Gnarls Barkley : Atlanta

Mid-2000s were a wild time in indie/alternative rock. You could hit up some Shins in the morning, some Gogol Bordello in the afternoon, then cozy up to some Dirty Projectors in the evening. Can’t sleep? Then put some Regina Spector in your ears and head off to dream land. There was not a vibe that wasn’t being utilized, nor an eccentricity not being used to full capacity. It was a wild time.

Amidst all of that Goodie Mob’s Cee-Lo Green and ultra-hip producer Danger Mouse(aka Brian Burton) got together for a groovy slice of hip hop production and super soulful vocals via Green. The result was two albums, St. Elsewhere(2006) and The Odd Couple(2008). The soulful melodies and super sleek production were just what the Midwestern rural mall rats were waiting for, and for a moment Gnarls Barkley were the talk of the town. Plus, with a super smash hit like “Crazy” they were at least promised some longevity in a prickly world like 2000s modern rock radio.

But things don’t last forever, so Burton and Green put Gnarls Barkley on ice in 2008 and resumed solo careers and lucrative producing jobs like Beck, The Black Keys as well as Burton’s new project Broken Bells with The Shins’ James Mercer. But out of the blue 18 years after the last Gnarls Barkley album we have the third and final record called Atlanta. They don’t seem to have missed a step as Atlanta sounds like it could have come out in 2010 and been a proper follow-up. That also means that nothing has changed or evolved. It’s 44-minutes and 13 songs of what we’ve heard before. Take from that what you will.

Highlights would be “Line Dance”, which seems to borrow heavily from the great Joe Tex for some funky soul jams. “Let Me Be” is a lovely R&B slow jam that stays buttery smooth throughout. “The Be Be King” has Cee-Lo Green going 100-miles per hour spitting words in record levels. And “Accept It” has a heavy Quincy Jones 80s vibe. You could hear Michael Jackson doing something interesting with it.

The rest you’ve heard before. 18 years ago. Nothing is bad here, it’s perfectly acceptable. But I’d rather just revisit St. Elsewhere. Or just listen to someone like Thundercat who’s doing the Gnarls thing far better. But I wouldn’t blame you for giving Atlanta a spin.