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JennYOasis - Dig Out Your Soul Album Review
October 13th 2008 17:29
Length: 45:51
Label: Big Brother, Warner Bros Records
Dig Out Your Soul is the seventh album by English band Oasis. Heavily influenced by the 60s music, the album makes you forget that we're in the 21st century, and just stays in the past. It's not a bad thing, mind you, but it makes it seem as though Oasis are just stuck in a genre and aren't able to move past it.
The album starts off with the track Bag It Up which has the 60s' sound I talked about earlier. However, the drumming has a bit of a folk rock sound to it which reminded me of several Québécois bands.
The Turning keeps the nostalgic tone with an intro which sounds a bit like Cliff Richard's “Devil Woman.” The use of the keyboard during verses is a nice subtlety when contrasted with the intense instrumental during the chorus. The lyrics on the chorus serve as a bridge to the next song, Waiting For The Rapture. The lyrics are:
“So come on, shake your rag doll, baby
Before you change your mind
Then come on, when the rapture takes me
Be the fallen angel by my side”
At first listen, Waiting For The Rapture reminded me of a slower version of Franz Ferdinand's “Take Me Out,” but a bit of research showed that it has the exact same instrumental as The Doors' “Five To One.” So, no points for originality there.
The first single, The Shock Of The Lightning, is a great uptempo song. The video has that 60s/70s feel to it with the flower collages, the bright colors, etc.
The Shock Of The Lightning
The rumored second single, I'm Outta Time, is a tribute to John Lennon that's taken Liam Gallagher nine years to write. It's a slow, beautiful ballad which, when played live, will undoubtedly get a lot of raised lighters. Although the lyrics are beautiful, the rhyming feels a bit forced to me. For a song that's taken so long to write, I think it could've been better lyrically (though I'll probably change my mind tomorrow, so...).
On (Get Off Your) High Horse Lady, the drums are accompanied with a clap track. I don't really get why claps are such a trend all of the sudden. Fortunately, it works on this song. Although there hasn't been a lot of work put on the lyrics, the instrumental is great, making this track a pretty good song.
Falling Down brings some modernity to the album with the drumming playing backwards at regular intervals. Everything on this track is solid work, from the guitars to the lyrics and the singing.
To Be Where There's Life is a relaxing song with a nice bass line. It is the ideal song for a car ride. It also sounds like the kind of song you could hear in a movie.
Both Ain't Got Nothin' and The Nature Of Reality go back to the 60s/70s “edgy” rock sound. Both tracks remind me of The Beatles “I've Just Seen A Face.” Ain't Got Nothin' is the shortest track of the album at 2:19, keeping in touch with the length of the songs back then.
Finally, Soldier On is a nice ballad. The echo on the singing gives a spacey feeling to it. It could be taken as a good hippie song.
The majority of Dig Out Your Soul is inspired by The Beatles and/or artists of that era. As much as Oasis want to consider themselves the successors of The Beatles, it's not by reenacting the British icons that they'll be able to stand on a pedestal by themselves. Right now, when I think of them, the first thing that comes to mind is “the band that sounds like The Beatles.” Although this tag is flattering, it also limits their impact on music history. All in all, I give this album a 3.5/5. Oasis fans will love it, but if I wanted to listen to The Beatles, I would've picked up a Beatles album.
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