Sons and Daughters Mirror Mirror

Sons and Daughters have always been rather overshadowed by the Glasgow scene that they emerged from. Formed as a splinter group from Arab Strap's touring band, they landed their deal with Domino from supporting Franz Ferdinand and have always strongly resembled The Delgados with their duelling boy-girl vocals. As a result of this they've generally been seen as a solid yet unremarkable act, with even the most positive of reviews still feeling the need to add qualifications to their enthusiasm.

In actuality however, the band were quietly evolving, drawing on the music and imagery of the fifties and sixties to create a refined retro style (which they then scuzzed up with a bit of punky energy) and gradually improving their songwriting skills, culminating in 2008's This Gift, a record that was stuffed with melody, hooks and, most importantly, charm. Although perhaps they went about their evolution a little too quietly as the album made nowhere near the splash it deserved to with the public, or with the critics for that matter.

So after a three year break (a long one by their standards), will Mirror Mirror succeed where This Gift failed? To be honest, it would be a miracle if it did – if people weren't willing to pay for an immediate pop record, it's extremely doubtful that they'd want to invest in something this troubling. It seems that the time spent away wasn't a particularly restful period for the band – in fact it sounds like they've aged ten years over the past three, with their influences moving on from the 60s to the late 70s and early 80s (they may slip in a lyrical lift from Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye, but it might very well be a reference to Bananarama's 1983 cover rather than Steam's '69 original). In other words they've traded in the garage rock, rockabilly and girl group infused sound to go new wave.

Although, this isn't really part of the new wave revival that dominated British indie around about 2005, for a start it's half a decade too late for that (which may suggest that Sons and Daughters' lack of success is due in part to them being wilfully uncommercial), but the group are clearly picking on darker areas of the genre than that movement did. Horror quite literally stalks these songs, from the obvious reference of Don't Look Now to Axed Actor's graphic account of the Black Dahlia murder, and the band have decided the most fitting way to evoke this is with the genre's jagged guitars and Reproduction-era Human League synths. Even the more danceable rhythm sections tip their hat to A Certain Ratio's early claustrophobic funk. Perhaps most significant though are the lengths that Adele Bethel and Scott Paterson go to alter their vocal styles to fit these influences – Bethel spends most of the album sounding like Siouxsie Sioux, while Paterson's Glaswegian burr seems to shift further and further south as the record goes on, ending up sounding rather Mancunian as he apes Ian Curtis and Mark E Smith (and, in Axed Actor's background wails, Morrissey).

All in all, it makes for something of a muted mood, especially in comparison to their earlier work. There are a few moments of pure thrill, such as the choruses of Rose Red and Bee Song where the vocals go stratospheric, but for the most part, Mirror Mirror is less notable for its melodies than its arrangements and production, some of which would do Martin Hannett proud. Take, for instance, the verses for the aforementioned Bee Song which feature Bethel offering paranoid whisperings while the rest of the band make buzzing noises in the background like a particularly disturbed bunch of five year olds, or Ink Free, a sinister electro number that combines Bethel and Paterson's chanting with flashes of white noise, and a nod to Yann Tiersen (or Dario Marianelli's Atonement score) with the use of a typewriter for percussion.

Mirror Mirror may be easier to admire, or more likely be creeped out by, than to love, but it marks an interesting turning point for Sons and Daughters, suggesting either that they've come to terms with the fact that they'll never be particularly successful and so are now happy to push themselves into darker territory, or that they're struggling and this may be their last gasp. Fingers crossed that it's the former as, despite not being as satisfying as This Gift, Mirror Mirror suggests that they have a still have a lot left to give.