The last time we heard from The Wonder Stuff was the distinctly underwhelming Construction For The Modern Idiot which, while not without its moments, paled in comparasion to such gems as The Eight Legged Grove Machine and Never Loved Elvis.
Now, over a decade after they broke up, they're back - kind of. Only Miles Hunt and Malc Treece remain from the original line up, but absence hasn't mellowed Hunt in any way. The man who wrote the immortal "I didn't like you very much when I met you, and now I like you even less" is still as angry, bitter and twisted as ever. "Who was it said that I was f**ked at birth?" is the opening salvo before bursting into a chorus full of physical threats ("I'll slap you down!").
Musically, the fiddles have gone and it's a return to the more straight-forward rock of the early Stuffies years. This may not be The Wonder Stuff as you remember them but Hunt remains one of the more distinctive songwriters of our age. It's good to have him back.