Beady Eye - BE (2CD Deluxe Edition)

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Well, this is a real surprise! I never thought Beady Eye would amount to much, let alone produce a five-star album like this. Beaten by Black Sabbath's "13" to the top of the British charts, this is without doubt the better of the two albums.

This is basically Oasis without Noel. This time Liam and the boys have had pulled out all the stops, with some real quality  songwriting, a tastefully psychedelic production  and blissed-out artwork! Like many I had a love/hate relationship with Oasis. If I was in the mood, there was no more satisfying British group, but at other times Liam's whining voice and attitude were real downers.  Here, on the cleverly titled "BE", his voice is more interesting, with more effort to his singing and less of his nasal whinge. All told, he sounds much more natural. It's the music that really steals the show, however. Building on the combined heritage of Oasis, indie, Britpop and Oxford's finest Ride, this is a really tight band. There's little of the sloppy swagger that blighted the first Beady Eye album "Different Gear, Still Speeding."

"BE" kicks off with the astonishing "Flick Of The Finger", surely the best opener of the year.  It's short but immensely powerful, ending in a tirade by Kayvan Novak, reading a Tariq Ali piece. In under four minutes, I'm a little sad to say that this kicks into touch anything Noel Gallagher has produced in years. The You Tube item below doesn't really do the song justice. You need to hear it on uncompressed CD or vinyl to do it justice!

 

 

"Soul Love" (not the Bowie song) follows on in a similar groove, hypnotic and essential.  I've read some bad press about "Face The Crowd", but I really like this poppy number.  Should be great live. "Second Bite Of The Apple" may be a Beatles reference, and it shimmers in a Lennon-like way. Of course, the Gallagher Fab Four obsession is well known. "Soon Come Tomorrow", "I'm Just Saying" and "Don't Brother Me" are all finely crafted pop. The latter is no doubt about Noel, but it's not a bitter song, it's more reflective and retro in feel. "Shine A Light" is a song I didn't care for initially, but in truth it is a catchy number that's a real grower.

The album is available as a 2CD Deluxe bound edition. This has extra songs which are all worth hearing, with the possible exception of the backwards song, which isn't in the Stone Roses ("Don't Stop") league. This album is a real keeper, and promises even greater things to come. I love it.