This triumphant comeback sees him rediscovering his old sauce and joie de vivre.  Full text...

'Victory for the Comic Muse' is the Divine Comedy's finest album since their post-Britpop Chris Evans-approved heyday, when they were a band that (in spite of said ginger endorser), brought some elegance and intelligence to a self-congratulatory music scene all-too-often saturated in stupidity.  Full text...

Neil Hannon’s latest album ranks as one of his best as he continues he traditional and original sound.  Full text...

Long before the rosy cheeked Keane, nicely spoken Coldplay - and, dear me, Lily Allen - were lambasted for daring to be middle class, Neil Hannon was the hate figure du jour of the tackier music publications. Such people never got - and still don't get - Hannon, a son of a bishop (dear Lord!) with a passing penchant for the pretentious, poncy and piffling.  Full text...

Opener Die A Virgin is darkly humourous - sounding like something the Electric Light Orchestra might have done if they hadn't taken life so seriously. Upbeat singalongs, often a staple of The Divine Comedy, come thick and fast, Mother Dear being the finest example. The rest of the album is just as alluring.   Full text...

The title comes from E M Forster, but more pertinently refers back to The Divine Comedy's debut album Fanfare for the Comic Muse, released back in 1990, when the band was still a band, rather than just a vehicle for Neil Hannon.  Full text...

He is a unique and enduring entity in British music, and still has the capacity to be great.  Full text...

Sadly, Hannon's new album suggests that his muse has deserted him.  Full text...