Gaz Coombes Is Still the Most Underappreciated Songwriter From the 90s Brit Pop Scene and His Latest, 'Turn the Car Around" Is a New Masterpiece

The Supergrass frontman is back with a lovely new record that is an early-year surprise.

I want to kick things off with an update for Mama Mañana Records - Mareas de Oro by Gold Tides is finally in stock! After UPS kicked the package full of tapes around for a few months and all hope was lost, it’s here.

Between the yellow and pink case and turquoise cassette, this thing will tickle your inner Lisa Frank, and it sounds damn good, to boot. You can grab it on Bandcamp or receive free shipping by replying to this email. At $10, Mareas de Oro is a steal for your collection.

There are also a few MMR t-shirts left, so let me know if you want to add one to your order. As a bundle with the Gold Tides tape, you can get a “White Sands” t-shirt for $15 or a “Desert Sunset” tie-dye for $20.

I appreciate your support of the label - all sales go towards paying for upcoming releases (and we’ve got some great things cooking!).

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There was one record last year I highly anticipated in which you never read the review, because it turned out to be a stinker - The Car by Arctic Monkeys. As a fan of the Sheffield group since their debut, I’ve gone along for the ride on everything, including Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, which turned off most fans (it may be my favorite AM album). The Car was the follow-up in which early singles indicated they continued further down the atmospheric lounge music path. Well, the thing came out and it was a snoozer. No matter how many spins, I didn’t click with The Car. Listen to something like “Jet Skis on a Moat” and let me know if your eyelids don’t hammer shut.

A few months later, Gaz Coombes is exploring a similar nocturnal cinematic palette, and this time around, it works brilliantly. Leave it up to the most underrated 90s Brit Pop scene songwriter to show how it’s done and figuratively Turn The Car Around.

As the frontman for Supergrass, Coombes has never been the loudmouthed tabloid figure the Gallagher brothers are, nor has his recording output been as prolific as Damon Albarn’s career with Blur and Gorillaz. But here’s the thing, Oasis stuck around long enough to drop some turds toward the end of their career, and I’ve been spotty at best with checking in on Gorillaz in the past decade. Never creating the same fuss, Supergrass has an almost flawless six-album catalog, from their mega introduction on I Should Coco to underappreciated latter days work in Road to Rouen and Diamond Hoo Ha. Coombes and Supergrass went their own ways while the music sounded fresh, save for some reunion dates here and there, and the three solo records from Coombs since the ‘grass’s disbandment are solid.

Turn The Car Around finds Coombes on a new level, though, leaving behind the rollicking snot-nosed days of being “Caught By the Fuzz” in favor of effervescent fully-fledged observations by someone who has lived a few lifetimes since the height of Brit Pop fever. “Overnight Trains” quietly creeps in on a cloud of piano chords before giving way to muscular guitar stabs, while “Don’t Say It’s Over” taps into a love song that demonstrates a sincere try at humanness that was absent in that new Arctic Monkeys record.

It’s easy to compare “Feel Loop (Lizard Dream)” to OK Computer-era Radiohead as vocally, Coombes channels Thom Yorke while adding Jonny Greenwood textures, but the song is funky quite funny. “Long Live the Strange” reels things back into classic Supergrass territory (and also features Loz Colbert of Ride on drums). The record’s most touching moment comes on “Not the Only Things,” a song written for Coombes's autistic daughter. It’s a lush folk number that swirls and hums while Coombes sings, “if I could hold you closer you could see, it’s cold out there and you’ve had your moments, but now you’re going strong,” with genuine tenderness.

Whether it’s the title track or the Bowie-esque grooving “This Love,” much of the record deals with a marriage’s transition from early excitement to navigating everyday domesticity, and Coombes is determined to sing his way out of the stagnation - it’s easy to find yourself rooting for him with this lovely record. Turn The Car Around and the record’s January release fits the mood perfectly, as it’s the kind of thoughtful singer-songwriter record that demands full attention while pushing through the itchy sweater months. Oh, and don’t forget your good headphones, thanks to co-producer Ian Davenport’s warm and inviting mix.

Give this one the time to digest, and hopefully, you’ll also find Turn The Car Around a pleasant early-year surprise. Welcome back, Gaz.

Turn The Car Around is available on Hot Fruit Recordings.