(Columbia) ****
WITH a blend of top tunes, impassioned delivery and vocal cues gleaned from Robert Smith, Goodbooks more than deserve the buzz that's been building around them. How novel!
Lead single Passchendaele combines a reflective melody with words that question just how much we have learned in the century or so since millions were sent to slaughter in France and Belgium. Good point, well made, but Goodbooks are also able to conjure a feelgood grin or two with the hook-laden treats of The Curse of Saul and Alice, a lone figure who drinks wine all morning.
Imagine the buzzing urgency of Bloc Party with none of the preaching wedded to a more focused funk-punk version of A Certain Ratio delivered on the scale of Editors - a great first chapter then.
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