Half Man Half Biscuit – CSI: Ambleside (2008)

This one was bought in the time honoured way - sending a cheque for the required amount to Geoff of Probe Plus Records at Sydenham Avenue in Liverpool, and receiving the CD in the post on the day of release. I'd seen HMHB on the tour for the previous album a couple of years earlier and was looking forward to this.

As expected, it's a collection of a (baker's) dozen songs, mostly light hearted, with a huge dose of satire, cynicism, tongue in cheek, surrealism and fine one-liners.

Opening with the average (by HMHB standards) Evening Of Swing, we're soon into the rocking Bad Losers At Yahoo Chess, one of many highlights here for me. Took Problem Chimp To Ideal Home Show is a bizarre piece of Wirral Rap / electronica, and Ode To Joyce is a lament for the lack of songs for girls called Joyce, quite lovely.

Blue Badge Abuser (fantastic bass line, Neil) is what it says in the title, a singalong ditty with a nice guitar solo in the middle. Fetch my stick, Margaret.

Perhaps my favourite track on the album is Totnes Bickering Fair, a piece from an estranged husband to his new-age woo obsessed ex-wife. "I'm gonna feed our children non-organic food and with the money saved take them to the zoo".

King Of Hi-Vis is aimed at the self important roadies etc with bunches of keys hanging from every belt loop, it's OK, but not a favourite, unlike the single entendre Lord Hereford's Knob which always raises err.. a smile. "Tympa, Tympa, you're gonna need a jumper".

On The 'Roids considers the wisdom of healthy argument with steroid driven knuckleheads, and is fairly listenable, while Petty Sessions is a throwaway (barely a minute long) version of the Hokey-Cokey (I ring up Dial-A-Pizza and say that's not how I would spell Hawaiian).

Little In The Way Of Sunshine has a certain appeal, it's a jolly little number unlikely to ever be viewed as an HMHB great (I was Mr Wet Underpants in '89, a title by accident more than design), and Give Us Bubblewrap is a rocking tribute to that wondrous packing material. Which brings us to the grand finale, the rambling National Shite Day, a Nigel Blackwell rant, one of a periodic series, in which he seems to get a lot of pet hates off his chest.

It's a solid HMHB album, with more than enough bangers to complete for spaces in the already overcrowded set list for as long as the chaps want to drag themselves from the Wirral for their annual half dozen gigs, with enough lyrical amusement to satisfy anyone.

Link to album tracks

4* - Enough wordplay, catchy tunes and joy for any HMHB fan