Simon Lewis/Terrascope
(http://www.terrascope.co.uk/Reviews/Rumbles_December08.htm)
Difficult to categorise yet easy to love, “lay-By”, the third album from Stockholm dweller
A Gilbert Play, is a warm, emotional take on post-rock, filling the room with melodic and
inventive tunes. Mixing electronic pulses with a host of real instrument, including the
mellow and jazzy vibraphone, this is the perfect album for Sunday afternoon. Put it on
and watch the leaves fall from the trees; somehow they seem to be connected.
Textura
(http://www.textura.org/archives/a/agilbertplay.htm)
”… from cellar studio in the center of Stockholm comes fifty minutes of arresting
ambient-post-rock courtesy of the oddly-named a gilbert play… Lay-by is the third fulllength by this mysterious one-man band that, using deft sleight-of-hand, convincingly
simulates a full ensemble sound. Electric guitar typically occupies the front line with a
supportive framework assembled from bass, drums, keyboards, vibes, and computer
surrounding it. Don't let the computer detail mislead you, however: one of Lay-by's
major charms is the natural, analog-styled quality of the “band's” loose attack … An oftdreamy and languorous feel infuses the songs which, at the same time, push purposively
forward with a strong sense of direction. In its darker moments, the off-kilter melodic
swoon of “Strange Days, Here I Am” even vague hints at a Nino Rota influence; certainly
the music is strongly cinematic in its moody deployment of vibes and electric guitar
strums ... The album really kicks into gear with the advent of the second piece, “All
Together Now,” whose combination of vibes and streaming electric guitars makes the
song—and the album in general, as often as not—resemble an imaginary in-studio
session between Fripp & Eno and Tortoise—the former present in the restrained ambient
character of the material and the razor-sharp electric guitar lines, and the latter in the
track's rhythm-based, vibes-accented propulsion. That Fripp-like sound emerges
elsewhere too, such as in “Making Mud Pies At Noon” where it's accompanied by tremolo
guitar shudders and trippy organ flourishes that lend the song a rather psychedelic vibe.
The influence surfaces again when a jubilant Eno-like theme sings out over a kinetic,
krautrock-inflected rhythm base during “24 Hours Parking.” The album ends with “Good
Morning,” a slow and gentle waltz that's also the release's longest track—a good thing
too, given how beautiful its chord progressions are and the sensitivity with which the
song's lyrical guitar melodies are executed. And wouldn't you know it, the piece ends
with two minutes that could easily pass for a No Pussyfooting outtake, so similar is it to
the sound of that landmark album. “
Leonards Liar
(http://leonardslair.wordpress.com/2008/11/04/review-a-gilbert-play-lay-by/)
“… Nothing much has changed for ‘Lay-By’ but it’s not such a bad thing in this case. With
its metronomic Krautrock undertow, ‘All Together Now’ characterises the experience of a
uneventful car journey before it shifts up a gear to take in a neat melodic curveball made
up of what sounds like xylophones and beats. The menacing ‘Making Mud Pies At Noon’
stealthily escalates the tension whilst the tuneful ‘24 Hours Parking’ and lullaby-like
‘Good Morning’ are noticeably easy on the ear. Otherwise ‘Lay-By’ is quite a solemn
affair, which is refreshing for those who are tired of those post-rock acts who insist on
playing quietly and then “surprise” us by switching to loud, interminable guitar codas.
This album has no such worries… “
Lennart Götesson/Dalademokraten
4 av 5
”… A Gilbert Play passar inte in någonstands med sin musik, eller också är det så att
musiken passar in över allt … Det är musik med magi och ödslighet. Vilsamt, men långt
ifrån muzak. Kontemplativ musik gjord kanske för en paus i jäktet. Det är snyggt och
tydligt, men inte enkelt. Det skulle kunna vara filmmusik kanske till en Fantasy-film med
långa utdragna scener, för här hörs många bilder. Alltså - det är svårt att beskriva A
Gilbert Play. Tack och lov är musiken lättare att lyssna på. “
Johanna Paulsson/DN
Psykedelisk elektronica
Också inom experimentella genrer finns artister som följer allfarsvägarna och andra som
hellre går vid sidan av. A Gilbert Plays tredje album "Lay-by" tillhör det senare slaget och
befinner sig i ett ingenmansland, där framjammad postrock snuddar electronica och
ambient. På Lay-by trängs diverse rytminstrument och enstaka gästinhopp. Men i
grunden är A Gilbert Play en effektiv enmansorkester som arbetar med smygpsykedeliska
stämningar snarare än överraskningsdynamik.
Anders Samuelsson/ Musiklandet
Konstigt men bra
”… Det är kanske därför jag ser filmsekvenser spelas upp framför ögonen, den ena
konstigare än den andra. Och om jag skulle beskriva ”Lay-On” i cineastiska termer skulle
det bli: David Lynch … A Gilbert Plays tredje skiva är inte alldeles lättillgänglig, men
likfullt går det inte att ducka för det faktum att man rycks med. Efteråt sitter jag och
undrar vad som gör att det känns bra. Men då slår jag mig själv på fingrarna och lämnar
alla onödiga analyser därhän. Det är stundom skränigt och psykadeliskt för att i nästa
stund domineras av en vacker melodislinga. Och istället för att resultera i ett totalt kaos
blir det en skön oreda som blir svår att värja sig mot …”
