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The story behind Lifehouse is so protracted and convoluted that the shelved Who project has taken on a mythic stature that rivals that of the great, lost Beach Boys' magnum opus, Smile. Suffice to say, Pete Townshend's brainchild was conceived as an ultra-ambitious post-Tommy/pre-Quadrophenia concept album, but was shelved in the early '70s. Some of its songs turned up in Who's Next ("Baba O'Riley," "Getting in Tune," "Won't Get Fooled Again," "Behind Blue Eyes," "Song is Over"); others surfaced in Townshend's 1972 solo debut, Who Came Fist ("Pure and Easy," "Let's See Action"). Meanwhile, Townshend continued to expand and fine-tune his rock opera, a sci-fi saga about music's ability to unify... or something like that. Finally, 30 years after its conception, Lifehouse resurfaces, spread over six discs (available only through Townshend's Web site) or in an abridged form here as Lifehouse Elements.
Containing all the aforementioned tunes ("Baba O'Riley" is given orchestral and ambient treatments) plus Who Are You's title track and "New Song," Elements is rife with classic-rock touchstones, albeit with alien arrangements. But Elements may prove problematic for more casual listeners. Townshend strains vocally; one can't help but recall the power of the Who's Next songs and find these wanting. Finally, Elements really sounds like a collection of songs--an acute flaw in a concept album. Ah, but what songs. It all makes one ponder how rock history would be different if Townshend had pulled his pet project together in the heyday of the Who. --Steven Stolder, ISBN13: B00004TCGE ISBN10: B00004TCGE Material Type: audioCD