Celebration – Albumin

Celebration was born in 2004, when Katrina Ford, Sean Antanaitis and David Bergander dropped the name Birdland for something with more of a triumphant tone. But ten candles on the Celebration cake is only half the story, with Ford and Antanaitis’ joint musical ventures extending back another decade; a lengthy partnership for which breakthrough-level attention has never quite manifested.

Albumin is the latest attempt to correct the apparent oversight, and the band put their best foot forward with opener Razor’s Edge – a brooding beauty built from throbbing synths and brawny guitars. It introduces Celebration’s most multifaceted album yet, with Tomorrow’s Here Today showcasing their brighter, sparklier side and Chariot melding phantom church organ with a disco rhythm. But tracks like Sostice Rite lack definition, and despite wearing its psych-soul skin handsomely, I Got Sol doesn’t satisfyingly elaborate on its vintage ingredients. Not a runaway success then, but worth raising a glass to. [Chris Buckle]