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Liquid Skin | 
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| Artist: Gomez
Label: Virgin Records Us
Category: Music
List Price: $16.98
Buy Used: $0.99
You Save: $15.99 (94%)
New (37) Used (45) Collectible (2) from $0.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  82 reviews
Sales Rank: 26468
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 48218
UPC: 724384821821
EAN: 0724384821821
ASIN: B00001IVIU
Publication Date: 1999
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
| • | Hangover | | • | Revolutionary Kind | | • | Bring It On | | • | Blue Moon Rising | | • | Las Vegas Dealer | | • | We Haven't Turned Around | | • | Fill My Cup | | • | Rhythm & Blues Alibi | | • | Rosalita | | • | California | | • | Devil Will Ride |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Start with Eddie Vedder's wobbly yowl, add a dose of Pink Floyd-era psychedelics and rootsy slide guitar, then top it off with Beck-like aural treatments, and you get England's critically acclaimed Gomez. Liquid Skin is more forward-looking and a bit less bluesy than its 1998 predecessor, with murky electronic textures and filtered drum machines lurking beneath the melodic surface. The group continues to wear their inspirations on their sleeves at times. "We Haven't Turned Around" sounds like Pearl Jam on a trip to the Dark Side of the Moon, while "Bring It On" cops a groove directly from Bob Marley's "Lively Up Yourself." But unlike too many of its British contemporaries, Gomez seems intent on fusing their classic and contemporary influences into an original sound that will wear well over time. --Rick Mitchell
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| Customer Reviews: Read 77 more reviews...
 Brilliant October 7, 2007
I dig almost every track on this CD. There is a great diversity of melody, composition, and general sound. It is my favorite album by this artist and would highly recommend it.
 Only slight sophomore slump March 4, 2006
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
When I initially got a hold of Gomez's second album, it was after a solid year of listening to their debut Bring It On almost every single day. In retrospect it's inevitable that Liquid Skin sounded like a disappointment at the time. Most of the tracks here are more pastiches than songs, as Gomez tries to blur their influences to the point where true originality comes out on the other end. In 2001 it seemed like overproduced mush, but time (and the iTunes shuffle feature) has been kind to Liquid Skin.
"We Haven't Turned Around" is kind of an obvious attempt to write an epic anthem on the scale of "You Can't Get Always Get What You Want" or the like; its string sections seem forced and it goes on for twice as long as it needs to. I much prefer the loopy "Strawberry Fields"-quoting version on the Gomez b-sides anthology Abandoned Shopping Trolley Hotline. Aside from that, the bulk of Liquid Skin is densely layered but ultimately rewarding.
"Las Vegas Dealer" transforms from a blues shuffle to a 6/8 carnival background. "Fill My Cup" marries Motorhead fuzz bass to an insistent, syncopated sing-songy guitar hook. "Blue Moon Rising" has a woozy, witch-doctor bassline and furious drumming from Gomez's secret weapon Olly Peacock. "Hangover" even manages to find a non-cliche application for electric sitar. The vocals, shared equally by gravelly-voiced Ben Ottewell, indie pinup Ian Ball, and the nondescript Tom Gray, find fewer easy hooks than on the debut but use the stylistic differences between the three to better effect. Nobody in Gomez writes particularly great lyrics, but that's sort of besides the point here.
If you've never heard the band before, I would certainly advise turning to Bring It On or the more recent Split the Difference as a primer. Liquid Skin is more of a grower, but in time you may well find it the home to your favorite Gomez song. I can listen to "Las Vegas Dealer" over and over again. If the idea of a jam band with no instrumental soloists appeals to you, you should definitely see them live as well.
Liquid Skin September 19, 2005
3 out of 14 found this review helpful
Gomez are a hard band to pin down, drawing their inspiration from far to many places to considered tradtional pop rock, yet not innovative or left field enough to fit into any sort of indie/underground grouping. Thats always left them as in a sort of no mans land of musical genres and despite having had some considerable meant they've never really broken through to the mainstream.
However the bands real problem on 'Liquid Skin' is the bands attitude not style. Drawning from mainly late sixties/early seventies roots, blues and psychadelic bands the mix is certaintly interesting. Blues guitars, a faint smattering of morricone lite/mariachi rhythms and horns, backed with electronic swirls and alternating smoothe/rough vocals the band certaintly has the ability to grab your attention. The problem they have is making you stay for repeat listenings. With the exception of a couple of tunes, most notably 'Rhythm & Blues Alibi' the songs on 'Liquid Skin' lack charisma and feeling. Everythings a big forced and controlled and Gomez never quite lets go and gives it all the passion they can muster. You get the feeling that if they'd just give full abandon to the music this would probably be a five star record. Sadly it isn't though its hopeful that one day they'll knock out an album that reveals their true potential.
All in all its only worth three stars, but still worth giving it at least one spin.
 Average musicians making average music November 27, 2004
5 out of 19 found this review helpful
I first heard the song Rosalita from a friend's mix CD and thought it was a decent little song. I gave the album a listen after reading all the rave reviews here. Maybe my expectations were just too high after reading all the praise, but I found this album unimpressive. The music is trite and uninteresting; not that it's bad, but it just lacks anything really that original. The lyrics are too heavy-handed and recycled at times. There are a few decent tunes on this album, but overall, it's average at best, IMO.
You WILL buy this album. February 19, 2004
14 out of 15 found this review helpful
You will buy Liquid Skin. You will then pop it into your CD player and turn it up too loud because Hangover starts our rather quiet. You will enjoy both Hangover and Revolutionary Kind. Then Bring It On will come on and you will finally start to get it. Next comes Blue Moon Rising that you will underrate at first, along with Las Vegas Dealer. Brace yourself, because We Haven't Turned Around is next, and it will blow you away. It might take until about halfway through the song when it comes back from a beautiful string interlude with slightly distorted guitars. Then comes Fill My Cup, the overdrive on the bass will intrigue you, but it will not really compare to the album version of Rhythm & Blues Alibi. Next comes Rosalita which can only be described as damn beautiful. California is rather long, but you will be too caught up in it to really notice. Last comes Devil Will Ride, which should just bring about a perfect end to one of the best albums in recent history. You will have just spent almost an hour of your life that you will wish you could get back to and relive, because it will never sound as awe-inspiring as that first time. You will eventually get to know the album like the back of your hand. It will play through your mind all the time, but it will never be able to surprise you as it did that first listen. And you will never be the same.
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