It's not unreasonable to suggest that
Carl Barât's sole aim in life is to prove himself more
successful than ex-bandmate Pete Doherty, and that's not too
difficult a feat to achieve. With an eager following of fans leftover
from The Libertines days, Carl Barât's side projects have always seen
steady, though not necessarily well-deserved, success. Barât's latest
attempt at justifying his musical significance is the simultaneous
release of a self-titled solo album and a book of his memoirs,
Threepenny Memoirs.

Neither Doherty nor Barât have anything
extraordinary to offer the world when working separately, and this
album is a testimony to that. Barât's hollow nasal voice resonates
violently amongst the instrumental choice for the album – soft
bells and whistles, melodic percussions, a couple of strings here and
there. His lyricism takes a stab at being fluffy and romantic but
ends up somewhat laughable, leading us all to question the legitimacy
of his musical abilities. All that aside, however, Barât's music
still manages to be catchy and to some extent, enjoyable.

Opening track 'The Magus' is
bass-heavy, ridden with bold drum beats and sweeping keyboards.
Barât's sharp English accent cuts deeply through the music, echoing
gracefully amongst the heavy beats. 'Je Regrette' is a tame
attempt at achieving musical recognition – the composition is messy
and inexperienced, and lyrically the song fails miserably (“Je
regrette, je regrette, I haven't had you yet”. Why, Carl, why?).
First single 'Run With the Boys' is catchy and memorable, a
hybrid of the old Dirty Pretty Things indie-rock, and Barât's new
softer, key-based, sound. 'So Long, My Lover' is a glistening
example of Barât redeeming himself for the album's musical mishaps –
a blissfuly melodic anthem, soaring with string and choral
accompaniments.

Carl Barât's official shedding of any
external pressures that may exist within a band (a.k.a going solo),
has thrown his talents into the spotlight to be judged and
scrutinised. His desire to express emotive substance within music is
admirable at the least, despite being incarnated in poorly worded
lyrics. His new approach at a more delicate musical style, loaded
with bells, keyboards, and brass instruments, was an attempt to mould
his music with the taste of today's listeners; but just further
proved his weaknesses when creating music alone. Whilst the album is
ridden with poor choices, and would have sounded better had he stuck
to his wrangly indie-rock roots, it is not ultimately awful. Success
outside the Libertines fanbase, however, is doubtful.

Rating: 6/10