Ben Harper and Relentless7 Release New Video for "Shimmer and Shine"

Ben Harper and his new band Relentless7 have unveiled the video for their new single "Shimmer and Shine," off their upcoming album White Lies For Dark Times. We will say this of the track: Never has a shampoo slogan rocked so hard. The video announces the arrival of and serves as an introduction to the Relentess7, or R7, an Austin, Texas-based backing band credited with pushing Harper into a rockier direction. In addition to montage shots of Harper on the road, the video offers a sneak peek at you can expect to see at one of the band's energetic concerts, like the one Rock Daily witnessed at Los Angeles' Spaceland in December 2008.

"It's absolute, unapologetic rock music," Harper told the Smoking Section of the music he and R7 wrote for the new album. "It's rock music from the places that you want rock to be from. There's some Queen in there, and some Floyd-isms, and there's a good dose of Blues and Soul." As Rolling Stone reported in their album preview, White Lies finds Harper turning the amp up to 11 with a mix of hard rock and delta blues. "It"s a sound I've been looking for and reaching for in my mind," Harper said.

As for Harper's old band the Innocent Criminals, Harper plans on reuniting with them soon. "Dude, I've been with the Innocent Criminals a long time, and I'll always be with the Innocent Criminals," Harper said, "And everything I do now helps further what I do with them. But for the moment, its just time to do something else." White Lies For Dark Times is out May 2009.

Related Stories:

• Ben Harper Gets Heavy With Relentless7 on "White Lies for Dark Times"
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• Ben Harper Introduces New Blues-Rock Band Relentless7
On the Smoking Section: Ben Harper Debuts New Band Relentless7

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Song Stories

“Help Me”

Joni Mitchell | 1974

Joni Mitchell wrote and recorded this song for her album Court and Spark, but she had to switch from her regular band to make the song sound exactly the way she wanted. "I had attempted to play my music with rock & roll players," she told Rolling Stone. "They’d laugh, 'Awww, isn't that cute? She's trying to teach us how to play.'" Mitchell switched to a jazz band, Tom Scott’s L.A. Express, and scored the biggest hit of her career in the process.

More Song Stories entries »

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