Gaz Coombes will be well versed in the anxiety experienced when taking the leap from indie hedonist to serious stand alone artist. It’s a shift that many former Britpop stars have tried and failed at – from Liam Gallagher’s now defunct Beady Eye project to Rick Witter of Shed 7’s massively unreported sideline Rick Witter and the Dukes, not to mention Brett Anderson’s four chart-dodging solo albums.
Thankfully, the second solo offering from Coombes reaffirms his place as one of Britain’s greatest songwriters. Matador is a diverse affair and boasts of being able to incorporate Neu!, Disney musicals, Swedish psychedelicists Goat, Gyorgy Ligeti and the work of Brian Eno.
Self-produced and recorded in Coombes’ home studio and Courtyard Studios in Oxfordshire, Matador is out on 26 January, but you can listen to the stream of it in advance using the player below. Let us know what you make of it.
