Gomez - How We Operate Review
Posted by Stephen Mogan on 05.16.2006
The soundtrack to your summer?
Gomez is a funny old band. Just when you think you know what they're going to do, they throw you a curveball. Like in 2002, ditching their traditional mix of West Coast harmonies, stoner-jams and acoustic guitars, they unleashed "In Our Gun", an album dominated by the electronic sounds that had played a much smaller role on their previous releases. Then, just when you get your head around that sound, they drop the electronics completely, opting for a mix of hard-rock and country-tinged pop on 2004's "Split The Difference". A lot has happened to the band in the two years since; they were dropped by their UK label and now appear to have left their British roots behind altogether and relocated to the states. "So, what can we expect this time?" I hear you ask. "Salsa? Hip-Hop? Some kind of crazy music made by BANGING TWO PIGEONS TOGETHER?!" Well, no…psycho. Simmer down there. In truth, it's a surprising album in that it's really not. There's no curveball here, it's as straightforward a Gomez album as you could ever imagine. The heavier elements of "Split The Difference" are gone, and what's left is simple, breezy pop songs. Is this a good thing? Well, we'll get to that.
The album opens gently, with "Notice", which sounds like it's about the band being free from the creative shackles of an unsupportive label. But then, I'm unbelievably weak at lyric interpretation, so it could be about a pizza for all I know. Regardless, it's a nice way to open, building gradually into a giant chorus by the end. So far, so good. Next up we have "See The World", with Ben Ottwell on vocals. If you've never heard a Gomez album before, this where you'll be thinking "Jesus H. Christ that guy's got a great voice", and you'd be right. In an age where most singers sound the same to me, this guy really does stand out, and I strongly urge you to attend one of their live dates to check out his gravely goodness for yourself. The song itself is sweet, summery pop. Nothing special, nothing horrible either. Next up is the title track, which builds from a gentle beginning to an anthemic chorus and back again before finishing with a flourish of strings. It's a good song, but I'm getting the impression that I'm listening to the same track over and over. The variety I personally expect from a Gomez album isn't here, even if the tunes are passable; a worrying pattern.
Thankfully, something different arrives next in the form of "Hamoa Beach", mixing some excellent wah-wah guitars and a shuffling groove to create a definite potential single. Good stuff. "Girlshapedlovedrug" follows, a classic "women are crazy, we can't figure them out!!!11lol" song, delivered in an urgent, groovy style that, sadly, is missing for most of the rest of the album. "Tear Your Love Apart" is probably the heaviest thing here, but delivers nothing out of the ordinary. "Woman! Man!" is decent enough psych-pop, but it's let down by an unimaginative chorus. "Cry On Demand" is a rare moment of greatness in a fairly sparse second half of the record. Despite featuring whistling that just came straight from 1986, the song is great fun, and my favourite on the disc. Unfortunately, "Don't Make Me Laugh" sees to it that we finish on a bum note. Dull and uninspiring aren't two words that I'd normally associate with Gomez but after the previous track, this just sounds a bit lifeless.
So where does all that leave us? Well, for the most part, the album is a collection of decent, pop rock songs with a bit of a country slant. There's nothing overly spectacularly, but nothing particularly awful either. As always with Gomez, the craftsmanship is top-notch, but the songs themselves seem somewhat devoid of a spark that would demand your attention. It's an album that you can put on in the background and happily enjoy without having to concentrate on it too much. For many bands, this would be an achievement. However, Gomez has always delivered much more on their albums. Their first three records were inventive, exciting masterpieces. Their fourth was flawed, but fantastic in places. With this album, they've levelled out. The lows aren't as low as on "Split The Difference", but the highs are nowhere near as high as on that record, let alone the previous three. This is mainly because the band doesn't really try anything risky here. The failings of the last album were down to ideas that didn't quite come off. Here, nothing is tried and so nothing fails. But on the flipside, nothing succeeds very emphatically, either. This is a shame. You can't really blame Gomez for making an album that they clearly hope will finally bring them commercial success (they deserve it more than anyone). Unfortunately, this is at the expense of any invention whatsoever, and so we are left with an album's worth passable (if occasionally bland) A.M. radio rock. Which is something I never thought I'd see from this band.
The 411: As I’ve said, you can’t begrudge Gomez a little commercial success, and this record blatantly aims for it when compared to the band’s other albums. Unfortunately, there just isn’t enough here for a long-time fan like me to get excited about. If you’ve never heard of these guys before, by all means try it out – you’ll probably enjoy it. However, the band’s earlier work offers a much more involving and satisfying listen. “How We Operate” is a disc containing 12 songs that you wouldn’t switch over if they came on the radio, but none that you’ll actually love.
