Just when you thought it was safe to listen to the radio again, free from the Coldplay wannabes especially with the likes of Snow Patrol and Keane slowly declining. Enter Animal Kingdom, before the release of this - their debut album, they were dubbed as the new Coldplay (Oh goodie, can't wait).

Now it's not fair to judge a band on who they have been compared with, so let's see what 'Signs And Wonders' has to offer. Straight away Richard Sauberlich's vocals stand out with that calm elegant sound which sits with the likes of Paul Simon and Ezra Koenig (Vampire Weekend). Unfortunately that is where the similarity ends, Animal Kingdom just don't hold that bit extra. They don't have the ammunition as far as their lyrics go. Obviously it would be unfair to compare them to Paul Simon's song writing, but in reality Animal Kingdom can't touch Vampire Weekend's clever spiraling lyrics mixed with addictive one liners and mesmerizing tunes. 'Good Morning Mr Magpie' is a classic example, although it has a good melody and is probably one of the better songs on the album you are hit with lyrics like "Wake up sleepy face".

'Sign And Wonders' doesn't really have anything to offer, generally, when you listen to an album it's quite easily pick out two or three standout songs and picture them as singles. The problem with this album is everything is just too similar. If 'Sign And Wonders' was measured using a heart beat monitor, there wouldn't be much to the life signs after the first track. Coldplay have got a lot to answer for.

2/5

Mark Moore