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Album Review: Beady Eye - Different Gear, Still Speeding




















By Eugene McCormick.

If you had any worries about Liam Gallagher being able to carry on in the music world without chief songwriter and older brother Noel, your doubts are erased on the first track off Beady Eye's debut album Different Gear, Still Speeding, which will be released stateside on March 1st. The menacing Manc's sneer is strong as ever and his bandmates, who followed him from the rock behemoth Oasis, sound refocused and energized now that they are the ones guiding the man who was named the best frontman in the history of music by Q Magazine two years ago. The opener, Four Letter Word, could be looked at as a jab at their ex-bandmate, but according to reports it was written before the split, but the lyrics "The battles on and the song is the prize" sum up what will be a rivalry like Paul McCartney and John Lennon had 4 decades ago after the Gallagher's heroes The Beatles broke up.

While the first song is up-tempo, most of Beady Eye's debut is mid-tempo radio friendly numbers that borrow heavily from the likes of the The Who, The Kinks, and of course the Fab Four. Lead single The Roller is the most derivative of the bunch, sounding like a hybrid of John Lennon classic Instant Karma coupled with vocals from his final studio album Double Fantasy. In true Gallagher form, the band doesn't hide from the references to their love of mid-60's music going so far as naming one song Beatles & Stones that is basically a rewrite of Pete Townshend's classic My Generation. Throughout the album you'll find catchy guitar work and melodies. Perhaps the most touching song on the collection is the track For Anyone, which is arguably the best song Liam has written to date.

Liam has upped the ante for Noel who has embarked on a solo career and it will be interesting to see what type of reaction the new band gets in terms of sales here in America. Beady Eye has released a solid set of tunes that any Oasis fan will enjoy, and one wonders why they didn't just keep the name of their old band as they would have likely been able to shift more records and sell more concert tickets with the established band name then embarking on a brand new endeavor with mostly the same cast of characters.

Highlights The Roller, For Anyone, Three Ring Circus, The Beat Goes On, The Morning Son.

Skip Millionaire, Standing on the Edge of Noise.

Source: www.clevelandleader.com

Read a fans review of the album here.

Visit my newly launched Beady Eye fan site www.standingontheedgeofthenoise.com by clicking here.

2 comments

Pete P. said...

There are release parties for the record around the UK this Friday: http://www.thepropaganda.com/event.php?eid=38268

Anonymous said...

Skip standing on the edge of the noise? That song is a rocker!