WORTH A LOOK?: ****

We last saw Pulp live at Hammersmith’s Eventim Apollo in July 2023 and wrote: ‘We absolutely yearn for new material as good as those songs like Common People which soundtracked and shaped our adulthood’.

• Read on for reasons including how to see Pulp live at London’s The 02 this summer

Producer James Ford twiddled the knobs on 1 of our favourite albums of last year and Spike Island is better lyrically than musically at conjuring up the quirky joy of 1 of the 90s best bands.

Lead singer Jarvis Cocker asks: ‘I was wrestling with a coat hanger, can you guess who won?’ and observes: ‘I was born to perform. It’s a calling. I exist to do this, shouting and pointing.’

Spike Island is the lead single from 1st album in 24 years – the sparingly yet appropriately titled More – which is out 6 June.

We heard Slow Jam from it when we last saw Cocker solo live as Jarv Is at Camden Roundhouse in 2021 and The Hymn Of The North featured at that Hammersmith gig 2 years later.

Pulp also play 2 gigs at London’s The 02 a week after the album’s release and we’re delighted for them while hoping for album material of the strength of some of our favourite 90s showstoppers by them like Common People, Razzamatazz and Mis-Shapes.

While Spike Island may wish to lyrically convey some of the magic of a track like Sorted For Es and Whizz, it’s only got us swaying slightly rather than burning up the dancefloor like a Disco 2000.

• Main pictures via Facebook by Lauren Krohn courtesy Pulp Tickets
• Have you seen a Pulp show before and what did you think of this song? Let us know what you thought in the comments below
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