Jimi Goodwin: Odludek

     There's a great saying about trying to escape your past, "Wherever you go, there you are". I was reminded of this recently with the release of Doves front man Jimi Goodwin's solo album, Odludek. I'm a huge Doves fan. They're my favorite band of the 2000's, ahead of The White Stripes and Kasabian. It has been five years since their last album Kingdom of Rust and I've been waiting patiently for anything new from their camp. When I saw on the internets that Jimi Goodwin was releasing a solo album I was amped. Then I started reading interviews and advanced reviews and my buzz was killed. Goodwin described it as a "crazy mixtape" and talked about not wanting to be "pegged" as that guy from that band. After reading several reviews, I didn't know if it was going to be a hodge podge-y train wreck or a boring singer- songwriter album or a return to his club music roots or a combination of all the above. I even considered not getting it because I didn't want to be disappointed. But that wasn't really going to happen and I did pick it up.
     If Goodwin thought he was escaping his past by recording a "crazy mixtape" solo album I'll just remind him of that saying "Wherever you go, there you are". You are Jimi-freakin'-Goodwin. You are going to write sonically powerful rock songs and layer them with your signature vocals. My fears of Jimi sitting on a stool with an acoutic guitar being James Taylor were assuaged the second I dropped the needle on Odludek. "Terracotta Warrior" immediately hits you in the face with the striking of an electric guitar chord which is repeated over a few bars. Then Goodwin comes in with an in your face, passionate vocal before slipping into a Roger Waters, Piper at the Gates of Dawn bass groove. The song then combines all these elements and rocks headlong to it's conclusion. The second track, "Didsbury Girl" is the first of several songs on this album that could have easily fit on the Doves album Lost Souls. In a previous post, I recommended Lost Souls to my kids and I would add here that if you've never heard that album do yourself a huge favor. The composition will blow your mind. But I digress. "Live Like a River" is the next track and it's the strongest of the set. It's powerful and sounds like a continuation of Kingdom of Rust. "Hope" is an alright song, but it's like middle of the road U2. The guitars even sound like The Edge. "Man V Dingo" is the craziest track off Odludek. It starts out with what sounds like the theme to a 70's game show. Then it becomes a weird oompah band thing with Goodwin ranting over top about current culture. It's probably the biggest departure from Doves, but it has grown on me after listening to the album twenty odd times. Side Two of the LP begins with the most Lost Soul-ish track "Keep My Soul In Song". It carries you away in a languid stream of sonic majesty. The first single in the UK is the track "Oh! Whiskey". It's the most singer-songwriter-y song on the album. It starts out with acoustic guitar strumming, but it does add piano and percussion and is far from boring. My favorite song, at this writing, is "The Ghost of the Empties". It also falls on the Lost Souls spectrum of Goodwin's sound. There's also a guitar section that sounds like Clouds Taste Metallic Flaming Lips Ronald Jones. My favorite line is "if you'd have opened up my skull that day you'd have found a supermarkets worth of useless junk". "Lonely At the Drop" is an up-tempo rocker and a diatribe about God. Many reviewers didn't like this track, but I quite enjoyed it. My favorite line is "it must get lonely on that cross, I mean shit you've paid your dues". The final track is "Panic Tree" and it's my least favorite. Oddly, it's the song that deals the most directly with escaping your past and the mistakes of your fathers, but I don't like the music. It's too old tyme music hall for my taste, but the content of the lyrics is good.
     According to Goodwin, Odludek is Polish for loner or pilgrim. In fact, he wanted to call the project Odludek, but the label insisted he put his name on it. I understand the whole loner and pilgrim thing, but I hope he's gotten it out of his system and works with Andy and Jez again. You can't escape who you are. Peace.