ALBUM REVIEW

BOYZONE - THANK YOU AND GOODNIGHT

Get ready to shed a tear or three - Boyzone are back for one last outing. The Irish boy band are bidding farewell after a successful 25-year career and are doing so with an album of 12 new tracks, including one with vocals from late bandmate Stephen Gately. The irony is that the record is a real triumph, and serves as a frustrating reminder that there just aren't many bands of this pop-friendly calibre around these days.

With a helping hand from songwriters Ed Sheeran and Gary Barlow, there is little here that under-delivers, and the four singers have given it their all with a collection of tracks that will keep fans happy for years. Love, penned by Barlow, is an anthem, in keeping with Boyzone's ballad-friendly style, while Normal Boy is a peppier effort, reminiscent of their 1997 hit Picture Of You. Because, by Sheeran, is all bouncy guitars and clever lyrics, and it works for lead singer Ronan Keating's honeyed vocals. Dream, created from a 2002 demo of Gately's and reworked with the band harmonising alongside him, is touchingly beautiful and will take fans back to their 1990s heyday.

The band are certainly bowing out on a high, and have delivered one of the strongest albums of their career.

9/10

Lucy Mapstone