Posted by Jason Diamond

I’m not quite sure how I feel about the band British Sea Power now, as I was also unsure when I heard them a few years back.  The only reason I listened to the stream of their newest album, Valhalla Dancehall, was because I’ve been reading The Decline and Fall of the British Empire, 1781-1997 by Piers Brendon, and thought this could make an appropriate soundtrack.

I’m sorry to say that this was not the case.  The album doesn’t really lend itself to stories of British folly and imperialism, and the title leaves me wanting songs about Rastafarian dudes getting stoned on Viking ships.  Sadly that isn’t the case either.

The only solace I take is that at least they’re actually British and it’s not just a clever name.