When you say the word ‘multi-tasker’, Xavier Rudd is definitely a name that comes to mind. Not only in his performing and his recording, but also in his life in general.

Last year saw the release of his fourth album (the first of his independent releases to be distributed through big wig, Universal), a massive tour with G-Love, Donovan Frankenreiter, and the legendary Jack Johnson, the birth of his second child, the release of his third live album Good Spirit and the recording of his latest album, Food In the Belly.

Often (to the horror of his fans), Rudd has been accused of being a good but ‘boring’ musician. Food In the Belly is sure to prove the critics all wrong. Featuring Rudd on vocals, six and 10 string Weissenborn slide guitars, acoustic/electric guitars, resonator guitar, Yirdaki (didgeridoos), stomp box ankle bells, harmonica, bass guitar, percussion and piano, how could you not appreciate the extendable range of talents this dude has? If that’s not enough to make you go wow, he’s also brought in quite a few helpers to produce the quality sound he’s renowned for. Food In the Belly also features Niel Golden on tabla, Harry Manx on veena, Beth Preston on vocals, Dave Tolley on snare drum, Panos Grames on B3 organ, Brad Murihead on tuba, Todd Simko on banjo and whistle and Edgar Diaz on djembe.        

Recorded in Vancouver in May of this year, Rudd’s latest album, for him, is an album of appreciation: ”This is a shaky time and we have our issues, but most of us in the western world are incredibly fortunate. It’s not going to be this way forever and I feel really appreciative. I guess that gratitude became a theme of this album.”

Of all the things it is, Food In the Belly is definitely the most versatile album Rudd has released to date. Unlike his previous albums, To Let and Solace, we are eased into the energetic beats rather than thrust into them. The opening track The Letter is a ballad of the singer’s humble gratitude and reflection on experiences he has had.  

Track number two, Messages has been one of the year’s many successes for the singer-songwriter. Originally released with his live album Good Spirit, and a regular asset to his track listing at live shows, Messages is an uplifting song, but holds a firm meaning. Recorded in collaboration with the very talented Beth Preston on backing vocals, this track sounds just as beautiful on the album as it does the first time you hear it live.

Further proving the worth of his voice, is Rudd’s electric Fortune Teller. Definitely the toe-tapper track of the album, his vocals range from a softly spoken storyteller’s to a bluesy preaching. And sometimes, you can hear it come from somewhere that could only be the soul when he bouts out strongly, ‘this is my fortune’.

Doing extremely well on the airwaves at the moment is the first release off the album, The Mother. This song shows a simplicity in the lyrics that are made profound through the huge range of instruments, something Rudd has branched out to more in this album in regards to sharing the responsibility. Featuring Panos Grames on B3 organ, and Edgar Diaz on djembe, it becomes hard to decipher how many and which instruments Rudd is playing. The sound though, is infinitely clear with an almost reggae quality to it.

He manages to throw in the trademark instrumental track in there too, like on most of his albums. Mana is so upbeat, if it doesn’t get you dancing around the room, it’ll at least get your head bopping.

He also features the innocent sounding Vancouver children’s choir on the track Generation Fade, which is perhaps what makes it the most positive and hopeful sounding track on the album.

Perhaps the most indulgent audible treat on this album is the rawness of the recording: ”The dude who owns the studio collects these old instruments so we used some of them on the album. Most importantly, he had a two-inch tape machine so we didn’t use computers to track the album. I played everything live to tape.”

Whether the track is more blues, tribal, ballad or folk, it’s constant achievement is the truth in Rudd’s voice and performance. It’s more than listening to music. It’s listening to the singer’s own word’s and story. Rudd completely encapsulates all his own emotions within the emissions of Food In the Belly. It is perhaps the most thankful of his albums, and an incredibly shared emotion for fans too. Of this gratitude, Rudd says: “I love this Earth, I love this place … There’s something beautiful everywhere you go. It doesn’t matter if you’re in the middle of a city, you’ll find something beautiful. I’ve been that way all my life. I get an adrenalin rush just from being outdoors sometimes.”

It seems with this album, he has brought together all the elements that make his live shows so incredibly and positively energetic. An avid ambassador for the rights of Aboriginal Australians, a lover of mother earth, a family man or just an amazingly talented and beautiful musician. Whichever way you want to look at Xavier Rudd, Food In The Belly is bound to touch you in some sense or another.