Like A Halo Around The Sun: A Quick Review Of Why Me? Why Not., The Second Solo Album From Liam Gallagher

With a wildly flattering documentary still in theaters, and U.K. radio, at least, still playing songs from As You Were with some regularity, Liam Gallagher is already set to drop another solo album. If the awkwardly-titled Why Me? Why Not., out on Friday via Warner Records, seems, on first few listens, less cohesive than Gallagher's first official solo release, it also contains arguably some of his very best post-Oasis vocal-work.

From the Slade stomp of lead single "Shockwave" to the fairly hefty "The River", Liam Gallagher proves that he's still capable of fully inhabiting a tune, even if just with a snarl. And if a weaker number or two here sounds like Fleetwood Mac ("Alright Now"), or, gasp, his brother's solo records (the clattering title track), there are other selections on Why Me? Why Not. that seem more expertly suited to Gallagher's skills as a vocalist. "Once", for instance, gives us the usual Liam affectations, with the singer adding syllables to "pool" and "school" as he chases the ghost of Lennon via the vocal-line. However, the cut is just beautiful, and, for all my quips, a fairly natural performance from Gallagher.

If a clutch of the compositions on this second solo album offer up the obvious reference-points for Liam Gallagher, a few others veer off into new directions. "Meadow", a trippy cut near the end of Why Me? Why Not., is the 2019 version of "The Morning Son" from the first, still-underrated Beady Eye album, even as "Halo" updates the punch of "Bring the Light" from the same release. Those two numbers are just fantastic, and the sorts of things even casual fans have long wanted Liam to sing. Still, what really impresses here is not the Morricone-tinged "Gone", with its rumor-starting lyrics, but "Now That I've Found You", the big pop song on side one of this record. While Liam Gallagher has sung his share of classic rock songs, this number is the closest he's ever come to recording something that sounds like it could be played over and over on American radio. Read into that comment what you will, but the tune's lovable, and just different enough to suggest yet another path for the former Oasis singer to eventually pursue. The only real criticism to offer about Why Me? Why Not. is that Liam Gallagher doesn't seem entirely content, with the record lacking the cohesion we heard in 2017. A listener is left hoping that, should he ignore the hints thrown down in the lyrics of "Gone" and return to us at some point, Liam Gallagher will be more of a band-leader on album number three, and less an interpreter of material.

Why Me? Why Not. is out on Friday via Warner Records.

More details on Liam Gallagher via his official website, or his official Facebook page.

[Photo: Tom Beard]