Search - Beautiful South :: Gaze (Spec)

Superb renewal in B. South's career

camcas5 | Hatfield, MA United States | 02/13/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"It is virtually criminal that "critics" are allowed to pen the vile driven seen on this page. So what are we to make of a review that BEGINS with "the world doesn't need..." -- any axes to grind here? Well, fans of great music, you don't need to worry: Beautiful South are quite alive and doing very well. "Painting It Red" was not an easy album, and left many folks scratching their heads because it didn't quite fit with their "happy-go-lucky cynics" image; for me, it is their grotesquely underrated, rather intensely melancholy masterpiece. A few years later, without North American distribution, "Gaze" follows it up with one of their most acoustic and sharply percussive albums. Just listen to the production of the guitar and cymbals! "Critics" are clearly so ill at ease with B. South because P.D. Heaton and company are so unconcerned with what it takes to keep a band at the edge of coolness and they do such odd things: this musical partnership revels in the power of the human voice, then spin it in all directions with such intense and tense lyrics -- followed up by a passionate or tender song, enough to keep us thinking and laughing. "Gaze" is fresh and passionate and new, and the Heaton/ Rotheray partnership is as sparkling as ever."

Another High-Quality Album from BS

Andrew Miller | Rocklin, CA USA | 02/21/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"It's always exciting to get the latest Beautiful South album and bury yourself in their little catchy tunes and incredibly poignant and imaginative lyrics.The tracks on Gaze are lyrically dominating, each with hooks that only singers Paul Heaton (get his Biscuit Boy CD if you can - it's well worth it), Dave Hemingway, and newcomer Alison Wheeler (replacing Jacqueline Abbott) can pull off.One of the many things I've enjoyed about BS throughout the years is their incredibly broad instrumentation - even when performing live (Painting It Red tour, San Francisco, 2000, Fillmore).Gaze fits quite well with the rest of the Beautiful South albums. Stand-out tracks are the single "Just a Few Things I Ain't" and the addictive "Pretty".Their SF show a few years ago left me stunned (though I was a big Housemartins fan in the 80's and have been a BS fan since the beginning) that a band that gets absolutely no airplay (at least in the SF Bay area, including Sacramento) can have such a loyal following. However, this is just evidence of the fact that BS continually cranks out high-quality music that leaves your feet tapping and you wishing for more and more."

Yet another load of BS

Martin Hamann | Kennesaw, Georgia | 12/27/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Overall a very good disk with some very snappy, poppy tunes with the acerbic wit and observation that the Beautiful South are known for. In part, I think their inclusion of POP rather than purely CEREBRAL tunes is part of the reason that some don't like this record. If you are one who's looking for something profound, there are other places you should look. However, if you are looking for a very listenable continuation of what first drew you to the Beautiful South I don't think you'll be disappointed. They continue to present the ironic and sometimes-too-close-to-the-truth in well-written and clever ways."