Wilt: Bastinado (Mushroom)

The noiseniks formerly known as Kerbdog are enjoying a rock'n'roll renaissance, reinventing themselves as an exuberant popcore trio, and turning those stale old grunge riffs into golden, crunchy nut, cereal killers. Cormac Battle and his Kilkenny cats make no bones about their main influences - just one listen to Bastinado will confirm that Sugar and Foo Fighters figure high in the hero stakes. The spectre of K**t C****n also looms large over I Found Out, but otherwise it's post-grunge fun and frolics all the way, with It's All Over Now, Open Arms and Expedestrians offering a meaty alternative to the disposable power-pap of Blink 182 and the po-faced plod of Silverchair.

By Kevin Courtney

Various Artists: Funk Phenomena 2 (Logic)

The first Funk Phenomena compilation was a superb mix of classic grooves from the 1970s and 1980s, and the reaction was so good that the compilers, Al Mayfield and Cino Berigliano, felt compelled to dig deeper into their collections and come up with another dirty dozen nuggets of funk. The law of diminishing returns means that Volume Two lacks the energy and immediacy of Volume One, but though there are fewer fast 'n' furious workouts, there are lots of smooth, slinky tunes like First Choice's Love & Happiness, Leroy Hutson's Lucky Fellow and Maynard Ferguson's Mr Mello. There are also a few tasty mid-tempo tunes, such as Johnny Guitar Watson's Superman Lover, Cymande's The Message and Detroit Emeralds' You're Getting A Little Too Smart.

By Kevin Courtney