Released two years ago in their native Sweden (where it went to number one and sold, like, loads or something), only now does the UK get their ears around Melody Club's debut album. So, was it worth the wait? Whaddaya think...?

That 'Music Machine' reached the dizzy heights of the top slot on Sweden's album chart tells us two things: one, that despite their excellent and affordable, flat-pack furniture, the Swedes really don't know good music from utter crap; and two, that Sweden's pop musicians are stuck in some sort of timewarp, where 1980s in-your-face synths rule supreme over all things rock and roll. It'd be acceptable if you could dance to it, but this incomprehensibly bland tripe wouldn't have been tolerated back when it was vaguely in vogue, so it's not got a snowball's proverbial of making the cut in today's market. Really, with a name like Melody Club I demand that my toes are tickled by tunes; 'Music Machine' makes them want to kick my stereo in over and over again.

Worth the wait then? Only if you're some kind of sleazy masochist that delights in self-administered aural torture. Avoid like you would a randy Ulrika Johnsson.