Review: Geordie Greep – The New Sound (2024)

The New Sound is Geordie Greep’s first solo album.

Founded in 2017, the eclectic music of the English experimental rock band Black Midi was either avant-garde punk or avant-garde prog, depending on the perspective and background of the listener. This contradiction made the band one of the most interesting newcomers of the 2020s. The trio, led by Geordie Greep (b.1999), recorded three albums of successive excellence, but apparently there were so many conflicts between the young musicians that it was better to call it a day. In August 2024, Greep announced on Instagram that the band was on an ”indefinite hiatus”. Some of Greep’s statements since then have been more strident and based on them, I wouldn’t expect Black Midi to return in the near future.

Greep had been quietly working on his first album while Black Midi was still touring for their last album Hellfire, so the start of his solo career didn’t have to wait too long after the break-up announcement.

The New Sound is not a concept album, but as Greep has done in the past, he builds his lyrics around colourful, and often rather unpleasant, characters, and in several of the songs at the moment the focus is on a kind of scoundrel chasing women in bars and on dance floors who has high ideas about himself. Greep’s characters may not be alphas or chads, but they very much want to be. Greep’s characters remind me of the pussy-hunting protagonist of the popular Leisure Suit Larry computer games of the late 80s, Larry Laffer, a middle-aged balding loser. Greep’s larrys, though, are more defiant versions turbocharged for the 2020s that probably look up to Andrew Tate with admiration. Greep’s lyrics, which are full of grotesques, cannot be called politically correct, but I for one never get the impression that Greep is telling his stories about these characters in a laudatory tone. There is empathy in them though.

”No matter how desperate or how disgusting these characters are in the songs, I hope at some point, people at least feel sorry for them or feel a similar feeling as them”

Geordie Greep

Having started playing guitar at the age of seven, Greep is an accomplished electric guitarist, but what’s even more admirable is that at only 25, he already seems to have a very broad understanding of the history of popular music. With The New Sound, the omnivorous Greep draws his musical influences from prog (Greep’s father was a major prog fan), Steely Dan-inspired pop-jazz, avant-garde, country(!), crooner-jazz familiar from the Frank Sinatra records of the 40s and 50s, salsa (Greep’s mother worked in a salsa club) and just about anything else. The punk/hard-core influences heard on Black Midi’s albums are largely left aside on The New Sound, replaced in particular by strong notes of Latin-tinged jazz. But even though the influences now and then even come from the direction of smooth jazz, Greep’s interpretations are not lacking in edge this time either.

On Black Midi’s albums, the number of visitors increased record by record, and on The New Sound Greep goes even further. The album was made with over 20 studio musicians. Almost every song features a brass section, and some even add strings to the mix. The arrangements are really muscular and rich. Almost big band-like, but always rocking hard and grooving. There is so much stuff that it is gratifying to see that the sound has also been improved compared to Black Midi’s albums. Black Midi’s albums were plagued by excessive compression, but The New Sound sounds more dynamic. Produced by Seth Evans and Greep, the mix of this album is at the same time pleasantly airy, but also has a solid, robust sound.

Geordie Greep

The album kicks off with a bang with the song ”Blues” which, despite its name, is not blues, but a rip-roaring tune of fast arpeggios and choppy rhythms that would have been perfect for Black Midi. It was probably originally composed for Black Midi’s next album. Greep manically belts out lyrics brimming with debauchery and the band tries to keep up with the frenetic mood. And it does, because the drums are being played with force by Black Midi’s drummer Morgan Simpson, who may well be the most rockin’ drummer of his generation. Simpson also plays on two other tracks on the album. Drumming on the other songs is done by Thiaguinho Silva, Andrei Martynchyk and Giles King-Ashong. Towards the end of ”Blues”, just when you think it couldn’t get any wilder, a booming brass section is added to the mix. ”Blues” is a truly breathtaking song. Just wow!

You can speak English better than anyone
And you can cursе like no one evеr has done
And you have a bigger dick than any man who’s ever lived
And you can cum more than a hundred stallions
In a room that smells of cigarettes and carrion
Under sheets freezing cold with damp

The second track ”Terra” is thankfully more relaxed and takes the mood in a salsa direction. Greep’s take on salsa is, of course, delightfully quirky and idiosyncratic. Amidst delicate wind instrumental arrangements, Greep sings like a 50s crooner. Greep’s Frank Sinatra fiction has also popped up here and there on Black Midi’s albums, but now things are starting to work as Greep has made huge strides as a vocalist. Previously his articulation was unclear (partly, of course, because his expression sometimes erupted into a hardcore shriek) and he sang a bit like a hot potato in the mouth. His slightly nasal voice still sounds rather odd, but damn… The New Sound proves that Greep can indeed sing!

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The third track ”Holy Holy” is the absolute highlight of the album. The song, with its rigorous swagger, opens with a really tight groove, interspersed with Greep’s bitingly buzzing and wrenching electric guitar attacks. The party is joined here and there by piano and various fun-sounding wind instruments. The rich arrangement of the song is constantly alive with different instruments and melodic little hooks adding to the crazy mix. Every now and then, the disco-rock groove is interrupted by a really powerful drum beat that is reminiscent of Black Midi’s heaviest moments, hitting in a staccato way. At the heart of it all, of course, are Greep’s colourful lyrics, which tell the exhilarating story of a man carefully instructing an escort girl he has ordered, trying to appear like a proper player, but revealing his true desperation as the song goes on, more and more clearly.

”Holy Holy” was released as the first single with a music video before the release of the album. ”Holy Holy” is far too weird and complicated to be a hit today, but for me it’s definitely the single hit of 2024. A truly exhilarating song! Perhaps the best Greep has written so far.

When I tell you your pussy is holy
I want you to slap me and then kiss me
Make sure everyone’s watching, kiss me and then walk away
Walk to the bathroom, I’ll follow after
Don’t worry, we won’t do anything
We’ll just loiter there 15 minutes or so
Then I’ll choose your new lipstick and we’ll walk back out

”Holy Holy” is bursting with fast-paced spat lyrics and just when Greep’s vocals are in danger of getting boring, the song moves appropriately to the instrumental side. ”The New Sound” is a fast-paced instrumental serving up Latin-inspired jazz-rock reminiscent of Return To Forever. The five-minute song plays with typical Greep fury and the boisterous brass arrangements are a real treat to listen to. There’s even a short trombone solo.

Latino/salsa influences can be heard on about half of the tracks on the album and in fact the album was partially recorded in São Paulo, Brazil with local musicians. Greep enjoyed working with the Brazilian musicians and ended up recording four songs with them instead of the intended one.

Read also: Review: Black Midi – Cavalcade (2021)

The second half of the album is not quite up to the first half and the album as a whole is a bit too long. 63 minutes of such intense music is quite a dose for a single listen. On the other hand, there really isn’t a single weak track on the album and despite the length, the listening experience is surprisingly enjoyable.

The closing track ”If You Are But a Dream”, however, feels rather disconnected from the whole. It is a ballad composed in the 40s and originally made famous by Greep’s hero Frank Sinatra. The song has since been interpreted by countless artists before Greep, from Sammy Davis Jr. to Sarah Vaughan. Greep’s interpretation, set to wind instruments and a dramatic piano, has a gentle innocence, especially when contrasted with all the obscenities heard before. Unless the whole thing is just a case of cynical hipster irony. That in itself wouldn’t be a surprise with Greep, but somehow I still don’t think that’s what this is about.

Of course, the name of the album forces you to ask, is there really a whole new sound on offer? Well, not quite, as there are still many elements familiar from Black Midi’s albums, but the stronger melodies and strong Latin and jazz influences do provide a satisfying new perspective on Greep’s wacky musical imagination.

All in all, The New Sound is a very pleasant surprise that managed to exceed my expectations. Leaving a strong band behind and going solo is always a risk, but this time it really paid off. I considered Black Midi to be one of the bright new hopes for progressive rock and I have to admit that the news of the band’s break-up was very upsetting. Perhaps the band will return one day (hopefully), but Geordie Greep managed to launch his solo career with such a tremendous album that I don’t think anything was lost after all. With The New Sound, Greep proves once and for all that he is one of the most distinctive voices in progressive music today.

Best tracks: ”Blues”, ”Holy Holy”, ”The New Sound”, “Walk Up”

Rating: 5 out of 5.
Author: JANNE YLIRUUSI

Tracks

  1. ”Blues” 5:42
  2. ”Terra” 4:18
  3. ”Holy, Holy” 6:03
  4. ”The New Sound” 4:47
  5. ”Walk Up” 4:25
  6. ”Through A War” 5:44
  7. ”Bongo Season” 2:35
  8. ”Motorbike” (featuring Seth Evans) 6:01
  9. ”As If Waltz” 7:53
  10. ”The Magician” 12:20
  11. ”If You Are But a Dream” 3:07

Musicians

Geordie Greep: vocals (1–7, 9–11), backing vocals (3), electric guitar (2, 4–7, 9, 10), acoustic guitar (2, 4–6, 9, 10), piano (5, 6, 9, 10), keyboards (5, 6), synthesizer (1–3, 5, 6, 8–10), accordion (2, 9, 10), fretless bass (3), organ (4, 5), electric piano (7, 10), bass (10) Seth Evans: vocals (8), backing vocals (3), electric and upright bass (1, 5, 8, 10), piano (8, 10), talk box (5), oboe (9), percussion (10) Fabio Sá: electric and upright bass (2, 3, 6, 9) Michael Dunlop: electric and upright bass (4, 7) John Jones: double bass (4, 11) Deschanel Gordon: piano (1–3, 5, 6, 8) Diarra Walcott–Ivanhoe: piano (2, 3, 7, 11) Chicao Montorfano: electric piano (3, 6, 9) Dennys Silva: percussion (2, 3, 9) Adé Eggún Crispin Robinson: percussion (1, 4, 5, 7, 8) Daniel Rogerson: electric guitar (4, 7) Paul Jones: electric and acoustic guitar (9) Felix Gonzalez: backing vocals (3) Thiaguinho Silva: drums (2, 3, 6, 9), percussion (6) Andrei Martynchyk: drums (10) Morgan Simpson: drums (1, 5, 8) Giles King–Ashong: drums (4, 7) Deji Ijishakin: saxophone (3, 5, 6, 8) Nina Lim: violin (9, 10) Kuari May: violin (9, 10) Freya Hicks: viola (9, 10) Felix Stephens: cello (2, 9, 10) Billy Rowlatt: trumpet (1–4, 6) Richard Leigh: trumpet (11) Freddie Wordsworth: trumpet (1–4, 6, 11) Joe Bristow: trombone (1–4, 6, 11) Matt Seddon: trombone (1–4, 6, 11)

Producer: Seth Evans, Geordie Greep
Label: Rough Trade

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