After years spent in indie obscurity, a Scottish four-piece make a bid for the bigtime with an impeccably tuneful collection of melancholic guitar songs. Sounds familiar? Yes, the Idlewild story bears a stunning resemblance to that of Travis and only the cruelest of cynics would complain if it had the same happy ending. The Remote Part is quite simply a quantum leap above Idlewild's previous efforts, dropping their previous hamfisted rock in favour of taut riffs, crafted choruses and a lyrical maturity that fits them remarkably well. Like Fran Healy, Roddy Woomble has adopted a kind of introspective Everyman persona that's easy to identify with and if his insecurity sounds a little wimpish at times, it's still a refreshing change from the macho posturings that afflict most of his contemporaries. The album ends with a spoken word interlude from Scottish poet Edwin Morgan, as if to underline a sense of classiness which was already very apparent. Idlewild are a band whose time has come but will the public recognise it?
