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Oct 06, 2017 Liam Gallagher By Hays Davis

Park the specter of Oasis at the door before settling into Liam Gallagher‘s first solo album. As You Were finds the singer sounding as self-assured and focused as someone with a string of records under their own banner.

The production by Greg Kurstin and Dan Grech-Marguerat places Gallagher in a variety of settings. Charging guitars and drums drive “I Get By,” and he seems in his element here. While Gallagher is undoubtedly the focus, there’s a Liam-and-his-band air that sounds natural. Not that he’s hiding in the swirl of other players (Gallagher will never sound like a wallflower, for sure), but just enjoying the moment.

“Come Back to Me” seems to move him similarly. “I’ve seen despair/But I still care/My heart is together/My head is exploding,” Gallagher sings over a wave of acoustic and electric guitars. The album’s opener, “Wall of Glass” (which he co-wrote), lets Gallagher open up about a person of interest. “I don’t mean to be unkind,” he sings, “but I see what’s in your mind/And the stone you throw will turn back in its path/One day you’ll shatter like a wall of glass.”

Over acoustic strums and handclaps, “Bold” is another track that will likely have longtime fans keying on its lyrics for word on the current state of Liam. “Gonna take you off my list of to-do’s/I’m gonna see my soul shake off these blues/Because it’s alright now.”

“Better if you don’t look down/At the pages of your paper crown,” he sings on the poignant “Paper Crown.” If the song points toward the notion of faded glory, Gallagher sounds utterly confident in delivering such lyrics as a character study and not autobiography. He offers As You Were as proof. (www.liamgallagher.com)

Author rating: 7/10