jason stives reviews the new album from the former leader of Oasis …
Since Oasis’ dissolution two years ago, fans of Brit rockers have been clamoring to know what the band’s songwriting mastermind, Noel Gallagher, would create with his newfound creative reigns. In the interim period, younger brother Liam took hold of the rest of his former cohorts and released Beatles-esque rock jams under the moniker Beady Eye, but up until recently, Noel had been relatively quiet which made people wonder what he has been doing with bated breath. Just what would Britpop’s greatest mastermind have to give to the changing music landscape? More importantly, would a Noel Gallagher solo release be that important of an addition to the rock music world?
It accounts to the fact that in the eyes of their fan base, Oasis never stopped being relevant even if the commercial and critical world seemed to think so. Comparatively to Beady Eye’s debut album, the anticipation to hear an album straight from the mind of the guy who wrote “Don’t Look Back On Anger” was met with a very warming head cock of interest. The results of all that pondering resonate in Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, and instead of being some revolutionary step into recent music trends, Noel Gallagher has accomplished seemingly what he has always wanted to do which is make music he likes and hopefully his fans like.
The opening track, “Everybody’s On The Run,” is destined to be of anthem like quality, but it’s also trying to earn a Ray Davies storytelling title to it with simple meaning. Some tracks like “Dream On” and “I Wanna Live In A Dream In My (Record Machine)” are too spotty by seeming cheesy by design and subject, but they are by no means junk tracks either. The trifecta coupling that arranges the middle part of the album, singles “Death Of You & Me,” the dance thumping “AKA … What A Life” and the previously released “If I Had A Gun” are exquisite tracks and firmly plants themselves into your head, showcasing exactly what Gallagher is trying to do.
Moving onto tracks like “AKA … Broken Arrow” and “Soldier Boys And Jesus Freaks,” Gallagher slowly descends from the lavish excitement of the album’s first half, cooing calming melodies that are fare more abstract than they are complicated to pin against a wall.
If one thing is to be said here, as it always has with his songwriting, Noel keeps simplicity at the foot of his work. While many things he had purported to using to the press are present on High Flying Birds (i.e. big band horns, strings, and yes, a saw) none of these elements overwhelm the tracks, although the Dixieland jabs are greatly overused depending on the track. Lyrically, it’s very sound release and isn’t stunted by being lavish and bold with complex lyrics. Noel Gallagher tells tales much like his heroes with a sense of mysticism and Songwriting 101-like content.
The album crashes back into the stratosphere with “Stop The Clocks,” a song purported to be 10 years in the making. While a spitfire way to end the album, it’s like most of the Oasis demands for long outros, gets a bit long in the tooth but still fits better here than probably any latter-day Oasis album could have utilized it for. There isn’t anything that hurts High Flying Birds per say outside of a little overhype, but it’s still none the less far more pleasing than most of Beady Eye’s raucous debut earlier this year. Gallagher really shines as someone bent on simplicity while still trying to give a new twist to the game. He doesn’t necessarily change the game here, but his plans are obviously simple and bright and not bent on world domination.
High Flying Birds will no doubt have its detractors and loyal devotees, and that’s fine because I don’t think that is the purpose Gallagher is attempting to implore. This is not the answer to rock ‘n’ roll and not a second coming of Noel and his masterful songwriting that brought us “Wonderwall” so many years ago, but it’s still much better than I expected and far more listenable than what his brother has been conjuring up since he and his brother finally called their partnership quits.
Rating: 7 out of 10 (Good)
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