The Zutons

You Can Do Anything

Third album from the Liverpudlians and their first since Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse made ‘Valerie’ a radio playlist standard. Producer George Drakoulias adds extra ‘beef’ to their sound while the arrival of new guitarist Paul Molloy gives their sound more bite and the band a renewed purpose. They haven’t strayed too far from their original template (swampy blues, R&B, tootling Roxy Music-style sax that veers into ska, pop, skiffle), but considering their sound is a melting pot of the best of the last half-century of popular music, they’re unlikely to coast for too long. Tales of longing and curtain-twitching snippets from the dark side of their hometown elevate them above many of their contemporaries. They can still do rousing glam-alike singalongs (’Always Right Behind You’, ‘What’s Your Problem’), but it has always been their introspective tracks that worked best (’Dirty Rat’ and ‘Don’t Get Caught’) and which stuck in the brain the most.