Larry Gallagher is one cool fella.
Born in the 60s, Gallagher has lead quite an unconvetional life. He has been a musician throughout his life, while also being an ongoing contributor to Details, Esquire, and the New York Times Magazine on subjects from smoking psychedelic toad sweat to yoga in India. In '96, Gallagher decided he needed a life change: he joined a Zen Buddhist monastery on a mountaintop just outside of L.A. for three years, living as a monk with none other than Leonard Cohen. In Gallagher's words, all he got out of these years was a girlfriend and the song "I'm Deep", contained on Can I Go Now? These days, Gallagher seems to have settled down in San Francisco and has released two albums: An Endless Chain of Accidents and his latest, Can I Go Now?
Sometimes similar sounding to Belle & Sebastian and E of Eels, one thing is certain: Larry Gallagher is a storyteller. Whether discussing his deepness on tracks like "I'm Deep" or his desire to have a conversation with Shakespeare on "Me and William Shakespeare", Gallagher has an ability that other indie-rock musicians aren't able to convey so clearly in their art: he can be satirical on tracks like "Horny Teen Sluts", while still being taken seriously on standout "Tired of Me".
Opening Can I Go Now? is the track "TV is Your Friend," which confronts Gallagher's self-awareness: "Don't think that I don't see you eyeing me". "It's Only Life" is a bouncy affair with Gallagher comforting himself by telling himself to "relax, put down the ax, it's only life."
"I'm Deep" starts with a sitar and a Buddhist chant; once this intro has played its course, Gallagher beings to play a catchy guitar progression and croons, "I'm Deeeeeeeeep! Will you sleep with me?" It works on many fronts; above all else, Gallagher is able to showcase his skewed sense of humor while displaying humility and his penchant for songwriting in four minutes.
Standout track and fan favorite "Try Not to Think About Bugs" is a waltz-y, Fiona Apple-esque, eery bedtime lore story that deals with, well, various bugs creeping and crawling and ceasing to escape one's conscious. Musicians Lisa Petrie on flute, Christina Bogiages on oboe, Paul Scriver on tenor saxophone, and Jarratt Rossini on bassoon play a large role in creating the masterful instrumentation. What works so well about "Try Not to Think About Bugs" is that the execution goes far beyond most songs' potential--it literally carries you to a childhood land where anything is possible. No contest--"Bugs" is the winner on Can I Go Now?.
Another standout track, "Little Martian Girl", starts with that all too familiar alien/whistle/UFO noise. Gallagher, eerily sounding like E of Eels, reminds us why he's different from other artists on songs like "Little Martian Girl"; that is, it's these cool little details that Gallagher adds that makes Can I Go Now? stand out from the hundreds and hundreds of indie singer/songwriters' music. Gallagher knows that his most ardent fans will appreciate these intricacies and I can't argue with that.
Gallagher falls flat on "Fuck This Noise" and the brief "Me and William Shakespeare". The former lacks the carefully considered instrumentation contained on the rest of the album and, athough having an interesting arrangement of background vocals by Laurie Amat, Sharon Gillenwater, and Kid Beyond, it comes across as boring and repetitive. "Shakespeare", although comical with well thought-out lyrics, sounds like just another filler track on an indie album about some guy telling a story that, truthfully, nobody wants to hear. "Shakespeare" seems more trying than on other humorous tracks, including "TV is Your Friend" and "I Am Better Than Your God".
"Tired of Me" is a heartbreaking, observant love song that shows Gallagher in his most vulnerable state. Gallagher is worn out, let down, and upset with himself and his partner. It's the story of a failed relationship from Gallagher's perspective. The song is refreshingly honest and subtle, with Gallagher's emotions on full display. It's obviously not as fun and frisky as "Bugs", but it's a welcomed addition to Can I Go Now? and it avoids being trite, like so many other male singer/songwriters' ballads.
Can I Go Now? is an involved, self-aware, honest, intelligent album that knows just when to be satirical. And when it's satirical, it usually works extremely well. Gallagher and his team's instrumentation is outstanding and the production is perfectly balanced. The great thing about Can I Go Now? is Gallagher's way of compiling these beautifully written stories and unrelated thoughts and emotions and creating a single coherent album. That takes masterful skill--most artists who attempt to throw so many subjects into one album fail to do so in a functional manner. Gallagher is a man who was meant to be a musician, taking sounds and instruments from various genres and claiming them his own. It's the instrumentation and the carefully pinned songwriting that separates Gallagher apart from these other musicians, (who, unfortunately, are receiving the fame.)
Larry Gallagher's music can be found on iTunes, CD Baby, and, of course, at one of Gallagher's shows.
(this is my enhanced review)
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Alex, I'd first like to say that I am not going to let the fact that you broke my pen affect my review of. . . your review.
ReplyDeleteStarting with Gallagher's biography is somewhat atypical, at least of the class reviews, and made what you've written unique. It is nice to get a history of an artist prior to listening to his music.
The length is good, and stating similar artists is great because it allows the reader to get an idea of whether or not they'd enjoy this music. The line "Can I Go Now? is an involved, self-aware, honest, intelligent album that knows just when to be satirical" is a very thoughtful one.
Your opinion overtakes your review at times. If the point is to allow the reader to form their own judgment then you failed.
Good job.
There are a lot of aspects in your review I really enjoyed. I thought the opening line was fun; a statement Gallagher would likely use to describe himself. I also like the descriptions you give about each song. "...various bugs creeping and crawling and ceasing to escape one's conscious," really stuck out at me. You mention a variety of songs in your review and not only describe them, but also explain and highlight their differences.
ReplyDeleteI like how you include the other musicians involved on various tracks and make comparisons of Gallagher's sound to other musicians.
While I appreciate the history and short biography on Gallagher, perhaps you could consider moving it towards the end of your review. I found its placement in the beginning to be distracting from the purpose of this review.
I really like this review. you go beyond can i go now and talk about his background and first album, which is more then i did. (it probably would have been easier to write all 750 words to). I like your descriptions of the songs, giving props to both the lyrics and instrumentation. all in all you did a great job on this review.
ReplyDeleteI really loved how you opened with an explanation of his background to give the reader a little context of how you were evaluating the album. When I was reading it I wished that I had thought of that.
ReplyDeleteI really loved this entire section in which you described the song I'm deep "Gallagher beings to play a catchy guitar progression and croons, "I'm Deeeeeeeeep! Will you sleep with me?" It works on many fronts; above all else, Gallagher is able to showcase his skewed sense of humor while displaying humility and his penchant for songwriting in four minutes" It has a great concrete descriptive manner and says a lot about the song.
One thing that struck me quickly though was the fact that you used quotes to signify the tracks, this made it really confusing to seperate actual quotes and the tracks. I think you could maybe underline them instead if you want to seperate them from the album title.
also this sentence ""Shakespeare" seems more trying than on other humorous tracks, including" is a little confusing on the first read, maybe saying that "Shakespeare" lacks the same thought out humor that (the other tracks) have created. or something like that.
I like your writing style it's witty, intelectual, and easy to read although it did feel a little like you were trying to sell the cd to me at times.
This is a very well-written review, Alex. I actually like the biographical info you provide at the beginning, though I can imagine folding it into the middle or end of the piece as well, once you've given us a sense of what this album is like.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate that you list some of the background musicians and note the funky instrumentation of "Try Not to Think About Bugs."
I also tend to disagree with Noelle's comment that you should be allowing the reader to make an informed opinion; because the reader hasn't heard the album, and is relying on your review (the very purpose and nature of reading reviews!), it is in your hands to provide a judgment. So I would say, don't feel you should shy away from that. I like the way you sum things up in the sentence "The great thing about Can I Go Now? is Gallagher's way of compiling these beautifully written stories and unrelated thoughts and emotions and creating a single coherent album." Nice stuff!