Rank: 3/5
Multi-instrumentalist Jay Watson is having a moment.
Between playing with Tame Impala, which released its highly anticipated album “Currents” earlier this year, and Pond, which also dropped an album in 2015, Watson created “Glamorous Damage,” the sophomore album for his solo project, GUM.
Even with multiple instruments and multiple projects under his belt, Watson continues to maintain his familiar psychedelic sound with “Glamorous Damage.”
Tame Impala fans who are itching for another album from the group will be satisfied with the band’s recognizable sound in “Glamorous Damage,” where the vocals are nearly the same and the instrumentals are comparable.
But GUM distinguishes itself with increasingly experimental sounds, taking listeners on an acid-trip-like experience that transcends decades throughout the album.
The first two tracks, “G.U.M” and “Anesthetized Lesson” sound fit for an old school Super Mario Bros. game, providing listeners a ’90s flashback complete with heavy electronic melodies.
The next few tracks inject ’60s rock ’n’ roll to the album. “Notorious Gold” demonstrates a chorus suitable for a singalong at 1969’s Woodstock, with echoing lyrics and vibrations.
“Cause I don’t wanna get old / Just living Notorious Gold,” Watson wails on the track.
The next two songs, “Elafonissi Blue” and “Television Sick” quickly push listeners into a timewarp to the ’80s, where the dominating pop beats belong in a John Hughes movie.
The pace slows down a bit with “New Eyes,” which has a mystifying sound complete with slow guitar riffs and distorted keystrokes. As the track fades out, the album picks up with “R.Y.K,” a contrastingly upbeat song, yet brilliantly transitional to the rest of the album with layers of beats similar to previous songs on the album.
GUM took its experimental-blending genre literally when creating “Science Fiction.” The song contains synthetic sound elements similar to what is pictured when imagining an alien abduction on earth, which is fitting for the track title.
“Greens and Blues” is an album low. There’s no substance in this song. With a relatively simple compilation of synthetic beats and a finite amount of vocals, it’s a boring way to near the end of an album.
Despite this obstacle, the album finishes off strong. “Glamorous Damage” transitions song by song seamlessly and is cohesive in sound. Fans of Watson himself as well as his other projects will be pleased with this album.