Overview:
There's been a lot of new bangs springing up, producing quality debut albums over the last 2 years. It's almost like every week you are shelling out more and more money to keep your CD rack up to date with the newest quality. Bands such as "The Kaiser Chiefs", "Kasabian", "Hard-Fi" and "The Killers" have released absolutely chart storming albums, and that must put added pressure on newer bands now to try and follow this success and break into the leading group of new bands. The album by a Brighton quartet of early 20 year olds has not only been passed the key to open this door, they have come in shouting and screaming for attention, and got it. The best way I can describe this album is "The summer in a box". It is simply stunning and the variation from track to track is amazing for a band of such youthful and inexperienced lads. There are some occasions in life where an album just sums up a movement or a way of remembering that "you were there". This is one of those albums. It will define the summer in 2006 and you will forever remember the times you embraced it and let it into your life. Admittedly, the lyrics can be a bit basic at times, and there is an exuberance of youth that brings rawness where perhaps refinement is required, but it just works perfectly and makes you want it in your ears even more. Obviously being all aged around the 20 mark, there's not a lot they can recall about in their tracks - similar to the Arctic Monkeys in that respect - and although not as lyrically dazzling as Alex Turner and The Arctic's, they do work well.

3. Sofa Song - This track may be one you're already aware of with time in the charts and is one of those summer anthems that you can see crowds bouncing too at festivals all over the country this year. Remember "Dodgy"? [Where have they disappeared to?] Well, this has that "Staying Out For The Summer" vibe to it, and makes you just want to sit in a beer garden, supping an ice cold Budweiser and watch the day go by.

7. She Moves In Her Own Way - An acoustic master class with an electrical over tone, and one that looks like a lost "Dodgy" track, more suited on the album "Free peace sweet" than this one, but it breaks up the rush and allows the listener to gather their breath back after the manic bouncing you will have been doing in the last song.

11. If Only - This has a feel of "The Zutons" about it with its indie guitar rock, 60s influenced pop, and howling lyrics. As a massive fan of "The Zutons" I loved this track and my only disappointment was that it finished too quickly.

13. Time Awaits - Pritchard does an impression of a street busking soul singer in the deep south of America, but it's not long before fire into an almost psychedelic rock-out. This definitely has "Police" overtones and contains some of my favourite lyrics, but I won't tell you about those, I'll let you find them for yourselves.

Good Points: This is like it should be 5 or 6 different bands one album, and at times you could be forgiven for checking this was not a compilation album of great summer tracks. It's an album where you start of in the rollercoaster waiting for the ride to begin and climbing up just waiting for the ride to kick in and then "Bhammm!"....it grabs you and takes you round so quickly you are gasping for breath, then finally you make your way back into the start off position to disembark. It really is like that, and I would recommend to anyone who loves their music to give it a whirl.

Verdict:
For a band of such youth, this really is a racking debut, and I can pay it no bigger compliment than to say that it's not been out of my CD multi-player for 3 months now. [and that takes some doing]. I've lost count of the amount of people ive recommended this album to and they have said "Oh yeah, I've seen that on the shelves in the charts, but don't really know them"....two weeks later they are saying "Thanks for telling me about that album its brilliant!". The proof is in the pudding, it was released and didn't shake the world as not many people had heard of them, after a couple of single releases and word of mouth its crept up into the top 5 in the charts and hasn't moved for about 3 months now. That says everything you need to know really. A brilliant debut and a feel good band making great summer feel good music.