With a name that reads like the most half-hearted charge into battle of all time, this bunch are fronted by Charles Campbell Jones, arriving courtesy of the label that brought you Seasick Steve. To Arms Etc have nought in common with the aforementioned trailer park troubadour, although they can lay claim to spouting some rather interesting, if syrupy balladry. The off-kilter lyrics make songs like 'M.B.F.F.' (seemingly an acronym of 'My Best Friend's Floor') and the energised rattle of 'Isinbayeva' vastly more compelling they'd otherwise be, and occasional dalliances with prog rock like 'Super-Radiance' further elevate the record. A strange old business though this, and you'd certainly have a job categorizing exactly what it is this band are doing, as they bring to mind a whole host of confusion: unfashionable post-Brit pop fodder, Ben Folds Five and oh i don't know, probably Ed Harcourt, not that strictly speaking I even remember what he sounded like, but I'm pretty sure it's a good fit anyway...

With a name that reads like the most half-hearted charge into battle of all time, this bunch are fronted by Charles Campbell Jones, arriving courtesy of the label that brought you Seasick Steve. To Arms Etc have nought in common with the aforementioned trailer park troubadour, although they can lay claim to spouting some rather interesting, if syrupy balladry. The off-kilter lyrics make songs like 'M.B.F.F.' (seemingly an acronym of 'My Best Friend's Floor') and the energised rattle of 'Isinbayeva' vastly more compelling they'd otherwise be, and occasional dalliances with prog rock like 'Super-Radiance' further elevate the record. A strange old business though this, and you'd certainly have a job categorizing exactly what it is this band are doing, as they bring to mind a whole host of confusion: unfashionable post-Brit pop fodder, Ben Folds Five and oh i don't know, probably Ed Harcourt, not that strictly speaking I even remember what he sounded like, but I'm pretty sure it's a good fit anyway...