Aqualung's New Album "Memory Man" (2007)

When singer/songwriter Matt Hales was asked why he chose to go by the pseudonym of Aqualung he answered, “Being called 'Matt Hales' seemed a bit limited, a bit too 'singer-songwritery.” I liked the idea of a more enigmatic name for the project that generated less explicit musical expectations.” And he certainly has delivered a variety of sounds on his album. While the first few songs, such as Cinderella and Pressure Suit, have a very broad pop appeal, the genius behind the album comes towards the middle of the album with such songs as Rolls So Deep, The Lake, and Black Hole.

The album originally was going to have an outer space feeling, but Hales, a new father and husband, felt that this general theme did reflect his current surroundings. Hales does note, however, that “if you know it was there, you can find it. It's like a space ship that explodes with fragments all on the ground. Some of those fragments are identifiable as being part of that original space travel concept.” But it does provide a nice contrast. There is a certain degree of hope in the music, but the album does not deny the many problems that are going on in the world.

In Hales words, “You know, I have a son now. I mean, his world is the one that we're currently fucking. And this record is to some extent defined by that.”

The real power behind the record is the imagery that is evoked by a combination of powerful lyrics and creative sounds layered on a usually simple melody. Listening to The Lake evokes not only the feeling of being at a lake, but a feeling that it is night and a bit scary. The song Rolls So Deep evokes feelings of thunder and lightning. There is a powerful amount of hope in the lyrics, but not overly hopeful or a false tinsely hope.

This album gets a thumbs up.