Turin Brakes

Many of the guitar bands that were formed in the late 1990s, off the wave of Brit-pop have since disappeared, but Turin Brakes have continued on their distinctive path, with this their seventh studio release. When they were nominated for the Mercury Prize for their debut The Optimist in 2001, it seemed the band were destined for big things. But Olly Knights and Gale Paridjanian are not ones to seek the mainstream and for a while their fanbase dwindled to a hardcore following. In 2014, the album We Were Here reignited interested and the band embarked on some of their biggest shows for a decade.

2016 sees Turin Brakes initially looking back to the nineties, in title at least, with the edgy opening 96 referencing games of russian roulette and nodding towards the decade's love of acid; "you like me more off of my head". The music is more futuristic though and perhaps it is less of a reflection of twenty years ago but more of where the band might be heading. Keep Me Around is simpler and poppier, as are Rome and the more tender Save You.

As with its predecessor, Lost Property was recorded at Rockfields studios in Wales and there are moments when the wide open spaces around Monmouth seep into the music; such as the The Quiet Ones and the dreamy folk of slow-burner Brighter Than The Dark. What Turin Brakes get just about right, is staying the right side of being too clever. While some artists can disappear up their own a-holes as they develop, Knights and Paridjanian remain faithful to the basics. Just enough good tunes and accessible lyrics. Lost Property isn't a major step forward but neither is it a step backward. So not with the brakes on as such, but perhaps a little stuck in neutral.