Previously, The Bluetones’ silvery guitar pop was sluggish and strained. Luxembourg benefits from a stylistic rethink. Openers “Here It Comes Again” and “Fast Boy” are surprisingly lean and fast-paced nods to Devo and The Ramones. Elsewhere, “Big Problem” sees The Bluetones discover garage riffs with relish, while “You’re No Fun Anymore” is a Wire pastiche to impress Justine Frischmann. Unfortunately, their weaknesses prevail. Quite simply, The Bluetones can’t write songs and, as ever, sound knackered for trying. Not so sluggish, then, but still over-strained.
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