From The Cliffs EP launched the Guillemots into the world. Their 21st Century mix of jazz, pop, rock and Latin rhythms, which all seemed to fly at you from oblique angles, had them being toasted from every indie darlings blog the world over. Through The Window Pane, the follow-up debut album, seemed a little flat in comparison. A little safe perhaps. It still contained, quite possibly, one of the most beautiful songs ever written with 'Made-Up Lovesong #43' which, I must admit, helped woo my current girlfriend. Anyway, the album got Mercury nominated, shifted stacks of copies, but generally left the listener with more questions than answers. Can their sophomore effort, Red, restart some of the initial momentum?Well, the answer is a bit of a lukewarm "maybe". From the very first play of Red you get the feeling that the band have spent a lot of time on it. The production and general musicianship is fantastic. There's a warm glow that prevails throughout, it sounds lush, the orchestrations bigger and bolder than on their debut. In fact the songs feel a lot more charged as well. I wouldn't go as far to say that it's angrier, as has been suggested, but it's certainly grander. However, with this change in approach, the band seem to have lost a lot of their charm. 'Big Dog' is all jangling noises, clipped beats and random word associated lyrics. It's all very clever, but it feels a little nonsensical. 'Don't Look Down' feels like the end credits of a particularly dull love film, it's beginning gentle and bland that's eventually replaced by a whole array of random noises, bleeps and bells. It just feels like they've been in the studio and had a fit with all the sound effects.Much better is current lead single 'Get Over It' which seems to build on the original themes of their debut, but embellishes them with a bigger sound. The lyrics actually making sense, a rather telling tale of living for today and trying to put past failures behind you. It's a charged anthem that actually sounds like something Prefab Sprout did back in the 80's, which is s a good thing. Album opener 'Kriss Kross' also impresses. A sinister and brooding beast which uses their new found studio trickery to a more impressive extent. Their mix of rhythms and Dangerfields yearning vocals bolstered by a mini brass section, keyboards and, basically, throwing the kitchen sink at it as well. But somehow it works.What we have here then is a band who are certainly still experimenting. Their problem, this time around at least, is that they've got a bit lost behind the mixing desk. They've tried to craft an album in the studio rather than basing it on some music and songs written elsewhere. At least that's what it comes out sounding like. There's some hints here that they've still got plenty to offer, the only thing is, will they be allowed to continue? 55%Links Guillemots [official site] [myspace] [20 questions]