Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
If it doesn’t hurt anyone, then what is the problem…for the Guilty Pleasures that take root in our hearts are there to remind us that we our human, that for some the scent of the aromatic is as highly erotic as others who just take gratification in the sound of the guitar and imagine kissing it for all its worth. Pleasure is what brings us together, guilt can either carry us down to the point of destruction or if we are fortunate can elevate us to a different kind of bliss; we will still feel the weight of responsibility of what we have done but we do it knowing we do it over and over again because it feels right.
Guilty Pleasures, the new album from GUN carries no remorse for reminding the listener of that fun fact, it revels in the complex simplicity of the satisfaction that the heart and head require to feel alive and as each track makes its way into the world, all that can happen is the smile of the age beams with the security that gratification can bring, the release of the weapon, the cordite in the air, guilt free and raring to be played again.
Opening up with the meaty She Knows, an allusion perhaps to the temptation in the open and non-secret relationship, GUN don’t just offer amusement, the delight in sharing in your wicked games and desires, they offer a further journey down the rabbit hole and the bonus of no clock ticking, no hurry, just the leisurely pursuit of looking down the barrel and praying for nothing empty in the musical chamber.
With the tracks Take Me Down, Silent Lovers, the immensity of thought and regret in Tragic Heroes and Go To Hell; GUN have everything under control, they know the pleasure is all combining at the senses of the listener and that the appreciation for the album is sincere.
If it don’t hurt then what is the problem, sometimes life is taken so seriously that we forget, perhaps even conveniently, that we are meant to be here to enjoy the time available; always a pleasure and never one of guilt or sly innuendo to the meaning that you shouldn’t like, this is the pleasure you can have and feel it with a sense of ecstasy in your mind.
GUN’s Guilty Pleasures is released on September 15th.
Ian D. Hall