The Bluetones began their career back in the heady days of Britpop, when they were hailed by some as the new Stone Roses. Three underwhelming albums later, those claims sound very hollow indeed - and this singles collection feels like a canny marketing ploy rather than anything genuinely justified by artistic merit. The Hounslow quartet have always had a decent line in polite, inoffensive pop songs (the best being the shimmering 'Slight Return'), but their lack of character and Mark Morriss's thin vocals means they've never been the sort of band to attract strong feelings one way or the other. Just as boredom is setting in, however, redemption arrives in the shape of no fewer than four new songs - each one a melodic delight which suggests there may be some life left in the Bluetones' camp yet. Even so, hard to get excited about.

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