SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: GALEN & PAUL – CAN WE DO TOMORROW ANOTHER DAY?

Galen & Paul
Can We Do Tomorrow Another Day?
Sony Music

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Galen Ayers has joined Paul Simonon for their debut collaborative record, Can We Do Tomorrow Another Day?.  Simonon is most famously known as the bassist for The Clash and the man smashing a guitar on London Calling, arguably among the most iconic of album art.  Following the release of a trio of singles, the album is a collection of 10 songs that refuse to be categorized by conventional genres.

Can We Do Tomorrow Another Day? opens with the acoustic reggae of “Lonely Town”. The song feels like a summer breeze subtly flowing through your window with the slightest cinematic edge that feels as though the song should be used in a trailer for the next Wes Anderson film. The opening song is quirky, with a thick steel-string acoustic guitar, along with Simonon and Ayer’s harmonized vocals leading the way, supported by the slightest rhythmic keys and a brief trumpet solo. This contrasts nicely with the soft swing of “It’s Another Night”, a song that brings the slightest hint of classic new wave tone to the singer-songwriter style that is at the centre of Galen & Paul.

The brilliance found on Can We Do Tomorrow Another Day? is found within its simplicity. Ideas are almost introduced one at a time as songs start off sparse and organically grow to include numerous instruments and rhythmic figures. There is an ease that drifts through each song that is unlike much else. It is because of this that Ayers and Simonon’s vocal harmonizing shines for their contrasting tones – the former soft with the latter slightly gruff – and sharp lyrics. Among the 10 songs, “Hacia Arriba”, “Room At The Top”, “I’ve Never Had A Good Time… In Paris”, and “Esmeralda” are definite highlights that speak to the songwriting and performance that make Can We Do Tomorrow Another Day? a special record.

By all means, this is both simultaneously a singer-songwriter record, just as it is not. The stripped-down nature of the duo’s songwriting, along with their gentle and minimal instrumentation and stellar use of vocal harmonies, leads you to believe that Can We Do Tomorrow Another Day? would feel at home within the confines of a coffee shop. This stands true; however, there is a level of strangeness that pulls the listener into the deep end with the slightest amount of eeriness, hinting at something else entirely. As a result, Galen & Paul have delivered an experimental take on the singer-songwriter genre while pushing it towards its alternative boundaries on Can We Do Tomorrow Another Day?.

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