One of Britain’s most perennially underrated bands have done it again. A little pearl of an album, packed with jaunty guitars and tracks that are relaxing and yet at the same time always uplifting.

Close friends Lee Burgess and Kenton Shin join the London band for their third offering, clearly giving the band a new injection of enthusiasm and comfort which really show in the record. This is a band that sound completely at ease with themselves, each other, their sound and their ever adoring fan base.

The record’s key tracks “Long Walk Back” and “Tangled up with Love” should finally ensure they lose the lazy and unfair tag of “Mod Copycats.”  The latter track is a pop masterpiece; their Jam-esque guitar is fused with Elbow style violins to create the stuff of dreams for radio DJ’s everywhere. Whilst it is true that this isn’t a record which offers radical experimentation, it would be completely unfair to accuse The Rifles of being predictable.

Slow(ish) burners “Eveline”, “Falling” and “Nothing Matters” give the record a completely unexpected texture, “Nothing Matters” opens with a gorgeous piece of piano work. The band are undoubtedly maturing, but maintaining the aspects of their sound that have gained them something of a cult following. “Dreamer”, “Sweetest Thing” and “Cry Baby” are the kind of tracks built to see out the summer, their laid back nature complimenting the album’s livelier numbers such as the aforementioned “Tangled up with Love” and “Long Walk Back” perfectly.

Whether this is the album that sees The Rifles finally make their big breakthrough remains to be seen, its “more of the same” feel will probably draw derision from many quarters of the music world, and is unlikely to go down in history as a classic. In short, don’t expect this record to be making any major award short lists but frankly, when it sounds as sweet as it does, who cares?

[4/5]