Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Gilmour, David
Label: Columbia Records
Release: 2015
Length: 51:17
Rating: 3/5
It took nine years for Pink Floyd legend, guitarist/vocalist David Gilmour, to decide to release the follow-up to »On an Island« (2006), but he might have done better to sit on that decision a while longer, because the end result is not exactly thrilling. The news that one of the most revered prog rock musicians was working on a new solo album called »Rattle That Lock« was immediately picked up by the biggest trend-chasing (not necessarily music) media, Slovenian ones included, of course. After all, alongside Mark Knopfler and Eric Clapton, David is usually one of the three legendary British rock guitarists who get a few lines of attention now and then, and (especially in his old age) he goes down fine even with the average Slovenian family over Sunday soup with liver dumplings, the sound of a dog yapping under the table and the sight of a crackling fireplace.
Over the last ten years, David has built himself a reputation among the masses as a friendly, harmless musical grandpa, whose simple musical messages and pleasant ambient expanses are just demanding enough for most ears that you can listen to him with no ‘harmful side effects’ while doing all sorts of afternoon chores. Sure, in the previous two years he was busy recording the last Pink Floyd studio album, »The Endless River« (2014), but it still seems a bit odd at times that a guy with more than five decades of musical activity behind him has only put out his fourth (studio) solo album.
While »On an Island«, despite its mostly ‘still life’ ambience, still held some of that old Pink Floyd ambient magic, on »Rattle That Lock« it has almost completely gone missing. The most of it survives in the individual guitar solos, which, with the help of assorted effects, remain David’s strongest ‘weapon’. In structure, most of »Rattle That Lock« is closer to pop rock than to prog rock, which means light rhythms and simple arrangements with the occasional solo flourish dominate. Even so, there are few choruses on it that leave any tangible mark.
David’s voice has lost quite a bit of its former emotional depth and expression over the last few years, so on »Rattle That Lock« it often sounds tired and drowsy, as if someone had just violently yanked him out of a long winter nap. His mostly superb musical collaborators, of whom there are once again plenty, have done more than a decent job from a technical standpoint, but alas, the lion’s share of the symphonic arrangements comes off as generic, so even David’s guitar solos, which are still excellent and, as already mentioned, the main draw of »Rattle That Lock«, can’t save most of the songs from mediocrity.
The instrumental »5 A.M.« is an extremely pleasant, but also rather predictable, ambient opener, with David’s signature melancholic guitar solo and ethereal waves of synth textures. The title track, a pop rock effort that was also released as a single and features some honest-to-goodness backing vocal harmonies, is one of the few somewhat livelier moments on an otherwise rather ‘sedated’ album, and even that only thanks to a solid chorus. The very average »Faces Of Stone«, which at times recalls some less inspired work by the legendary Camel (which is almost a compliment), contains about equal amounts of interesting and boring moments.
»A Boat Lies Waiting« has a promising start, until, via generic piano build-ups and layered vocals, it morphs into a pretty monotonous ballad, almost a childlike lullaby, that leaves no deeper impression. »Dancing Right In Front Of Me« is one of the very few, slightly livelier moments on the album, where a hefty, bluesy guitar phrase and solo bring back a whiff of the old ambient magic, even though David’s vocal performance is once again below expectations and, despite a few brief dramatic moments, doesn’t stir up any excitement. »In Any Tongue« is one of the rare shining moments on »Rattle That Lock«, with lively symphonic arrangements and a moving enough vocal performance that the listener, especially during the melancholic guitar solo, can briefly be reminded of David’s greatest triumphs. The solid instrumental »Beauty« is built around the piercing sound of David’s guitar solo.
The cabaret experiment »The Girl In The Yellow Dress«, which among other things features cornet courtesy of the legendary Robert Wyatt (ex-Soft Machine, Matching Mole), is a huge swing and a miss and some of the dullest stuff David has made in his career so far, so it doesn’t deserve any more words than that. On »Today« the tired David ‘wakes up’ a bit again with some lively guitar passages and decent vocal harmonies, while the closing instrumental »And Then…« is yet another ‘lullaby’ with a feature-length guitar solo that ends with the crackling of grandpa’s fireplace.
»Rattle That Lock« is hard proof that Gilmour has finally, musically too, been caught up by a respectable old age, which radiates through most of this rather sleepy, monotonous album with only a few truly inspired moments. Most of his followers, especially those who only listen to Pink Floyd and David’s solo career, will probably let it slide and sing undeserved praises, but the truth is sadly different, and it might be wise for the legendary guitarist, who long ago said everything he had to say and achieved everything there is to achieve, to consider studio retirement. Today’s prog rock veterans usually fall into three categories: a. musicians who, despite approaching or already passing seventy, are still a guarantee of creativity, consistency and inventiveness (e.g. Peter Hammill and the late Daevid Allen), b. musicians who have gone ‘back into diapers’ in their old age, drowning in nostalgia and recycling past glories (e.g. Ian Anderson), and c. musicians who burned through all their good ideas long ago but still aren’t thinking about (studio) retirement. Mr. Gilmour belongs in the last category.
Lineup
David Gilmour – guitar, lead vocals, keyboards, piano, bass guitar
Michael Boumendil – original SNCF sound sample
Jon Carin – electric piano
David Crosby – backing vocals
Danny Cummings – percussion
Steve DiStanislao – drums, percussion, backing vocals
Roger Eno – piano
Martin France – drums
Gabriel Gilmour – piano
Jools Holland – piano
Damon Iddins – keyboards
Rado Klose – guitar
Chris Laurence – double bass
The Liberty Choir – backing vocals
Phil Manzanera – keyboards, acoustic guitar
Louise Marshall – backing vocals
Graham Nash – backing vocals
Andy Newmark – drums
Eira Owen – French horn
John Parricelli – guitar
Mica Paris – backing vocals
Guy Pratt – bass guitar
Zibgniew Preisner – orchestration
Mike Rowe – electric piano
Polly Samson – backing vocals
Yaron Stavi – bass guitar, double bass, backing vocals
Colin Stetson – saxophone
Richard Wright – voice sample
Robert Wyatt – cornet
Production
David Gilmour and Phil Manzanera
Track list
1. 5 A.M. (3:07)
2. Rattle That Lock (4:57)
3. Faces of Stone (5:34)
4. A Boat Lies Waiting (4:36)
5. Dancing Right In Front of Me (6:13)
6. In Any Tongue (6:48)
7. Beauty (4:30)
8. The Girl in the Yellow Dress (5:27)
9. Today (5:57)
10. And Then… (4:32)
