PERHAPS a wise move by The Zutons, delaying the release of their debut until The Coral took a breather from three double-quick releases.

The Zutons have been around as long as their successful labelmates, supporting them on early tours, so must have had at least an album's worth of material for some time. But the challenge was to find their own slot in the new wave of north-western psychadelia. The band have as much in common with Gorky's Zygotic Mynci as The Coral, beautiful tracks Railroad and Confusion being reminiscent of Gorky's at their best. In the manner of a troubadour, each song is a slice of Zuton-style life, such as Dirty Dancehall, which tells of a mad night out in soon-to-be capital of culture and home city Liverpool, "where everyone's whacked and looks like vultures". When The Coral burst on to the scene, a wave of imitators seemed inevitable but failed to materialise. Rather than taking the role of imitators, The Zutons have set themselves up as innovators.

Updated: 10:01 Thursday, May 13, 2004