And so the post-Oasis battle begins. Liam Gallagher has made his anticipated return to music – a mere eighteen months after Oasis split unceremoniously in a fit of broken guitars at a French festival. And while Noel has remained silent on the music front, Gallagher Junior has stole the march with new project Beady Eye (with all previous Oasis members Gem Archer, Andy Bell and Chris Sharrock along for the ride). And the verdict? Gallagher Junior is well and truly in the lead.
In truth, many had the same expectations for Beady Eye’s debut release ‘Different Gear, Still Speeding’. Whether it’s through the rose-tinted glasses of ex-Oasis followers or the hisses of ex-Oasis haters, the best anyone could have hoped/dreaded was a passable set of simplistic rockers along the lines of the bulk of Liam’s back catalogue. But what’s surprising is the creativity, the energy that flows through this album and the positivity. Beady Eye seem free of the Oasis shackles (there are tracks on here that Noel would never have gone for) and the band are on triumphant form.
This album can be split in two really. On the first side, you’ve got your simplistic but effective rockers. The best comes in first track ‘Four Letter Word’; a terrific opener, in-your-face raucous rock and some telling statements. Liam spits (in a sideways glance at his former band) ‘Nothing ever lasts forever’, while the challenge is set with ‘the battle’s on and the song is the prize’. Your move, big brother.
‘Beatles and Stones’ is a ‘My Generation’-esque rock ‘n’ roll number spouting ‘I’m gonna stand the test of time like Beatles and Stones’, ‘Standing On The Edge of the Noise’ is a raucous guitar-heavy track with Liam yelling through a megaphone and ‘Three Ring Circus’ is blues-by-numbers. The spontaneous piano jig of ‘Bring The Light’ lifts the album with its sheer force and ‘Wind Up Dream’ is a fine sparse guitar-lick, while extra track ‘Man of Misery’ is a moody bass driven track. Along with the fantastic cover of World of Twist’s ‘Sons of the Stage’, they make for a passable effort from Oasis 2.0.
But the real surprise is the next part – tracks full of melody, exuberance and even sweetness. Anyone who thought this would just be Liam snarling and growling through three-chord rockers will be shocked by ‘For Anyone’; Liam at the very top of his range with his most delicate vocal since ‘Married With Children’ in this sweet Beatle-esque love song. There are even touches of psychedelia in the country-tinged spiritual tale ‘Millionaire’ and the ascent-to-heaven odyssey of ‘Wigwam’, while Liam himself is in exceptional voice throughout.
Lead single ‘The Roller’ and possible follow-up ‘Kill for a Dream’ are the more mainstream tracks, with the verse-bridge-chorus format that will see them get their fans. But they are not the highlights of ‘Different Gear, Still Speeding’, that is reserved for the two ending tracks. ‘The Beat Goes On’ is an uplifting Lennon-style ballad, where Liam reassures ‘It’s not the end of the world/It’s not even the end of the day’ and ‘The Morning Son’ is a sunny, optimistic mellow guitar with the simple power to lift you like nothing since ‘Champagne Supernova’.
It’s not a massive break away from former glories, but it’s different enough to see Beady Eye as their own band. ‘Different Gear, Still Speeding’ is an album that is played with a magnificent energy and with fantastic variety, from raucous rock ‘n’ roll to sweet mellow guitars, it makes for an extremely pleasant listen. Liam Gallagher hasn’t just met expectations, he has exceeded them. I wonder what Noel thinks…
A brilliant album and here's my favourite track 'The Morning Son'.
NWR
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