The Wake

Gnarls Barkley - The Odd Couple

Having a song as popular as Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy” can be both a boon and a bane for a band. While lots of people might still be talking about “Crazy,” Danger Mouse and Cee-lo have moved on. Their new album The Odd Couple, with tracks like “Going On,” reflect their evolution. Like the song, which is definitely one of my favorites, almost every aspect of the album seems to point towards DJ Danger Mouse and Cee-lo moving on to the next thing. Both are contemplative and catchy and are sure to get your booty shaking.

For those of you who are not familiar with Gnarls Barkley’s first album St. Elsewhere, for the love of the music gods go and check it out! I promise you will be dancing by the end of it. On their new album, DJ Danger Mouse definitely makes sure every song has a beat you can shake more than your fist at. However, some are a little more controlled than the loose and fast style of the previous album. Their new album definitely tries to make progress heading into uncharted territories. Compared to their last album, certain stretches of The Odd Couple may be a bit bewildering for fans. Some songs, like parts of “Neighbors” and “No Time Soon” crash as over-the-top sounds that are a little out of reach for the duo. The result is something that isn’t quite as cool as other attempts on the album. It is also an indicator that Gnarls Barkley are really trying to push their limits and forge something new.

One of my favorite songs on the album, “Open Book,” displays just that. The song starts out with a syncopated drum groove and some jungle sound effects. From there the song progresses through a Cee-lo verse (whose lyrics are always choice) and comes to a head at the chorus, making use of the elasticity of Cee-lo’s voice. The song brinks on the boundary of something like Animal Collective at certain points, as the layers of his voice pile on top each other, all sounding like they’re coming from a different person. His vocals are amazing and even manage to stir up the ghosts of old Blues legends like Leadbelly or Robert Johnson at times. In short, Gnarls Barkley are definitely exploring.

If you are looking for a return to the form of their last album, and a catchy tune, you can catch “Run” on the radio right now. This is by far their least adventurous tune of the album and falls just after the beginning of the album, around track four which is by far the danciest section of the album. Songs three through six are guaranteed to move your groove and are just the thing for any dance party.

All around the album is full of short songs (all of them hovering around three minutes) that are solidly constructed on smooth foundations of solid beats. From there, Danger Mouse works his magic by layering sounds to construct verses and choruses while cooking up some tasty hooks as well. Cee-lo’s voice bounces all over the place, and he manages to make it sound like there are all sorts of different vocalists on each track. Some songs may lead a bit to the corny side, but there are bound to be some missteps along the way when trying to make something really unique. The samples are great and many of the songs are a brilliant blend of catchy rhythms and meaningful lyrics.

At this point it seems that the two artists have found something in each other that bodes well and are both using the fullest force of their creativity. It looks like Gnarls Barkley will be around for a while, which in my mind means that one of the freshest new sounds in music is something I can look forward to, not backwards at.