Last year, ‘80s stars Culture Club reminded us why they were regarded as one of the most dysfunctional units around back in the day, when they scrapped plans to release a long-awaited new album that had been tentatively titled Tribes. After a period of rewriting and retooling, from the ashes of that ill-fated record comes LIFE – alongside a rebranding that puts Boy George’s name first.

He was the star then, and he is now. Reggae, funk, gospel and pop are once again mined over Life’s 11 tracks. Which is fine. But it may come as something of a disappointment to fans that the first new material in nearly 20 years from a group who made a career of bucking conventions and blazing trails socially, politically and sonically, seems to stick to a musical blueprint drafted when many HP readers weren’t even born.

George himself is hugely talented and his] huskier-than-ever vocals come as a welcome surprise, adding gravitas to the wistful ballad ‘Oil & Water’ and the slow-burning ‘God & Love’. But tracks like ‘Resting Bitch Face’ and ‘More Than Silence’ add little to the band’s legacy.

5/10

Out Now