Now that the success of The Hives has rescued Alan McGee's Poptones label from a premature death, the man who discovered Oasis is free to indulge himself again with some more offbeat signings. So time to get acquainted with the Bellrays, a Californian quartet who specialise in a brand of 60s-style blues rock that makes the Gallagher brothers look like radical innovators. Still, originality isn't everything and in Lisa Kekaula the band has a mighty, confrontational singer whose Aretha Franklin-style wail leaves its mark on even the most unremarkable of material. Culled from their three American albums to date, Meet The Bellrays is the perfect introduction to this attractively gutsy outfit who, the odd ham-fisted political lyric aside, clearly have no aspirations other than to being a good-time soul band. Who knows, if McGee keeps this up he might even get his winner's reputation back.
