Blood Red Shoes
Album: In Time To Voices
Label: V2
Tracks: 11
Website: http://www.bloodredshoes.co.uk

The music world these days is littered with average bands offering up reformed rock 'n' roll. Not so if your band is Blood Red Shoes. Brighton's finest are on their third album release with 'In Time To Voices' and what would normally be a difficult follow up to their two previous gems is a more than pleasant surprise.

It's a rare thing when a band clicks into a more mature vibe that's as recognised as much as it's hidden, but BRS have done this in spades. Laura-Mary Carter and Steven Ansell share the responsibility equally and make ITTV a stand out album as a result. The punk roots are still impenetrable ('Je Me Perds') as well as keeping the memory of the Pixies alive ('Lost Kids'). It's tracks like these along with 'Night Light' and 'Slip Into Blue' that make you see clearly how Carter and Ansell have spent 2011; growing up and growing closer to create an almost intimate dinner-for-two setting, albeit with drums and Telecasters rather than candles and fine wines.

The assistance of Foals producer Mike Crossley also has something to do with the improved intelligence of their sound; there's a definite nod to 'Spanish Sahara' on 'Two Dead Minutes'. Complicated yet simple, cohesive yet apart, ITTV is full of sleek and vibrant tracks that give it the edge over its contemporaries. Carter and Ansell's voices are the only ones you'll want to give your time to.

Emma Sutherland
http://emmasutherland.posterous.com