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Post by jamiemilne on Oct 13, 2011 12:56:13 GMT -5
With the generation-defining excellence of Oasis now but a distant memory, and Liam Gallagher stinking up the airwaves with the sub-pub rock of Beady Eye, it's now brother Noel's turn to make a grab for past glories with the release of Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.
Gallagher has already released two rather excellent singles from the album in the shape of country-tinged anthem The Death of You and Me, and the hypnotic rolling rock of AKA... What a Life! and the rest of the record follows this template of loud guitars, looping baselines, strong melodies, mediocre lyrics, and Noel's speciality - instantly familiar choruses that demand a sing-along.
Proceedings kick off with a Gallagher epic in the shape of Everybody's on the Run, a song that sets the tone for the album by being bathed in lush strings that lend the tune a cinematic sheen that continues throughout the record. The words are the usual banal Noel-isms - all 'holding on' and 'being strong' - but then again no one bought Oasis albums for their deep and meaningful lyrics either.
It is however infused with the kind of optimism and positivity that permeates his past work, and that mood is carried over into Dream On, a song that details a grim existence in the verse but offers hope in the chorus, another Gallagher speciality.
His voice is as weedy as ever - there's a reason why Noel left the bulk of the singing to Liam back in the day - but it does at least feel heartfelt when he endeavours to belt out the lyrics.
And what a mixed bag those lyrics are. Wild west imagery is peppered throughout the album, most notably on If I Had a Gun, in which Noel searches for a firearm to shoot the sun (avoiding the high flying birds in the process we hope).
Death and religion are also frequently bedfellows throughout, and set against a backdrop of long journeys and wide open vistas, it feels like Noel has raiding the spaghetti western cupboard and the Enio Morricone shelf for inspiration.
That's not to say he's forgotten his Beatles-obsessed past however, with Soldier Boys, Jesus Freaks straight out of the Fab Four song-book. With its talk of 'lonely souls' 'village greens' and 'holy men' the song harks back to Lennon-McCartney classic Eleanor Rigby, but lacks a suitably rousing chorus to put it in that league.
Elsewhere there are a couple of dirges in the shape of Stop the Clocks and (I Wanna Live in My Dream In My) Record Machine, but Noel does get his groove back on AKA Broken Arrow and (Stranded On) The Wrong Beach, two of the funkiest tunes that Gallagher has ever recorded.
Unfortunately these are the only moments when Noel departs in any way, shape or form from the catchy rock anthems that have been his stock-in-trade for the last 17 years, but in taking an 'if it ain't broke' approach to the creative process, he's crafted his most consistent album since 1995's What's the Story (Morning Glory)?
So while High Flying Birds hardly re-invents the rock wheel, it does find Noel Gallagher back to his songwriting best, crafting toe-tapping anthems that probably won't define a generation this time around, but will get them singing along.
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Post by ctmazin on Oct 13, 2011 13:06:31 GMT -5
I love reading these sort of backhanded compliment reviews. They really reflect the quality of the album, moreso than the complete raves because you really feel the skepticism of the reviewers before the put the record is on--and they're won over by the melodies.
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Post by headshrinker84 on Oct 13, 2011 13:07:58 GMT -5
Elsewhere there are a couple of dirges in the shape of Stop the Clocks and (I Wanna Live in My Dream In My) Record Machine
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Oh dear.
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Post by Stemot on Oct 13, 2011 13:08:47 GMT -5
IGN. Their opinion is worthless no matter what they give the album.
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CF83
Oasis Roadie
Posts: 400
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Post by CF83 on Oct 13, 2011 13:16:50 GMT -5
"His voice is as weedy as ever"
Fuck off IGN.
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dion
Oasis Roadie
Posts: 362
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Post by dion on Oct 13, 2011 13:25:25 GMT -5
Tried to be as negative as possible and still gave it 8/10
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Post by jamiemilne on Oct 13, 2011 13:26:02 GMT -5
why's ign's opinion worthless? because they dont agree with your views of the album .
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Post by gdforever on Oct 13, 2011 14:03:05 GMT -5
I always think about Noel saying that when his reads a review that he can only figure out if it's good or bad by the score.
This is kind of a good case in point.
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Post by Headmaster on Oct 13, 2011 14:19:03 GMT -5
At least is a good rate.
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Post by RocketMan on Oct 13, 2011 14:20:04 GMT -5
isn't ign a gaming website?
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Post by Frank Lee Vulgar on Oct 13, 2011 14:26:20 GMT -5
^Games, TV and music. Gotta agree with gdforever here, you wouldn't have guessed the score from the review. Even more confusing - they gave DBTT 7.0 (fair enough) and DOYS a 9.1...
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Post by thuperthonic on Oct 13, 2011 15:26:31 GMT -5
Fucking sick of people insulting Noel's lyrics. He's not Morrissey, but he isn't trying to be either. He conveys spirit and emotion. Like some other reviewer said, he works from the heart, not the mind.
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Post by Stemot on Oct 13, 2011 15:58:52 GMT -5
why's ign's opinion worthless? because they dont agree with your views of the album . No. Whatever they review it's done to cater for the current "in-thing" whether it's games, music or movies. They are band wagon jumpers and their only review policy is to to suck up to the hype machine that is in motion around a particular title.
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