SOUND JUDGEMENT

THE LATEST ALBUM RELEASES RATED AND REVIEWED

10 SONGS TRAVIS HHHH

TWENTY years since they won the first of two best British group awards at the Brits, Travis return with their ninth studio album.

True to its simple name, this offering comes in 10 unique parts, pairing lead singer Fran Healy’s breathy falsetto with a mixture of contemplative piano, classic rock guitar and drums.

In many ways, this record has all the things that brought joy to fans of the Scottish rock band in their heyday.

Those yearning for the Britpop years will enjoy the strong sense of nostalgia, but for those with their heads in the present, it stands up as a triumph too.

INVITATION WARD THOMAS

HHH INVITATION is the fourth album from Hampshire twins Catherine and Lizzy Ward Thomas, whose country sound has been a big hit with Radio 2 audiences.

It’s a fairly gentle listen, a pleasant album which loyal fans will enjoy, but may fail to grab new listeners.

The first single, Someday, and Don’t Be A Stranger have catchy refrains, while Hold Space has melodic verses – but the chorus strays towards the repetitive.

The twins’ voices sound great on Halfway with James Blunt, and Human, a cover of The Killers track with Jack Savoretti, which was recorded live at the SSE

Arena in Wembley, but when someone else is livening up your album it’s not a good sign.

CARLA BRUNI CARLA BRUNI

HHHH H HISTORY teaches us to be wary of self-titled albums. Often they indicate indulgence, an artist with too much time on their hands, self-parody even.

Not so with Carla Bruni, the former French first lady and model.

This, her sixth album, is almost totally made up of original songs, bar a cover of a Spanish standard and a song Bruni wrote for Canadian singer Isabelle Boulay a few years ago.

Her music is disarming and this is a record well worth your time.