Cadenza

Sometimes it's better to take the byroads. Walking the backstreets rather than the high street may mean a longer journey, but it's where the character and quirks, the very heart of a town can be found. And character, quirk and heart is certainly what Dutch Uncles developed between forming five years ago in the Manchester 'burb of Marple and finishing their first album for Memphis Industries, Cadenza. In addition to the cross-dressing videos and live shows in churches with ten-piece orchestras, the album puts clear blue water between them and the dreary Mancunian macho-rock clichés of the recent and not so recent past. The band recorded Cadenza last summer, locked in a Salford basement experimenting and stretching their songs into new and unexpected shapes. This is highbrow pop - unashamed of its pretension and ambition while staying fit to bust with hooks. Take the title track: the infectious rhythmic Italo House piano opening and peculiarly catchy, looping sea-shanty guitar riff provide the hooks, while Duncan Wallis's vocals are exquisitely counterpoised, drawing from his experience of being a pallbearer at his grandmother's funeral in a surprisingly uplifting way. "Fragrant" brings the band's pop know-how right to the fore. Precisely woven melodies and whip-smart guitar lines frame Wallis's spidery lyricism, combing to forge a chrome-plated future pop classic. But Cadenza also shows off Dutch Uncles' more reflective side. "Dolli" is a lilting, mostly a cappella piece, and "The Rub" sees Wallis's plaintive refrain framed by vibraphones, xylophone and glockenspiel.