Mystery Jets - 'The Boy Who Ran Away' (679 Recordings) Released 27/02/06

Hearing the phrase krautrock is always enough to generate an expectant flutter of adrenaline and hearing what sounds like yet another ****ing quirky post-punk ditty is enough to make you eat a plate. Its energetic, it does unexpected things but it does them so expectedly and the awful thing is, it’s not even that bad. Hearing these sounds, transplanted from a more vibrant beast from over 20 years ago, from Ferdinand through Brass Monkey’s, the sound and energy are weird simulacra, divorced from any political, social or musical context. To be fair, a very quick skim through the album reveals more interesting noises and the band are a formidable live proposition, but on its own, this is an underwhelming release.