William Blake's Seven
Active Member
It's hard to do anything but damn this album with faint praise, unfortunately. I was looking forward to it after hearing 'Hi Hello' which, though lyrically insipid, was a lovely bit of music. It's an album of nice moments and, if it was the product of a new talent, it would be quite promising.
It would be great to review this album on its own terms, without recourse to mentioning Marr's erstwhile songwriting partner, but it simply isn't possible to do so with any degree of honesty. This album reveals the staggering, insurmountable difference between the two talents.
The lyrics aren't terrible, because the lyrics aren't anything. They are so bland and pointless, it's as if Marr is consciously striving to avoid inspiring even a moment of thought in the listener. While Morrissey, for good or ill, inspires everything from love and rage to bafflement and utter disdain, Marr (at least lyrically) inspires nothing and nobody.
Marr's voice is fine. He can sing. But that's all that can be said for it. It's functional.
While it's arguable that comparing Morrissey's and Marr's lyrics and singing voices is unfair, the same can't be said for Marr's inability to find a vocal melody. It's here that the absence of Morrissey is truly felt. Morrissey approaches lyric melodies as a musician, his voice his instrument. Put simply, he crafts and sings a discernible tune. Marr's vocal melodies just sit there, subservient to everything else. It's as if Marr doesn't think the vocal melody is as important as a guitar riff or a bass line or a keyboard squiggle. It's as if -- and this is unforgivable -- he doesn't understand the role of vocal melody in popular song. Sometimes, as with 'Hi Hello' he almost manages it, but on the whole his songs are not really songs at all; they're instrumentals, with singing and lyrics tagged-on, masquerading as songs.
Ultimately, this album leaves Marr exposed as a musician (a sublimely gifted musician) desperately in need of a vocally tuneful and lyrically challenging collaborator.
It would be great to review this album on its own terms, without recourse to mentioning Marr's erstwhile songwriting partner, but it simply isn't possible to do so with any degree of honesty. This album reveals the staggering, insurmountable difference between the two talents.
The lyrics aren't terrible, because the lyrics aren't anything. They are so bland and pointless, it's as if Marr is consciously striving to avoid inspiring even a moment of thought in the listener. While Morrissey, for good or ill, inspires everything from love and rage to bafflement and utter disdain, Marr (at least lyrically) inspires nothing and nobody.
Marr's voice is fine. He can sing. But that's all that can be said for it. It's functional.
While it's arguable that comparing Morrissey's and Marr's lyrics and singing voices is unfair, the same can't be said for Marr's inability to find a vocal melody. It's here that the absence of Morrissey is truly felt. Morrissey approaches lyric melodies as a musician, his voice his instrument. Put simply, he crafts and sings a discernible tune. Marr's vocal melodies just sit there, subservient to everything else. It's as if Marr doesn't think the vocal melody is as important as a guitar riff or a bass line or a keyboard squiggle. It's as if -- and this is unforgivable -- he doesn't understand the role of vocal melody in popular song. Sometimes, as with 'Hi Hello' he almost manages it, but on the whole his songs are not really songs at all; they're instrumentals, with singing and lyrics tagged-on, masquerading as songs.
Ultimately, this album leaves Marr exposed as a musician (a sublimely gifted musician) desperately in need of a vocally tuneful and lyrically challenging collaborator.
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