The critical response to St. Elsewhere, the debut album from Gnarls Barkley, has been overwhelmingly positive. Many have gone so far as to call it groundbreaking and revolutionary. Let's not go nuts. They're a good group, but put the labels aside for now.
Frontman Cee-Lo provides smooth and complex vocals over every track while DJ Dangermouse (made famous from his Gray Album creation) composes an array of back tracks that make it difficult to pigeonhole the group to one specific genre. They're not really rap, not really indie-rock, not really a hybrid group either. The inability to classify Gnarls Barkley is a large part of their appeal.
The album itself leaves the listener guessing, with tracks ranging from the delightfully soulful "Crazy," in which Cee-Lo showcases his vocal range, to an awesome cover of "Gone Daddy Gone," which was completely unexpected, fresh, and surprisingly well done. The title track, "St. Elsewhere," finds Cee-Lo expressing a chilling set of vocals over a melody that inspires emotions of sadness and fear. . . and no, that's not a bad thing. On the other hand, "Smiley Faces" should be dubbed as the feel good song of the summer with its upbeat tempo and cheerful vocals. Basically, the first eight tracks are overwhelmingly good, featuring diverse arrangements, soothing vocals, and end products that cause chills to run amok with your skin. Tracks 9-12, however, fall off a bit, causing the album to stall. Things pick up again with the intense, electronic influenced "Storm Coming," but by that time most of the listener's enthusiasm has likely dwindled.
The LP isn't mind-blowing, nor does it deserve to be called revolutionary. It is, however, innovative and the duo should be commended for attempting to move beyond the sounds that once defined them (especially Cee-Lo, whose vocal talents are showcased throughout). Neither member deserves more credit than the other. Both Cee-Lo and Dangermouse bring an equal amount of creativity and talent to the table, making for a great listening experience. To call Gnarls Barkley the saviors of pop-music, or the next great thing, is of course, premature and critics should do more to restrain themselves from making such inaccurate classifications.
The mainstream critics should have said the following: the band is not just good, but very good. Even though their debut has some missteps their dead-on hits more than make up for it. Keep your eyes on these resurgent artists, they might be huge one day.
Good album. Pick it up. |