Heartland - Client

The Client story in respect of me has only two things of note that are worth pointing out. Firstly I had to walk out of their supporting set to the Pet Shop Boys at last year's Summer Pops because they started swearing rather a lot (I was with my mother after all) and secondly I did always quite like Dubstar, or at least their debut album. And as you should know, Sarah Blackwood was/is lead singer of both.

In theory I should love Client, electro pop sung by three women who I wouldn't exactly rush to kick out of bed. In practise it's never been quite that simple. Whilst I enjoy some of the tracks I listen to, others aren't worth getting out of bed for at all. So the big question as we get to album 3 is whether or not this opinion is going to change at all.

It's not.

Therefore for every It's Not Over or Xerox Machine (yes it's an Adam & The Ants cover, but it is brilliant) that wows you there's a Where's The Rock And Roll Gone (with it's completely pointless use of Tim Burgess on backing vocals) or 6 In The Morning that always threatens to go somewhere but never quite arrives.

It's not a terrible album and for people who like this kind of thing you're bound to find something to enjoy on this collection (you should probably start with the Stephen Hague-mixed Someone To Hurt); it's just that it falls somewhat short of what they needed to have a genuine chance of a UK break-through. There's just too much of it that you'll struggle to remember five minutes after you've heard it.