If I were writing this review without having heard the album it’d be pretty easy. Let’s see, a third album from a relatively-successful -but-never-huge indie band who rose on the back of their unique individual sound all the way to a Mercury music prize nomination.
That same band who then really hit the mainstream with their huge radio-slaying hit ‘Valerie’ from their second album. This lot are finished, right?
Well, not quite. This album definitely starts rather well; opener ‘Harder and Harder’ zips into action with typical sax fuelled zest, backed up by those Pulp Fiction-esque reverberating spaghetti western guitars.
In fact, the second song isn’t half bad either, with the tales of a cheating man on ‘Dirty Rat’ sonically reminiscent of the gorgeous ‘Confusion’ from the first album.
Then it all goes a little pear shaped. Upcoming single ‘What’s Your Problem?’ might well fly into action with rather a lot of promise but after thirty seconds of quite annoying warbling from singer Dave McCabe and tired rehashing of the whole, ‘look we’re so cool we’ve got a sax’ I’m considering throwing the CD out of the window.
Then if that tempted me then God knows how I resisted after ‘You Could Make the Four Walls Cry’. It’s got that appalling rhythmic piano backing like something by The Feeling or Take That’s ‘Shine,’ and when the admittedly sexy Abi opens her mouth to sing, it’s not just the CD but the whole damn laptop that’s ready to fly, and I really like my laptop.
Okay, it’s not that bad. There certainly are a few worthwhile tracks and the tale of a granny shagging gigolo on ‘Freak’ – ‘I’m a freak, I get my money through love’ – is both musically and lyrically better than anything else on this album.
Yet that aside, this album is isn’t that great. Lead single ‘Always Right Behind You’ is a prime example. It’s like someone repeatedly tapping you on the shoulder mid-conversation; it’s just plain annoying.
Two stars
