Write About Love, Rough Trade ***

Forever doomed, perhaps, to be placed firmly in the boxes marked “twee” and “winsome”, Scotland’s Belle and Sebastian have defended themselves by delivering albums that, while looking into the face of fashion and hooting derisively, more often than not give twee and winsome pop music a very good name. This, their first album in four years, is a remarkable return, virtually twinning lead singer and songwriter Stuart Murdoch’s God Help the Girl side project by using the services of various female vocalists, including actress Carey Mulligan (the title track) and Norah Jones (

Little Lou, Ugly Jack, Prophet John

). Thematic songs such as

Come On Sister, Calculating Bimbo, Read The Blessed Pages

and

Sunday’s Pretty Icons

breeze by, enhanced by the kind of classic 1960s girl-pop melodies that you thought disappeared with the likes of Sandi Shaw, Petula Clark and (no, really!) Cilla Black.

See belleandsebastian.com

Download tracks: Calculating Bimbo, Read the Blessed Pages