Sweet Sour

Somewhere under here there's a fire-breathing rock monster desperate to get out - but it's been well-sedated.

The second album from Southampton trio Band Of Skulls bears the hallmarks of a searing piece of rock savagery, from loose-limbed fuzzy guitar riffs to grinding, trudging beats, but something has been lost in the search for a market. Production sheen has glossed its rough edges.

Joint vocalists Russell Marsden and Emma Richardson do their bit, sounding whisky-soaked and little-girl-lost respectively. They come on as if they believe they're presiding over a record of greater depth, and when Sweet Sour blasts by with a bit of Radiohead (specifically Electioneering) rock on You're Not Pretty But You Got It Goin' On or adopts The Kills' bluesy sleaze on Lies, they have a point. Too often, though, they're undone by their own caution.

If they're not going to embrace their hard-riffing side, there are pointers to an alternative future on Wanderluster and Close To Nowhere where Band Of Skulls mine the same folk-blues seam as America's Cave Singers. Here they appear more committed and melodically agile, proving you should always be true to yourself whatever the profit forecasts say.

Album Review by Matthew Horton