When dotmusic interviewed Damon Albarn around the release of "Think Tank", he summarised the difference between himself and his erstwhile guitarist thus: "He's orthodox, I'm unorthodox." Blur lore always held the opposite, of course. Graham was supposed to be the difficult one, into obscure American hardcore and complex song structures, while Damon was the cunning populist with a knack for smoothing those ideas out into decent hits.
"Happiness In Magazines" is Damon's theory writ large. While Albarn's experimented with folk music from Mali, the dance lite of Gorillaz and the ambient mood pieces of "Think Tank", Coxon has stuck to his guitar, as traditional as they come. The intro to recent single. "Freakin' Out" is, famously, a near facsimile of the start to "Into The Valley" by The Skids. Second single, "Bittersweet Bundle Of Misery", could be "Coffee + TV" part two. Bold new ideas do not abound.
Just look at the influences that have shaped this album. Bits of the New York Dolls, The Beatles, scratchy punk like The Skids, Coxo's garage rock hero Billy Childish, even touches of slide guitar and muffled blues at one point. All wholeheartedly orthodox. But with those familiar standards and melodies comes an energy that's severely lacking in any of Damon's recent projects. This album may well be Damon's theory proved once and for all, but it's also proof that his theory doesn't necessarily make for the best music.
All of which goes someway to explaining the strangely mixed feelings "Happiness In Magazines" elicits. It's not original or slyly crafted enough - a couple of songs could definitely have benefited from a quick edit from Damon - to feel truly classic, but it has a charm and a vibrancy that's impossible to resist. If the word 'sweet' could be rescued from the lexicon of faint praise to become an actual virtue, then here's where we'll use it. From Graham's hugely improved vocals to the offhand melodies and often extremely cute choruses, this album is 'sweet' through and through.
You'll know the singles by now. For the rest, "No Good Time" could be "This Charmless Man" with some "Popscene" fire in its belly, a glorious sneer at Camden wankery. "Bottom Bunk" and "Don't Be A Stranger" sound like lost classic extra tracks from "Modern Life Is Rubbish". "Hopeless Friend" is just lovely, a Beatles-esque paean to friendship. "All Over Me" feels simple and beautiful, an acoustic string-tinged retelling of a near death moment that nods to "Waterloo Sunset". "Are You Ready" is spaghetti western melancholy. Both of these latter tracks point to talent starting to transcend its roots. Only the pointless Billy Childish tribute of "People Of The Earth" disappoints.
You have to wonder what Damon makes of these songs. He'll affect indifference or altruistic pride, of course, but you feel that the pop magpie inside him must be feeling a few pangs of envy. He'd have a magnificent time singing some of this album. Almost as good a time as Graham is having himself.
Ah, you know all that stuff about this album feeling too orthodox to be classic? Scratch that. "Happiness In Magazines" is an awkward, canny, endearing, heartwarming introduction to a talent who's finally managed to pull himself together to do this all properly.
