Personality crisis?
You can learn a lot about a record just from a brief glance at its cover artwork, take the new album from the Sleepy Jackson for example. On the cover of the aforementioned disc stands be-winged S.J. front-man Luke Steele carrying a near carbon copy of himself (sans wings) surrounded by a renaissance like cross-section of characters. The music contained within is similarly lavish, overblown and rather ego driven. It's fair to say that this ostentatious artwork will look particularly good when reproduced on a gatefold sleeve.
'Personality' arrives some three years on from 2003's critically acclaimed 'Lovers', having seemingly been delayed by the obligatory legal squabble that followed the dissolution of yet another Sleepy Jackson line up. Like The Cure (with Robert Smith), SJ are essentially driven by one man (Luke Steele) whose musical vision is brought to life here by a revolving cast of musicians - only drummer Malcolm Clark survives from the 'Lovers' era line up. It's fair to say that the music world needs more characters and songwriters like Steele, mavericks make life and music much more interesting. Here he eschews the lo-fi ethic that currently dominates the alternative musical landscape in favour of bright, bold, ambitiously orchestrated songs that display a love for early seventies rock and pop, country and jazz. Single 'God Lead Your Soul' is one of the album highlights, an uplifting slice of soulful country rock that features one of Steele's best vocal performances to date. The upbeat pop of 'I Understand What You Want But I Just Don't Agree' is lush and rewarding like a lost Prince classic, its cooing female backing vox add an extra dimension. While the bright lights are dimmed a notch for 'Miles Away', one of a handful of sparse, spare moments, it's a lovelorn and lovely country ballad performed for the most part on acoustic guitar. The cinematic 'Higher Than Hell' is slightly disappointing by comparison recalling the rare, less inspired work of the band's peers – Mercury Rev and The Flaming Lips. Steele's love of classic song-writing (Lennon, McCartney, Wilson, Dylan et al.) is again evident on this record from the E.L.O-isms of opener 'You Needed More' to the dreamy falsetto psych-pop of 'Play A Little Bit For Love'. The catchy and relatively straight 'Don't Say' is wonderful but even this gem is overshadowed by 'You Won't Bring People Down In My Town'. It's the album's most expansive and opulent cut – the gold trim finish to a glittering Beach Boys-esque patchwork.
'Personality...' may suffer at times from being a little too glitzy and bombastic but it provides conclusive evidence of an interesting talent that's beginning to blossom. Let's hope it doesn't take quite so long for album number three to arrive. Their time is now and one can only hope that they build upon these sturdy foundations.