Beady Eye

BE

Written by: BV on 21/07/2013 22:44:38

Welcome back to yet another attempt from a Gallagher brother to finally accomplish something truly noteworthy outside of the Oasis confines. Beady Eye are back with their sophomore effort “BE” and this time around they’ve hired Dave Sitek (TV on the Radio) as producer to really get things going. In spite of this, “BE” stands as an overall weaker album than “Different Gear, Still Speeding” even though the credentials are looking mighty fine on paper.

The most apparent issue with the Gallagher brothers since the Oasis breakup has been that Liam was the one whose efforts possessed the attitude and Noel’s efforts had the ‘better’ songs on them. – Like two somewhat perfectly fitted pieces that somehow finally split up. This formula however, is looking increasingly bleak when first delving into the opening track “Ballroom”, an acoustic ballad that, in spite of some very descent vocal work, retains an overshadowing feeling of insignificance as both the overwhelming rock star antics of Liam Gallagher are missing, as well as the all-encompassing sing-along hook that the Gallagher brothers were notoriously famous for being able to deliver back in their Oasis heyday. In other words it would seem that both the attitude and the noteworthy songs are missing from an effort that, on paper, should have been vastly better than its predecessor.

With “I’m Just Saying” we’re treated to a track that, in essence, contains much of what Oasis first became known for – an energetic power-chord verse and a memorable chorus topped off by walls of distortion and Liam Gallagher’s mighty fine voice. Unfortunately the rather bland and all-too-polished production, courtesy of Dave Sitek, seems to have taken all the energy from the track – which has managed to create a harmless attempt at trying to rediscover the good old days. This production effort is also what causes my many problems with the lyrical side of the album, as a line like “Shake my tree/ Where’s the apple for me/ Tickle my feet with the enemy” from “Second Bite of the Apple” comes off as far too simple for its own good and it is quite clear to me that it would have been far more memorable, had it actually been more raw and, in all honesty, less audible between a massive wall of distortion.

It’s not all bad though, as Liam Gallagher also comes off as quite the balladeer on the track “Start Anew” which instantly bears the mark of being a track in the same vein as the instant classic “Champagne Supernova”. The surprisingly tender vocal work and the simple, yet lush, melodies of the track are oddly successful in creating a track full of ambiance that is quite reminiscent of the Noel Gallagher penned classics of Oasis’ prime.

All in all, it would seem that even though both Liam and Noel Gallagher are doing ‘fine’ without one another, it is rather obvious at this point though, that the hardened Oasis fans would much rather be rediscovering the classics of Oasis rather than the mostly mediocre antics of the two brothers’ recent efforts.

Download: Starting Anew, I’m Just Saying
For The Fans Of: Oasis, Blur, Noel Gallagher and the High Flying Birds
Listen: facebook.com

Release Date 10.06.2013
Sony Music


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