Altsounds - Gossip - Music For Men [Album]

Those of us with strong enough memories will remember all the way back to summer 2007 (back in the day) when Gossip's "Standing In The Way Of Control" was dominating the airwaves like a force 5 hurricane. The accompanying album failed to make anywhere near as great an impact (being as it was full of comparatively a-melodic and confrontational punk and soul infused shout-alongs) but Gossip and their tabloid baiting front-woman 'Beth Ditto' made a sizeable dent in the summer festival circuit which stood them in good stead for a long and healthy relationship with the British record buying public.

In the intervening years Ditto has become something of an alternative fashion icon and as such the public might have just been about to forget what first brought her to their attention. Was it that domineering, powerful gay rights protest song or her much covered and no doubt largely fabricated friendship with Kate Moss? 'Music For Men' should lay to rest any claims that Ditto doesn't deserve to be a pop star as here she exudes a personality which transcends what can at times be a pretty bland record.

The album starts very well indeed with the sparse, bluesy and lyrically aggressive 'Dimestore Diamond'. As a precursor to the album proper it's incredibly effective but it could also be seen as a bit of a red herring, there are no other tracks on the record that manage to capture the same kind of sexual intensity, the remainder of the record takes place almost exclusively on the dance-floor. This new direction is in full effect on lead single 'Heavy Cross' which pares some of Gossip's most memorable hooks to a 'Stayin Alive' staccato guitar and straight, effective 4/4 disco beat, a beat which is used in one form or another on at least half of the tracks that follow. The instrumentation is sparse and hardly imaginative (the same could be said of both the lyrics and the arrangement) but Ditto's gymnastic vocals and sheer force of will transform an otherwise unremarkable pop song into a glamorous gem.

'8th Wonder' dials the disco down a little with a more urgent beat and angular guitars which point more towards their past as a punk band (only this time with more melody); it's an urgent, energetic song but the chorus is a huge let-down and the basic instrumentation leaves the track sounding a little empty. 'Love Long Distance' fares better with a return to the disco vibe of 'Heavy Cross'. A bright, naked piano pounds out a simple chord sequence underneath a commanding melody which brings to mind Madonna's pure pop peak of the 80's. It's a pretty shallow song but it's infectious, clear and more instrumentally involved than any of the opening three tracks.

'Pop Goes The World' takes everything up to 11 with a bouncing, cowbell inflected rhythm and vintage synth bass-line. It's another born dance-floor killer and certainly ticks all the right boxes, it just seems oddly cold and calculated (like much of the album), almost like Ditto's now chosen to use her music as a mere extension of her fashionista persona. I mean 80's synth pop is like.... soooooooo "in right now". 'Vertical Position' pulls some very similar shapes, add to this the fact that I kept expecting it to break into the theme from Knight Rider and you'll begin to understand my growing pessimism. It at least has a catchy chorus, but unlike 'Heavy Cross' (and to a lesser extent 'Love Long Distance') it never really adds up to more than the sum of it's parts. The same could be said of both 'Men In Love' and 'Love And Let Love', the chorus's are great and they will no doubt sound right at home or on the dance-floor but there just isn't enough substance for home listening, it's like Cyndi Lauper with less heart.

'For Keeps' creeps up next with a sharp, wandering bass-line and the albums stand-out chorus. It's a smart, well structured song and contains Ditto's best vocal performance yet, it's an incredible pop song and despite the fact it shares most of the same basic components of many of the albums weaker tracks, it's never any less than engaging. '2012' impresses too with a dark, hooky chord progression, high register vocal performance and grinding guitar that almost sounds like Blondie covering The Cure. It's a shame that Gossip don't show more of this kind of dynamism on the record as they are abundantly capable of it. 'Four Letter Word' drives this theory home with a timeless, daring chorus melody and the records least overtly out of place synth, in this case the sparseness works because the song has a tangible atmosphere, they could learn from themselves in this instance.

Closer 'Spare Me From The Mold' returns the band to their punk roots with a spunky throw-away guitar driven tune which only serves to underline both how far Gossip have come and how far they have left to go.

Overall I'm divided. 4 great tracks do not make a great album but the whole thing hangs together well and is always listen-able. If Gossip somehow manage to combine their new-found melodic ear with the passion of old on their next album, they might be ready to step into the limelight.

Tracklisting:-
1. Dimestore Diamond
2. Heavy Cross
3. 8th Wonder
4. Love Long Distance
5. Pop Goes The World
6. Vertical Rhythm
7. Men In Love
8. For Keeps
9. 2012
10. Love & Let Love
11. 4 Letter Word
12. Spare Me From The Mold

Recommended:-
Dimestore Diamond, Heavy Cross, For Keeps, Four Letter Word