Allow me to start this review with two statements. Firstly, it’s absolutely criminal that I Am Kloot’s fifth long player Sky at Night is the first album of the band that has been released on these shores. Secondly, it’s almost just as criminal that we here at the AU Review haven’t gotten around to reviewing it yet. It was released last winter and we usually don’t review albums that have been kicking about for a good 8 months. But this one’s a bit special. So we’ll make an exception.

As with fellow Mancunian contemporaries Elbow an often-heard complaint is that Kloot have not had the success they deserve. Elbow fixed that problem by releasing The Seldom Seen Kid in 2008 to wide acclaim and accompanying album sales. So it’s probably more than fitting to have Guy Garvey and Craig Potter from Elbow producing this record. However, if you think that they simply sprinkled some of that Seldom… magic dust over Sky at Night you’re mistaken.

Singer and songwriter John Bramwell’s lyrics haven’t changed over the years, still dealing with down and out characters in less than favourable situations, and the musical style of the band hasn’t evolved much either. However, there are some lush string arrangements and hints of soul that, together with the delicate production of Garvey and Potter, have the album make that step up from Kloot’s already high-standard previous work.

The brilliance of the record is that you allow yourself to get sucked into its slow pace and sadness with glimmers of hope. When Bramwell croons “You’re the guy on the buss, Who’s not quite one of us, You hear laughter” on “To the Brink”, you know exactly the type of person he’s talking about. And although the uplifting melodies of “Northern Skies” have a feel good comfortableness about them lyrics such as “Above there are no stars tonight just northern skies, Reflected light upon your face” suggest something slightly darker. There’s an abundance of examples like the above that I could write down here but the bottom line is that, compared to their previous work, the improved production and the more cohesive feel has allowed I Am Kloot to deliver one of the better albums of 2010.

Even though the slow pace might annoy some, Sky at Night is a brilliant album that already has and will continue to win that much-hoped-for wider audience.

Review score: 8/10