After two top five albums and five top 40 singles, high-profile appearances at festivals and radio shows, The Pigeon Detectives headed back in to the depths of Yorkshire for some time off. Now three years since the mixed reception of their second album 'Emergency', the Detectives are back with 'Up, Guards And At 'Em!'

Brit-pop casualised vocals silkily laden over retro beats, this album actually starts off exploring the realms of electro. However, for the most part it reverts to the guitar-driven indie-pop that sits in organically with, if a little in the shadow of, fellow stage-sharers Kaiser Chiefs. Sometimes they verge on the punky energy that they were originally known for. 'Go At It Completely' is a cracker of a song and 'Done In Secret', for example, is a finely crafted piece of sharpened energy - albeit one that goes on for a full four minutes and probably could've ended a good minute sooner.

And this feeling takes its toll after a while. It's likeable and at times endearing, but sometimes it blurs in to itself, getting lost in its own lack of reason. Lyrically it's ok, sometimes lazy, and the same can be said for the music. It's not a bad album; it's just not a brilliant one. If the Pigeon Detectives are not concerned with maintaining a high level of popularity, then that's fine. But if they retain the hope of being amongst the forefront of their genre they need to do more than this. Otherwise uninspired songs such as 'Turn Out The Lights' are going to mean more to them than they intended.

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