Anyone who knows me will know that indecision plagues me like a serious ailment: at restaurants I take forever deciding what to order, I walk into record stores and spend hours choosing what to buy, and I take a long time to decide whether I like a record or not; basically it's a bit of a nightmare. There are times when something comes along and forces me to make a decision, but alas Geoff Ereth's debut album Drunk With Translation still leaves me sitting on the fence somewhat. I have spent many a week trying to decide what I think of his particular orchestral folk offering, and I have reached the conclusion that, with the exception of the almost unforgivable ABBA cover, I kind of like some of it!Geoff Ereth's particular singer/song-writer talents have produced a lo-fi blend soft vocals and phenomenally heartfelt symphonic instrumentals. I'm sure there are hundreds of artists and songs that have been compared to Jeff Buckley, Coldplay and Sufjan Stevens and although this almost seems to be throwaway gesture it is definitely a relevant one for Geoff Ereth, as the similarities are rather striking. Especially when we consider that the string quartet that plays with Ereth on is record is Osso, which is the same group that has performed with both Sufjan Stevens and My Brightest Diamond.The song that really grabs me is 'Whitsunday,' with its uplifting strings arrangement and lightly sung melody the beauty of the song slowly sinks in, as the layered vocals lull you into a feeling of calmness. 'Surefooted' is another album highlight, the strength of which lies in its instrumental variety. Too often in songs instrumental diversity seems to result in a cacophonous array of notes that cover up a certain melodic staleness, but Geoff Ereth has managed to avoid sounding overly cluttered and certainly creates strong melodies. The full but unadorned feel of 'Surefooted' comes largely from the instrumental break, which rather than swell into an orchestral crescendo is stripped down to just the strings, playing with punch and punctuation, which creates room for the uncomplicated but evocative piano line that briefly wanders through the track. Just as in 'Carry Me' Geoff Ereth creates a wonderfully sonic atmosphere offering subtle touches of piano, strings, keyboards and woodwinds throughout the song that accent the melody without ever over-powering it.However, as beautiful and earthy his vocals, lyrics and melody are, sometimes I can't help but feel it is lacking a certain sincerity. Or perhaps it lacks a certain energy as unless you dedicate your heart, mind and ears whole-heartedly to listening to the entire album as an experience, one song seems to drift into another. In songs such as 'Finely Dressed Saboteurs' Ereth's vocals become a bit too Will Young-esque; lacking any grit or rawness everything becomes a bit too cheesy and far too overly polished. And while the string arrangement on 'I have a Dream' is mesmerising and rather awe-inspiring I just can't bring myself to listen without wincing. 53% Geoff Ereth on MySpace