8

An enticing hotchpotch of ideas that, with time, could set this band apart from the rest

Starting brashly, Ludes' debut album 'The Dark Art Of Happiness' opens with the hauntingly stylish 'Badlands', a concoction of all sorts, with bits and pieces flung around in staccato rhythms, all building up to a fulfilling end. There's a dark punk and ska ethic in the sound, all infused in a futuristic mould that melds part Franz Ferdinand/The Futureheads with The Clash and Buzzcocks.

The music's hip and dancey at times and tracks such as 'Traffic Lights' could suit a late-night indie-club floor no problems. They seem like definite descendants of new-wave bands like the Liars with artistic moments in their songs and all-out crashing sound, whilst also employing many typical punky traits, picked up from the likes of The Descendants et al, and they don't seem in any way out of place among their contemporaries' noise, such as that of the Arctic Monkeys.

'Mr Benson' is an instant fun classic, sounding like The Vines fixing all the imperfections of tracks like 'The Factory', there's a element of The Divine Comedy in its style, met with a raw and DIY instrumentation, typical of garage rock records old and new. The album gets better as it progresses; 'Free' is a nice track, employing Eagles-esque soloing at one point, (there really is some diversity to this LP!) and coming across like the lost Blur record between 'The Great Escape' and 'Blur'.

The lyrics are often quite clever and well conveyed via David Ashby's vocal sneer, reminiscent of Albarn and Ashcroft. If we're gonna be cynical we could say that he music Ludes make almost sits too well alongside other current acts such as The Kooks and Clap Your Hands, but lets not be cynical and lets just say congratulations, for it sounds as if they've got the sound of what sounds good in the current neighbourhood...

It's certainly a record of many styles, maybe not honed yet to quite a perfect level of self-identification, but it doesn't let up and demands attention the whole way through, with a sound ranging from the Eighties Matchbox-like swirls of 'Dog Don't Bark' to the tenderness of 'Green Eyes', it'll keep you guessing and it'll keep you listnin'.

With standout tracks like 'Mr Benson' and current single 'Never Had A Chance', Ludes are certainly a band to keep an eye on. Still, it would seem that they've got further to go in terms of their music making and their committing it to record, but that is an exciting prospect, so just remember that name and in a few years you can 'yeah, I knew about them ages ago!'