G. Love & Special Sauce

Sometimes you can judge a CD by its cover. On the front of G. Love & Special Sauce’s latest offering, Electric Mile, Garrett Dutton (the G. Lover himself) sports a head of gangsta braids wrapped in a bandana and blows into a harmonica like a pre-electric Bob Dylan who’s been hijacked by the Wu-Tang Clan. The image is incongruous, but ultimately harmonious—as is the new album. Style ranges wildly from straight-up rap on "Parasite" to the simple harmonica and guitar ballad "Sara’s Song." The band’s "one love" message seems more focused than in previous albums and the sound more expansive, as if it’s finally grown into its chops and the theme of its oft-mentioned musical mission. The album opens with a bouncy reggae beat on "Unified" and proceeds to bass beat rap, acoustic guitar strum and psychedelic wah-wah its way through an eclectic collection of fine jams for the summertime.