Texas are hard to pin down, which is no bad thing in today's oh-so formulaic music industry. Not out-and-out pop, nor "meaningful" in the strict sense of the word, listening to a Texas record one is continually pulled in opposite directions and left with a feeling that there is more to come.

But while Ms Spiteri and her cohorts have historically managed to churn out - sorry, artfully produce - slick, seamless, intelligent pop songs over the years, their material inevitably hints at much more than they actually are able to deliver. This, the band's sixth album, is no exception. Whereas Prefab Sprout and Roddy Frame's Aztec Camera could deftly work with intricate arrangements that dressed the most basic or the purest pop in heavenly folds, Texas/Spiteri merely dabble.

Sure, Spiteri's voice is improving with age and the songs aren't bad, with the sugarey upbeat tone occasionally brought down to sublime earth, as on the quite excellent Cry and the mean and moody Get Down Tonight. Otherwise it's much like their earlier work, leaving one wishing - much like the consumption of a Chinese meal - that there was more substance to it than there actually is.