If you haven't read already; this is a single CD with a bonus 30 minute live DVD. I'm not going to waste my time too much talking about the CD, as it doesn't compare to how great the DVD is.

I have to give it up to Howie Day for putting on an amazing one man show. I've never seen a performance quite like it. He samples his own vocals, and guitar riffs live on stage. Then he loops them seamlessly together. Before you know it, you have what sounds like some percussion, a rhythm guitar, a lead guitar, a bass guitar and layered up vocals (all by himself). He basically brought his studio to the stage. He does it so incredibly well. He has some undeniable talent not only with instruments, but also in the studio, producing.

I own both of his studio albums; Australia and Stop All The World Now; both quality releases. But if you want to see how truly talented Howie Day is; you must get this DVD. It's only 30 minutes long, but it will keep you on the edge of your seat for the entire 30 minutes.

I recently saw Howie Day perform live and I was very impressed. I set out to find a CD of live songs, and lo and behold, I found this gem. This is an amazing deal. If you weren't a Howie Day fan before, you will be after hearing the CD and watching the DVD. It's amazing what one man can do with a single guitar and a little technology.

The DVD itself is more entertaining than the combo deal may lead you to believe. It's a complete, live, one-man show. Ghost is probably my favorite, especially with his uptempo breakdown at the end, but bunnies is also great, and Sorry So Sorry is a favorite song all by itself.

All of his songs have a deep, haunting, ethereal quality that is best highlighted in his live performances. His acoustic guitar and scratchy voice suit his style and songs perfectly. The tone of the CD is moody and whimsical, and every once in awhile, his voice is just this side of whiny-- but it works.

If for no other reason, you MUST buy this for the bonus DVD.

Howie Day's story is a bit of an odd one. His debut, Australia, was recorded a song at a time for the most part. He's tour some, make money for recording, record a song, and make money for the next track. Which in theory isn't a bad way to record as it allows for proper road testing of songs in front of live audiences. Australia was finally completed in 2003 and Howie continued to tour non-stop pushing his release. What made a live Howie Day show unique at the time was his use and mastery of guitar pedals quite literally building up an orchestra of sound with just his voice and his acoustic guitar. Howie eventually ended up opening for acts such as Tori Amos, Dave Matthews Band, Jack Johnson, and most recently the Barenaked Ladies. (Like Dave Matthews Band, Howie encourages not-for-profit trading recordings of his live shows.) Non-stop touring and word of mouth lead to indepedent sales of 30,000 records - virtually unheard of for an independent debut release by a new artist. Australia became the little album that could as it was eventually picked up for distribution by Epic selling an additional 100,000 copies and adding Howie Day to the label's roster with the likes of Ben Folds, Indigo Girls, Pearl Jam and Travis.

With Australia's initial release in 2000, long-time fans were clamoring for something to tide them over until the release of a new full-length, and preferably something that would showcase Howie's live show. In April 2003, Epic listened to his fans and put out The Madrigals E.P., a five-song cd and four-song live dvd. Of Madrigals and Stop All The World Now, Madrigals is a far superior effort and a better showcase for Howie's songwriting, musicianship, and voice. The title track opens the cd and would fit in well with anything on Australia with his vocals echoing over the simple guitar strum, the low bass notes, and what sounds to be a synthesized glockenspiel. Though this cut is supposedly only a demo, it sounds fully complete to my ears and is ashame was not included on Stop. Fortunately the ruminating "You & A Promise" did make it onto Stop. The best track on the release however is the Mix 6 remix of "Ghost" originally on Australia. The added etherealness with the soft use of the guitar body as percussion, the simple sustained electric guitar, and the intermittent piano notes at the end of a verse give the remix more emotional impact than its original fully fleshing out the themes of loss and loneliness. "Bunnies" and "Sorry So Sorry" were staples of his live show and are included on the dvd as well. Both tracks are perfect examples of what a live Howie show sounded like as he'd beat out a rhythm loop on his guitar, add some fingerpicking in of the higher notes on another loop, put in the bass section and ultimately a simple acoustic strum - all with his acoustic guitar. On top of that he'd loop a few different vocal tracks, throw in some echo if he needed, then trigger them at the right time via pedals at his feet creating in effect (get it, effect/effects, ha ha) a well-produced one man band. The dvd, recorded live at NYC's Bowery Ballroom, includes "Bunnies" and "Sorry So Sorry" as mentioned earlier plus live versions of "Madrigals" and "Ghost." The camera work on the dvd is nice alternating between close-ups of Howie, his guitar, the pedal work, fans singing along, and tracking and pushing shots from overhead the audience. "Ghost" is the highlight of the dvd as well as it features the best use of the pedal effects culminating with Howie taking a step back and letting them do their work without him, as if they were real live bandmates, and the repetition of the line, "In the future people will be sent to distant lands through beams of light."

If you're going to buy a Howie Day release, I would begin with Madrigals. It's a perfect sampling of all things Howie. If you like more produced poppier stuff, go with Stop All The World Now. Hopefully his next release will be a little more stripped down, a little more authentic, a little more original, a little more intimate. I was pretty disappointed when I saw him a few months ago at the 9:30 Club. Hopefully he'll return to what made him a little more unique.

You know, I hate to say it, 'cause the guy tries so hard on his 'proper' albums, but this is Howie Day's best release. The main reason why? Because of the live stuff. I don't just mean the actual live tracks, I mean because of the three other tracks as well that you know he could pull off live by himself onstage. For anyone, who's never seen Day live I highly recommend it. Using an arsenal of guitar effects he's able to create an orchestra of sound while onstage all by his lonesome. It's quite a sight to behold. Now, what really bothers me about his albums ('Australia' and 'Stop All The World Now') is that when he uses a full band he most of the times strips the songs of their beauty. Don't get me wrong, his albums are okay, but he is far superior live. He often radically experiments with his songs onstage for all to see. As for the actual songs...

'Madrigals' sounds great here ('demo' version or not) and is a great way to start off this EP. I really like the string overdubs he's added to it as well. 'You and a Promise' is the weakest cut on here. It has a beat that makes you want to bob your head but unfortunately the songwriting around it doesn't make itself quite memorable. The remix of 'Ghost' however, is beautiful. It's based around piano (in comparison to it's guitar-oriented twin on Australia) and it's backing vocals and minimal guitar are drenched in delay. It's very stark in it's presentation and boosts Howie's vocals to the forefront. The following track, 'Bunnies' is the centerpiece of the album though. 'Bunnies' is a song that Day has had around and has been playing live for awhile. It's gone through many different appearances but the one here IS Bunnies, it's the absolute definitive version. Even though it's live here that doesn't detract from it at all. You really get a sense of the master that Day is onstage. It's got a mysterious vibe to it. It sounds sexy and dangerous at the same time. The ending of it is one of my favorite Day moments ever.

While all this is great what really puts this EP over the top is the DVD of 30 minutes of concert footage. You get to see him in peak form onstage just killing these songs. He's totally on.

To put it simply, buy this today.

Whoever said that the song "Bunnies" wasn't one of the better songs on the CD was sadly mistaken. Quite easily one of the most haunting songs I've heard from any artist. The trippy guitar looping, the overlapping vocals (Day's one-man choir effect) and the mysterious lyrics (what exactly is he saying? Oh, well. Who cares? It sounds good!). According to various Howie Day websites, "Bunnies" has various versions. The "Madrigals" EP version of "Bunnies" is a song that you should listen to in a dark room with the lights off and pretend you're floating in space. There is something dark going on in this song. Of course, there's something a little dark going on in all his songs, a depth that belies Day's spiky skater boy hair and the sometimes silly covers he does. At any rate, you get to see him doing his thing in the DVD. As "Australia" somewhat sadly demonstrates, the translation of Day's music in the studio strips some of the passion from his songs and the magic of his multi-track pedal mixing. "Ghost" gets a remix that renders it flat-sounding at first hearing, but the more you listen to it, the more haunting it becomes. You can definitely see Day's influences in this particular release. In one song, during one lyric, his voice dips down like Bono (U2) and then up into the strange, lyric-bending vocals of Jeff Buckley. I agree with the reviewer who said that in the DVD, you don't get the same closeness and happy chirpiness of his usual live appearances, but you make up for it in what another reviewer noticed...the serious Howie is seriously sexy. I'm not a groupie, I promise. I just find passion in a singer sexy. Heck, I've even found Luciano Pavarotti sexy. =) Anyway, this CD/DVD is highly recommended.