On pop

If 'Goal Goal Goal', the new-laddy rewrite of James's (right) lovely song 'Low Low Low', has whetted your appetite for their alternative side, plan ahead for the moment next month when they launch an album called Wah Wah. This thoroughly Other piece of work (their second album in nine months) is a companion piece to Laid, and came about at the suggestion of producer Brian Eno. Reports vary, but the gist is that he wanted the cutting room floor to be ankle deep in discarded jams and rock postures, so he could keep the best stuff for Laid. Let the increasingly acclaimed lads get it out of their systems. The title was to be Frequency Dip, which bears the mark of the boffin, but has recently been changed to the more rock 'n' roll Wah Wah. The disc itself will be in the shops for a week, from 29 August, and thereafter will only be available on mail order. This is so as not to confuse the Americans, who may have largely been unaffected by having Suede, Primal Scream and Blur thrust at them, but think James are the genuine article.

But what does it sound like? Well, it's mainly electronic, and features lead singer Tim Booth experimenting with freely associative lyrics in a falsetto voice. A little bit of confusion is good for us all.

Wah Wah is out on Fontana, 29 August