Track Listing

1. Strange & Beautiful (I'll Put A Spell On You)
2. Falling Out Of Love
3. Good Times Gonna Come
4. If I Fall
5. Just For A Moment
6. Tongue-Tied
7. Can't Get You Out Of My Mind
8. Everything Changed
9. Gentle
10. Nowhere
11. Halfway To The Bottom

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #19610 in Music
• Released on: 2002-09-30
• Number of discs: 1

CD Description
Aqualung is the solo project of Southampton-born Matt Hales, former frontman of indie quartet, The 45s. 'Aqualung' was recorded in Hales' home studio and its lead track was featured on the 2002 VW Beetle TV/cinema ad campaign.

Customer Reviews

The best album that will never get to No 1
... I bought the album solely on the strength (or shall I say fragility?) of the single Strange & Beautiful. And I have to say, I was somewhat disappointed at first as all the songs seemed to be a variation on the same theme. But then, you don't spend a tenner on an album and then not give it a chance, so I kept listening to it and soon discovered that it's one of those albums that gets better every time.
The lyrics are absolutely gorgeous, and the music is hauntingly beautiful. There are no obvious standout tracks, which is arguably a weakness, but it also means that the whole thing is consistently good, and you can listen to it without ever touching the skip button.
In any case, I would definitely recommend this album. Be warned - you will be moved, not by grandiose moments of heart-wrenching sound, but by the quiet longing and vulnerability oozing from the piano chords and Matt Hales's fragile voice. And you'll still be listening to it in 20 years' time, because it's not fashionable, so time will not leave a mark on it. Buy it.

strange but definately beautiful
the opening track really needs no explanation as the title portrays what the song is. as for the album i really would say if you like the single then you will love the album. despite 'strange and beautiful' being the only chart successful out of the three released (others being 'good times gonna come' and 'if i fall') its not to say its the only cracking song on the album. standouts for me include the marvellous 'tongue-tied' and the fantastic 'gentle'. the album in content is pretty basic/simple with matt hales and his piano being apparent throughout this marvellous debut. definately an album for the lazy sunday afternoons, come downs of parties or when your ears are just in need of some beautiful singer/songerwriter music!

Strange and beautiful
Strange and beautiful indeed.
Many of you will have heard the opening track "Strange and beautiful (I'll put a spell on you)" as it is the soundtrack to the current VW Beetle advert that led millions of people wanting to know who sung THAT track. Well, his name is Matt Hales (ex-Ruth, The 45's).

This is the debut solo LP by the singer/songwriter and what a debut it is! It is possibly the most beautiful album I've heard since Jeff Buckley's "Grace." And I use the word beautiful in the way it used to actually mean something. If you've been searching for an album so stunning that it could melt your heart along with the polar ice-caps, then this is for you. Be warned though that the tracks are not overtly beautiful like a sunset, they are dark and haunting and the whole album sounds sleepy-eyed as though it is just waking in the morning.

"Aqualung" is driven by Hales' incredable voice and delicate piano lines that are intertwined occasionally with the odd sample, triangle, or organ etc. However, Hales has managed to layer the album cleverly so that you pick up on something new every listen yet the songs are not cluttered with sounds.

Comparisons with Radiohead and Colplay are inevitable (mainly due to the falsetto moments)...but for once they are not undeserved. There are few artists that perfectly capture the fragility of beauty in its rawest forms (see Amazon review above for quote from "Strange and beautiful").
Other tracks, such as "Good time's gonna come", seem to take inspiration from smokey-jazz artists such as nina simone.

If you're looking for a truly beautiful album, buy this. Aqualung will melt even the hardest of hearts...This really is one of the ESSENTIAL albums of the year. Although it's slow-moving, in the right mood it's far from depressing. There are moments when you can almost 'hear' Matt smiling.

Buy it now or you'll regret it forever!