Review Summary: The back streets of St. Elsewhere come alive...even if they are a little less crazy.
Back in 2006, the airwaves of the world belonged to the odd couple. They were Goodie Mob singer Cee-Lo Green and infamous producer/mash-up artist Brian “Danger Mouse” Burton, becoming the “phenomenon beyond phenomena”, Gnarls Barkley. The hits were aplenty from their offbeat modern classic,
St. Elsewhere- the unlikely Violet Femmes cover “Gone Daddy Gone”, the 80’s soul clap-along of “Smiley Faces” and, of course, the seemingly inescapable pop genius of “Crazy”. The odd couple then went their separate ways again…until now.
Enter
The Odd Couple.
Where to begin? If you were expecting Gnarls’ sophomore to be another
Elsewhere, then you would definitely be wrong in your assumption. Conversely, if you proceed to write off this album entirely on the back of this fact, then you would again be wrong in doing so. Truth, there is no slice of ultimate pop perfection here that “Crazy” provided. However, that’s not what
The Odd Couple is about. Perfection, instead, comes in several other forms – through Green’s fantastically soulful and erratic vocals, the production work of Burton and the rough diamonds spattered throughout the album.
Two things are immediately noticeable on first listen to the record. The first is that the lyrics, beats and mood of the entire ordeal is almost completely darker than its predecessor. The second is that it often sounds like Gnarls Barkley are holding back, both musically and rhythmically (something you certainly would not expect from a Danger Mouse project). The latter may irritate many listeners, but it is this factor of the album that often makes the former so noticeable, especially on standouts such as the emotionally wrought “Who’s Gonna Save My Soul” (“maybe it’s a little selfish/All I have is the memory/Yet I never stopped to wonder/Was it possible you were hurting worse than me?”) and the mischievously wicked “Would-Be Killer” (“I’ve been entered by evil/So someone best love me right now”). Stripping these songs to bare necessities expose the raw passion behind them, and put Green’s vocals in the spotlight- always a good thing. It should be noted, however, this method isn’t always effective. At times, the entire ‘aim-precisely-under-the-target’ concept threatens to deaden the entire record altogether, as seen on the aptly titled “Whatever” and the skippable “No Time Soon”, which is notable only for its faultlessly soulful vocals (Cee-Lo could sing Simple Plan and it would still sound fantastic). Thankfully for us, this doesn’t last, and upon a few more listens of the album, a third thing becomes extremely noticeable: when
The Odd Couple gets good, it gets really, really good.
For the most part, it is the stages of the record where the band take the energy and intensity level up a notch or two where the best songs on the record reside. “Open Book” is the case in point, battering your eardrums with a tripped out electro-snare attack, operatic backing vocals, synth-strings, animal whispers and purrs (try the song on headphones) and one hell of a vocal delivery in the chorus. If you are able to walk away with one positive from
The Odd Couple, it is most likely going to be this song. Other more boppy and fast-paced moments on the record like “Going On” and “Surprise” are further proof of this, standing out with funky, catchy Motown- esque drum samples (“Surprise” features the best beat on the whole thing, save for “Open Book”) and skillful organ and guitar work, accentuating the mood of the song with precision and depth.
Burton’s Danger Mouse production style is stamped all over
The Odd Couple. He may be known for his genre-hopping- dance-rock band The Rapture and gritty blues duo The Black Keys are just two of his production credits- but at the core of all his work lies artistic nuances (most likely inspired by his love of quirky visual art) and a vinyl-sounding crispness to the sound. Every twist of the formula that one hears throughout
The Odd Couple is part of his master plan for the whole record- everything from the Autotune backing vocals of opener “Charity Case”, to the distorted loop of the sound of a sauna (once you hear it, you’ll understand) in “She Knows”…even starting and finishing the album with the sound of a film reel, which was also featured on
Elsewhere. The art that Burton creates with his production is truly exceptional. It is a slight disappointment, however, that many of said qualities can only be really appreciated upon a good listen on headphones, and it is unfortunately inconsistent on the album- a handful of the tracks present could have been more than they are given a few tweaks. Having said that, there is a lot more to praise on
The Odd Couple than there is to be negative about. This is an album that is unlikely to top the charts anytime soon, but is 100% more than worth a passing listen.
Exit
The Odd Couple.
Where to conclude? If you were a fan of
St. Elsewhere, which remains the best work of either Green or Burton, then there is certainly a chance you’ll be disappointed by
The Odd Couple. But there’s also a good chance you will find something to enjoy here- even if it is just the lead single, “Run”.
To make an analogy,
The Odd Couple is the stranger, more eccentric cousin of
St. Elsewhere. When he starts school, he is probably going to suffer under Pitchfork, Rolling Stone and NME, the schoolyard bullies.
But he’s a great person.
Just give him a chance.
