<strong>Beady Eye</strong><br/><strong> Be</strong><br/><strong>Columbia</strong><br/><strong> <span class="s1">***</span></strong> Beady Eye are back with something to prove. The tame reaction to their patchy 2011 debut, <em>Different Gear, Still Speeding</em>, left the feeling that the English rock band's days were numbered. Hence the welcome sonic shake-up with the follow-up <em>Be</em>; the biggest of which is enlisting the indie-rock producer Dave Sitek to take the helm. The result is Beady Eye's sound finally dislodging itself from the late 1960s to somewhere more current and moody. <em>Flick of the Finger</em> opens with a brass explosion, with Liam Gallagher sounding positively raw. <em>Soul Love</em> is plaintive as Sitek wraps Gallagher's searching vocals with off-kilter bells and ominous keyboards. While <em>Second Bite of the Apple'</em>s horn-laced chorus is lifted straight from a soul review; the clearest demonstration of Sitek's creative hold on the proceedings. That said, it's not all experimentation. Oasis fans should enjoy <em>Face the Crowd</em>'s classic riffs while the sunny <em>Iz Rite</em> shows Gallagher's Lennon-worship hasn't dimmed yet. <em>Be</em> shows The Beady Eye project has some vision. Follow us Follow us on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/thenationalArtsandLife">Facebook</a> for discussions, entertainment, reviews, wellness and news.
