Paul Haig - Relive

(Rhythm of Life)

As helmsman of Edinburgh post-punk vampires Josef K, Paul Haig cast an immortal shadow over the guitar pop landscape. The opening track from Relive, however, is a dead ringer for Girls Aloud.

Sure, the rock props abound: there are nods to New Order (‘Ambition’), Bloc Party (‘Round and Round’), Franz Ferdinand (‘Horses’) – Josef K, of course, influenced them all – plus a homage to Postcard Records, via the trebly guitars of ‘So Contemporary’.

But album highlight ‘Trip out the Rider’ is energised and unexpected: it comes on like Girls Aloud’s ‘Wake Me Up’, and proves there’s pop fire in Haig’s belly yet.