Search - Delays :: You See Colours

Letdown

Brooklyn Boy | Brooklyn, NY United States | 09/01/2006

(1 out of 5 stars)

"the first album was so good - walking the fine line between cheesy pop and beautiful sentiment. this one is just all cheese. the guitars have been replaced with 80's (the bad 80's) sounding synthesizers and the hooks, which may still be there, are just buried under layer after layer of production. i can't even believe this is the same band. i played it for several friends who i turned on to the delays without telling them who this was. the reception was..uh..not good."

Colorful, saccharine little pop record.

Luke Rounda | Lawrence, KS | 11/09/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"If you like your IHOP all syrup and no pancakes, "You See Colours" is probably the record that plays over your diabetic coma. If you can stomach it, this is unabashed pop music basking in its own sweet-toothed, kitschy luster. The new Delays album doesn't so much fire off songs; rather, battering rams of melody and harmony. It's a disc that conceivably could be enjoyed equally by mainstream pop listeners (more accustomed to electronic tinsel and ornament in their music) as well as more demanding fans of well-crafted indie pop. Bubblegum swallowers are going to fatten up quick with "You See Colours"; more than anything, the music suggests that the main thing to remember is to have a good time listening.



Principle songwriter and vocalist Greg Gilbert makes that easy-- he can hit high notes with a tonal purity that would make Bellamy or Buckley blush, but holds enough in reserve for crunchy vocal caterwauling should the situation call for such. "You See Colours" begins with an a capella figure breaking into a synth-string-aided toe-tapper ("You & Me"), immediately followed by the "My Sharona"-ish "can't help but dance to it" groove of "Valentine."



"This Town's Religion" plays like a bizarre lovechild of REM and Joy Division, and tunes like "Lillian" are surefire subconscious classics, full of riffs and "oooh-whooo" melodies that stick to even the most non-stick cynical of minds. Sure, a few bland by-the-numbers numbers ("Winter's Memory of Summer") can bring down any record. But back them up with the pistoning "Out of Nowhere," with its eight mile high keyboard, swaggering backbeat and well-placed, muted guitar, and hardly anyone will notice.



By the time "Waste of Space" starts to spin some drama with confident, simple guitar chords (supported by a twist of La's in the cracking vocals), it's easy to call this record "brilliant," even if that just means shiny with sun-soaked melodies. It's superb Beatles pop wired on caffeine, bouncing off the walls of a studio filled with electronic keyboards. And as might be expected, that is so, so sweet."

A colorful wall of sound!!

Nse Ette | Lagos, Nigeria | 10/31/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The first time I heard anything by The Delays, I thought it was something by Blondie.



Delays are a UK quartet, and this CD (their second) has a catchy sunny synth rock sound with tight harmonies, and lead vocalist Greg Gilbert's falsetto (think Savage Garden) towering over with ease. Sugary sweet with an edge.



It's tough for me to pick standouts from an album this good. Everything is so melodic; `Too much in your life', `You and me' (with great cutting violins), the swirling synths of `Valentine' (with great scratchy guitars set to a dance beat), `Given time', are all beautiful upbeat songs, with the lone ballad being the closing track `Waste of space', which sounds dreamy and atmospheric.



Like the title says, very colorful pop music!

"