Posted: Monday 25th August 2008

26-year old Jay Brannan first came to our attention with his performance in the controversial gay-interest film Shortbus. Impressing us with his natural performance and willingness to do some pretty daring things on camera, Brannan quickly established himself as a talent to keep an eye on. Whilst still finding acting work, Brannan is turning his attention to music with the release of debut album Goddamned. Since 2006 Brannan has been uploading videos of him performing original material to his YouTube channel which is fast approaching 500,000 views. In Shortbus Brannan performed one of his songs, Soda Shop, and has built his musical credibility from the positive reaction to that song.

Goddamned is a collection of 11 self-penned songs that showcase Brannan's soft, melodic voice. His music doesn't neatly fit into any particular genre but it is more folk than anything else. Every single one of these songs would sound just as effective acoustically (and in fact most of them already do on Brannan's YouTube channel). Opening with Can't Have It All Brannan immediately lets the listener know that his lyrics are going to be honest and not skirt around his sexuality or indeed his thoughts and feelings. Many openly gay artists desexualise their songs by being non-gender specific thus avoiding the issue of their sexuality. Refreshingly Brannan refuses to do this and in the opening track sings ‘would he be here with flowers if I lived in Arizona'. This boldness is hardly heard in mainstream music and it certainly isn't commonplace in American music.

Brannan's honesty forms the heart of Goddamned. Not censored by a major label or an over-protective PR team, Brannan sings from the heart and in turn touches ours. Half-Boyfriend tells of the heartache caused by a relationship based on the other person calling the shots and then leaving. Brannan's lyrics are heartbreaking as he gently sings 'my one hope was that I'd survive you' filling the listener with emotion. In contrast Brannan sings of his ideal relationship on Housewife, the album's first single. It's not until the end of the song that you realise he's singing of something that hasn't happened yet but he captures the nature of a relationship with impressive precision. Album closer String-A-Long Song is reminiscent of an Alanis Morissette number as Brannan crams words into each verse singing of a man who led him on with no interest in actually having a relationship.

Brannan's shining moments on Goddamned come on A Death Waltz and the title track. A Death Waltz takes a waltz melody whilst Brannan playfully sings the verses before launching into a soaring chorus. The title track, Goddamned, is a breathtaking almost six minute commentary on religion and its contradictions. The song's simplistic structure elevates its emotion and a violin melody during the chorus adds a haunting edge to an already spine-tingling song. Goddamned is sure to upset religious groups as Brannan sings 'cos virgins don't have babies' and questions religious stories commenting 'am I crazy/maybe it's me/this all sounds like mythology'. The mid-section of the song packs a real punch and Brannan turns his attention to Greek mythology as the instrumentation becomes more intense. The track is without a doubt the album's finest moment and proof of Brannan's strength as a songwriter and a singer.

Goddamned is a remarkable debut from a remarkable talent. The album will likely not find success in the mainstream due to its unapologetic and honest lyrics. It's hard to imagine America embracing this as Brannan is very critical of his home country. We expect the album will find an audience in the gay community and those who actually have differing political and religious views to middle America. Brannan deserves to be heard and we need more people like him not afraid to express their opinions. Goddamned is a superb album and it needs to be heard.