Dave Gahan

5 Great Songs From 2015

Posted on by edwardlayland

There’s been a great deal written here and elsewhere about the best albums of 2015, but in this day and age, more often than not, it is the individual tune that has the greater impact. Albums don’t always get listened to in their entirety – unless of course you happen to be a music critic, which is probably why we bang on about them and make so many lists – so in celebration of the humble single and the killer album track here are five great songs from 2015.

The Echo and The Always were an amazing discovery this year and this track pretty much encapsulates what they are all about. I didn’t actually give ‘Capable Of’ much credit on first listen, there are other more immediate tracks on the album, but it has grown on me and repeated listens have revealed more and more.

I fell in love with Wolf Alice in the middle of 2015 and have been playing them to death ever since. ‘Your Love’s Whore’ was the track that did it for me, don’t know why really, just something about it gets me every time.

‘My Terracotta Heart’ is so wrapped in the history of Blur, and particularly the relationship between Damon and Graham, that it has a significance way beyond the norm. Anyone who loves this band cannot fail to be touched by its stark beauty.

Dave Gahan‘s album with Soulsavers had a tremendous impact on me this year, no song more so than ‘Tempted’. This is a quite sublime performance that gives me goosebumps.

IMHO, ‘Gunga Din’ is quite simply the best thing The Libertines have ever done. Lyrically, it is fantastic, musically, it nails it, but most importantly it has that little extra “I don’t know what” that great tracks need. Killer.

The Best Records of 2015 (IMHO)

Posted on by edwardlayland

I’ve already done a top ten albums of 2015 over at http://www.alreadyheard.com and, to be honest, was not entirely happy with it. I felt like I should include stuff that I had rated highly under review, whilst also excluding some things that weren’t really A.H material. Anyway, the entire music media has gone all end of year, ranking and rating their favourite records, and I can’t help but feel that more often than not it’s an exercise in “I’ve got better taste than you” and they put what is critically acclaimed and what is cool to like, rather than what they actually enjoy. So, what I’ve decided to do is put together a bunch of stuff that I’ve really enjoyed this past year, in no particular order, by way of shout out to the artists who have made my listening life so cool this year. Here goes part one:

Public Enemy – Live from Metropolis
For any band, whatever the genre, this is a lesson in live performance. Chuck D, Flavor Flav, DJ Lord etc quite simply kill it from beginning to end.

The Echo and The Always – And After That The Dark…
Reviewed this for Already Heard and fell in love with it on first listen. It’s jam packed with surprises and there is not a duff tune on the record – sublime vocals, textured layers and killer hooks. This band will be everywhere in 2016.

Placebo – Unplugged
I love Placebo. I love this record, it shows another dimension to the band, every version is sublime and the special guests are just that, special.

D’Angelo – Black Messiah
Technically from 2014 but only because the release date was anticipated to coincide with Ferguson, due to the politically charged nature to some of the songs, like ‘The Charade’. Damn, this is one fine record, multiple listens revealed more and more depth to the beautifully constructed songs – basically its a ‘What’s Going On?’ for the 21st Century.

Dave Gahan & Soulsavers – Angels and Ghosts
Another album of gorgeous depth and texture that has a definite soundtrack feel to it, whilst also being hauntingly dark and moody.

Blur – The Magic Whip
Could’ve been awful, but in true Blur fashion it was well thought out and everything about it feels right. ‘Terracotta Heart’ is, quite frankly, one of the most beautiful things they’ve ever done.

What’s Hot in My House – November

Posted on by edwardlayland

My earphones have been as busy as ever with the likes of Haybaby and Wolf Alice, but there’s been plenty of other stuff filling my personal airwaves. I’ve reviewed some great stuff for Already Heard, like Saint (the) Sinner, Aurora and This City Limits (See below for reviews), as well as the new Nitin Sawhney and Jeff Lynne’s ELO releases right here. It’s all great stuff but there’s a few other things topping my personal charts right now.

Dave Gahan & Soulsavers
It’s quite natural for stuff that I’m reviewing to get a fair few plays, but Dave’s latest has been on super heavy rotation ever since. The almost cinematic quality of this sweeping soundtrack to life is extremely impressive and its depth and texture nothing short of sublime. Gahan puts in a strong vocal performance throughout; the rough edge to his voice carrying an emotional weight that combines beautifully with the epically dark gospel feel. Killer.

The Cult
I’m not ashamed to admit that The Cult is my all time favourite band and tend to get played pretty much every week as it is. So when I decided to do my 10 reasons The Cult are awesome piece (https://hardpresseded.wordpress.com/2015/11/10/10-reasons-the-cult-are-awesome/) it was the perfect excuse to delve into their back catalogue even more. Electric/Peace got a fair few listens as did Love. They are such a unique band, despite wearing their influences on their sleeves; nobody else sounds like them and they defy classification. Billy Duffy’s guitar playing is always superb, conjuring up varied riffs and smoking solos, while Ian Astbury’s baritone is the most distinctive voice in rock. Here is something a little newer though, from the soundtrack to Gone In 60 Seconds, ‘Painted on my Heart’. Love ’em.

Of Allies
I’ve reviewed them, I’ve interviewed them, I’ve featured them in not one but two other pieces and yet I can’t stop listening to them. Both the first EP, ‘Tempers’, as well as its follow up, ‘Fragments’, are regular listens that I just never get tired of hearing. On Tempers we get the earworm that is ‘Ghosts’, the brooding ‘Our Decay’, the bombastic ‘In Screens’ with its guitar interplay and hook filled chorus, the ebb and flow of the atmospheric ‘In Stasis’ with its epic finale and the massive ‘Play Dead’. Fragments is equally triumphant with its slightly more radio friendly, but no less hard edge sound. The title track is pure quality, ‘One 19’ is a hook filled belter, ‘Old Bones’ is full of twists and turns, while ‘Tempers’ rocks seriously hard before the accomplished ‘Call It Home’. Basically, I cannot get enough of this band and am stoked that work on their debut LP has begun – look out for them in 2016.

http://alreadyheard.com/post/131955145513/album-review-saint-the-sinner-masquerades-ep
http://alreadyheard.com/post/132473530378/album-review-aurora-faithbreaker
http://alreadyheard.com/post/132884286627/album-review-this-city-limits-heres-to-hoping

Dave Gahan and Soulsavers – Angels and Ghosts Review

Posted on by edwardlayland

tumblr_inline_nug2q2oqG31qa79vw_500Hold the phone, what is this? Thirty eight minutes of awesomeness, that’s what. Suspend whatever preconceptions you might have, turn off the lights, close your eyes and let your imagination ride, because Dave Gahan and Soulsavers have come up with one of the most incredible records of the year. Forget Depeche Mode and think Nick Cave; here is a collection of beautifully constructed songs that play like a soundtrack to life.

The epic gospel feel of ‘Shine’ kicks things off with a slow burning spaghetti western style riff; there’s a big sound but its got a lot of space, the quiet moments actually increasing the impact of the individual elements. ‘You owe me’ follows, punctuating the soundtrack feel with its expansive guitar, conjuring up images of wide open landscapes in middle America. Dave’s voice is as strong as ever, but understated and brooding, though he opens up towards the end, the female backing providing an interesting balance.

There is an awful lot happening on this record with layers of hammond organ, orchestrated elements and the occasional horn section adding a massiveness to the sound that works beautifully, nowhere more so than on the sublime ‘Tempted’. The spacious atmospheric guitar and laid back groove, underpinned by some lovely organ work, make room for a nice hook; there is just the right amount of hurt in Dave’s voice, he doesn’t need to blow a gasket to hold the emotion as the track slow boils to a simmering climax. Superb.

‘All of This and Nothing’ is similarly atmospheric but more up-tempo, while the slow grinding ‘Don’t Cry’ offers up a rockier vocal and a harder edge; both are good tracks but there is something special sandwiched between. ‘One Thing’ is a dark piano ballad that is beautifully melancholy. It is deeply evocative, like everything feels wrong, the lack of percussion and insistent piano giving a sense of disquiet that offers up all kinds of images; like arriving home to an empty house that was once full of life, or hearing a familiar voice to look up and find you were mistaken – incredible.

‘Lately’ is also piano based and is also quite lovely, while ‘The Last Time’ picks up from ‘You Owe Me’ in terms of sound, like there’s a thread running through the record. Album closer ‘My Sun’ ties things up nicely though, incorporating all the elements wonderfully. Dave’s vocal is superb, the piano melancholic, the guitar strum wide open and it broods slowly to a defiantly understated climax on the back of subtle orchestration, organ and brass.

All in all ‘Angels and Ghosts’ is a wonderfully produced record of expansively evocative tracks of spectacular depth and texture. Dave’s rich baritone is solid throughout, adding darkness to the soundtrack vibe of the multi-layered instrumentation. There’s barely a hint of filler on the record and in ‘Tempted’ (with just the slightest echo of Depeche Mode) you get one of the best songs I’ve heard this year. Excellent stuff.

9.5/10

http://www.davegahan.com/

http://smarturl.it/AngelsGhosts_iTunes