Matisyahu "Akeda"

Without my knowledge, Matisyahu dropped a new album, Akeda!

It has a distinctly different tone than Spark Seekers, which was more . . . 

Wait, I'll let Netanel Miles- Yepez phrase it: 

Matisyahu's new album, Akeda, is almost pure roots music, with a little dancehall sprinkled in the mix. It's the kind of album you put on when you need to get away, or shut the bedroom door and just kick-back, soaking in the music. If his previous album, Spark Seeker, was like a joyful leap into the mosh-pit at Red Rocks on a sunny day, Akeda is all on the ground, like a slow walk through lonely streets in the early morning or at night, letting one's thoughts churn with every step. It is music that comes from the inside-out, and that somehow makes you feel cleansed in the listening.

Spark Seeker was combative, with a who-cares-what-the-world-thinks message of defiance, while Akeda is more contemplative. The lyrics are soulful, full of yearning for connection and understanding. 

The bummer is, I like dancehall music. I'm kinda peasant that way. My gauge for music is if it makes my head bop and my foot tap; I, sometimes, cringing, find myself downloading a popular song. I'm like a two-year-old; I like my music to be fast-paced. 

While I adored Spark Seeker in its entirety, for Akeda, not all songs got my gut on the boogie-level. But I really dug the lyrics of the whole album, especially "Vow of Silence."

"Watch the Walls Melt Down"

"Champion"

"Ayeka"

My favorite, "Confidence"