The Shivers – More

Somehow, it’s taken five self-released albums for someone in the UK to prick up their ears and sign New York’s The Shivers. Johnny Lynch (aka The Pictish Trail, aka Fence’s high heid yin) is the good soul responsible for terminating the stalemate, and this sixth full-length is a perfect profile-raiser that should have newcomers raiding the preceding pentad hungrily.

Perhaps the duo aren’t strikingly original – the title track is Stripped Stones, while The Strokes are a frequent influence on the faster numbers – but they more than make up for any moments of déjà vu by being rather good at it all. Beneath nicely-judged orchestral embellishments, Silent Weapons for Quiet Wars carries faint flickers of Devendra Banhart (if disarming simplicity replaced whimsy as his lyrical stock in trade), while Used To Be adds a zesty synth line to the palette, adding up to a rather fine UK entrée. [Chris Buckle]