Black Grape: Orange Head (DGAFF Records)

Almost thirty years on from their incendiary debut It’s Great When You’re Straight… Yeah! Black Grape return older and wiser but still decidedly funky on fourth LP Orange Head. Compelling as ever lyrically, Shaun Ryder and Paul 'Kermit' Leveridge’s perspective has switched from celebrating the endless parties of their early era to the slightly reproachful hard earned wisdom of their early sixties.

Retaining Youth from 2017s excellent Pop Voodoo on production and mixing duties, the Killing Joke man contributes bass and co-writing credits. Lacking anything as joyous as I Wanna Be Like You or Nine Lives from its predecessor, the set is understandably darker following the deaths of Kemit's dad, Shaun’s father Derek and younger brother Happy Mondays’ bass linchpin Paul. Both are present in the lyrics of In The Ground, details the sometimes fractious relationship between the three: “Now you're in the ground / You're in the ground / You'd sell me out for a penny in a pound”. Evoking their more abrasive moments, (ie. Rubberband from 1998s underrated Stupid, Stupid, Stupid) Milk is vaguely reminiscent of Front 242s industrial banger Manhunter while sinister lead single Dirt recalls the pair’s formative years in Salford.

One of the strongest cuts Losers, rides its twangy Morricone-style guitar lines with a cautionary tale: “Don't you just love the colour of my cell? / And don't you just dig my empty shelves?”, a missive that states ultimately, crime really doesn’t pay. Also excellent is Sex On The Beach, a claustrophobic dub groove that evokes a gnarly after-hours subterranean club, the polar opposite of sun soaked hedonism,

Possibly reflecting a recent immersion in 70s crime dramas, Pimp Wars conjures up images of Huggy Bear strutting down the sidewalk, while sticking with the genre Quincy is energetic but slightly forgettable. Backed by Mariarchi trumpets and mock Spanish interjections, Button Eyes pays tribute to legendary crooners “Frank Bob and Bing” (Sinatra, Hope and Crosby) and erm, Cilla with its repeated refrain of Surprize, Surprize. The quality sags in places, Self Harm outstays its six minute running time, while the vocal sparring sounds disconnected from the music in Panda.

Despite being issued through their own setup DGAFF Records (Don’t Give A Flying Fuck), Shaun and Kermit remain invested enough to ensure this ‘Grape retains its freshness. 3/5