Single Review: Damon Albarn - 'Everyday Robots' (2014)

The first, highly anticipated release from jack-of-all-trades 90s icon and Gorillaz mastermind Damon Albarn's solo album is a distinctly underwhelming offering. The monotonous rhythm and melody is, in theory at least, a clever way to represent the songs subject matter - but in practise is morose and repetitive. Similarly, the songs message is (too) clearly intended as a satirical take on our reliance on technology and the 9-5 rat-race; but lacks the biting, insightful social commentary he demonstrated with 'The Universal', 'Coffee and TV' or 'Chemical World' back in his Blur days. This makes it an even more bewildering choice for a lead single, but given Albarn's fame, fanbase and the anticipation ahead of his debut album, this isn't an album that needs a particularly substantial marketing campaign. It's just a shame then, that Albarn's first offering as a solo performer is such a tired, uninspired, monotonous ode to monotony.

4/10

LISTEN: Damon Albarn, 'Everyday Robots'

Single Review: Beck - 'Gimme' (2013)

The final of 3 standalone singles released across 2013, 'Gimme' finds Beck in progressive, experimental form. Set to pulsating beats and a flowing, morphing rhythm, the song is layered with synthasised, looped vocals and playful xylophone melodies, which gradually build until the ambient crescendo of the closing 30 seconds. Together, it all combines to ghostly, ethereal effect, the chopped and sampled vocals swirling eerily around the progressive beats and the drifting, shifting rhythm. After previous offerings 'Defriended' and 'I Won't Be Long', it all makes for extremely promising stuff ahead of the upcoming rumored releases of two new, full-length LPs.

7/10

LISTEN: Beck, 'Gimme'

Good Times, Bad Times: How do you solve a problem like David Moyes?

Good Times, Bad Times: How do you solve a problem like David Moyes?

   When David Moyes was announced as Alex Ferguson's hand-picked successor back in July, it's fair to say no-one expected a seamless transition, with the passing of the baton from one Glaswegian to another. But it is also fair to say no-one quite expected the 'sinking ship' scenario Moyes and United now find themselves in, or to have seemingly declined so far, so quickly.

   However, the reality of the situation is a team who stormed to the league title by an 11 point margin find themselves adrift in 7th at the start of the new year (and ironically, behind leaders Arsenal by 11 points), out of the FA Cup at the first hurdle, and having endured their worst start to a season for quite some time. While there are positives in the team's surprisingly assured and comfortable progress in the Champions League and the upcoming League Cup semi-final against Sunderland, it is the latter that represents United's only real chance of major silverware this season - and in truth is a competition the countries bigger clubs generally regard with indifference at best.

For Moyes, United and their fans, it is a worrying predicament, and it is arguable that at a number of their rivals (Chelsea, Spurs spring to mind, and to a lesser extent City and Liverpool) David Moyes would now be at serious risk of losing his job. But under United's hierarchy, and Ferguson and Bobby Charlton in particular, it is generally assumed Moyes is at no such risk and will be given at least the season to turn things around. However, herein lies one of the many problems David Moyes faces so long as he manages United, and arguably one of his biggest - the ever looming shadow of Sir Alex Ferguson. Arriving at Old Trafford through Sir Alex Ferguson Way, past the proud, bronze statue that stands outside the stadium, and taking his seat in the dugout opposite 'The Alex Ferguson Stand', it is easy to sympathise with Moyes, and the relentless haunting he endures of his predecessors achievements and legacy. Then to top it all off, the icing on this unwanted cake comes in the form of the man himself: Sir Alex Ferguson.

Attending almost every game, sat up in the Gods, watching over his title winning team dropping points like they were contagious, and remaining at the club working behind the scenes as a director. However unintentional this interference may be, the sheer presence of Ferguson in and around Old Trafford is problematic to the say the least and extremely undermining for Moyes, particularly in his attempts to stamp his authority and identity on what is still an almost entirely Ferguson-inherited team, and echoes the changeover from Sir Matt Busby to Wilf McGuinness back in the 60s, from Dalglish to Souness in the 90s, or more recently, every manager that followed Jose Mourinho's first spell at Chelsea after his 2007 departure. Moreover, Ferguson himself is also culpable in part for United's current decline. The latter years of his tenure were littered with significant mistakes - his stubborn refusal to permit youth product Paul Pogba playing time eventually led to the talented youngster quitting Old Trafford for Juventus, where he has since blossomed into one of the best young midfielders in Europe. Similarly his failure to strengthen the midfield, something the club has needed direly for some time, is a lapse of judgement that is proving more costly with each passing game. It could even be argued that despite the unquestionable position of power he held at Old Trafford, he should not have been allowed to make a decision as big as hand picking his own successor. But for many United fans, the sympathy for Moyes ends when you consider a number of his more self-inflicted problems - of which there are numerous.

One blueprint of Moyes reign has become very obvious and very quickly - his stubbornness as a manager. Whether it be his persistence with the rigid, 4-4-2 formation, continually playing players out of position such as Chris Smalling at right back, Phil Jones in centre midfield or again at right back, Danny Welbeck and Shinji Kagawa at left wing (or Ashley Young on a football pitch), frequently giving game time to players as hopelessly out of form as Antonio Valencia, Tom Cleverley or Ryan Giggs while leaving the likes of Javier Hernandez, Fabio and Wilfried Zaha to stagnate on the bench there is both a cautiousness and stubbornness that has become a trademark of Moyes time in charge. There are numerous examples this season of United taking a lead in games, but the relentless, predatory search for further goals to kill off the opposition that had become the norm of every United side for the past two decades has been replaced by a cautious need to protect any advantage through a defensive, pragmatic approach - where Wayne Rooney was once taken off and replaced by a Javier Hernandez, he is now replaced by a Phil Jones. Similarly, squad rotation had always been an important part of Ferguson's time at the helm, and fans took comfort knowing (or trusting he knew) his strongest 11 - seven months in charge and there is still no feeling Moyes has such trust in his own side, and by continuing to, at various extents, neglect talents such as Javier Hernandez, Shinji Kagawa and particularly Wilfried Zaha, it appears Moyes skills at squad rotation are similarly lacking. And there is another, perhaps less obvious decision and one of his first major calls as United boss, that appears more costly with each point lost.

Moyes decision to dispense with assistant Mike Phelan, first team coach Rene Meulensteen and goalkeeping coach Eric Steele, and then replace them with Steve Round, Jimmy Lumsden and Phil Neville appears a risky gamble that is currently backfiring, abandoning the continuity of seasoned winners for trusted but as yet unaccomplished replacements. The loss of Meulensteen and Steele is said to have hit United, or to be specific, United's players, particularly hard. Goalkeeping coach Steele was accredited with David de Gea's transformation from a mistake waiting to happen into arguably the league's best goalkeeper. Such was his commitment to the 23 year old that Steele is believed to have been learning Spanish in an effort to help ease de Gea's rumoured homesickness, and aid the inevitable communication problems. Meulensteen was thought to have been a popular figure among the players, particularly for United's talisman Robin van Persie, and is similarly highly rated among coaches and managers. But most important is the experience Ferguson's staff brought to the dressing room; and not to mention the numerous trophies they had played their part in winning under his mangement. Moyes' decision to release these coaches ties in with his stubbornness, and perhaps hints at naivety, as Steele revealed in an interview with fanzine United We Stand:

'He listened to the manager's [Ferguson] advice but he wanted to be his own man.
'I didn't want to leave. Why would I? ...'You had the United perspective - the manager saying: "Keep what we've got, keep the continuity, work with them and they'll guide you through".

   With all that said and done, it must be stressed that Moyes is not a bad manager - far from it. The progress he made during his 11 years on Merseyside cannot be so easily overlooked - he set the groundwork for Everton's current success, in spite of Roberto Martinez being flavour of the month among the media and fans, and his Everton team in particularly good form. He did an outstanding job in dragging the team he inherited, floundering at the bottom of the league, to the upper reaches of the table, and kept them there and punching above their weight for the entirety of his tenure. It should not be forgotten that it was this very job that saw him touted as Ferguson's successor well before his eventual appointment, and as such he deserves his chance at one of the world’s biggest clubs - and above all he deserves time.

   By that same token, this United team are not a bad side - but neither are they a great one. Moyes has inherited a talented squad with significant weaknesses to be addressed; weaknesses his legendary predecessor failed to do so. A side that can boast the names van Persie, Rooney, de Gea, Januzaj and Carrick (to name but a few) cannot be written off so easily. Under Moyes, Rafael has continued to grow into a reliable and talented right back, Adnan Januzaj has emerged as one of the most exciting and promising prospects since Cristiano Ronaldo, and Danny Welbeck is beginning to prove many of the clubs fans right in their beliefs that beneath the 'Bambi on ice' impressions and erratic, inconsistent finishing lurks a talented and technically gifted striker. And the clubs lone major signing of a disastrous summer transfer window Marouane Fellaini remains in spite of current, fickle opinion, a good player, and may yet prove to be the midfield powerhouse United need to challenge the likes of City's Yaya Toure - the kind they have lacked since the departure of Roy Keane. If Moyes can get the best out of this team like he has a revitalised Wayne Rooney, there is no reason his United side cannot challenge on the domestic front in the coming seasons.

   However, there is one point must be underlined above all others - if anything is to be salvaged from this season, and to protect the immediate future of the club, David Moyes needs significant backing in this months transfer window - and quickly. He also needs the support of the clubs staff, fans and crucially, its players. But while United's current faith in their manager is a refreshing change from the 'hire and fire' approach that is all too common among Premier League boardrooms, they cannot afford to stick and decline by Moyes through blind loyalty if the club's fortunes continue to fall so rapidly. The 6 years Ferguson spent in the wilderness before his maiden success is not a luxury Moyes or United have in the modern game, in spite of the length of the contract he was awarded.

Unfortunately for both Manchester United and David Moyes, the clock is ticking.