Gelbison are an exciting new band from Bondi who have produced some of the most innovative and amazing sounds over the past few years. Not long after their debut album the boys are back with the follow up LP. See the World sees Gelbison heading in a different direction to that of their self titled EP and album 1704, where these two offerings worked as continuous long players, this release is more like a collection of 12 great songs.
The first half of the album features a very poppy, upbeat sound. Opening with the chirpy All The Rage, followed by the garage-rock sounding Holy and the acoustic guitar folkish track All Your Scars. These songs show an amazing, vibrant charm; each one of them is very uplifting and cheerful... the music almost sounds like sunshine.
The second half of the album is more experimental and ranged in musical styles. Had To Lose is a dark song with some beautiful violin playing. This Is A Warning is driven by the heavy sound of guitar distortion. Poets is an outstanding piece that starts off with a spacey Sci-Fi feel, some rocking guitars then join the mix before a Gospel choir comes in. The title track follows as an interesting contrast, sounding stripped back and simple but very beautiful.
This is yet another amazing effort from Gelbison. Over the 12 tracks the band manages to take bits and pieces from a massive range of musical styles and then put them together in a way that not only fits nicely, but becomes a sound of their own. If you liked what Gelbison produced before you're sure to like this new album. While they have taken off in a different direction to their previous masterpieces, it is great to see that they are not simply sticking to a winning formula, and instead are continuing to look for new ways of producing music. Yet again they succeed with flair!
Richard Rowe
Rating: 4.5 Tomatoes