A Bit Of Previous CD

When the world seems like it's coming apart at the seams, you can always rely on Belle & Sebastian to lift your spirits. It may have been a while since we last heard from the long-serving Glaswegian combo - A Bit of Previous, their tenth album, is also their first for seven years - but the old magic still remains. While the lyrics deal with all manner of subjects - not least the march of time and the weight of their own musical history - the accompanying music is largely triumphantly cheery, or at the very least the sonic equivalent of Prozac. As a result, standouts are plentiful, with our picks including the glassy-eyed, gospel-tinged Americana-soul fusion of 'If They're Shooting at You', the pedal steel-sporting indie-pop breeze of 'Young and Stupid' and the fuzzy, low-slung, post-punk/indie-pop fusion of 'Unnecessary Drama'.