Reshape is the debut offering from Australian artist Sembler, the moniker of engineer and multi-instrumentalist, Thomas Gerrard.
An EP made up entirely of covers, Reshape is an utterance of appreciation, as Sembler pays homage to the songs and artists that have inspired him.
Sembler’s debut EP, Reshape, is a sentimental reimagining of the tracks that have been most influential to the Australian artist.
After recently falling back in love with production, Reshape marks the first official release under Gerrard’s “musical counterpart” Sembler. Spending 16 months in the studio performing, recording, mixing, and mastering each track himself, Reshape features four covers of songs which Sembler holds dear.
The EP begins with So Long and Thanks For All the Fish a cover of American rock supergroup, A Perfect Circle. Whilst Sembler’s rendition retains the song’s trademark overdriven guitars and pounding kick drum, the addition of acoustic guitar strums in the verses gives the track a gentler touch. His vocal style also remains remarkably faithful to the original, though of course with his own flare, impressive for someone who only took up singing in the last two years.
Untouchable, Part 2 maintains Anathema’s piano-ballad sentiment, whilst displaying a breadth of production skills and great attention to detail evident in the smallest of parts: beautiful echos of vocal delay, harmonies and the hint of strings.
Gibbon, originally by math-rock group, This Town Needs Guns, is the track on the EP which departs most from the original. Sembler manages to retain the emotion of the original, whilst passing up the original guitar tapping for a more stripped-back approach. Centering around a simple piano riff, the song takes on a more spacious quality, with reverb-laden vocals, eventually crescendoing to a solo backed by a small orchestra.
Undergrowth is a take on the 2015 track by Caligula’s Horse, Sembler’s production making for a more glittering and intimate rendition. The cover maintains the restraint of the original, never straying from the simple vocal/guitar arrangement, a choice which allows for the salience of Sembler’s voice, which soars effortlessly across the high notes in the chorus.
“I hope to do what many others have done before me,” explains Sembler on the EP. “To pay forward the inspiration and enjoyment I’ve gained from other artist’s efforts. To share with you all, something I’ve loved to create, with the hope it excites and inspires.”
Certainly, what is most apparent when listening to his debut offering is that through Reshape, Sembler has crafted a unique and heartfelt expression of gratitude in musical form.
Check out Sembler’s Reshape EP below:
