Good concise review by Ruth. Not sure I would go as far as giving it 9.5, but definitely one of the stronger albums from the post Brit Pop comedown. 8.5/10. Bully for you, Mr.Gough.
If his first album had the style and feel of a musical score, then it seems that the ideal second project for Badly Drawn Boy would be to compose an actual soundtrack to a film. The film in question was ‘About A Boy’, the screen adaptation of Nick Hornby’s novel. In a way this would seem an ideal opportunity to widen his fan base, as Hornby is an acclaimed writer and the film versions of ‘High Fidelity’ and ‘Fever Pitch’ were widely received. But it was unnecessary. Badly Drawn Boy’s first album had already gained him a legion of fans, and after two years it would have been wiser to have made a proper follow up to ‘The Hour of Bewilder Beast’; but Gough was quick to state that this was not his second proper album and should not be seen as such.. Using the same format as the first album, with 16 short, punchy tracks that utilise a diverse range of instrumentation and orchestration, and containing several instrumental interludes, it is similar to the first album, but nowhere near as accomplished. In many ways it is like a second rate version of ‘The Hour of Bewilder Beast’. It doesn’t have the same quality; the beauty, emotion and intensity is not there, and the whole thing is merely ordinary and slightly dull in places.
But despite that, there are a few moments of quality song writing that shine through. ‘Silent Sigh’ is a great track with a bouncy melody and acoustic guitar, and has a real uplifting feel to it. ‘A Minor Incident’ is another highlight with a good harmonica and sincere, tender lyrics, and ‘Above you, Below Me’ is a gorgeous song with its full orchestral accompaniment that adds depth and emotion. ‘Something To Talk About’ was the first single to be released and has lyrics that fit in well with the film and a good catchy melody that ensured airplay. But ‘About A Boy’ doesn’t flow as well as the first album. There seems to be too much going on, too many different styles that don’t quite fit well together. Some tracks have luscious string arrangements while others are dominated by synthesizers and drum machines. ‘About a Boy’ works well enough on the level of a soundtrack and probably sounded great in the film, but in terms of an album to sit down and listen to in the privacy of your own home, there’s just not enough there to grab your attention, with the majority of the tracks being too slight and lacking Badly Drawn Boy’s characteristic humour and irony. Perhaps the fact that he didn’t see it as a proper album meant that he didn’t put in as much effort and didn’t take it as seriously, and that’s a real shame. It is definitely an album that has a lot of promise, but unfortunately, it fails to deliver.
This album deserves a much higher rating. It's one of my favourite badly drawn boy albums and one of my favourite all time albums. You seem to forget that it's a film soundtrack and it fulfills it's purpose brilliantly. This is one of the most understated albums ever. Top Class!!
Tracklisting: One Plus One Is One/Easy Love/Summertime In Wintertime/This Is That New Song/Another Devil Dies/The Blossoms/Year Of The Rat/Four Leaf Clover/Fewer Words/Logic Of A Friend/Stockport/Life Turned Upside Down/Takes The Gory/Holy Grail
It was difficult to know what to expect from Badly's Drawn Boy's latest offering 'One Plus One Is One', with his three previous albums all being so different to each other and encompassing a wide range of styles.His debut album 'Hour Of Bewilderbeast' had been a gloriously, lowfi sublime masterpiece remniciest of a film score while at the other end of the scale entirely, his 2002 album 'Have You Fed the fish?' had been a much bigger, rockier, more commerical affair. It definitely wasn't easy to guess what Damon Gough was going to do next. Would he carry on his new found commercial sound or return to his lowfi roots? Or would he surprise us all and yet again produce something totally different?. Knowing Gough's uncomprising talent and refusal to fit neatly into categories anything was possible. Early reviews of 'One Plus One is One' made comparrissons to 'Hour Of Bewilderbeast' much to his fans delight, as the Badly Drawn Boy of the debut album is probably the one his fans adore the most, myself included. To compare 'One Plus One Is One' to 'Hour of Bewilderbeast' is probably a bit of an exagerration but it is definitely closer to it than 'Have You Fed The Fish' and would have made a perfect second album. In fact, with his latest release Badly Drawn Boy finds a perfect middle ground between lowfi introspection and commercial rock. But that is not to say that this album is middle of the road, quite the opposite actually. It is experimental and full of Damon Gough's trade mark irony, humor and imaginative use of a wide variety of instrumentation including piano, strings, brass, and flutes, to mention just a few.
'One Plus One is One' hails Damon Gough's return to Britain as a recording artist. His previous three albums had all been recorded in America, but his latest release sees him back on home shores recording with British producer Andy Votel, and it has to be said that it sounds more British than any of his previous releases. The overall sound of the album is a lot different than before and can be seen as yet another chapter in the everchanging Badly Drawn Boy chapter. The opening line of the very first song sets out his intentions for the album 'Back To Being Who I Was Before, Opened All The Doors You Tried To Close'. This displays a return to his roots, his homeland, his ideals, and in this return, as often happens, he has perhaps found something different to what both himself and his audience expected. 'One Plus One Is One' is the perfect opening song, starting subtlly, easing the listener in gently, before developing into a lusiciously instrumented track which would appeal to even the fussiest listener. The tracks that follow are all equally beautiful, well crafted and very listenable. And even though the album starts well, it just gets better and better with the second half of the album being undoubtably the strongest. 'The Year Of The Rat' is an amazing track complete with catchy chorus and backing vocals provided by a childrens choir. The strongest track on the album, and my own personal favourite is 'Four Leaf Clover' which sees Gough take have been a pretty ordinary track and transform into something completely extraordinary complete with piano accompianment, hand-clapping and probably Gough's best vocal performance on the album.
'One Plus One Is One' proclaims Badly Drawn Boy as an unacknowledge musical genius. For some reason he as never gained the amount of fame and respect he deserves, and will probably never be remembered as one of the great singer-songwriters of our time. And that's a real shame. But it is probably due to his total lack of compromise, his ongoing experiementation and unique sense of humour. And if he needs to do something differently in order to gain the fame he deserves, then may he die in poverty and annonimity.
