Gelbison - See The World

YOURZ

Gelbison, named after a mountain in Italy (or so I'm led to believe) were a Sydney-based band who released two well-received albums before calling it a day.  In reality, the name was only ever a vehicle for songwriting brothers Edo and Nadav Kahn, who now front a band called, appropriately, Kahn Brothers.

Mine and YourZ (truly) came to Gelbison in a roundabout fashion, having first heard of the brothers through their involvement in a band we've yet to review here, Nations By The River.  This band also features Luke Steele of The Sleepy Jackson (and yesterday's Empire Of The Sun) and Sarah Blasko, who we've reviewed here and here.  The album was produced by Ian Ball, of Gomez, one of our very favourite bands and who we've also reviewed here.  So, really, there wasn't much doubt we were going to love this album.  But this doesn't account for the fact it has languished in our collection, forgotten for so long.

See The World is an absolute listening pleasure and not only includes appearances by the aforementioned Australian indie luminaries, but also from Ben Lee and Ohad Rein (Old Man River) among others.  There are definite overtones of Ball's day band, but this similarity is more due to the strength of the song writing and the smart production.  Instead of singling out any particular songs, I'm just gonna simply say listen to this record.  It is truly a Forgotten Gem.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

MINE

Oh, I have to agree... and then I don't.  You see, while the songwriting is terrific - love the jangly guitar-pop - and the arrangement and production only serve to highlight how truly beautiful the songs are, that can't be said for the singing.  Not on all the songs, I hasten to add, but on most of them.  That lead vocal has the whiny slacker/stoner indie-band inflection I just can't stand.  And it's not that Edo Kahn can't sing, I can hear him actually singing in parts, it's that he chooses to barely push the notes out in a monotone during the verses and then suddenly remembers how to sing in the choruses.

I loved this album.  And I hated listening to it.  I'm confused. 

VERDICT: TURN IT DOWN

For more information: http://www.myspace.com/gelbison

The Sleepy Jackson - Lovers

YOURZ

I can't remember the first time I heard The Sleepy Jackson, but this album, in particular, has been one of those I go back to time and again.  It is, quite simply, superb.  It's also a testament to Luke Steele and his multi-faceted talents.  As you're about to read, Mine feels exactly the same way about him as I do.

The Sleepy Jackson are another of those bands that not only provide me an emotional attachment to their music but also inspire me to be creative as well.  The frustrating thing is that I'm often listening to this at times and places where I can't just run away and lock myself in my little studio.  I mean, I do have to spend some time socially interacting otherwise I'd be accused of being a recluse.  And I'm just too young and good-looking to wear such a tag.

As a debut album, Lovers stylistic range is a wide as as this great island we call home. There's a little bit of just about everything in it, showcasing Steele's quixotic musical nature, from the alt-country stylings of Old Dirt Farmer through to the indie dance of Tell The Girls.  More tellingly, Lovers sounds particularly Australian without resorting to clichéd devices or using a didgeridoo, while also sounding positively international. I believe in years to come, this album will be hailed as one of the greatest documents of its time.

If you've not heard any Sleepy Jackson before, don't waste any more time reading this.  Click here or here and see for yourself.  I will say it again: it is superb and you won't be disappointed.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

MINE

I love Luke Steele and I don't care who knows it.  I previously mentioned his side project Nations by the River in our Gomez review, and I'm hopeful the pointy stick will land on Empire of the Sun sooner or later.  To quote Ben Lee: They play Sleepy Jackson on the radio/ And that's the way I like it.

Luke is another one of those frighteningly-talented musicians (YourZ sez: the only thing frightening about Luke Steel is his penchant for makeup) who can just roll out pop song after pop song, and it makes me so glad he's an Aussie - though he does hail from West Australia, which is like another country to me.  No, REALLY like another country.  OK, how about I put it this way: Perth (the capital of WA) is more than 3,300 kilometres away from Sydney, where I live.  It would take me five to six hours to fly there.  That's less than LA to New York, but still... there's a whole lot of NOTHING in between, unlike the USA, which is supposedly filled with shopping malls and obesity (how they manage to fit all those people in when they're getting fatter every year is beyond me).  The last time I visited Perth I was five years old, and arrived by ship from Singapore.  The only story I know about my time there is that I managed to give my parents the slip and wandered off hand in hand with a nice lady I picked up, chatting freely.  How little we change...

But I digress.  Lovers is a great album, moving from pure pop to alt-country, with nods to the Beatles and the Velvet Underground.  Luke's voice in this incarnation reminds me of the softer songs produced by seminal punks the Saints (from across the other side of Oz) and his voice is a little reminiscent of their lead singer, Chris Bailey. This CD is dangerous to play in the car, as one track makes me want to lie back and close my eyes, not recommended on the freeway.  And I love how the final song - Mourning Rain - ends with the sound of rain.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

For more information: http://thesleepyjackson.com/

In our collection, we also have Personality - One Was A Spider, One Was A Bird