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Review: Oasis “Don’t Believe the Truth” a big bag of OK
The reviews I’ve seen so far of Oasis’ new album, “Don’t Believe the Truth,” remind me of the reviews of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith — it’s the best of the most recent stuff, but not up to par with the classic early stuff.
I agree with that assessment in the case of Oasis. You can hear the increased influence of Gem Archer, and you can hear Oasis just begging to be relevant with this album. And a lot of the songs really aren’t bad.
It’s just that none of strike me as particularly good, either.
Oasis seems to have lost the abillity to put together a good, strong, catchy, fun rock tune. That’s where their strength lied on “Definitely Maybe” and “What’s the Story Morning Glory?” Even “Be Here Now” had some catchy songs, but “Don’t Believe the Truth” is just missing that edge.
The album opens with some intrigue — “Turn Up the Sun” intros with a dual-guitar chime that’s very un-Oasis-like. But right after the 30-second mark, Oasis gives up on the whole thought and brings back the droning, boring pounding guitar riff that have marked the last albums. Liam and Noel don’t spice it up much with their dual vocals (as usual, Liam in the foreground in a lower, raspy register with Noel picking up the high end) that drone on boringly, like the guitars. The guitar outro-solo harkens back to the introduction that Oasis seemingly forgot about for 2 and a half minutes, but it seems just tacked onto the end. As if someone in the studio said “Hey, remember that song we started out with? Let’s go back to that for a few seconds and call it a day.”
The next two tracks, “Mucky Fingers” and “Lyla” (the first single off the album) are more of the same — boring songs that wear out their welcome well before the 3:56 and 5:12 ending marks. My fast forward button is getting quite a workout.
“Love Like a Bomb” changes things up with a 3/4 meter and an acoustic guitar — and has the advantage of being a short 2:54. For the first time on the album, a song ended about when I felt it should have. Is it my imagination or has Liam Gallagher’s voice somehow gotten MORE nasal over time? Perhaps he has some residual cocaine lodged in his nose?
“The Importance of Being Idle,” while being a clunky sounding title, is the best song on the album. It’s also, probably not coincidentally, a Noel Gallagher lead vocal. A marching-type beat with interesting storytelling vocals that lasts a completely appropriate 3:41. The song sounds nothing like other Oasis works, and is a refreshing bit of creativity.
I keep noting the lengths of the songs — probably because of Oasis’ tendency to let their songs become that houseguest that refuses to leave, then leaves the guest room a mess. This may be more of a reflection on me than on this album, but I got distracted by an Apple iTunes ad about Weird Al Yankovic.
“The Meaning of Soul” is the “fun rock” song on the album, an interesting mix of a pounding drum track but an acoustic guitar lead track. Again, the guys don’t let the song overstay its welcome. Interestingly, tracks 5 through 8 all feature the acoustic guitar as the lead instrument — even though they all qualify as “rock” songs, with the possible exception of “The Importance of Being Idle.”
I’m debating myself whether the pun in the title of “Guess God Thinks I’m Abel” (Abel and able) is clever or not, and I lean toward it being an acceptable play. The song’s ending is notable — an acoustic-rock song turning to loud electric for the final 20 seconds — which is different, if ineffective as a changeup in this instance. Good try, though.
Noel takes the lead microphone back in “Part of the Queue,” another acoustic-rock song in 3/4. The electric guitar solo that morphs into a piano solo is a great touch in the middle. This song is my second favorite on the album, next to the other Noel track. I think Noel has done a great job of developing his voice, and I’m willing to take the controversial stance that I’m tired of Liam’s nasal rasp. Next time, put Noel on lead full time.
“Keep the Dream Alive” is the strongest Liam track on the album, an anthemic ode to doing your thing. The song is enjoyable, even though the gang does back to their old habit of a song overstaying its welcome — 5:46 long with nothing interesting happening after the 4:30 point. Don’t get me wrong — my diatribe isn’t against the longer song, but the longer song with no point to being long. If you have 6 minutes of interesting material, make a 6 minute song. But don’t stretch a 4 minute song into a 6 minute song. It drives me nuts and makes me so bored.
“A Bell Will Ring” features some strong rock guitar (Noel and Gem Archer work well together in this track) and finishes up a strong middle section of the album.
The album ends weakly, though, with “Let There Be Love” trying to sway but instead staggering. In “Acquiesce” style, Liam handles the verses while Noel handles the choruses. I prefer the Noel parts. I’ve decided for sure that I’m ready for Noel to set out on his own. The song pretends to end at a nice, appropriate spot after the 3:00 point, but instead chooses to restart and bore me for another minute and a half. Then the song pretends to end there, but decides to annoy me a little more by restarting again. After a really strong album middle section, “Let There Be Love” doesn’t add to the momentum.
“I Can See It Now” returns to early-album form, with droning guitars and a boring rock beat. It builds, adding layer after layer until the 3:00 point when Noel comes in with echo-y vocals buried in the mix. Would have been a decent album opener, in a shortened version, but doesn’t do an effective job as an album closer. It doesn’t make think, “Wow, what a great close to an amazing album!”
“Don’t Believe the Truth” is a decent album with some decent songs, but doesn’t have that toe-tapping rock song that made the world aware of Oasis. None of the songs are truly memorable or are songs that make you want to rush out and buy the album. It’s a better album than the last two Oasis has put out, for sure, and maybe their next album will be another step in the right direction.
Right now I think Oasis is still surviving off the enormous momentum of their first two albums (and their underrated B-sides collection) while still trying to redefine themselves as a band. All the members of the original band have been replaced, except for Noel and Liam, of course — and they do seem to be coming together as a unit. If this album is a transitional album before their return to prominence, I wouldn’t be at all surprised. On the other hand, I wouldn’t be surprised if Oasis is never able to quite regain their early success, either. Forced to predict, I do think Oasis will have another strong push in the future.
This album isn’t quite that strong push. It lacks that knockout-punch, trademark song that I do feel they’re capable of writing. Good songs, OK album, but nothing that will change rock’s landscape.
Rating:
Wed June 1st, 2005 2:01 am
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