Paul Weller Overreaches

A A A Comments (5) By Michael Spies Wednesday, Jul 23 2008

Now roughly 30 years into his career, Paul Weller, the ex-Jam/ex–Style Council frontman, has always flaunted exemplary style and admirable ambition. But 22 Dreams, Weller's ninth solo effort, is complete bollocks. In an exercise you could either call "ambitious" or "masturbatory," Weller, with the help of producer Simon Dine and longtime collaborator Steve Craddock, attempts to pay homage to every sound that ever caught his ear, literally. The result often sounds like parody. Thanks to Little Barrie's blistering garage-blues guitar sound, the fast-paced title track comes close to feeling like actual rock 'n' roll, but far more prevalent is stuff like "One Bright Star"—a creepy faux-tango jam about a man in lust that falls well short of the mark. Many of these tunes, like "Black River" (featuring Blur guitarist Graham Coxon) and "Cold Moments," are slow, suffocating, and oddly synthetic, centering on hazy harmonies and bland melodies.

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Paul Weller
22 Dreams
Yep Roc

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It's not just Weller's edge that's missing, though. Even his typical skill with classic soul has abandoned him: "Empty Ring" comes off as a bad Marvin Gaye impression. Worse is the four-song suite/grand finale, which begins with a spoken-word track entitled "God" (wherein Weller repeatedly intones, "Look at you and not at me") and concludes with "Night Lights," an ambient, atmospheric tune that sounds like a bad Discovery Channel score. Apparently, prolificacy can be as much a burden as a gift.

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08/05/2010 5:31:00 AM

Poor you who woudnt recognize a masterpiece even if it bite you in the as.
cb 07/25/2008 1:10:00 PM

Why oh why do people with no knowledge of the artist get to do a review - 'wherein Weller repeatedly intones, "Look at you and not at me"' - only a fool would think that this was Weller. Read the liner notes and you'll find it is Aziz Ibrahim. The Northern accent gives it away just a little bit, but then I wouldnt expect a fool to be able to accurately sum up a record by an artist he obviously doesn't like. I can stand bad reviews by fans that criticize a release (by any artist - not just Weller) but when an obvious nonner such as yourself does it, it smacks of a crayon breaking, bed wetting pathetic individual who resents the fact that he never made it in music. A poor review lacking any knowledge of the artist or the recording being reviewed - 1/10, must do better
cb 07/25/2008 1:02:00 PM

Why oh why do people with no knowledge of the artist get to do a review - 'wherein Weller repeatedly intones, "Look at you and not at me"' - only a fool would think that this was Weller. Read the liner notes and you'll find it is Aziz Ibrahim. The Northern accent gives it away just a little bit, but then I wouldnt expect a fool to be able to accurately sum up a record by an artist he obviously doesn't like. I can stand bad reviews by fans that criticize a release (by any artist - not just Weller) but when an obvious nonner such as yourself does it, it smacks of a crayon breaking, bed wetting pathetic individual who resents the fact that he never made it in music. A poor review lacking any knowledge of the artist or the recording being reviewed - 1/10, must do better
cb 07/25/2008 1:01:00 PM

Why oh why do people with no knowledge of the artist get to do a review - 'wherein Weller repeatedly intones, "Look at you and not at me"' - only a fool would think that this was Weller. Read the liner notes and you'll find it is Aziz Ibrahim. The Northern accent gives it away just a little bit, but then I wouldnt expect a fool to be able to accurately sum up a record by an artist he obviously doesn't like. I can stand bad reviews by fans that criticize a release (by any artist - not just Weller) but when an obvious nonner such as yourself does it, it smacks of a crayon breaking, bed wetting pathetic individual who resents the fact that he never made it in music. A poor review lacking any knowledge of the artist or the recording being reviewed - 1/10, must do better
Nick Ward 07/23/2008 7:46:00 PM

There are 21 songs on this album, and you reviewed the ones you don't like. How bout All I Wanna Do, Have You Made Up Your Mind, Echoes Round The Sun, Push It Along, Invisible. Personally, I love 'Cold Moments'. I agree 'God' is a step too far, but hey, it's a double album which has more adventure than anything else I've heard this year.....or last year come to think of it. 30 years into a music career, is there anyone else still writing to such a standard? NO. In an age where it seems it pays to be negative the reviewer gets top marks.