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Gomez - A New Tide Audio CD

A fair review of the Gomez "A New Tide" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Gomez reviews here, or go back to the Gomez tabs.

Gomez Band: Gomez
Title: A New Tide
Rating:
Release Date: 2009-03-31
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Mix 2: Little Pieces 3: If I Ask You Nicely 4: Lost Track 5: Win Park Slope 6: Bone Tired 7: Airstream Driver 8: Natural Reaction 9: Very Strange 10: Other Plans 11: Sunset Gates

Expert indie rock
The tracks are catchy and have instant likeability. This is much better than stuff like The Decemberists' latest. A favorite is Airstream Driver, very creative.


Creat CD
They played Airstream Driver. I saw Gomez on late night TV in the USA. Downloaded the single, bought the CD, going to see them at the Mile High Music Festival on July 18, 2009 - .


Listen to it
The trick is, just like with all Gomez offerings, you really have to listen to it several times in multiple contexts to truly appreciate it. This is a brilliant album, people, by one of the great bands of the last decade and possibly beyond. They are so simple on the surface, just a bunch of talented musicians writing and playing often intensely personal songs with catchy beats and creative arrangements. But on many songs there is another layer below, reminiscent of the best work of John Lennon or Neil Young, that somehow manages to combine a jaded outlook with a sense that things can always change for the better. On this record, the best example of this is Ian Ball's Win Park Slope, which on one level is a wistful piece about a career that could have been different if not for critics obsessed with winning prizes and whatever else. But on another it's a nice statement that the band intends to keep creating its music regardless of the noise. This is my favorite track, but all songs, from 1-11, have merit, with Ben Ottewell's Natural Reaction and Little Pieces and Tom Gray's If I Asked You Nicely (the only track that he leads) and of course Ball's Airstream Driver, a classic radio song (of all their great songs will this finally be their hit!), leading the way. .


A Cut Above
I don't mean that this collection sounds like the discs that made them famous. Fans of Gomez' non-conformist sound and maverick ethos will probably find plenty to like in this, their sixth studio album. Never a band to rest on their laurels, this album signals a possible turn in their sound that reflects the fact that, eleven years after their first CD, they're more mature, and so are we in the audience.

After making their name with two Britpop albums that drew heavily on Chicago blues, Gomez lapsed into two discs of silliness that tarred them with the label "experimental," before returning in 2006 with How We Operate, which added folk and jazz to their distinctive sound. This album adds a heavy dose of '90s American indie rock, with all the acoustic jangle and trance-inducing reverberation that implies.

At first listen, my response to this album was to shrug. Some of the tracks are highly repetitive and pass under the listener's consciousness without leaving a mark. Songs like "Lost Track" and "Natural Reaction" are so hypnotic that they completely failed to penetrate my brain. A few tracks on this album could charitably be described as merely average. I may be biased, though: no indie rock fan, me.

But some songs buoy the rest up. After my initial reaction, I realized that "Mix," "If I Ask You Nicely," "Airstream Driver," and "Very Strange" are pretty good. The blend of acoustic and electric instruments is handled with aplomb, and the guest musicians let songs stretch to create a broad tenor. While individual elements may fall short, the whole collection is a cut above most work coming out of the studios today.

Those seeking a museum piece of how Gomez sounded in 1998 will be disappointed. Listeners with no musical sense of adventure may find this CD confusing. And, on the whole, this album is not a masterpiece. But it is listenable, thought-provoking, smart rock for those of us who feel we've been left behind by major label music these days. If you like intelligent, dynamic rock music without the artificial sheen of pop, you'll enjoy this collection.


Wash Over Me
It was the perfect balance of hook-laden pop, folk and rock that just made me want to listen until my CD player exploded. Gomez' last release, "How We Operate," totally blew me away. As with that CD, "A New Tide" requires a few listens before you can zero in on their wavelength and lock in to the groove. These guys' lyrics are always fun and kind of cerebral, requiring a little thought. It's not hard to distinguish between the two different lead singers - they're on an equal footing as far as talent goes, though. Gomez usually avoid politics, which is refreshing to me - they're not trying to be U2. The mix of instruments they use - electric guitars along with mandolin, banjo, stand-up bass and some instruments I can't quite identify - always keeps it interesting, and MAN can these guys write a hook. They can, and do, go from lilting melodies to pounding rock, often in the same song, which is one of the things I love about them. The drummer, in my opinion, is one of the best in rock - his beats are always unique as is his choice of percussive instruments. I first saw Gomez perform on Conan O'Brien - can't wait to see them live.


You can see a complete list of all Gomez discography, or go back to the Gomez tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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