Gomez
How We Operate

THE REVIEW

As far as I'm concerned, the state exam is over; it's a thing of the past now. The teachers have become ghosts that still linger in my mind. However, I remember a couple of Saturdays ago when, between Pirandello and Svevo, between a definite integral and a derivative, I decided to go to the store to see if the album I had been waiting for months had finally arrived, which is: "How we operate" by Gomez.

It was a hot Saturday in June, fiercely muggy. One of those days when the asphalt is so hot it merges with your feet, swallowing you! The city was crowded that day, and in the subway, we were all packed like canned tuna. I was sweaty from head to toe, but my relief was entering that damn music store because I presumed there was a copy of "How we operate" reserved for me, and most importantly, because I knew there was AIR CONDITIONING in the store. Finally, I arrived.

The building from outside seemed huge and majestic; it was as if I had arrived in heaven. Even more drenched in sweat, I entered the store and there discovered the first (not the most bitter) surprise of the day: THE AIR CONDITIONING WAS BROKEN. Trying not to curse, keeping calm and the little patience I had left, I reached the shelf, gasping and groping, moving like a chessboard tower: A, B, C, D, E, F, G... G... G GOMEZ! I don't see a trace of "Gomez"!!!
With sweat pouring from my pores and patience reduced to a sliver, I literally leaned over to the clerk who, unlike me, seemed calm and less sweaty:
"Excuse me, do you have the new Gomez album?"
and he: "Gomez?"
"Yes, Gomez"
"Never heard of them"

So I made an about-face, whispering unpleasant things against the store and my country, so "musically ignorant"! I gave the store an extra "go to hell" when I saw the price of the Stone Roses (20 euros) and walked out, heading home. Once home, I did what I had tried to avoid with the Gomez. In the grip of a crazed, homicidal instinct, I entered the house and rushed to the PC to download the album.

Well, contrary to what the Gomez declared a month ago, they release a very British album, different from previous ones, a few months ago they indeed declared "the album features a bizarre blend of banjo and ukulele played in a robotic style, making it sound like a cross between Ry Cooder and Kraftwerk, but with a powerful rock chorus!"
Fortunately, this didn't happen; it would have been a tragedy in my opinion. "How we operate" lasts 51 minutes and these are easily listenable. 12 songs, each more beautiful than the last with choruses that stick in your head.

In the moving opener "Notice" where the use of a violin pad enriches the song, the sunny "See the world", the dark title track of the album, the joyful "Hamoa Beach" featuring jazzy drums. The single "Girlshapedlovedrug" accompanied by one of the most amusing videos of the first half of 2006 is the most British song of the lot, the one that diverges the most from the typical Gomez sound which, while remaining in the Brit genre, has exotic, Mexican nuances (the group is from Southampton, England, ed.). It is followed by the "bluesy" intro of "Chasing Alcohol with ghosts" which completely changes tone, becoming a very powerful soul rock.
Then come the more powerful, more rock "Tear your love apart" and "too much". The crystalline "Charley Patton songs" is beautifully orchestrated and serves as a guarantee of our compositional talent. "Woman!Man!" features a tasty and brilliant melody complete with Sha-la-la-la!!! However, the album closes quite anonymously with "Cry on demand" and "Don't make me laugh" which again returns to strong blues tones that resolve into a typical slow Brit with exotic bursts in the chorus.

However, the album is far from being an absolute masterpiece because it is, something very beautiful, compact, and highly listenable, but it doesn't have that "certain something" that makes it so! The beauty of Gomez is knowing how not to repeat themselves over the years. And you readers, don't think I've given up; I still have the album in mp3 but I'm not giving up. I'm still searching, with more patient spirit this time, far and wide for the album but without results.

Let me know if you find it; in the meantime, do as I do, start enjoying listening to one of the gems of 2006.