Twin Atlantic – Free

Without a doubt, Twin Atlantic’s impact on your life is going to be decided largely on what you think of Sam McTrusty’s occasionally (or often, as the case may be) overbearing vocals. If you feel he adds a distinctive charm to what may otherwise be palatable but uninspired pop-rock ditties, then it’s likely that Free is the album you’ve been waiting for from the Glaswegian quartet, the title track screaming “single release” at the top of its lungs with its perfectly radio-friendly length and Barrowlands-friendly shout-along chorus.

Then again, if there’s something to his utterings that makes the sound of fingernails scraped across a blackboard sound like Barry White by comparison, grab the earplugs. Without his love-‘im-or-hate-‘im influence, Twin Atlantic sound like every bittersweet Brit-rock band of the last few years, capable of penning songs that are likely to pull in plenty of attention and even leave you self-consciously singing in the shower once in a while, but Avril Lavigne and Rebecca Black have that effect too, don’t they? [David Bowes]