Full of bad sex, bad relationships and suburbia, Black Box Recorder's lyrics belie the slick and in places sugary pop music beneath them. Soulful and louche, 'The facts of life' takes good pop production and shows that it can still say something which is neither totally vacuous, or nihilistically stylish. The NME are not a million miles away when the describe the album as 'catchy, intelligent and frequently heartbreakingly poignant, proving that saccharine is no bar to excellence'.