Here’s the Good NewsPaul WwellerOut 21 November« «Mixing Chas and Dave piano, lazy brass and Weller-by-numbers lyrics (“And everything is everything”) to create a simple twelve-bar blues, the former Jam man has accurately demonstrated exactly what he would sound like if he leapt to the stage in the Wheatsheaf on a rainy Tuesday night. There’s nothing to offend here, it’s just that despite a layered texture, it goes absolutely nowhere. The world’s shortest trumpet solo, a touch of falsetto and even the odd cowbell can’t convince us that Ppaul Wweller really has any new ideas; instead,these pointless gimmicks feel tacked on to formulaic pub-rock. Not a good omen for the album. But Hhere’s the Good News, at least it’ll be over before too long.
ResolveFoo FightersOut 21 November« «Is it me or are the Foo Fighters beginning to get a little tiresome? Ccertainly, this latest slice of ear-pleasing rock has all the usual ingredients one might expect from these post-grunge rock veterans. Iit has reasonable guitar riffs and a decent melody, and Ddave Grohl’s soothing heartfelt vocals typically gain a slight growling edge upon entering the chorus. The problem is that we’ve heard it all before. plods along well enough, but lacks the bite of old. Iit’s certainly no Monkey Wrench or All my Life. Aall in all, this latest effort proves rather boring and immensely forgettable. The accompanying promotional literatureclaims that Resolve is “a true rock classic.” Well, it most definitely is not.
Dirty HarryGorillazOut 21 November« «« «With the same low-slung swagger that made 2001’s Clint Eastwood such a mammoth hit, this latest offering from everyone’s favourite two-dimensional superstars threatensto dominate our airwaves for weeks to come. Featuring a guest performance from the Ppharcyde’s Bootie Brown, a children’s choir and the retrofitted uber-production of Ddanger Mouse, this is a quite dazzling piece of pop-hop. Wwith a lead vocal that strangely recalls Belle and Ssebastian’s L-O-V-E, a spaghetti western wah-wah bass startlingly reminiscent of Back to the Future IIii, and impossibly good drum-programming, Albarn’s hand-picked orchestra is nothing if not virtuoso. Aand even if at times Ddirty Hharry’s sprawling, avant-pop narrative is a little bit too much to stomach, this is still music to make the Gallagher brothers weep into their Boddingtons.
ARCHIVE: 6th week MT 2005
Singled out
