That ‘…Birds’ starts with the sound of a man clearing his throat is subtly relevant; a reminder that Big Brother is on his own. What follows is reminiscent of Oasis’ death throes; ‘If I Had A Gun’’s ‘Wonderwall’-esque opening riff gives way to the sort of vintageamp stomp befitting their final offering ‘Dig Out Your Soul’, while ‘AKA… What A Life’ is a surging attempt at Coldplay anthemia. Sure, ‘(Stranded On) The Wrong Beach’ could do with Liam’s snarl to pep it up, but for all ‘…Birds’’ pedestrian tendencies, it’s still a whole dozen braincells better than Beady Eye.

JJ Dunning