“Music isn’t just about sales. Expression is far more important than that.”
“You give me hope that when I am gone, my songs will mean this much to someone”
G*A*S*S MK II” actually, can be summed up in those sentences.
It represents the second coming, if you like, of the “fan club” cd’s Ginger made a few years back. The idea was every month we’d get something new, and at the end of the year Ginger stuck some of the best of them out on a cd for everyone else. I say “we” because I was in the Fanclub. I still am. I’ve bought, Pledged for, poured over, been frustrated by and in later years, reviewed everything Ginger Wildheart has ever done (even the stuff like Mutation that is too heavy and too weird for me) so you’d best believe that the second of those statements (“from the gorgeous, reflective ballad, “King Rat”) resonates. The Wildhearts are my favourite band and they are still, along with The Almighty and Thin Lizzy, the only bands I ever really listen to when I am not listening to stuff to review on this site.
But I’ve also lived through enough of Ginger’s solo work to know that you aren’t going to “get it” all the time either. That’s not to say it’s not conceived with the greatest of intentions (everything Ginger does is from the heart, he “means it” like no other artist) it’s just that if you consider the first of those statements: “Music isn’t just about sales. Expression is far more important than that” then by definition, everything he does just isn’t going to be for everyone.
“G*A*S*S MK II” then is the follow-up to the “Year Of The Fanclub” CD. That one, reckons the man himself: “ represented some of the popular highlights but omitted some of my very favourite compositions. ‘G*A*S*S* Mk 2’ represents what I consider to be the best of ‘G*A*S*S*, those little gems where planets aligned, musicians excelled and words seem to hit targets.”
And, brother, he’s right. It’s incredible.
“Sons Of Bill” – and I won’t be the only Wildhearts fan who thinks ”Suckerpunch” when hearing it – is put simply the best song he’s put his name to in god knows how long. The gift for melody, to meld something that shouldn’t work into something that absolutely does, the way he writes lyrics: “we all did things when things were fun, but they ain’t been fun since 91” he offers here, touches genius – and no, that’s not too strong a word.
“That’s A Nasty Habit You’ve Got There” is like the Wildhearts b-sides we knew backwards and forwards 20 years back, “Caer Urfa” (the historic name for his hometown of South Shields) is an example of the English folk that has always been central to Ginger’s songwriting, and the idea that he could, if he’d wanted, been one of the best singer/songwriter’s we’ve ever had, is all over “Alvarado On The 2” which is from the drawer marked “personal” (and it is a feature of Ginger, both in his songwriting and his dealings on social media, that we – as fans – feel like we know him).
“Right In The Feels” chugs away in typical style. “Petite Morte” which is perhaps – along with “Friends Of Bill” – the best thing here, features a quite incredible vocal from Phantom Limb’s Yolanda Quartey – while “Wave’s Of Sadness” is a pure Wildhearts style pop freak out, and sounds just fine.
“Adrenalina” sounds like it belongs in the “Sick Of Drugs” era, and may have been dusted off from there? “Bloody Knees” has a kind of electro pulse that only Jon Poole can provide, while it’s fair to say, I think that no other artist on the planet would attempt “Don’t Lose Your Tail, Girl”. A nine minute epic that manages to find time to hit just about every musical style you can think of (and some you couldn’t), be about the empowerment of young women and still sound majestic.
“Don’t Stop Loving The Music” is basically a hymn to himself you imagine: “things have come a long way since the days of Tommy Vance” he sings here, as if he’s trying to remind himself, while the last one on the record, “I’ll Have Another” proves two things: 1) Tom Spencer is a brilliant vocalist and 2) even Ginger and his dislike for the mainstream knows that Status Quo rule. It’s that simple.
“G.A.S.S MKII” is quite brilliant. In places it is right up there with the best stuff he’s ever done, and its proof that when he’s got all his friends around, Ginger Wildheart is untouchable. And these songs? They’ll mean more to people than he ever understands.
Rating 9.5/10
