|
Post by mrsifters80 on Sept 10, 2019 1:47:44 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by mimmihopps on Sept 10, 2019 4:27:23 GMT -5
dutch record store Plato gives Why Me Why Not 8/10. They said it's an eclectic bunch of well written and well produced songs. Influences from The Beatles, Phill Spector and ELO Link? www.platomania.nl/album/6995558/why-me-why-not-deluxe-/gallagher-liam (sorry, it's written in Dutch) Onbewogen kan Liam Gallagher’s verleden niet bepaald genoemd worden. Zijn jeugdjaren worden gekenmerkt door huiselijke problemen en Liam’s gedrag laat te wensen over. Pas later in zijn leven gaat hij zich interesseren voor muziek en kiest hij uiteindelijk ook voor een carrière op dat vlak. Met broer Noel wordt hij wereldberoemd als leadzanger van de legendarische band Oasis. Wanneer de broers niet goed meer kunnen samenwerken en Oasis ten ziele is gaat Liam solo verder. Zijn eerste album As You Were werd zowel artistiek als commercieel een doorslaand succes. Nu, enkele jaren later, bewijst Gallagher dat het allemaal geen toeval is geweest. De opvolger van het debuutalbum is wederom een sterke plaat met pakkende en goed doortimmerde popsongs. Why Me? Why Not. is Liam Gallagher in optima forma: veel afwisseling van sferen, veel Beatles invloeden, stevig daar waar kan en subtiel waar je het niet verwacht. Gallagher zingt fantastisch, maar dat hij dat kan wisten we al. Zijn kwaliteiten als songwriter onderstreept hij in liedjes als One Of Us, Once, Now That I’ve Found You en de titelsong Why Me? Why Not. De volle productie doet denken aan Phil Spector’s wall of sound en aan Jeff Lynne’s ELO producties. Desondanks maakt Liam Gallagher doeltreffend gebruik van strijkensembles en blazers. Al met al heeft hij weer een plaat afgeleverd om de vingers bij af te likken. En zo straalt Gallagher’s ster onverdroten verder. Je zou haast vergeten dat hij van ver heeft moeten komen…
Reviewer: Luc van Gaans Date: 26-07-2019 Score: 8.0
To Dutch and Belgium members: Liam is on this month's new issue of Oor!
|
|
|
Post by chamu on Sept 10, 2019 5:50:07 GMT -5
www.live4ever.uk.com/2019/09/album-review-liam-gallagher-why-me-why-not/Confident though he is, one suspects that even Liam Gallagher was taken aback by the success of his debut solo album As You Were. Both exciting and solid, the platinum selling album successfully played to his strengths, equally divided between plaintive ballads and classic rock and roll. The success that followed through big gigs, copious radio play and entertaining interviews made the UK fall in love with Liam all over again. But how best to follow that up? The novelty of his return has worn off, so now it’s got to be about the songs. As a minimum he has to consolidate. You won’t be surprised to learn that he’s generally playing it safe, but he’s now confident enough to tinker with the winning formula. Comeback single Shockwave is familiar territory though. It’s giddy glam rock that’s designed to play to his strengths with a verse cribbed from Spread Your Love by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. A mighty chorus, a sneering middle eight (‘you’re a snake, you’re a weasel’ – wonder who that’s directed at?) and the overall message, ‘I’m back’. One Of Us pushes the boat out further, even if it’s just to the other side of the quay; the dramatic strings are reminiscent of Richard Ashcroft, accompanying a groovy bassline that channels Ian Brown, topped off with an earworm of a chorus. Having similar demographics, it’s a wise move and it’s possibly the best thing he’s put his name to in the last decade. The compulsory big ballad follows, Once being a little too on-the-nose Lennon-esque. Trite rhyming couplets don’t distract from the inherent beauty of the song, although we have been here many times before. As It Was (the documentary film) revealed Liam Gallagher to be the conductor of his previous album. Presuming they followed the same format for Why Me? Why Not. (and why wouldn’t they), then Gallagher has more ideas than he’s given credit for. Equally, as controversial as it is, the beauty of working with professional musicians is that their proficiency adds flavour. The title-track is pure White Album, apt given its source material (the album being named after a pair of Lennon paintings), while Meadow is all distorted vocals and dry acoustic guitars, but goes leftfield as it progresses before culminating with what sounds like a spaceship landing. We even get a boisterous spoken-word section at the end of Gone. A breezy freedom inhabits the album: Now That I’ve Found You is a message to his formerly estranged daughter Molly who re-entered his life a few years ago. It manages to combine Semisonic with Status Quo, which is probably not something you thought you wanted but is a pleasant surprise. Elsewhere, Alright Now skips everywhere melodically with a jaunty bridge and a Harrison solo as played by David Gilmour. It’s got no discernible chorus but that works in its favour. Halo is the spiritual brother of Beady Eye’s Bring The Light, driving honky tonk piano and a whistling breakdown which successfully masks some more lyrical clangers. The River rectifies this; a marauding beast taking the modern world to task (‘the device in your hand masks your beauty’). It goes without saying that, as good as these songs are, it’s Gallagher’s voice that makes some of them transcendent. At certain points he goes full falsetto, and his talent for perfectly pitching his vocals to compliment the music continues to be his greatest strength. He’s stated on record that he intends to take a break once this album has been toured, and indeed Gone has a tone that matches the lyrics in saying ta-ta for now. He’ll be departing on good terms. Gallagher knows his job is to move hearts and souls, and this album is possibly the most uplifting of the year. 8/10 (Richard Bowes)
|
|
|
Post by mrsifters80 on Sept 10, 2019 5:54:40 GMT -5
Wow, great review 😊
|
|
|
Post by Rolo on Sept 10, 2019 5:58:01 GMT -5
Q: 4/5 Mojo: 4/5 Clash: 8/10 Plato: 8/10 Live4ever: 8/10
Promising so far!
|
|
|
Post by chamu on Sept 10, 2019 6:00:55 GMT -5
Q: 4/5 Mojo: 4/5 Clash: 8/10 Plato: 8/10 Live4ever: 8/10 Promising so far! Looks like no fillers on this album!
|
|
|
Post by chamu on Sept 10, 2019 6:15:10 GMT -5
www.nme.com/reviews/album/liam-gallagher-why-me-why-not-review4 stars A classic sequel that adds depth of character, this follow-up to Liam’s Platinum-selling debut is best when he's introspective. And wait ‘til Noel hears the “cosmic pop” Early last year, Liam Gallagher promised NME that his second solo album would be “a bit more in-your-face” than ‘As You Were’, the Platinum-shifting game-changer that reignited his career. It would be “less apologetic”, he said, adding: “I’d love to do a proper out-and-out punk rock album – a bit Pistols, a bit Stooges.” Well, ‘Why Me? Why Not?’ only half-delivers on that promise, though it’s a certainly a worthy victory lap for his lauded comeback. He’s once again teamed up with his “army of songwriters”, as Noel Gallagher witheringly referred to the co-writers who’ve helped to channel Liam’s Britpop swagger into a glossy 21st century pop-rock template. Super-producer Greg Kurstin and top songwriters Andrew Wyatt and Michael Tighe have returned, while LA indie rocker Damon McMahon also came on board for a couple of tracks. Liam co-wrote every song on this record (he was absent from the songwriting credits on two songs from the predecessor) and it’s a more distinctive and memorable album. With anybody else you might suggest this implies increased confidence – but how much more self-assured can Liam Gallagher get? Curiously, though, instead of excelling as a Stooges-inspired rocker, ‘Why Me? Why Not’ truly soars at its most introspective and laidback. ‘One Of Us’, the bruised ballad on which Liam implores an estranged loved one (who could this be about, we wonder?) to “open your door” and remember “you were always one of us”, is in many ways a Gallagher-by-numbers, a sing-song chorus and rollicking acoustic guitar amounting to a track that brings to mind ‘Stop Crying Your Heart Out’, a latter-day Oasis highlight (a rare thing) from 2002’s ‘Heathen Chemistry’. At the three-minute mark, though, the song slips into a pretty coda of undulating strings and a gospel choir lamenting, “It’s a shame / We thought you’d change”. It’s richer than anything on ‘As You Were’. ‘Once’ is similarly affecting, as this middle-aged rock star misses the good old days and wonders when he was freer, running wild in Burnage as a child or watching the royalties stack up: “It was easier to have fun back when we had nothin’… Back when we were damaged.” And ‘Alright Now’ offsets warm, analogue tones – rolling piano and a laconic bassline – and a spacey, Marc Bolan-style guitar solo, with Liam confessing, “at times I wonder if you’re listening”. It doesn’t matter if these tender songs are about his older brother: they work because they’re the sound of a notorious big mouth reflecting on a life lived at full speed, as he counts his regrets but refuses to be bowed by them. Like the ‘As You Were’ standout ‘For What It’s Worth’, they capture the contradiction at the heart of Liam Gallagher: acute emotional intelligence meets chin-out bolshiness. It’s always compelling when he reveals this softer side of his psyche. His rivalry with Noel’s become increasingly toxic – their children and other family members have been dragged in – and the air of contrition plays well. Perhaps that’s why the more “in-your-face” numbers can sometimes feel a little more laboured. It’s interesting that ‘Shockwave’ packs a glam stomp, but Noel-baiting lyrics such as “you’re a snake / you’re a weasel” sound petty rather than revealing in the aforementioned context. Meanwhile, the pulsing ‘The River’ feels duty bound to fans’ expectations instead of genuinely vehement (it’s hard to imagine Liam Gallagher being particularly worried about “the money sucking MPs”). Soppy love song ‘Now That I’ve Found You’ sounds like the theme tune to a ‘90s sitcom, his very own ‘All For One’, The Stone Roses’ polarising 2015 comeback track. The rougher stuff works better when it’s imbued with the wooziness of those reflective tracks. ‘Gone’ combines a lithe, Ennio Morricone guitar line with a hushed spoken-word section where, improbably, he sounds a little like Jarvis Cocker. Better still is ‘Halo’, which picks up where the Beady Eye (they weren’t as bad as everybody said!) track ‘Bring The Light’ left off. It’s always fun when Liam does his Jerry Lee Lewis thing, and here he combines rinky-dink piano with a recorder solo. This album lacks the novelty factor – Liam finally going solo – that made ‘As You Were’ so welcome. But it’s more diverse (everything’s relative) and textured. At times, as on the trippy, psychedelic breakdown that precedes the final reprise of ‘Once’, it drifts deliciously close to “cosmic pop”, the phrase Liam has used to slag off his brother’s more experimental solo stuff (imagine Noel listening to this). On ‘Meadow’, which has the studied Beatle-isms of a Julian Lennon song, Liam insists, “You’ve got to hold your head up high / If You want to break the chains from your past life”. He’d perhaps do well to take his own advice and give the Noel-baiting stuff a break, but this is a cracking sequel nonetheless. Read more at www.nme.com/reviews/album/liam-gallagher-why-me-why-not-review#poAWP0ttL2M0Il3w.99
|
|
|
Post by chamu on Sept 10, 2019 6:26:05 GMT -5
Not a single mention of "Be Still" across these reviews. Some of the people here who have heard the demo...is it a good/great song too? Why nobody mention it?
Thanks!
|
|
|
Post by norkbauer on Sept 10, 2019 6:28:36 GMT -5
Updating...
Q: 4/5 Mojo: 4/5 Clash: 8/10 Plato: 8/10 Live4ever: 8/10 NME: 4/5
Looks like a solid 8.
|
|
|
Post by leron on Sept 10, 2019 6:41:18 GMT -5
Not a single mention of "Be Still" across these reviews. Some of the people here who have heard the demo...is it a good/great song too? Why nobody mention it? Thanks! It sounds so good, great song
|
|
|
Post by Rolo on Sept 10, 2019 6:54:38 GMT -5
Not a single mention of "Be Still" across these reviews. Some of the people here who have heard the demo...is it a good/great song too? Why nobody mention it? Thanks! From what I've heard it sounds like a good little tune, nothing great though so that's probably why it isn't getting a mention.
|
|
|
Post by Mr. Sifter on Sept 10, 2019 6:58:55 GMT -5
Not a single mention of "Be Still" across these reviews. Some of the people here who have heard the demo...is it a good/great song too? Why nobody mention it? Thanks! From what I've heard it sounds like a good little tune, nothing great though so that's probably why it isn't getting a mention. I like it. But from what I remember seeing the track lengths it's really short. Could be a very forgettable tune, or we have another Come Back To Me on our hands (remember that not getting any mentions in reviews and everyone were sure it was gonna be a terrible clunker)
|
|
|
Post by Rolo on Sept 10, 2019 7:01:05 GMT -5
From what I've heard it sounds like a good little tune, nothing great though so that's probably why it isn't getting a mention. I like it. But from what I remember seeing the track lengths it's really short. Could be a very forgettable tune, or we have another Come Back To Me on our hands (remember that not getting any mentions in reviews and everyone were sure it was gonna be a terrible clunker) It's a charming little song, been stuck in my head a few times which is a good sign. If that is the worst on the album we are in for a treat.
|
|
|
Post by Mr. Sifter on Sept 10, 2019 7:06:30 GMT -5
I like it. But from what I remember seeing the track lengths it's really short. Could be a very forgettable tune, or we have another Come Back To Me on our hands (remember that not getting any mentions in reviews and everyone were sure it was gonna be a terrible clunker) It's a charming little song, been stuck in my head a few times which is a good sign. If that is the worst on the album we are in for a treat. Agreed. I think I've actually had it stuck in my head quite a bit more than most of the released songs so far. Reminded me of later Soundtrack of Our Lives for some reason.
|
|
|
Post by Aman on Sept 10, 2019 7:09:42 GMT -5
Loving the reviews. ❤
|
|
|
Post by I Built The Moon on Sept 10, 2019 7:20:55 GMT -5
Terrific stuff so far, particularly the praise for some of the songs we haven't heard.
And then there are the bonus tracks too! Man what a time to be alive!
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Sept 10, 2019 7:24:46 GMT -5
“cosmic pop”, the phrase Liam has used to slag off his brother’s more experimental solo stuff"
I'm sure Noel himself came up with the name 'cosmic pop'.
|
|
|
Post by Rolo on Sept 10, 2019 7:48:21 GMT -5
Waiting for the the 1.8/10 from Pitchfork, should be a great read.
|
|
|
Post by shamumaybard on Sept 10, 2019 8:04:56 GMT -5
Waiting for the the 1.8/10 from Pitchfork, should be a great read. Hope we get lines as good as "Searching for clarity in a Liam Gallagher lyric is like looking for artistic depth in a coloring book" from their As You Were review in their next one.
|
|
|
Post by norkbauer on Sept 10, 2019 8:19:50 GMT -5
“cosmic pop”, the phrase Liam has used to slag off his brother’s more experimental solo stuff" I'm sure Noel himself came up with the name 'cosmic pop'. For sure. I can remember Noel talking about the cosmic pop on that Apple documentary, that was his first mention.
|
|
|
Post by webm@ster on Sept 10, 2019 15:04:57 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by GlastoEls on Sept 10, 2019 17:42:36 GMT -5
Hi shark, can I jump over you?
|
|
|
Post by Rolo on Sept 10, 2019 17:46:55 GMT -5
I used to love that album!
|
|
|
Post by Mario on Sept 10, 2019 18:25:03 GMT -5
Does anyone recall how these outlets reviewed 'As You Were'? That should be a 7/10 across the board.
|
|
emil
Oasis Roadie
Posts: 194
|
Post by emil on Sept 10, 2019 18:29:41 GMT -5
Has anyone said anything about Liams voice? It sounded very "processed" to my ears on his last album.
|
|