aaamusic | On 12, Feb 2011

Ah, Valentines Day. That celebration of saccharine sweetness and pointlessly expensive pink card that is either overplayed or downright maligned. What about the lovelorn netherworld in between? Well, you have the powerpop stylings of Liam Dullaghan to ease you through your day.

‘I’m Just Fucked Without You’ is a cut of forlorn sunshine that echoes Grandaddy’s ridiculously cheerful yet melancholy indie pop rock combined with whatever chart band you may wish to insert here. Bombay Bicycle Club’s first album, perhaps? The sleek organ keyboards blend seamlessly with bouncy guitar chords, and Dullaghan’s smooth, intimate croon. The whole affair is dogged by the immortal pop standby of unrequited love, adding a squall to the jangling guitar and a downbeat tone to the vocals that just stops it all getting diabeties-inducingly syrupy.

Track two is the much, much more romanticised acoustic number, ‘For Every Heart An Arrow’. Here, we have Liam Dullaghan quietly fingerpicking a mournful melody, his softly tuneful voice a tender whisper, and in the background we have a hushed section of what is presumably heartstrings being played. This is a polar opposite in approach to its predecessor, switching down to the quietest ballad, yet unrequited love is still the order of the day, from first twang to last fading cadence.

It has to be said, kudos where they’re due, Liam Dullaghan is in possession of a rather beautiful and soulful voice, and yes, criticising the influx of singer-songwriters is like shooting fish in a barrel. But the songwriting on offer sounds like, well, everyone else out there. The clichés are well-played but at the end of the day I can’t help but feel like I’ve heard it all before.

However, for anyone who either wants a soundtrack to a montage of sitting home alone wrapped in their Snuggie, or maybe as something to give to a far less cynical individual as a token of unspoken affection, both songs are available for free here:

http://liamdullaghan.tumblr.com/

Author: Katie H-Halinski