Jose Gonzalez – ‘Veneer’ (Peacefrog) Released 16/01/06

Listening to Jose Gonzalez’ ‘Veneer’ serves to demonstrates just how much pizzazz and show  of one form or another  there is in almost all the music we consume, including much that is supposed to be ‘real’ and ‘stripped down.’   For ‘Veneer’ – an apt title – is the real deal when it comes to minimalism - an ephemeral and totally unassuming thing of some beauty.  Gonzalez is already quite a star in his native Sweden (the Latin-American name comes from Argentine parents) but hearing this album you could believe he’d just been picked from street-busking by some holidaying label exec.

This simplicity is there in the light brown CD case featuring a pencil drawing of an unidentifiable object on the front and a man at the foot of some kind of escalator on the back.  Its there in the song titles –simple single words almost all – ‘Remain, ’ ‘Crosses,’ ‘Lovestain’,’ Broken Arrow’ – all eleven just written next to each as the track listing -   they could be one Arctic Monkeys track.  The quiet, folkie songs contained within are built solely from acoustic guitar, drums and vocals performed entirely by Mr Gonzalez.  They are sparse sketches of moods and feelings, sliding by generally no more than two minutes in length.   Gentle and sweetly sung they reveal their individual personalities slowly, like animals rather than walking, talking, shouting people.  That’s not to say they sound like unfinished demos, they do appear as fully formed songs, it’s clear Gonzalez has deliberately made them so. 

The songs are generally slow ballads though ‘Remain’ and ‘Deadweight on Velveteen’ feature slightly more rhythmic bluesy guitar parts and thus fashion a more edgy p j Harvey –esque  sound.   ‘Heartbeats’  will already be known as the one released into the charts having originally featured in that colourful cinema advert which featured all the big bouncing balls flying around San Francisco a city.  It still sounds like an unlikely commercial or alternative success to this writer.   Not because it isn’t a very beautiful song but simply because once again it’s as light and soft as cotton.  ‘Heatbeats’ is certainly the stand out track and interestingly it’s the only one here that wasn’t written by Gonzalez (it was originally done by fellow Swedes the Knife and was an electro-pop track)   Fans of the song will enjoy the final suite of three songs on the album – ‘Hints’ ‘Stay in the shade’ and ‘Broken Arrow’ – which have the same melodic shimmer and beauty.   The rest of the album doesn’t reach such heights  often enough to make this any kind of classic but nevertheless it’s an honest, untainted body of work which maintains an atmosphere all of its own throughout.