Blinding new album from the Merseyside band

One of the best albums of 2003 was ‘Magic And Medicine’ by The Coral. Its retrospective folky psychedelic was quirky, dreamy and equally as fidgety, an astounding combination of opposites, but how perfectly complete it was. And the songs, how brilliant were the songs, man - ‘Pass It On’ ‘Bill McCai’ ‘Eskimo Lament’ ‘Don’t Think You’re The First’ - all amazing and, in my opinion, towered over their debut by several country miles. They won a lot of respect through that record, a universal high-five for the song writing and creativity. They’ve grown up in public ever since and we’ve watched them do it, their delivery of music has remained consistent mostly ( maybe a slight wobble around 2008, no biggie though) and they’ve become one of our greatest assets. On new album ‘Butterfly House’ they are mining from the very marrow of their essence to bring that sound they’re loved for. The departure of founder member and guitarist Bill Ryder Jones has had zero effect on the output of The Coral. . Deeper and richer than previous outings, never more apparent than on stunning opener ‘More Than A Lover’ with James Skelly’s singing voice brilliantly forlorn. The undeniable shine of stand-out tracks ‘1000 Years’ ‘Sandhills’ and ‘Roving Jewel’ is vintage brilliance. There is still that slight summery vibe but with the influence of top producer John Leckie ( the man behind Radiohead’s The Bends) it’s a ‘grown up’ summery vibe this time around. I’ve never considered The Coral to be anything less than gifted and this record maintains that.

Alan Baillie