PART Pulp, part 1960s revival - there's a buzz brewing about The Long Blondes, and debut album Someone To Drive You Home reveals it's not all manufactured hype.
The Sheffield five-piece's stories of paranoia and woe may not appeal to all tastes, but there's no doubt lyricist - and guitarist Dorian Cox - can write a tune and a melody.
The breathtaking opening track, Lust In The Movies, sets the scene in stunning fashion and, despite that weighty start, it's a standard which the band mostly maintain throughout this 12-tracker.
Someone To Drive You Home owes much to Jarvis Cocker's view of the world but, listen closely, and you'll also hear disco influences to put a crack in the otherwise gritty realism.
If 2006 was about getting recognition, 2007 is surely about realisation. The Long Blondes surely won't be a secret much longer.
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