A+E: Deluxe

Once again Graham has managed to knock out another great album. I particularly like track 7, which I cannot stop listening to. Graham Coxon is a fabulous artist. I discovered his solo playing when he opened for the Kaiser Chiefs at Ally Pally a few years ago. I have been a follower ever since. I wish he would come play in the USA. Keep on producing the albums Graham!

I enjoy listening to this album very much. I like the angst vibe of "Advice" and the experimentation of some of the other tracks. This album also demonstrates Coxon's different abilities. He's brilliant as expected.

I was a big fan of Blur's earlier stuff (I always thought Modern Life is Rubbish was their best album, mostly because of Coxon's guitar work) and moderately enjoyed some of his solo work, especially some of the songs on Happiness in Magazines and Love Travels at Illegal Speeds. I'd noticed he'd done some folksy stuff and his previous solo album didn't do much for me so I kind of lost interest over the years. I streamed this album on a lark, not expecting much. I was in for a pleasant surprise. This album starts out with a fairly standard Coxon rocker, Advice. So far so good, right up there with his best solo stuff. But then the album really kicks in with City Hall. I'm a big fan of quasi krautrock bands like Wooden Shjips/Moon Duo and was instantly hooked by City Hall and much of what followed. There's a lot of hypnotic beats and guitar driven melodies with some excellent quirky keyboards and even sax thrown in for good measure. I'd always thought Damon Albarn was the guy behind Blur's quirkier side but obviously Coxon has a great sense of humor that really shines through on this album. I can't help but smile every time I listen to Meet + Drink + Pollinate. Seven Naked Valleys is another huge standout. This album's got a kind of rough and scratchy hard edge that really sounds great combined with Coxon's quirky sense of humor and the neo-krautrock vibe. Very original sounding and catchy but maybe not for everyone but I've been playing it a lot more than any of his other solo stuff and loving it. Sad that it remains an import and there's not much of a market for music like this in the states.

I love Graham Coxon and out of all his solo records this is my favorite since "Happiness in Magazines". I only wish it had more then 10 songs.

Excellent album.

Finally, after a good folk-rock album and a polished power pop album, Graham has returned to distorted guitars, raw energy and an off-kilter sensibility. Overall the album sounds like the Graham Coxon and Paul Weller collaboration from 2007, Each New Morning, which I loved. It's sort of like the Golden D, except with some quasi-Krautrock beats and cheap keyboards added to the mix. While many of the songs are repetitive, it is still a great listen. A must have for fans of Graham Coxon's guitar work. One of the most underated guitarists that came out of the 90s.

Graham Coxon est un artiste : guitariste, soit, mais dessinateur, photographe et, donc, un musicien génial. On peut même s'aventurer à dire que Blur c'est surtout lui (et Damon Albarn). Une chanson de Blur sans le toucher de Graham c'est (presque, faut pas pousser non plus !) fade. Toute cette introduction pour annoncer A+E comme un bien bel album' Si A+E pouvait être rapproché d'un autre album, la filiation serait sans aucun doute BLUR (l'album). "Advice", titre d'ouverture, est du pur indie rock et très punky. Dans la foulée "City Hall" appuie sur la fibre noisy avec une belle ligne de basse. Mais Coxon produit alors "What'll it Take", véritable chanson pour soulever une foule, avec certes des paroles basiques. Surgit alors le tournant de l'album' "The Truth" est un assemblage noisy avec une basse et un beat entêtants. Le virage amorcé atteint quasiment le sommet avec "Running For Your Life" qui m'a fait penser à la B.O de Trainspotting. "Knife in the Cast" est sombre, beau, inventif et à la limite de l'ensorcellement mental avec ce petit son noisy qui lui sied si bien. Personnellement, je suis tombée amoureuse immédiatement. 6:35 de bonheur. A+E est donc un excellent album qui démontre toutes les possibilités de « l'un des meilleurs guitaristes de sa génération » (dixit Jonny Greenwood et Noël Gallagher)

Chi acquista un CD di Graham Coxon, non lo fa sicuramente per le sue doti vocali...si sa che non è la sua qualità principale. Lavoro ben realizzato e ben suonato, nel complesso in linea con la sua produzione e con qualche spunto di originalità in più rispetto ad alcuni lavori precedenti.

This album will instantly become your favourite... So catchy - it grabs your attention. Can't believe 'A + E' went under the radar for so long. It's a travesty as Coxon is amazing. I'll defo look for more of his solo albums. Also, John at Leicester, provided TOP customer service. I'll order from Music Merchant again.

Irgendwie war klar, dass nach der Folk-Pop-Einlage auf The Spinning Top" die Zeit für Graham Coxon gekommen war, sich mal wieder neu zu erfinden. Konseqenterweise verzichtet einer der begnadetsten Gitarristen unserer Zeit daher auch wesentlich darauf, seine aktuellen Soundgerüste auf virtuosem Gitarrenspiel aufzubauen, was für mich als Anbeter der "Kiss of Morning" zunächst eine erste Enttäuschung in sich barg. Immer noch da ist irgendwie der melodiöse Trashpop mit verzerrten Gitarren, dieser präsentiert sich jedoch in Form eines Industrial Sounds der zusätzlich überlagert wird von elektronischen Störgeräuschen, die stark an die fragmentierten Soundcollagen von William Orbit auf blurs 13 erinnern. Dazu gibts vereinzelt Vocoder-Gesang, verfremdete Bläser, Saxofoneinlagen, verzerrte Bassläufe und ne Menge Drum Machines. Insgesamt eine phantastische Platte, die sich im Zugang zunächst ziemlich sperrig darbietet, trotz Ihrer grundlegend verschiedenartigen musikalischen Ansätze von Punk, Psychedelik bis Industrial und Elektropop aber letzlich ein vollkommen harmonisches Gesamtbild bietet, dass immer und überall nur nach Graham Coxon klingt. Überflüssig zu sagen, dass das mit Mainstream soviel zu tun hat wie Britpop mit Lana del Rey. Großartig!! Viereinhalb Sterne!

Graham Coxonは言わずと知れたBLURのギタリスト。しかし同バント以外の活動も豊富な個人的にも独立した音楽家だ。 BLUR以外の作品群は以下のとおり ・The Waeve（2022）デュオ 英国民族音楽風 Massive Attackみたいな曲あり ・A+E（2012）ソロ【本作】 グランジ-オルタナティブ風 「へんてこな感じ」狙い --BLUR復帰（2009） ・The Spinning Top（2009）ソロ Beatles白盤を彷彿とさせる 突出してアコースティック --Damonと和解（2008） ・Love Travels at Illegal Speeds（2006）ソロ オーソドックなロック ・Happiness in Magazines（2004）ソロ オーソドックなロック --BLUR脱退（2003） ・The Kiss of Morning（2002）ソロ 独自性があり全体的にまとまっている Syd Barrettみたいな曲あり ・Crow Sit on Blood Tree（2001）ソロ フォーク叙事詩 本作までは全パートを自身で担当 ・The Golden D（2000）ソロ 時々ヘビメタ、時々ホーン付アンサンブル、ヒップホップも ・The Sky is too High（1998）ソロ アコースティック、英国民族音楽風 基本的に、「ポップ路線」とは一線を画す。しかし、個人的ミュージシャン・エゴで奏効しているのは「英国民族音楽風」だけかな。その意味で直近のWaeveのデュオ活動は正しい路線と言える。 ギタリストとしては、派閥性を超えJonny Greenwood（Radiohead）やNoel Gallagher（Oasis）、さらにはPhil Manzanera（RoxyMusic）にもリスペクトされているらしい（これは凄い）。 また、アルバム・ジャケットのアートワークは本人作。優れたものが多い。 ロンドン大ゴールドスミス・カレッジのファイン・アート（商業デザインではなく純アート）専攻なので、そういうことも出来てしまう。 マルチでスペシャルな才人です。