SEELAND
Tomorrow Today
LOAF23
LOAF Recordings 2009
12 Tracks. 43mins23secs

Buy: CD | iTunes

Formed at the end of 2004 by Tim Felton, who previously officiated as part of retro-futuristic sci-fi popsters extraordinaire Broadcast, and Billy Bainbridge, once a member of fondly remembered electronic entity Plone, two of Birmingham’s finest bands of recent years, Seeland released their first single on Stereolab’s Duophonic in mid 2005, followed by an EP a year later. Since, they have grown into a trio as bassist Neil McAuley joined the ranks, and have developed their sound to fit the realm of their first long player.

Fond of old style library music, BBC Radiophonic Workshop, Joe Meek or early German Krautrockers à la Kraftwerk or Neu!, Seeland add some refined pop touches which find their roots in the early to mid eighties synth pop of the Human League or Depeche Mode to create a rather warm and inviting record with Tomorrow Today. Effortlessly assembling little pop gems, wrapping gentle catchy melodies around delicate electronic motifs, drenched in pre-Autobahn Kraftwerk, old Doctor Who sound effects and library music-style polish, the trio create a dreamy and vivid soundtrack, where tones contrast without clashing and forms are all rounded and smooth. There is an element of naïve simplicity here, a trait inherited from Plone’s magnificent For Beginner Piano, which is reinforced by Felton’s linear and voluntarily expressionless vocals, especially on Colour Dream, Call The Incredible or Pretty Bird.

While the pace is overall pretty gentle, the trio occasionally raise the bar a tad to venture into brighter territories, flirting with happy-go-lucky pop (Turnaround), feel good summery tones (Captured), or effervescent hi octane acidulated pop (Goodbye, Static Object), all to great effect. Elsewhere, Seeland cast a slightly hazier shadow over the wonderfully light and fresh Library, with its deep slashes of guitar, or on the slightly psychedelic 5 A.M.

Whichever path they chose here, Seeland deliver pretty much constantly. All the way through, they create a surprisingly refreshing and charming soundtrack which manages to be experimental without sounding the least remote, and modern while rooted in sixties and seventies early electronic.

4.3/5

Seeland (MySpace) | LOAF
Buy: CD | iTunes