Opening with the one-two punch that sonically couldn?t be more diametrically opposed, from ?The 224th Day??s Cocteau Twins-ish, flickering butterfly-wing ambience to the hi-NRG throbbing basslines of the New Orderish dancefloor magnet ?Troubled Son,? Manchester?s cumbersomely-named Working For A Nuclear Free City (from a local street sign) apparently want to have some cake left over after they?ve eaten it. ?Dead Fingers Talking? is one of their hometown?s favorite sons and obvious influences, Stone Roses set loose in a video arcade where bassist Ed Hulme?s throbbing rhythm will rattle around in your head for days. And the dance floors will be sagging all night long from the pogoing throngs sweating up a storm to the groovy, funky instrumental, ?Innocence,? which bears more than a passing resemblance to local legends, Happy Mondays. ?Pixielated Birds? is another ambient sorbet to catch your breath before ?Quiet Place? launches into a flickering, shoegazey vibe like one of Ride?s softer moments. Release this as a single and be prepared to conquer the world. And if Richard Ashcroft and The Verve continued to write and record songs like ?Fallout,? they might still be around today.

Elsewhere, the headswirling psychedelic instrumental, ?The Tape,? the sleepy, floating lullabye ?England? and the multifaceted, electronic feedback and multi-layered vocals of the Spacemen 3-inspired ?So? are all cause for celebration. I also liked the faint sitar flourishes on the motorifik instrumental ?Forever? and the album comes full circle closing with the metalic shards of industrial ambience, ?The Tree.? It?s an 80?s Madchester jukebox gone wild and is highly recommended to those of you who miss the heyday of Ride, Stone Roses, Charlatans, et. al.

Not too shabby for a couple of brothers (keyboardist Phil and drummer Jon Kay) who hooked up with their schoolmate, guitarist Gary McLure to make instrumental soundscapes because no one could sing! Enter Hulme and a series of increasingly well-attended local gigs and the band blossomed quickly into one of England?s most exciting new projects and this is one of the year?s most engaging and promising debuts. 9/10 -- Jeff Penczak (11 December, 2006)