Jay Brannan - Goddamned
Record Label: Great Depression Records
Release Date: July 1, 2008
When first reading a description of the Jay Brannan, I thought I really knew what he would sound like. He was described as indie-pop or folk, which sounded pretty good but mildly generic. When I received the album in the mail, the cover intrigued me as it features one pissed-off man. I then thought that the description could have been off and it would be an angry album. Much to my surprise, I was right on both accounts.
Lyrically, this album one of the most sarcastic and angry albums that I have heard, especially in this genre. With lines like “Fuck you this can’t be my life” (“Can’t Have It All”) to lines like “Am I suicidal / or am I just hungry? / American Idol get the hell off my TV,” (“American Idol”) he is one of the funnier and more intelligent lyricists to grace my iPod in the past few months.
Much unlike the lyrics, his voice is quiet and sweet; Brannan seems to have a good feel for how to sing. He doesn’t change tone often and is very gentle in his singing technique, which makes the album very accessible. Goddamned is an album that can be listened to in pretty much any situation or setting, which is hard to come across these days.
The only real issue that I have with the album is that it all sounds very much alike. When I’m listening to the entire album, it gets pretty stale after five or six tracks, due to the lack of changes occurring within Brannan’s voice and his basic guitar playing.
As an album, it flows well, but gets entirely too boring. It would be better for this album to be listened to in a playlist or in small parts at a time, as it lacks anything that sets it apart from other acoustic artists. I would hope that for his next record he moves forward and puts a little more diversity into the album.
Hot damn, I didn't know he came out with an album. I've liked his stuff ever since I saw him play Soda Shop (I think that's what it's called) in the movie Shortbus.
Browse Reviews
Write a Review
Alphabetized Listing
Popular Reviews
Best New Music
View Signature
Posts: 2,516
View Blog
Currently Playing
Follow This Review
More Reviews By This Author