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In addition to being a much-acclaimed recording artist and multimedia renaissance man, Michael Shelley is a true believer who's acutely aware of a catchy, perfectly crafted pop songs capacity for conveying human truths both small and profound. The New York-bred singer/songwriters four solo albums the latest of which is Goodbye Cheater have been widely praised, both at home and abroad. In Britain, Q magazine observed, "When Michael Shelley's puppy-dog vocals click against his poppy melodies and bemused lyrics about lost love, he sounds like Nick Lowe fronting The Replacements," while Mojo noted that Shelley "wryly celebrates love and loss with tongue placed firmly in cheek and Telecaster turned up to 11." Stateside praise has been equally effusive. The Onion stated that "Shelley finds common ground between teen angst and grown-up heartbreak." No Depression wrote, "Proving wisdom and whimsy can coexist in the same two-and-a-half-minute-roots-pop excursion, Shelley's writing strikes the correct balance between conversational and clever. His adventures feel like your adventures presuming that you've survived first loves, sunburns and faulty relationships." The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette opined that Shelley "writes about relationships with intelligence, wit and a Beatlesque way with a hook that puts the singer in a class with only the best of the new pop revivalists." In the years since the release of his much-loved 1997 debut Half Empty (which Bucket Full Of Brains called "A non-stop joy... the sort of album you'll treasure for a lifetime"), Shelley has recorded and performed with members of Belle and Sebastian, Baby Lemonade and the Smithereens, and won over live audiences in the U.K., Spain and Japan. With longtime admirer Francis Macdonald of Teenage Fanclub/BMX Bandits fame, Shelley formed the transatlantic supergroup Cheeky Monkey, whose lone album Eight Arms to Hold You is now regarded by many as a cult classic. When hes not writing witty, deeply-felt pop songs, Shelley can be heard spinning classic pop, rock and country platters and cracking wise as DJ on legendary freeform station WFMU, or scouting talent for his indie label Confidential Recordings, whose catalogue includes new and old music by the likes of Shonen Knife, They Might Be Giants, Yo La Tengo, the Waco Brothers and the Wildweeds. Goodbye Cheater offers ample evidence of Shelley's singular songcraft, and of his savvy taste in collaborators. The 14-song album, recorded in a marathon two-day session with producer Bryce Goggin (Pavement, Apples In Stereo), features an all-star musical cast that includes celebrated roots chanteuse Laura Cantrell, noted guitarist Jon Graboff (Ryan Adams, Amy Rigby) and legendary drummer Steve Goulding (Mekons, Graham Parker and the Rumour). |