Ullages

The comparisons to The Cure and Cocteau Twins will surely come in their droves. But 'Ullages' is not a nostalgic album. Quite the opposite. It's a record with its eyes firmly to the future; the future of the band, and the future of the city that spawned them.

It’s a big record, one with thick, heavily layered textures and massive, unapologetic guitar parts that are far from shy in displaying their origins.

Both blissful and bloody-minded, Ullages is raincoat-clad gift from goth heaven.

There is undoubtedly more beauty in Ullages, but darkness always seems to linger in the background.

The fiery, barking default of their debut is gone. In steps a renewed George Mitchell, fronting the group with a strange poetry. He’d still prefer to detail a bloodied city centre bust­-up than an idyllic holiday in the Bahamas, but he’s delivering dystopia in new terms

Whatever you want to label or compare it to, Ullages is an exciting step forward into new territories for Eagulls. They haven't changed their sound, more developed it. They've kept the rawness, the pop songwriting and uncompromising attitude but pushed it sonically further than many would have ever expected them to.

There's still talk of severed heads and vomit, but Eagulls have found beauty in the bleakness on their second outing, and crafted a record that spans an emotional spectrum much wider than ever before. It's a stunning leap forward.

Everything about Ullages feels bigger. Eagulls have not just expanded their sonic palette, they also explore far weightier questions about life through their lyrics. As a result, the record instantly comes across as a more advanced and mature proposition compared to its predecessor, which was more interested in instant thrills.

They could have easily gotten by with releasing another record full of driving post-­punk awash in reverb. But instead Eagulls expanded, unfurled.

In substituting the ferocity of their debut for positivity, Eagulls have constructed a very good record that is arguably better than their well-received debut.

At the same time that they've sharpened their pop chops, Eagulls are also gloomier, swapping the punk-rock call-and-response style of their debut for a more reflective kind of musical angst.

It doesn’t sound as fresh and exciting as the debut, but the changes made work for the most part and continue to demonstrate the band’s potential to be a prominent feature in British indie for years to come.