Sorry for the lack of weekend posting - I came down with the same nasty cold-ish flu that had my sister bedridden last week, and I've been keeping my distance from the computer. I stayed home from work today, and after about 10 hours of awful TV (seriously, do people really like Space Ghost?) I'm actually dying to blog. So I thought I'd write about a band I've been meaning to write about for ages.
The British band Gomez has been one of my favorites since I first saw them perform in 1999, during fall of my freshman year at BU. That show was a big deal for several reasons - It was the first concert I saw in Boston, my first trip to the Paradise Rock Club, and the first show I was brave enough to attend alone. But it was only a few weeks into the semester, I didn't have any friends who shared my taste in music yet, and for some reason I wanted to see Gomez so badly I didn't care if I had to see them by myself. My bravery was rewarded with probably the best, most energetic, ridiculously fun, flat-out party of a performance I think I've ever seen.
Gomez debuted on Virgin Records in 1998 with Bring It On, which earned the band both a great deal of praise in the US and UK, as well as the Mercury Music Prize (they actually edged out Massive Attack's Mezzanine and The Verve's Urban Hymns). Part of the group's appeal was a sound unlike that of their peers at the time - instead of being strictly "Britpop", Gomez incorporated a bluesy swirl into their brand of slightly more experimental rock. Three distinct voices also added a degree of variation - Ben Ottewell (guitar), Ian Ball (guitar/bass) and Tom Gray (guitar/bass/keyboards) all trade off vocal duties. The current lineup of the band is rounded out by Paul Blackburn (bass/guitar), Olly Peacock (drums/percussion) and Dajon Everett (percussion/keyboards).
In 1999, the band released Liquid Skin, expanding upon but not straying too far from the formula that made Bring It On so successful. In 2000 they put out Abandoned Shopping Trolley Hotline, a collection of rarities and B-sides. The next studio album, In Our Gun, didn't appear until two years later, and even as a fan, I didn't immediately love the CD. While still showing the elements that Gomez fans were familiar with, the songs took a sharp turn into more electronic territory, and as a whole the album played up the more psychedelic facets of their sound. But over the years In Our Gun has grown on me, and it may be my favorite Gomez album to date.
In May of 2004, the band released their most recent studio effort, Split the Difference. A return to form, the album focused on the rock and roll basics - poppy melodies, big harmonies, catchy choruses that stick in your head. They were the kind of songs you'd expect to hear in promos for all the soapy MTV teen dramas (in fact, they did appear in almost all of them), and the album was met with more critical praise than their previous two releases. Still, sales didn't meet Virgin's expectations, and the band and label parted ways. Even Virgin was never good at keeping fans in the loop (the band's website was rarely, rarely updated), so with this development, I thought I wouldn't be hearing much about Gomez for a while.
But less than a year later, there was a light at the end of the tunnel, which came in the form of a new deal with ATO Records. Last June, Gomez released their first live album, Out West, a fantastic double disc recording that captures their energetic live performances - which hooked me as a fan in the first place.
And now the best news of all - the band will be releasing a new studio album on May 2, called How We Operate. Gomez will be doing a few limited dates in the US this March (including a date at SXSW) to support the album, followed by a headlining tour that will begin at the end of May.
I wonder why we listen to poets has two tracks from the new album for you to listen to now, but I thought I'd provide you with a bit of a retrospective:
"Whippin Picadilly" (from Bring It On)
"Rhythm & Blues Alibi" (from Liquid Skin)
"Bring Your Lovin' Back Here" (from Abandoned Shopping Trolley Hotline)
"Ping One Down" (from In Our Gun)
"Nothing Is Wrong" (from Split the Difference)
Buy Gomez albums here.
Photo courtesy of Wray McCann (via the Gomez myspace page).
