A big week, with great releases from Manic Street Preachers, Green Day and Madness, but, away from the musical giants, there’s a strong debut from Post War Years and the long-awaited return of The Lightning Seeds.

Manic Street Preachers – Journal For Plague Lovers

The Welsh indie rock band have expressed concern about how their ninth album, which uses lyrics left to them by former member Richey Edwards before his disappearance 14 years ago, will be received by newer fans. Certainly it is not as radio-friendly as last album Send Away The Tigers, and the lyrics are more obscure, but tracks such as Peeled Apples and Me And Stephen Hawking sound satisfyingly familiar even to recent converts. Fans may be disappointed that the album provides no great insight into Richey’s state of mind but William’s Last Words, sung – unusually – by bassist Nicky Wire, may be the closest thing to a suicide note and provides an apt ending to the band’s most tragic chapter.

Rating: 8/10

(Review by Lisa Williams)

Green Day – 21st Century Breakdown

It’s been a long five years since Green Day released their last album, the George W Bush-baiting American Idiot. A lot’s changed in that time, but Billie Jo Armstrong’s way with a melody hasn’t diminished a bit. Nursery-rhyme opener Song Of The Century segues into the thunderous title track perfectly, making for a jarring listen, then it’s time for current single Know Your Enemy, complete with drumbeat intro taken from The Stone Roses’s I Am The Resurrection. There are other nods throughout too, namely Bruce Springsteen in the album’s sheer scale – it sounds absolutely huge. Elsewhere, on Horseshoes And Hand Grenades, they give a nod to Offspring’s Pretty Fly For A White Guy, while Last Night On Earth could be a John Lennon solo outing. With 18 tracks, it’s too long, but there’s a sense of ambition to be admired, and with that, they’ve recaptured the fun that made 1994 breakthrough Dookie such a success.

Rating: 8/10

(Review by Andy Welch)

Madness – The Liberty Of Norton Folgate

With The Specials reunion making headlines in music rags around the world, Madness are back to reclaim their spot at the top of the 2-Tone table. This album, their first original material in 10 years, encapsulates all their styles of old – the upbeat (Dust Devil), downbeat (Sugar And Spice) and just plain zany (Bingo) with Suggs’s clever and perceptive lyrics centred almost entirely on modern-day London living. This is not a band cashing in on past glories – it’s one comfortable in their own skin, making songs as refreshing and original as at any point in their 30-year career. The 10-minute title track is a definite highlight, rounding off what might just be their strongest release yet.

Rating: 8/10

(Review by Nick Howes)

Hollywood Undead – Swan Songs

Right now, rap-metal is about as popular as swine flu, but against the odds, this six-strong band of masked misfits have built up a sizeable internet following with their aggressive industrial sound. As the group’s name suggests, the songs circle around the darker side of Los Angeles living with hookers, gangs and guns high on their list of gripes, although they do show a softer side on the angst-ridden Black Dahlia and bouncy Pimpin’. Despite some top-notch production it all sounds rather dated, though, and pales in comparison to early Linkin Park and Limp Bizkit. Lead single Undead is not surprisingly the best of an unremarkable bunch, but Hybrid Theory or Three Dollar Bill Yall this certainly is not.

Rating: 6/10

(Review by Nick Howes)

British Sea Power – Man of Aran

Never ones to shy away from a heavily conceptual project, Brighton quartet British Sea Power conceived their new album as the soundtrack to an obscure 1934 film called Man Of Aran, portraying life in the fishing communities of the Aran Islands on the west coast of Ireland. Cue all manner of indie-ambient drones and texture, mimicking the rising and falling and groaning and creaking of nautical life, and somehow evoking Brian Eno and Neu drifting around the Atlantic in a lifeboat. The largely instrumental soundtrack stands on its own, but the CD comes packaged with a DVD as well so you can appreciate the music in its original setting.

Rating: 8/10

(Review by Steve Kerr)

Vieux Farka Toure – Fondo

Son of the late Ali Farka Toure, we can be thankful Vieux never obeyed his father’s advice to avoid the music business and join the army. On this his second album, rich in heavily-reverbed, shimmering, unmistakably African (Malian, actually) guitar, Toure showcases an instrumental mastery inherited from his father. On the best tracks (like Souba Souba) he effortlessly combines a commitment to his Western Saharan musical roots with a love of modern musical forms such as blues and reggae, which, despite their African roots, are now considered thoroughly Western. Thanks to the widescreen sound and language-barrier ambiguity, many of his songs seem simultaneously mournful and celebratory. Great stuff.

Rating: 8/10

(Review by Steve Kerr)

Post War Years – The Greats And The Happening

After leaving their hometown of Leamington Spa, art-pop quartet Post War Years moved into an abandoned Russian social club together. Living in such close proximity for so long has obvious benefits for their music, which sounds as if each instrument and electronic bleep is pulling in the same direction. There’s something very unsettling about their sound, mixing the feel of claustrophobic electronica with the scratchy, angular guitars of Gang Of Four. Opener The Red Room skips along into the Joy Division-esque baseline of Death March, while White Lies, a live favourite, is a clear standout. Mainstream success is probably beyond them, but Post War Years are definitely a band to keep an eye on this year.

Rating: 7/10

(Review by Andy Welch)

Eg White – Adventure Man

If the world needed another Paolo Nutini, Eg is a suitable candidate. Having honed his craft co-writing hits such as Duffy’s Warwick Avenue, Adele’s Chasing Pavements and Will Young’s Leave Right Now, White shows a maturity lacking in many of his peers on his follow-up to his 1996 debut solo album. My People is full of rousing spirit and Broken is a haunting and mellow ballad. Eg’s voice is pleasant but at times appears to mimic Paul Young, Damien Rice, and nearly every male soloist in between, and the album as a whole is so middle-of-the-road it’s hard to know which direction it wants to go in.

Rating: 6/10

(Review by Lisa Williams)

Laura Izibor – Let The Truth Be Told

It’s strange that Laura has received comparisons with Candi Staton, Roberta Flack and Aretha Franklin as she really doesn’t sound much like any of them at all. She does, however, sound like a cross between Joss Stone and Alicia Keys. She has a good voice, but the songs aren’t particularly strong on this release. They sound rather dated (think mid ’90s) and the production sounds rather cheap. It’s as if they’ve used keyboards instead of any instrumentation – perhaps the money saved wasn’t quite worth it. If she gets the opportunity to release a second album, hopefully it’ll be of better quality. If not, it’ll be a shame and a waste of a good singer.

Rating: 5/10

(Review by Polly Weeks)

Lightning Seeds – Four Winds

Ten years on and the Lightning Seeds, still fronted by Ian Broudie, return with Four Winds. The intervening years seem to have mellowed Ian and this is a dreamy, ’60s-style album full of well-constructed songs – the title track sounds like something the Beach Boys would record. It’s a mature album and there may not be any anthems like Lucky You or Three Lions, but that’s probably a good thing. Had they returned without developing their sound then the result would have been cringeworthy. As it is, this is a good release, which delivers a subtle but strong ’We’re back’ message to their fans.

Rating: 7/10

(Review by Polly Weeks)

Singles by Andy Welch

:: The Panics – Don’t Fight It

This is the first single from Australian newcomers The Panics, and sounds like a cross between Mercury Rev and Echo And The Bunnymen. Not a bad place to start. Atmospheric and melodic in equal measure, it’s a great debut.

:: Team Waterpolo – Room 44

Hotly-tipped Preston four-piece Team Waterpolo finally release their debut after a bidding war between a number of record labels. It’s mixture of organs, chanted choruses and spiky guitars, and the result is addictive.

:: Paolo Nutini – Candy

While Paolo’s new single is a pleasant listen, there’s very little to remember in it. And you’ll more than likely spend a few minutes when you hear it trying to wonder out what on earth is going on with his accent. Whatever it is, it’s not Scottish, but this is a bland song.