Pigeon Detectives – Broken Glances

A world away from the punchy punk-pop that catapulted The Pigeon Detectives onto the c.2007 indie bandwagon, this fifth LP from the Leeds boys is a more solemn offering. A decade later, as other passengers (Good Shoes, The Holloways, et al.) have fallen by the wayside, The Pigeons have chugged along relying on a small army of loyal fans to buy their albums – which until now have been of a largely similar format. Broken Glances instead offers a darker, more experimental sound, largely down to producer Richard Formby (Wild Beasts, Ghostpoet). And it’s not half bad. It’s certainly more commendable than listening to 30-somethings trying to squeeze out carbon copies of their early hits. Yet while tracks like ‘A Little Bit Alone’ (plenty of crashing guitars) and the atmospheric ‘Postcards’ have some intriguing moments, the album as a whole does err on the side of boring. Perhaps it’s best to stick to what you know after all. 5/10 RH