Personal Best – Arnos Vale

Positivity’s a risky business. Even 20 years on from the angst-drenched 90s – when not only pop but also irony has eaten and regurgitated itself, only to chow down on the bilious remains – it still draws suspicion, and Personal Best are nothing if not positive. The flipside? They’re also quite brilliant.

Occupying the common ground between Tiger Trap’s winsome hooks and the buzzing volume of Sugar, stunners like Beauty Is Terror nod understandingly at timid hearts where yer average powerpop trio might simply take the easy route of breaking ‘em. This Is What We Look Like, meanwhile, first nicks and then runs with Joan Jett’s knack for making simple ballads rock the hardest. Indeed, it’s testament to Arnos Vale’s immersive pop-punk that it makes PMA sound like the only reasonable course of action. “All of my pain has got to be worth something,” sings Katie Gatt during the opening seconds, and you know what? She’s right. [Will Fitzpatrick]