Libertarian Librarian

Which is the name of David Gilmour's new album. For the unwashed, David Gilmour is the former guitarist for Pink Floyd, one of my favorite bands of all time. I love Gilmour's guitar work on all of the Floyd albums he worked on-- yes, even the last two (Momentary Lapse of Reason and The Division Bell) without Roger Waters. I enjoyed his second solo album About Face quite a bit, as well (I never heard the first, self-titled, one).

Not surprisingly, then, I was looking forward to the release of On an Island with some hopeful expectations-- especially given that Gilmour recently dashed burgeoning hopes of a Floyd reunion effort by basically saying, "Eh. I'm happy doing what I'm doing-- why would I want to do that?" Last night one of the local radio stations played the whole thing through.

Bummer dude.

Not that it's bad, or anything. Actually, it is quite the opposite of bad-- it's... pleasant. Nice enough to listen to, with some prototypical Gilmour riffs and some sax and some good bass lines. All very nice. Very pleasant.

And totally uninvolving. I found myself listening to pick out bits that reminded me of other Floyd or Gilmour songs that I liked-- because the songs themselves did almost nothing for me. The lyrics grab you not all, the "hooks" aren't really very catchy-- or feel too well-worn to stir much interest-- and it all feels very clinical. Paint by numbers.

It's got no soul. And soul--feeling-- has always been part and parcel of the Floyd experience.

There is one exception to this criticism-- the stripped down, somewhat plaintive song "Smile" is everything all the other songs on the album aren't. Stirring, powerful, well-written, and involving for the listener.

Sadly, it is the exception, rather than the rule. On the plus side, it looks like I'll be saving a few bucks-- I'll have to put it in the Monty Python's Personal Best fund.

Labels: Entertainment