Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - Who Built The Moon? (Album Review)
Monday, 04 December 2017
Written by Graeme Marsh
Alarm bells ring, sonic waves reverberate and scissors snap as Noel Gallagher turns his back on a tried and tested formula to delve into a fascinating world of experimentation on ‘Who Built The Moon?’, his third studio effort with the High Flying Birds.
Working tightly with producer David Holmes, each song was laid down in the studio rather than crystallising out of pre-determined ideas. And stepping outside of his comfort zone has duly delivered an album like nothing else Gallagher has produced.
Lead single Holy Mountain features Paul Weller on organ and is currently enjoying substantial radio airplay. It’s certainly easy to see why.
Its ear-worm of a chorus, coupled with an addictive whistle melody, emerge from a thundering glam rock stomp that’s simply mesmerising. It’s an indication of what lies within ‘Who Built The Moon?’, but only in terms of its ability to deliver the unexpected.
The excellent opener, Fort Knox, digs deeper into these new surroundings. It lacks a conventional structure and frequently sounds more like a remix. In fact, it has more in common with Gallagher’s Chemical Brothers collaboration Let Forever Be than anything in his own catalogue.
Similarly, She Taught Me How To Fly finds Blondie’s Heart of Glass mingling with New Order-isms to create a backdrop for more captivating vocal melodies. It’s the most danceable track you’ve ever heard from a Gallagher.
Jangly guitars and an encapsulating drum beat lead to a twinkling chorus on the impressive It’s A Beautiful World, which finds a spoken announcement in French delivered by the now infamous scissor player: Charlotte Marionneau of Le Volume Courbe. Another belting hook drives Black and White Sunshine, alongside a simple, repetitive guitar riff, while a dramatic espionage scenario is conjured on the title track as Gallagher tells of the “spider and the fly”.
The Johnny Marr-featuring If Love is the Law manages to sound festive, while Keep on Reaching repeatedly asks “can you keep a secret?” over another irresistible, energetic brass-backed beat. It’s not all thrills ‘n' spills, though, with a couple of largely pointless instrumentals coming up short.
Still, ‘Who Built The Moon?' comfortably surpasses anything either Gallagher has released post-Oasis and, crucially, is better than plenty from that era too. Liam may have produced a solid debut solo LP this year, but even then it was painfully predictable. ‘Who Built The Moon?’ is anything but. It nonchalantly reaffirms where the upper hand lies in the Gallagher family by twisting and turning its way into new, unexplored lands.
Noel Gallagher Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Sun April 22 2018 - BRIGHTON Centre
Tue April 24 2018 - GLASGOW SSE Hydro
Wed April 25 2018 - ABERDEEN AECC BHGE Arena
Fri April 27 2018 - LONDON SSE Arena, Wembley
Mon April 30 2018 - NOTTINGHAM Motorpoint Arena Nottingham
Tue May 01 2018 - BIRMINGHAM Arena Birmingham
Thu May 03 2018 - NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE Metro Radio Arena
Fri May 04 2018 - MANCHESTER Arena
Sun May 06 2018 - CARDIFF Motorpoint Arena Cardiff
Mon May 07 2018 - LEEDS first direct Arena
Wed May 09 2018 - BELFAST SSE Arena Belfast
Thu May 10 2018 - DUBLIN 3Arena
Sun May 27 2018 - WARRINGTON Victoria Park
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