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Post by modxxii on Jun 2, 2023 4:02:05 GMT -5
First impression: great album.
No a skip track for me. I love Pretty Boy.
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Post by defmaybe00 on Jun 2, 2023 4:07:44 GMT -5
Album is #2 and #3 (deluxe and standard) on Itunes and Amazon digital with Foo Fighters at #1, #10 on apple music (Foos are #12), #1, #8 and #11 in Amazon physicals releases with various versions, just vinyls it's #1 and #3
It's gonna be close but he may pull it off?
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Post by andymorris on Jun 2, 2023 4:07:56 GMT -5
My review I'm Not Giving Up tonight: Noel going 70s Rolling Stones (Exile on main street) with a hint of late 90s pop rock music. Backed by a excellent strings section reminiscent of his first album giving it a slight western movie feel. Then the Horns section enters and it lifts the song up a bit. Decent melody but to Noel standards ? Generic. Could have been sung by Alanis Morrissette or Leann Rimes let's be honest 7/10 Pretty boy. That song doesn't exist. Swap with the huge Flying on the Ground. 0/10 Dead to The World. Is it Slow in disguise ? It's the slowest song he's ever released i think. Bond-like strings with an hint of Scott Walker or Divine Comedy. One of his best solo tune. 9/10 (not giving 10 because compression, what the hell on this record, one the worst sounding he's done). Open the Door. Strangely put behind Dead to the World. Something doesn't feel right here. Again, the melody is kind of generic and i hear the "Alanis Morrissette kind of artist" vibe. Or Travis. Could have been a huge radio hit in the early 00s. Sounds like it was written by Andy Bell trying to write like Noel Gallagher. The bells and strings are a bit naf to be honest. Its ok ok, safe, not offensive. The Oooh Laaa were a nice surprise though. Could have fit on DBTT. Too much compressed to enjoy properly again... But still, it's stuck in the head, which I suppose was the main goal here. Cut abruptly in the end, like "ok let's get it over with". 5/10. Trying to Find. The demo mixed a bit differently, few bits added. Actually should have followed Dead to The World. Yeah ok, Noel, you suffered during the pandemic, we get it. Filler but on a ten track album there was no need. The added orchestra makes it a bit interesting. 5/10 Easy Now. This one has "I need a new DLBIA" written all over it. Its not bad, its not great, but it represents the Noel Gallagher post pandemic: whiny. You want to punch him in the face on that bridge and tell him to get out of his misery really. What a bore. Done a millions times before and better. I don't know, try coffee or something. guitar solo sounds like a big imitation of the early 90s Guns n Roses. Swap with We're on Our Way Now. 4/10 Council Skies. This one, i mean. what ? It's ok to pick here and there. But ripp off your own songs from 9 years ago, and one on that very same record, WTF. Again, it's not baaaad but it feels like a compilation song. There was no need for that. I'm sure there was something better in the vault. Too bad because the production was interesting on this one, leaning towards easy listening bands from the late 90s ( see Ivy : Apartment Life). Its enjoyable but really let down by that "i heard that before' feeling. I won't skip though in the context of the record. 6/10 There she Blows. The real surprise of the record. Unusual tempo and rhythm for NG. You feel Noel wanted to explore new territories with this record but backed down. This song is that: "I cant go too far, they wont like". The double tracked vocals are lush. Sounds like it could have been on WBTM 2. Maybe he could have pushed it a bit in the end to make a grandiose ending. 8/10 Love is a Rich Man. Another cool track and surprise that kinda "saves" the record. But this one suffer really on my speakers I dont know why. Very compressed. The bridge is the low point of the song, he could have done without. Too long because of that and gets repetitive. 7/10. Think of a Number. Too much of a Cure ripp off for me (and god knows i defend Noel when he's accused of ripping off artists). Pass for now, It's not my jam, sounds like a CY reject where X Ray Eyes, You Know We Can't Go Back and While the Song Remains the Same had a threesome. then got pregnant and the result is an abnormal baby with three legs and 48 ears, logically. 80s music doesn't work for you Noel, it's time to forget about trying to write like your early adulthood heroes. Write like you and you'll be fine. 3/10 We're Gonna There. Perfect example of how a production can ruin or elevate a song. I didn't care for the demo at all, but this orchestrated version is gorgeous. The closer of the album. Sure, the melody is kind generic for Noel standards again. But i really enjoyed it even more so because I didn't expect anything from it. 8/10. Conclusion: It doesn't feel like an album, it's mixed very weird with some tracks louder than others you literally have to use the up/down sound buttons. That should not happen on a record. Feel like a compilation #2. Noel clearly didn't know where to go on this record, in fear of alienating his fanbase again. So he did: bit of that, a bit of this, and in the end, the result is like a soup of past sounds from Oasis, his solo career and his 80s heroes. It's hard to get sucked in really. I will play this record, but not with the passion of some Oasis ones or even some solo Gallagher records. There will always be better stuff to put on. Overall, I'd say 6/10 because the sound kinda sucks with that compression, and some tracks are really low efforts. It's ok, we understand, you're in a bad state right now. May that time pass and you come back strong and more like the Noel Gallagher we used to know. The one who just writes great tunes. Here is how i will listen to that record. I'm Not Giving Up tonight Flying on the Ground Dead to The World Trying to find... We're on Our Way Now Open the Door Council Skies There she Blows Love is a Rich Man We're Gonna Get There in the End |
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Post by captaincrankshaft on Jun 2, 2023 4:11:38 GMT -5
After two listens I think this is a very strong album. I'm in the minority I think with thinking the song Council Skies is a great little tune. As I was listening I was like yep that's good and as it got to the final three I thought 'dont fuck it up now Noely'. And he didnt. There's not a bad song on it. Running order is spot on too.
Love all the bonus stuff too. I'm not usually that bothered with remixes but the David Holmes one makes the song sound like Noel doing Primal Scream from Screamadelica or Vanishing Point or something. Love it. Pet Shop Boys remix sounds like them and as I was listening I was hoping to hear Neil Tennant chiming in with some vocals. That didn't happen but still I liked it for what it is. Robert Smith version I love and Mind Games is how I thought it would sound from the clips we had and the instrumentals are good. Then he tops it all off with that version of Live Forever!!! Overall, a great package.
I'll sound like a dick now but I am listening through a £400 pair of Bose headphones and the clarity of the production is fine for me.
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Post by seanrulesrh on Jun 2, 2023 4:48:39 GMT -5
Is TOAN part 2 for TTFAETB&G?? They both end with that train sound
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Post by carlober on Jun 2, 2023 4:56:18 GMT -5
not sure if it’s been mentioned here but noel confirmed INGUT is actually “daises” from the WBTM? sessions around the 6.30 min mark of apple msuic “on the record” david holmes plays what INGUT originally sounds like. very keen to see noel made it into what it is now! Great find!  |
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Post by Firefly on Jun 2, 2023 5:02:16 GMT -5
Anyone know what to call that sound that keeps popping up in between certain songs...some sort of spooky whistle with wind. Not good enough with words to know what to call it. I like the sound except for the transition between Trying To Find A World and Easy Now, that's not good. too stop/start.
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Post by The Escapist on Jun 2, 2023 5:19:21 GMT -5
It’s interesting what your saying about comparing this to his existing albums, because - although it’s early days - I couldn’t agree less about it being his weakest work, for a number of reasons. Firstly, in my opinion every Noel album has had one or two tracks that were instantly skippable. On NGHFB, we had Dream On, which I can’t bare to endure. On CY, we had X-ray Eyes and The Mexican. On WBTM, most of the second half ruined what could have been an incredible album. Thus far, I’d strongly argue that none of Council Skies has tracks that are so overwhelmingly unlistenable, either in my opinion or the everyday punters likely opinion (time will tell though) Secondly, the first three albums suffered from either too much “middle of the road” tracks, or had high highs and low lows. Circling back to NGHFB, there are some great tracks there, Everybody’s On The Run, Broken Arrow, Wrong Beach, among others, but the rest was either middle of the road, bland, or crap in the case of Dream On. CY had less middle of the road ones in my opinion, as I mostly enjoy that album, but as I mentioned before, it had 2 stinkers which bring it down. WBTM has a cracking first few tracks (although Fort Knox is highly overrated here), but the second half falls off a cliff when you reach “Be Careful What You Wish For”, and sucks until TMWBTM. Noel’s albums seem to have gotten increasingly higher highs but lowers lows, particularly with WBTM. It’s frustrating for me to listen to that album when it has 5 of his best, 1 meh, then 5 of his worst tracks on it. But for me thus far, Council Skies has no immediate skippable tracks. Sure it has its weaker moments, and the single choices are indeed baffling, but there’s no doubt at all from me that it’s his most solid album so far. The worst song is a 6 or 7 out of 10, and the best (DTTW) is a 10. The lows are not that low, and whereas there might be less “highs”, as an average it’s still better than his other albums in this way. Still too early to decide where it places within them all, but it’s by far his most solid album for me due to its lack of truly bad tracks, and it’s decent amount of really good ones. Well, I'd say three things straight away: first is that I'm glad others are getting more out of the album than me, second is that I'd agree it's a consistent album with no true shockers, and third is that I suspect we just have distinctly different taste in music. I'd take the mad, fairground swirl of "Black & White Sunshine" over a good half of the tracks here, for instance - and that's before we get into the fact that "If Love is the Law / The Man Who Built the Moon / Credits / Dead in the Water" is one of my favourite runs of music that a Gallagher has ever been involved in. It reminds me of the second half of Morning Glory, in how it leaps from drunken joy to thunder-and-blood noise to bittersweet lament and still flows to perfection. It's everything I want solo Noel Gallagher to be. I also like "Dream On"! Never understood the hate. Go back in time and remove Sardy, it'd be a banger. Is Council Skies his "most solid" album? Maybe. I'd still argue his debut and Who Built the Moon? offer much higher moments with a similar lack of stinkers, but I can see how the argument could be made. All I can do is reiterate what I said in another thread: if this was the debut album from a bloke I'd never heard of, and wasn't connected to my love for Oasis, then I wouldn't go out and buy tickets to see the guy. I'd enjoy the album, think he had talent, and then go back to songs like "Champagne Supernova" or "The Death of You and Me", which seem from a different universe of talent altogether, for me. One that I'm not sure Noel lives in, anymore. But this is all from first five listens, which can always be deceptive. Maybe it's my favourite album ever! |
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Post by tiger40 on Jun 2, 2023 5:19:34 GMT -5
I'm currently listening to the new album (my first full listen all the way through) and I like most of it so far. I'm still not keen on Dead To The World but it does sound better on the album than a stand alone single. The other tracks are really good and I don't get the hate for the new single as I quite like it. Ok it's not Noel's best but I certainly don't think that it's crap at all. I'll have to give the album a few more listens to decide which tracks are my favourites but There She Blows and Love Is A Richman are both stand out tracks for me.
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Post by tiger40 on Jun 2, 2023 5:22:06 GMT -5
I did listen to a few tracks last night before I went to bed but I thought I would wait to listen to it properly.
My cd is arriving tomorrow but it doesn't matter as I can stream the album anyway.
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Post by didthedamage on Jun 2, 2023 5:27:15 GMT -5
Anyone know what to call that sound that keeps popping up in between certain songs...some sort of spooky whistle with wind. Not good enough with words to know what to call it. I like the sound except for the transition between Trying To Find A World and Easy Now, that's not good. too stop/start. This is popping up for me on Apple Music, most jarringly after INGUT into Pretty Boy. It wasn’t on the cd rip leak I was listening to yesterday. I may have to go back to that… |
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Post by The Escapist on Jun 2, 2023 5:28:19 GMT -5
Anyone know what to call that sound that keeps popping up in between certain songs...some sort of spooky whistle with wind. Not good enough with words to know what to call it. I like the sound except for the transition between Trying To Find A World and Easy Now, that's not good. too stop/start. I was worried it was just my app, but it sounds like they forgot to edit the transition into "Easy Now" properly. |
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Post by tiger40 on Jun 2, 2023 5:31:53 GMT -5
My god, We're Going To Get There In The End is so good and it's so much better than the demo version which was released a while back.
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Post by jh on Jun 2, 2023 5:36:15 GMT -5
Only just listened to whole album. For me INGUT and Mind Games are brilliant. For my ear it's alright not at gob smacking impact in anyway. Will take a few more listens. Don't Stop is seriously far far worse than the demo which is irritating. Live Forever is the best version I have ever heard too...glad that's a decent official recording
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Post by oasisserbia on Jun 2, 2023 5:47:05 GMT -5
Noel is 56 and album sounds like it was made by someone that old. Nothing wrong with that, but not for me mate.
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Post by andymorris on Jun 2, 2023 5:48:25 GMT -5
It’s interesting what your saying about comparing this to his existing albums, because - although it’s early days - I couldn’t agree less about it being his weakest work, for a number of reasons. Firstly, in my opinion every Noel album has had one or two tracks that were instantly skippable. On NGHFB, we had Dream On, which I can’t bare to endure. On CY, we had X-ray Eyes and The Mexican. On WBTM, most of the second half ruined what could have been an incredible album. Thus far, I’d strongly argue that none of Council Skies has tracks that are so overwhelmingly unlistenable, either in my opinion or the everyday punters likely opinion (time will tell though) Secondly, the first three albums suffered from either too much “middle of the road” tracks, or had high highs and low lows. Circling back to NGHFB, there are some great tracks there, Everybody’s On The Run, Broken Arrow, Wrong Beach, among others, but the rest was either middle of the road, bland, or crap in the case of Dream On. CY had less middle of the road ones in my opinion, as I mostly enjoy that album, but as I mentioned before, it had 2 stinkers which bring it down. WBTM has a cracking first few tracks (although Fort Knox is highly overrated here), but the second half falls off a cliff when you reach “Be Careful What You Wish For”, and sucks until TMWBTM. Noel’s albums seem to have gotten increasingly higher highs but lowers lows, particularly with WBTM. It’s frustrating for me to listen to that album when it has 5 of his best, 1 meh, then 5 of his worst tracks on it. But for me thus far, Council Skies has no immediate skippable tracks. Sure it has its weaker moments, and the single choices are indeed baffling, but there’s no doubt at all from me that it’s his most solid album so far. The worst song is a 6 or 7 out of 10, and the best (DTTW) is a 10. The lows are not that low, and whereas there might be less “highs”, as an average it’s still better than his other albums in this way. Still too early to decide where it places within them all, but it’s by far his most solid album for me due to its lack of truly bad tracks, and it’s decent amount of really good ones. Well, I'd say three things straight away: first is that I'm glad others are getting more out of the album than me, second is that I'd agree it's a consistent album with no true shockers, and third is that I suspect we just have distinctly different taste in music. I'd take the mad, fairground swirl of "Black & White Sunshine" over a good half of the tracks here, for instance - and that's before we get into the fact that "If Love is the Law / The Man Who Built the Moon / Credits / Dead in the Water" is one of my favourite runs of music that a Gallagher has ever been involved in. It reminds me of the second half of Morning Glory, in how it leaps from drunken joy to thunder-and-blood noise to bittersweet lament and still flows to perfection. It's everything I want solo Noel Gallagher to be. I also like "Dream On"! Never understood the hate. Go back in time and remove Sardy, it'd be a banger. Is Council Skies his "most solid" album? Maybe. I'd still argue his debut and Who Built the Moon? offer much higher moments with a similar lack of stinkers, but I can see how the argument could be made. All I can do is reiterate what I said in another thread: if this was the debut album from a bloke I'd never heard of, and wasn't connected to my love for Oasis, then I wouldn't go out and buy tickets to see the guy. I'd enjoy the album, think he had talent, and then go back to songs like "Champagne Supernova" or "The Death of You and Me", which seem from a different universe of talent altogether, for me. One that I'm not sure Noel lives in, anymore. But this is all from first five listens, which can always be deceptive. Maybe it's my favourite album ever! I was gonna write this exact post but then you wrote it. Agree 100% (and yeah what's the hate for Dream On ? It's fuckin greaaat) |
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Post by oasispanic on Jun 2, 2023 5:49:42 GMT -5
With a few listenings, I like it more than Who built the moon? Don't stop is much better than the boring demo. Gonna get there in the end is better, too. Maybe the album doesn't have a "special song". Maybe Dead to the world, maybe Pretty boy. We shall see.
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Post by andymorris on Jun 2, 2023 5:55:38 GMT -5
Noel is 56 and album sounds like it was made by someone that old. Nothing wrong with that, but not for me mate. 56 year old who went through "hell" (divorce) in the pandemic and didn't recover yet it seems. Some of his contemporaries are that old, and releasing still great work. Mostly, Noel need to be questioned. Which i think is the main problem here. No one tells him when something isn't up to his standard. He's back into his comfort zone and it shows. But its not only now, it happened with Chasing Yesterday, the same kind of record with a few highs and the rest is low low low. WBTM was fresh, NGHFB 1 fresh also, the EPs were kinda fresh and now back into the cycle, one up, one down. SO bring on the next one  |
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noeloliam
Oasis Roadie
The future's uncertain and the end is always near
Posts: 185
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Post by noeloliam on Jun 2, 2023 5:55:39 GMT -5
It seems ok after couple spins, but the Foo Fighters' record is so fucking good that I barely feel like listening to Council Skies at this point. And the new Queens stuff is on another level too. There, I said it.
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Post by goletitout1986 on Jun 2, 2023 5:59:29 GMT -5
Why is the album so quiet? Especially the vocals.
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Post by defmaybe00 on Jun 2, 2023 6:01:33 GMT -5
I do feel like his previous records had more "special" moments (or even special special moments  ), but this sounds like a record where you wouldn't really skip any of the track and they all flow really well together, so I'm not sure where I'd rank it WBTM was similar in that regard, but while I feel the higs were higher (TMWBTM, DDIW, IABW) and the production was better (although I gotta give it to Noel for the variety and some unexpected ideas on this), Black and White Sunshine right in the middle slightly ruined that listening experience To understand where this stands among the rest of his catalogue I'll have to see if what to me are the highlights (DTTW, INGUT, TSB, TOAN) will stand the test of time |
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Post by headshrinker84 on Jun 2, 2023 6:06:50 GMT -5
It seems ok after couple spins, but the Foo Fighters' record is so fucking good that I barely feel like listening to Council Skies at this point. And the new Queens stuff is on another level too. There, I said it. Ugh can't stand the Foo fighters. |
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Post by asthequoflies on Jun 2, 2023 6:17:58 GMT -5
Been years since I posted here but I love reading the forum;
Listening to 'Council Skies' this morn, the immediate standout (I hadn't listened to the singles much yet) is when the chorus to 'Easy Now' kicks in with that falsetto. The chorus and that glorious guitar solo simply transport me back to Oasis' mid-90s imperial pomp. Just one of those things Noel has - the ability to conjure up a melody line or an instrumental hook that goes beyond the norm and you know will remain with you. Love the track.
Really enjoying the opening track, Pretty Boy with it's rhythm and aesthetic (just been reading this one isn't liked by many), and Trying to Find A World.
The rest I'll know after a few weeks and many more listens whether they'll stand out and bring me back to this record. As a whole, and this is only three listens in this morning, perhaps not quite as good as his previous. 'Who Built the Moon' I loved upon release, different soundscapes and moods than his previous HFB albums with some genuine great tracks mixed in with a few decent numbers. WBTM is my favourite of his HFB records, and six years on from it's release I still revisit it. Not a masterpiece, but a high quality Noel Gallagher album.
Interesting to read the chart 'battle' between Noel and the Foo's. To each his/her own of course, I haven't listened to the Foo's new beyond the single thus far, but have always found them a bit bland. Some huge, grand rockers, a good singles band, but an albums band maybe not so much. Just my opinion. Brit-pop in it's splendour seems to be the story of recent - Noel/Liam and their releases, Oasis reunion rumours, new Blur, Pulp returning for live shows, and the Manics great album of 2021. The Manics albums since 2009 really have been quality (yes, even 'Postcards').
Overall, just happy to have a new Noel album. Even if only a few of the tracks ultimately keep me coming back, it's worthy just for that. Noel at his best is quite a high place after all!
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Post by LlAM on Jun 2, 2023 6:37:26 GMT -5
Why was Noel releasing all the fillers as singles?
Was he trolling us?
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Post by Firefly on Jun 2, 2023 6:44:32 GMT -5
Been years since I posted here but I love reading the forum; Listening to 'Council Skies' this morn, the immediate standout (I hadn't listened to the singles much yet) is when the chorus to 'Easy Now' kicks in with that falsetto. The chorus and that glorious guitar solo simply transport me back to Oasis' mid-90s imperial pomp. Just one of those things Noel has - the ability to conjure up a melody line or an instrumental hook that goes beyond the norm and you know will remain with you. Love the track. Really enjoying the opening track, Pretty Boy with it's rhythm and aesthetic (just been reading this one isn't liked by many), and Trying to Find A World. The rest I'll know after a few weeks and many more listens whether they'll stand out and bring me back to this record. As a whole, and this is only three listens in this morning, perhaps not quite as good as his previous. 'Who Built the Moon' I loved upon release, different soundscapes and moods than his previous HFB albums with some genuine great tracks mixed in with a few decent numbers. WBTM is my favourite of his HFB records, and six years on from it's release I still revisit it. Not a masterpiece, but a high quality Noel Gallagher album. Interesting to read the chart 'battle' between Noel and the Foo's. To each his/her own of course, I haven't listened to the Foo's new beyond the single thus far, but have always found them a bit bland. Some huge, grand rockers, a good singles band, but an albums band maybe not so much. Just my opinion. Brit-pop in it's splendour seems to be the story of recent - Noel/Liam and their releases, Oasis reunion rumours, new Blur, Pulp returning for live shows, and the Manics great album of 2021. The Manics albums since 2009 really have been quality (yes, even 'Postcards'). Overall, just happy to have a new Noel album. Even if only a few of the tracks ultimately keep me coming back, it's worthy just for that. Noel at his best is quite a high place after all! Funny but Foos' Hearing Voices sounds similar to Think Of A Number. Both proper good tunes, I think Noel just edges it over Foos |
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), but this sounds like a record where you wouldn't really skip any of the track and they all flow really well together, so I'm not sure where I'd rank it
Nov 4, 2024 5:04:30 GMT -5
Nov 4, 2024 5:04:30 GMT -5