Based solely on the hype surrounding their early shows and subsequent major label deal with London, Gay Dad would seems to be something special and certainly something worth exploring. But at the time they burst on the scene it was extremely popular for critics to latch onto certain unproven acts and proclaim them to be the next big thing (be it a comparison to Pulp, Suede, Supergrass, Blur or even Oasis). Sometimes, the support of acts was for the best…sometimes it was for Gomez or Mansun. But all too often, the support wasn’t warranted.
Critics who hailed Gay Dad to be the next big thing were on the whole very, very wrong. This isn’t to say that the band is bad really, just that there were acts before and since that have pulled off the same thing with the same formula with more finesse. Simply put, Gay Dad certainly shows potential but nothing at all revolutionary in style. In fact, though they are broadly categorized as Brit-pop, the band’s sound is more a sparkling pop not at all unlike that familiar to most Americans. Call it what you’d like, but Gay Dad is the jangly, annoying British little brother of Matchbox Twenty (20?). And this, my friends, is not a positive comparison.
While the band didn’t even hit UK mainstream until their 1998 single To Earth With Love and the subsequent 1999 LP Leisure Noise, they were actually conceived long before that by Cliff Jones. Jones, once a music journalist, took it upon himself to toss together a band whose lineup didn’t ever solidify aside from the dedication of drummer Nicholas ‘Baz’ Crowe. After working intensively with Rolling Stones producer Andrew Loog Oldham, Gay Dad made their live debut in about 1995. All reports point to the fact that Jones’ creation was scattershot at best, hence it shouldn’t come as much of a shock that they didn’t get signed until 1997 and didn’t release an album until almost two years later.
But it is unfair to be completely negative about Gay Dad they do have some promise. Their music is fine, even if the lyrics aren’t catchy much less intelligent. The band as a whole just seems as though they are trying to accomplish something that is well outside the bounds of their talent. Not to mention the fact that even if Jones, Crowe, and company are talented the production leaves much to be desired. It is too clean, too crisp, and too smooth especially for the kind of music Gay Dad attempted to make. This production (dis)credit goes to Chris Hughes (Adam Ant, Tears For Fears, Wang Chung) and Tony Visconti (David Bowie, Luscious Jackson, T. Rex, Moody Blues).
But fortunately for the band, their mediocre debut is brief. At least in that aspect they didn’t overextend their talents or stay. Leisure Noise is about forty five minutes and lasts just ten tracks. As much as I want to hate everything about the disc, that is impossible. Gay Dad in fact does start out mildly above average on the first half, but trickles off to a droll end. In the start, tracks like Joy!, Oh Jim, My Son Mystic and the earliest single To Earth With Love all strike a minor chord. But whatever positives there are balanced out by the negatives like Patfinder, Different Kind of Blue, Jesus Christ and the bleakly rotten Dateline.
As mentioned though I can’t help but mildly enjoy a few. Most notable among these is probably the deconstructed, distorted Joy! It possesses an energy and carefree nature not at all present in the rest of the tracks. Not just that, but the chorus is memorable enough to have been used in the occasional commercial (if memory serves). As far as Brit-pop goes, it is a classic from a forgettable one-hit-wonder band. Like I said, the words are good:
You and I
We know what's going on
You won't see me cry
I'm gonna take you to the other side
For a little
Joy
A little joy
For a little joy
Want a little joy
Joy!
The other decent songs I mentioned have a few things in common. Most important is that they all have a certain amount of personality that’s important to really making a memorable song. Oh Jim is an emotional, almost country-rock ballad. For a moment, Gay Dad seems to be more than an ego stroke for Jones. My Son Mystic is a tiny bit less genuine but I believe that to be as a result of the heavy production. But with that said, it’s a cute and light pop track. Finally, To Earth With Love returns slightly to the form of Joy!. The album picks up pace for the five minutes it takes for the song to run its course. While I enjoy the single on one level, it also leaves me wondering “so what.” Even if it sounds good, it doesn’t leave me wanting more.
On the other end of the spectrum are the bad and ugly tracks. Dateline is unquestionably the worst. It seems as though Gay Dad started with a canned melody and for that matter canned studio band. Knowing better than that, it is still hard to escape the fact that nothing about the track is worthy. The production is once again overwhelming to the song and to Jones’ vocals. The lyrics are monotonous and unmemorable. Somewhere, buried deep beneath layers of tracks like this is a guy with talent as shown with Joy! but none of that is carried over to Dateline or Pathfinder or even Different Kind of Blue or Jesus Christ.
Had I not been given Leisure Noise free of charge, I may or may not have discovered the band. Even though there are a few decent songs here from Gay Dad their 1999 debut is certainly not worth a purchase even for .75 cents. The better songs are more appropriate on their own than in the context of the entire effort. The Brits returned in mid-2001 with their sophomore effort Transmission. Needless to say, it pretty much bit the big one. Looking for great Brit-pop? Well, then look no further than those very popular, very mainstream acts listed above and forget entirely about Gay Dad. Please.
Rating: 2/5 stars
Track Listing:
1. Dim Star
2. Joy!
3. Oh Jim
4. My Son Mystic
5. Black Ghost
6. To Earth With Love
7. Dateline
8. Pathfinder
9. Different Kind of Blue
10. Jesus Christ
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