musicianship, the vocals become a secondary skill.  Like I said, it’s enough to get a pass from anyone listening, but it’s not going to be the standout element of a song like “Let It Be Me.”  I don’t mind this tune, but I’m not gonna spend all that much time advocating on its behalf either.  There’s less involved in this track overall, but you’ll find highlights in the way the backing vocals come in to support Peter’s lead, and there’s a few cool things happenings on the keyboards too.

Don’t get me wrong, I can definitely appreciate where Peter is coming from the context of having this music inspire a lifelong passion of his own to learn it all and recreate it.  There’s a tremendous amount of diversity in the material and skill required in the musicianship, and that’s a large part of why it has taken him something like an entire decade to get this album done from start to finish.  Where I would personally struggle with the idea of doing this, is simply in thinking about how much original material that Peter could have created in the same timeframe, but we’re all different people with different goals.  Ultimately, this is what he chose to do with his time, and you can’t deny he’s achieved results to be proud of.  Is the backstory going to help “A Stranger On The Road To Emmaus” reach more people?  Not likely, nope.  But that’s what I’m talkin’ about here…Peter’s going to have to accept the fact that his passion project is going to continually appeal to him more-so than it will anybody else outside of the rest of the folks involved…that’s how passions project go, full stop.  It follows the same logic as how concept records are more connected to those that create them than the listeners that didn’t.  We all have what we’re interested in, and what we’re not.  That’s why I can still appreciate dimensions and pieces of what is happening in a song like “A Stranger On The Road To Emmaus,” even if the whole song isn’t really for me.  It’d be silly not to recognize how much dedicated musicianship and artistry is put into this album.

I also have no real frame of reference too, for what it’s worth.  I think I might have caught about ten or twenty minutes of the original Jesus Christ Superstar about thirty some-odd years ago?  So I couldn’t tell you how on target these covers would be…I can just tell ya what does or doesn’t sound good.  For me and my own personal taste, it’s probably always going to be the music that appeals to me in these songs more than the vocals do…so for songs like “Joanne And Suzanne” that feature more vocals than music, that’s gonna be less hit & more miss for what I’m looking to listen to.  That being said, again, there’s a whole lot of professionalism and skill on display…so don’t get me wrong, just because it might not be something I’d want to put on, doesn’t mean that it wouldn’t be something you would – you feel me?  I really think that singers like Dani Elizalde and Susan Shewbridge do an exceptional job in singing “Joanne And Suzanne” – it’s just that this is a very Grease-like kind of song you’d typically find in a musical where the demeanor of the mood itself seems bizarrely upbeat and a little bit forced in that regard.  Nothing I’d fault anyone here for…if they’re going from the original source material, which I’m certain they are, then they’re just following the blueprint.  I naturally gravitate more towards the sadder side of sound in the music I listen to I guess, and I’d say that “Joanne And Suzanne” is a perfect example of how it’s harder to write happier tunes in a convincing way by comparison.  The quality in the execution never wavers for this crew all that much though…and if you’re a fan of the original soundtrack to begin with, I’m sure you’ll be delighted to hear this recreation of the songs has been so faithful and committed.

There you go…a solid example of how hypocritical us reviewers can be, right away.  Here I am talking about how a sadder song would usually be something that appeals to me more, and I’m right on the edge of being bored with “Judas’ Last Twist.”  It gets a little bit more interesting to me in its second minute with the jazzy elements of the keyboard/piano sound added in…but overall, this is very slow mover.  Again, I can appreciate that the desolate sound is appropriate for the lyricism, and I’m sure echoes the original in that regard too…but I can’t make that any more appealing than it is to my ears.  So there you have it – I can’t have it both ways, right?  Here I was, wanting a sadder song, then Peter and his crew gave me one, and now I’d like to have the upbeat energy back in the mix instead.  Not sure what else to tell ya…a track like “Judas’ Last Twist” is highly mood dependent…there are just going to be more days that listeners wouldn’t want this kind of energy in what they’re listening to than not…simple as that.  Doesn’t take anything away from the dedication to the material or the professionalism they display in playing it…”Judas’ Last Twist” is well done, it’s just about as sleepy and slow as music can be.

While it’s probably true that even with the music on this record being played so passionately, it’s still likely served best with the visuals that would potentially accompany it – I do think Peter and his fellow musicians deserve a lot of credit for how much of the story they get into the background of these songs.  I don’t think I can argue it would fully replace the experience of seeing something like the full production of Jesus Christ Superstar onstage, but whatever the next closest thing to that would be, would be this.  “The Other Side – Doubting Thomas” has some of the most fun with that overall…lots of voices, lots of story, and you still get a decent amount of music along with it, as opposed to it just becoming a Spoken Word track.  There’s so much merit to the work that’s being put in on these tunes that it’s genuinely staggering to think of from the outside looking in…that much I can easily confirm.  I enjoyed “The Other Side – Doubting Thomas” for the details that it adds to the storyline that runs throughout the record.

“Light Of The World” is probably a little too on the kumbaya-side of concepts for myself personally, but it’s also a highly relevant song for what’s happening out there in the world right now as well.  “Light Of The World” smartly looks at both the dark and the light, and makes insightful observations along the way.  I’m not here to bag on Peter’s vocals all the time – and to his credit, there are many instances where he’s doing a fantastic job throughout this album – but whatever he’s doin’ with the warbling sound in his singing on this particular cut…just ain’t for me.  It’s a strange move to make, I gotta admit.  I guess, that once again, it’s representative of what’s happening in the original…but this might have been the right spot to, you know, make it your own and go a new direction with?  I think there’s a likely chance that Peter has been enamored with the source material for so very long that he might not have wanted to make too many significant changes…but yeah…in my personal opinion, just because something’s great doesn’t mean you don’t still have an opportunity to make it even greater.  Rather than recreate something completely faithfully, you can add something new to it, or even in some rare instances, improve something.  In the event that the warbling was his attempt to do these things, well – I’m not saying everything always works out, but it’s commendable to try.  Thematically, I like “Light Of The World” more than I assumed I would have, and again, I think the concept is tremendously relevant.

Brigitte is the best singer on this record though, right?  We can all agree on this, universally, yes?  I’m not saying there’s not a whole bunch of talent from Peter to Preston to Susan and the others you’ll find in the mix along the way, but Brigitte is a remarkable standout every time she gets to take the lead.  I’d be interested in hearing what she does outside of this record…but yeah…talent-wise, she’s captivating, regardless.  The birds are used quite frequently throughout this set-list…so there’s that.  Umm…what else, what else?  “I Believe” is well-controlled and is a stellar example of the professional focus that’s being applied to the music/vocals/sentiment/meaning behind the material combined…and while it still might be a bridge too far for myself personally on a stylistic level, I have to also believe that the kind of commitment you hear in a song like this could easily give it an opportunity to be heard by one and all.  Don’t get it twisted…just because I might not be the guy that would reach for this every day outside of what I do as a music reviewer, doesn’t mean that I can’t acknowledge how well this song came out – I’d be the first to tell you that “I Believe” is one of the very best songs that you’ll find in this entire set-list.

Finally, some Satan in the mix!  LOL.  Alright, don’t get carried away – I’m not that dude either.  I had the good fortune to be raised with some religious experience as a young kid, but just because I didn’t carry that into my adulthood doesn’t imply that I went lookin’ for the devil y’all.  The closest you’ll find me being into Satan is in whatever it is that Tenacious D chooses to do with him…and oddly enough, I’m fairly sure they’d really dig what Peter Elizalde has done with THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR and respect the work that’s been put in here.  Does “Benediction – Old Deluder Satan” end up being THE cut of all cuts to a person that’s outside of the religion of worshipping Jesus?  Heck no!  It’s still as good as any of the rest of these songs are if I’m being totally honest with ya.  By track thirteen I’m confident that if you were enjoying the record to this point, you’d continue to do so right through to the end.  We can argue that “Benediction – Old Deluder Satan” does bring an additional depth of sound and a bit more of a serious vibe to it, at least in points along its length…but it still belongs to this set when it comes right down to it, and it’s not like the Satan side of sound is all that much different than what you hear in the Jesus-based tunes.  Clocking in at nearly six minutes though, Peter and his guests like Chris Kelly and Preston Shewbridge have the opportunity to do a little more along the way, and the twists & turns you’ll find on “Benediction – Old Deluder Satan” are pretty compelling in that respect.

I do think that as you come out of “Benediction – Old Deluder Satan” and back into what is a more all-encompassing representation of the sound in the majority of these songs in “Miracle At The Sea Of Galilee,” maybe you can retroactively make an argument that there was more of a departure in sound occurring moment ago than I previously gave it credit for, because it does feel like you’ve gotta readjust to the brightness that comes beaming outta your speakers as the album carries on.  “Miracle At The Sea Of Galilee” really feels like a song you’ve gotta listen to with sunglasses on…and that’s not exactly an easy thing to accomplish in sound alone, so give’em some credit will ya?  I don’t mind it…it’s kind of got a Beatles-esque…or like, Panic! At The Disco-type vibe (specifically found in/limited to their album Pretty Odd) to it…so I guess maybe this song has a bit more potential to qualify as a good gateway in for those outside the faith-based community?  Maybe?  It’s so hard to say folks, it really is.  This isn’t the kind of album that you can easily take one piece out of to use as a single, it all requires the context of the rest that surrounds it, and each song is like another brick in the wall that supports the whole story overall.

Peter.  Peter my man.  Peter.  Psst, Peter.  Just sing man.  Your voice is solid enough that you don’t need to do the whole warbling thing, I promise ya.  Stylistic choices are just one of those things, you know? They can be a huge asset when they work out, or they can be the ultimate obstacle that stands in the way of people listening.  It really comes down to whether or not that you connect to the sound of what’s being done…that’s it, that’s all.  From my perspective, the vocals in a track like “Restoration Of Peter” can easily become a bit of a distraction – but I generally feel that way about a lot of performance-minded songs.  I’m just looking for great tone and melody, conviction and confidence – and to be fair, Peter’s got tons of that naturally.  I mean, heck, you’d have to have that if you were even remotely thinking about taking on a monumental task like creating this album.  But yeah…I dunno…the more organic that Peter has sounded, the more I’ve felt like his voice connects.  In spots like “Restoration Of Peter” or on “Light Of The World” beforehand, I feel like he’s drifted away from what makes his voice come across at its best and most sincere.  Again, just my opinion, take it or leave it.  I do like the song itself…”Restoration Of Peter” was one of the cuts in this lineup that I always felt was highly interesting.

An hour and a half of music is a challenge for listeners in ANY genre, let alone one that’s much more specific and targeted to the story of Christianity.  Like, it practically would have served this album best to have added in an intermission halfway through it, just so we could like, grab some snacks or something.  “50 Thousand” is indeed more of what we’ve been hearing…so…there’s that.  “Not every one of these 50 thousand” seconds are gonna keep you on the edge or your seat or fully captivated I suppose, but for fans of the source material, again, I’d bet you’re ecstatic about these songs being redone for the present day.  “50 Thousand” deals with the aftermath of the resurrection of JC, and it sounds audibly triumphant to support that.  “50 Thousand” is a decent audience y’all…most bands & artists would be stoked to play for that many people, and from what I recall, Jesus didn’t end up playing a single song during his show.

Still four to go.  I’m feelin’ the weight, don’t get me wrong…it’s a bit of a grind.  Like I was explaining to you earlier, an appreciation for the work put in can only carry ya so far…if it’s not something you’d normally listen to, then it still becomes tougher to stick things out.  Having listened to this record as much as I have throughout the past week or so, I always noticed that “Great Commission At Mt Olive” seemed to be the pinch point for me, where I’d start to get a little on the restless side.  Probably because I didn’t get that intermission I was talkin’ about.  Maybe this was always where I’d get a little hangry…maybe that’s it.  “Great Commission At Mt Olive” was a little too sleepy for me at its core I guess.  The quality is consistent.  Peter’s warbling a whole lot less, so I like that too.  Sitar’s back in the mix again…check that box for a win…dig the instrumentation at the very end, and probably could have taken a bit more of that in the song beforehand…or a lot more, if I’m being completely real with ya.

Onwards and upwards, as they say.  “The Ascension” is a quality cut.  I’ve made my comments on the vocals of Elizalde along the way, so I’ll let the record show I feel the same way…but I do appreciate that there’s an additional energy and brightness to this track that connects in the right way.  David Lescalleet probably steals the show for me on this particular cut with his work on the cello, but overall, I can pretty much get behind this whole track as another of the album’s most universal in terms of its potential reach.  It’s still got a lot a range of diversity to it, but at the same time, is more of a focused, Pop-style of song…and yeah…I dunno…I feel like that has a great chance of perking up the ears of anyone out there that started to feel the weight around the same spot I was with “Great Commission At Mt Olive” right before it.  “The Ascension” gives you just enough juice to restore your interest and find that desire to continue on listening to the very end.  I’m not going to necessarily argue against there being some aspects I don’t exactly love about it, but if we’re talking about the appeal of “The Ascension” in totality, I’d say that there’s so much more that I like about it than anything that I didn’t.  Strong song overall, which is more due to the energy you’ll find on display here, and the sincerity & heart within the melody.

“The Light Of Pentecost” was really the only song on the record that I felt strayed a little bit from the quality you find in the rest of the set.  Largely towards the beginning of the song where it’s way more threadbare at the start…this one feels a bit shaky as it begins, but does go on to gain a little more strength as it carries on.  This is probably a result of having the vocals too far up in the mix in relation to the music…at least in my opinion…it’s one thing when you get your absolute best performance out there, but it’s another when you’re not quite at the top of your game.  Again, I’m not saying that Peter’s not doing a decent job – he is – but…well…basically, we hear what’s featured through the mix, you know what I mean?  The vocals are thrust into the starring role on “The Light Of Pentecost,” and I just wasn’t convinced that’s what the starring element of this song likely should have been.  Think of it this way – for as much time as we’ve put in on the listening end by this point in the record, you’re gambling with people’s attention span if you’re not continually giving them indisputable reasons to stay engaged with the material.  The melody of the chorus on “The Light Of Pentecost” is spectacular, and a real highlight for Peter’s vocals with the surrounding backup singers…it’s the spots of this song that are more bare that seem to cost it the most, and I’m not 100% sure that it can get around that at the end of the day.

“He Is Risen!” – and we have arrived at the end, at long last.  This is what I was talkin’ about by comparison though…when you listen to “He Is Risen!,” you can feel that inspired spark return to the material, and our ears are invested all over again.  Preston Shewbridge puts in what could arguably be the best moment on the microphone in the lead vocals for this finale…but I do think regardless of where you feel like he fits on the spectrum of singers found throughout this album, we can all agree that Peter and his crew go out on a major highlight, if not the most likely to be loved song on the entire record.  And we needed that, didn’t we?  We needed a strong, undeniable WIN for THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, and there’s really no better place to have that than at the very end to distinguish its conclusion at the end.  “He Is Risen!” FEELS like a true finale, and a completely fitting one for this story of course.  More involved, more complex, but also more naturally appealing and engaging, this last cut is built on the fantastic sound, incredible musicianship, and unparalleled ambition that has made so much of this album worthwhile to listen to.  I think it’d be hard to cite a more universally appealing track from the record than people will feel about this final one…but like I said, it’s better late than never.  I gotta hand it to Peter Elizalde…you won’t find commitment to a project like this just every single day that you’re listening to music, and I salute the fact that he’s managed to do all that he has in the making of THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, to somehow completed this passion project with the kind of supreme commitment, dedication, time, and talent it would take to pull this off from start to end.

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