Scholars – Always Lead, Never Follow

Scholars' long-delayed debut has a simple mission statement: rock out and get out. Each track carries the high-energy of heyday American skate punk, but frontman Sam Nicholls' enthusiastic yelp gives them British bite reminiscent of well-missed bands like Reuben and Yourcodenameis:milo. The quintet's songwriting talents are in plain sight. Hydrochaesin swaggers back-and-forth between heartfelt hooks and thrash-out indie rock with confidence, and the admirably energetic Damage seeks to worm its way into unsuspecting ears.

Just as things begin to feel a little generic, they throw some keyboards and plain electronics into the mix, giving the songs a welcome flourish. The album's consistency could perhaps be attributed to some of these tracks being three years old, so it's as much a compilation of their finest moments so far as a promising opening statement. Hopefully they won't keep us waiting so long next time. [Ross Watson]