Aslan: "Here Comes Lucy Jones" (Solid)

Christy Dignam and the lads must be making a bid to become the Irish Oasis, because their latest album is crammed with sing-along rock ballads, lighter-waving anthems and Gallagher-style guitar riffs. Chains, Lucy Jones Part 2 and Special are touched by the hand of Noel, but at least they retain their individuality despite their rather cliched structure. Other tracks like Hurt Sometimes, Precious and Stone Cold Love are your standard, solid, rock'n'roll tunes, built with authentic materials, but still feeling somewhat out of time. There's a sense of unadventure about the whole album, as if Aslan are afraid to take the kind of musical risks which might make them a little more interesting.

By Kevin Courtney

Leonard Cohen: "More Best of" (Columbia)

In the song Anthem, Leonard Cohen sings "there is a crack in everything/That's how the light gets in". He's right. And Cohen's own voice is the "crack" through which an indomitable light shines for those who themselves are bright enough to see beyond ridiculously superficial suggestions that he is a doom-monger. All tracks on this album prove that he wasn't just joking when he sang "I was born with the gift of a golden voice" in Tower Of Song. His Jewish humour also lightens Closing Time, though nihilism dominates The Future. The new song, Never Any Good, is hardly the best of Cohen, and The Great Event should have remained a scribble in his notebook. But this album is essential listening, if only for his hymn to God, women, his muse and music: Hallelujah. Then again, you could just go and buy Cohen's four most recent albums from which these anthems come. All are essential listening.

By Joe Jackson

The Lightning Seeds: "Like You Do The Best Of The Lightning Seeds" (Epic)

Featuring a cover shot of lead Seed Ian Broudie surfing on the Mersey (like you do), this collection brings us right up to date with the Lightning Seeds' patchy rise to glory. Starting with the most recent single, What You Say, the album delivers one fine pop moment after another, from The Life Of Riley to Sugar Coated Iceberg to Lucky You. You may not recognise Broudie in a crowd, but his songs stand out for their pure, undiluted pop flavours and their unfettered lightness. The sweetness doesn't stop until the final victory of Three Lions, the Euro '96 Number One footie hit which Broudie recorded with Frank Skinner and David Baddiel. Marvellous.

Kevin Courtney