St Deluxe – Born Into Flame

Welcome back St Deluxe, the well-connected Glasgow scuzz rockers with a penchant for pop hooks and heavy guitars. Their 2009 debut attracted some celebrity fans in the shape of Alan McGee and Stuart Braithwaite, and anyone who enjoyed that record is likely to find much to satisfy here.

The quartet are at their best when things are kept snappy; a re-recorded version of After the Fire sounds sublime, and still sounds fresh despite first surfacing more than two years ago. Yet the slower-paced, more contemplative I Know How You Feel lacks that punchy dynamism; its extended guitar breaks steer dangerously close to the more testing limits of shoegaze.

Excitement levels are thankfully restored by miniature Dinosaur Jr sounding epics such as Your Blood, which has to be ear-splitting when played live. Ultimately, Born Into Flame is a record for fans of Sub Pop and Fender Jaguars; if you, like many others, believe that guitar music peaked in 1991, you’re going to fall hard for this. [Chris McCall]