By Limbo Lake
1. Ices (death and love)
2. Orange X
3. Paper Flames
4. Young cubs
5. Board the Apartment Up
6. Sparks
7. 2571
8. Armour
9. Trans Ending
10. Sleepwell
11. Feeal It Leave
12. Smokestar
From the majestic orchestration of opening track Ices (Death & Love) to the melodic balladry of stirring closer Smokestar, Seabellies' debut album - By Limbo Lake - asserts itself as a memorable record abounding in beautifully explorative, textural pop.
The gloriously atmospheric Ices (Death & Love)
soars, emotes and flourishes as vivid images of icy oceans and snow's
numbing sensation infiltrate frontman Trent Grenell's cry of "The
world is coming / Time won't pick you up / Death and love are stunning."
With swooning strings, surging guitars, militaristic drums and
glistening electronic embellishments, it's an elevating introduction to
the Seabellies' layered pop aesthetic, one that they're evidently
skilled proponents of. Even with the insanely infectious Orange X, there's no sign of a contrived effort to gain high radio airplay, only sublime pop hooks and hypnotic grooves, and in Young Cubs' case - the sprightly encapsulation of the Newcastle-bred sextet's euphoric youthfulness and spirited ambition.
Produced by legendary Australian producer Wayne Connolly, By Limbo Lake heralds the exciting development and impressive progression of one of the country's finest young bands. Armour is
another testament to the band's ambitious trajectory as hip-hop
influenced verses, dreamy pop harmonies and psychedelic electro
textures coalesce harmoniously.
Grenell's lyrics do, at times, appear random and
nondescript as they're primarily melody-driven rather than idea-laden,
but it's the dreamy landscapes traversed that are most appealing, as
is the case with excellent single Trans Ending, and Sleepwell
in which Grenell mourns "The ones who sleep amongst the aisles / On
beds of shattered dreamless tiles will / Sleep forever / But sometimes
we will miss the signs / That bend with roads in endless lines / But
know how far we'll go / To put to bed the endless doubts / The money men
they algebrize".
Intricately crafted pop gems such as Sleepwell
reassert the band's predilection for clever melodies. Although inspired
by Canadian bands such as Broken Social Scene and Wolf Parade,
Seabellies' ability to fuse free-form experimentalism with idyllic hooks
renders them a poignant force. With their diverse instrumentation
(the band comprises two trumpeters and a saxophonist) and inspired
vision, Seabellies have conveyed their broad influences and abundance
of ideas in an emotionally stirring and elevating light on their superb
debut album.
By Christine Lan
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