• Lee Gallagher and The Hallelujah Portend Bright Future on ‘L.A. Yesterday’

    Artist:
    Album:
    Jim Shahen Posted On December 2, 2020
    0


    EDITOR’S NOTE: As album releases slow down in December, we like to catch our breath and write about albums that came out earlier in the year that we didn’t get a chance to review. L.A. Yesterday was released in July.

     

    In recent years, there’s been a surge in acts looking to evoke the sound and style of the Laurel Canyon folk-and-rock scene of the late ’60s and early ’70s. Lee Gallagher is one of the latest to draw inspiration from that era and incorporate it into his own work with backing band The Hallelujah.

    Gallagher released L.A. Yesterday, his second full-length album, in July. The mix of spacey blues-rock and those Laurel Canyon influences, combined with Gallagher’s incredible voice, put the LP in constant rotation on this reviewer’s turntable all summer.

    On his eponymous 2015 debut, Gallagher presented himself as an intriguing talent, with a voice that comes across as a hybrid of Humble Pie-era Steve Marriott and Perry Farrell of Jane’s Addiction and an eclectic musical style that was still a work-in-progress. With L.A. Yesterday he makes significant strides as a songwriter and offers up 10 sturdy songs that call back to familiar sounds and feel fresh, rather than referential.

    Gallagher shows a knack composing for lush, midtempo tracks that provide a nice backdrop for his voice.  On songs like “Goodnight Sweet Maria” and “Lullaby for the Acid Queen,” his vocals float over gorgeous melodies provided by pianist/Hammond organ player Kirby Hammel to create a dramatic, dynamic sound.

     

     

    “California Divide” is a crunchy rocker that allows Gallagher to switch from crooner to belter. Guitarist Jason Soda offers up some tasty lead work and Gallagher’s aforementioned echoes of Steve Marriott really shine through. “Astral Plane Views” travels on similar blues-rock terrain, but its melody is jammier and offers up the potential to be a live showstopper.

    While Gallagher’s first album kind of struggled to find a consistent tone, there’s a warmth and balance throughout L.A. Yesterday that makes for an enjoyable listen start to finish. From countryish fare to classic rock sounds and jam rock inclinations, Gallagher and The Hallelujah hit all the notes and hit them with no diminution in competency or quality.

    They have a promising future ahead and it’ll be a lot of fun to see where they go next.

     




    • ADVERTISEMENT

    • SPOTIFY PLAYLIST

    • SUBSCRIBE NOW


    Enjoy this article? Support No Depression.

    Help us continue to keep our web content free and accessible to all – without paywalls or invasive pop-up ads.

    Your support is important because it helps us cover our costs so that we can continue bringing you the independent music journalism you know and trust. Please consider subscribing or donating to No Depression now.

    You Might Also Like

    ALBUM REVIEW: Lee Gallagher Carves a Unique Niche on ‘The Falcon Ate the Flower’

    By Michael Elliott on November 1, 2023

    Lee Gallagher and the Hallelujah – Self-titled

    By Hyperbolium on February 11, 2015



    A Little Help Here?

    No Depression depends on reader support to bring you top-quality roots music journalism on our website and in our quarterly journals. Donations large and small are greatly appreciated, and will help us hit our goal of raising $15,000 by Dec. 31.

    Can you help us get there? Donate or subscribe using the buttons below. Thank you for your support!

    Please consider becoming a subscriber or providing a donation. With your help, No Depression can continue to grow and cover roots music the way it deserves.