Renowned frontman, rock’n’roll star and music legend Liam Gallagher’s second solo record, ‘Why Me, Why Not?’, earned him another number 1 in the charts following up his debut ‘As You Were’ from June 2017, but does his latest music cement his ability as a formidable stand-alone act, or does it just show further desperation for a reunion with his brother?
Similarly to his initial effort, this 11-track LP is a mixed bag in terms of the style of songs featured, and admittedly, the impact they have. For me, 'Gone', 'Alright Now', and 'Meadow' are the more forgettable additions here, but there's more than enough incredible music to make up for what these lack.
'Shockwave', the first single and opening track, is a guitar-heavy rock belter which sets the tone nicely, both sonically and lyrically. 'The River', another single, has the same loud and proud tone.
"Reflecting on his youth and the inability to recapture the past, this is truly one of the best pieces of music Liam has produced."
'Once' seems to be one of the breakout tracks, with special live performances sounding outstanding compared to the Liam of 10 years ago - his BBC piano session show the impact his voice alone. Reflecting on his youth and the inability to recapture the past, this is truly one of the best pieces of music Liam has produced.
'One Of Us' also focuses on the sweetness of the past in the form of a string-heavy ballad, but with a specific focus on Noel: “act like you don't remember, you said we'd live forever”. The music video more clearly displays these feelings also.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B1s7JS-FWgm/
Another standout for me is 'Now That I’ve Found You', proving that the family side of Liam we see in his recent documentary ‘As It Was’, is real. A choir backing his powerful vocals whilst he belts out endearing words works wonders, proven in his MTV Unplugged performance.
The overall quality of the tunes on this album is impressive and ive found myself blown away by the live performances. This record delivers more depth than his first attempt, and with Liam already back in the studio the hype for album 3 is real. His sound has been on-and-off throughout his singing career, but right now he is on a high and with the new music to back him up, he has truly proven that he doesn’t need Noel to succeed. Sadly, although he doesn’t need Oasis anymore, he constantly reminds us how much he wants it.
(4/5)