Matisyahu at the top of underground

By Samantha Powers

TEEN PAGE REPORTER

• Matisyahu, Youth, Sony. 3.5 (out of four)

Matisyahu may not receive much airtime on the radio, but he is an underground sensation who deserves the limelight for his brilliant blurring of genres and distinctive ideas.

On his third album, Youth, Matisyahu is a beautiful contradiction, a man who combines the Jewish faith with reggae and hip-hop music. His mixture of reggae, poetry and spirituality challenges listeners to re-examine their own standards. The music draws you in with its cool, laid-back style, almost obscuring the profound meaning of the words. Matisyahu has a broad underground following, attracting Jews, hippies, rap fans and others, who share in his message of love and peace.

Matthew Miller became Matisyahu through a gradual process, beginning during high school in White Plains, N.Y. According to his Web site (hasidic-reggae.com), Matisyahu's spiritual awakening began in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. Afterward, he visited Israel where "his dormant Jewish identity stirred into consciousness."

The song "Jerusalem" is a wonderful example of how Matisyahu incorporates faith in the music, the chorus declaring, "Jerusalem, if I forget you/ Let my right hand forget what it's supposed to do." Other songs more subtly present his views, like the title track, which emphasizes the spiritual void in today's young generation.

This CD has all the makings of a staple for underground music lovers,but it would not be out of place in anyone's collection