Andy Burrows - Fall Together Again (2014) Lossless

Brilliantly, unashamedly melodic, Fall Together Again is the kind of record where the earworms patiently queue up to present themselves one after the other; where songs open out into soaring choruses that soon give way to brighter and ever bolder hooks. It's a record imbued with the spirit of early McCartney solo albums and sunroof-down daydream soul. It's shot through with the kind of sun-dappled soft rock that used to radiate from American FM radios in mid-'70s.

Andy Burrows' career has taken many paths since he gave up on Johnny Borrell and left Razorlight in 2009, including a recent stint behind the skins for another much-loved comedy character, David Brent, and his band Foregone Conclusion. 'Fall Together Again' sees Burrows take centre stage for his third solo album and it's a drab affair. An orchestral flourish begins the pleasantly brief opener 'Derwen' but after that it becomes a case of dodging Top Gear dad anthems ('City To Coast') and pop cheese Gary Barlow might consider a bit obvious ('All This I've Heard Before'). The stark synths on 'Watch Me Fall Again' offer a glimpse into darker territory, but isn't enough to save a dismally safe effort.