Backstreet Boys -- Never Gone

Personally I didn't care whether they'd gone, stayed or retired to Lytham St Anne's -- then again, I was never a teenage girl.

Now for those old fans, probably hitting their quarter-century, the boys are back with an album of big ballads and anthems.

It's business as usual, the sound perhaps a little less rock-oriented but still with the ear-friendly tunes and epic production.

Ear-friendly but not outstanding: I listened three times but couldn't recall anything. For boy-band class, give me Boyzone any day.

David Knights

The Magic Numbers -- Self Titled

Very much this years big thing, the Magic Numbers have delivered a poptastic summer album of the highest order.

With the group comprising of two sets of brothers and sisters, the harmonising and slightly west coast feel have drawn comparisons with the Mamas and Papas. The quality of songs such as Forever Lost and The Mule bring the sunshine straight into your heart and herald the arrival of a quality songwriter in the rather substantial figure of Romeo Stodart.

He can do pop, he can do romantic and he can do melancholy. The wistful inclusion of melodica to many of the tracks and the use of memorable, whistlable tunes puts it right up there in the albums of the year. Get it while the sun still shines.

Anthony Silson

Turin Brakes -- JackInABox

JackInABox is the third album from South London pop-folk duo Turin Brakes.

Written and produced in their own studio in Brixton, the sound is typically as far from the characteristics of the City rat-race as you can get.

It's a wonderfully laid back listen, from the cheery opener They Can't Buy The Sunshine, the chilled Forever to the light Building Wraps Round Me.

The music is a joy to listen to -- think open countryside, sunsets and lazy Sunday afternoons.

And to keep things fresh and add a further dimension from their previous albums, Mercury Music Prize-nominated The Optimist and Ether Song, they have instilled elements of funk and soul, for example on the excellent Asleep with Fireflies and the title track JackInABox.

Perhaps not as edgy as other albums you might hear this year, but the fusion of folk, tingling harmonies and summery pop makes it well worth a listen.

Jonathan Cook