Inspired perhaps by the “If the Wedding Present can do it why can’t we?” line of thought, Teenage Fanclub are back amongst us five years after the underwhelming Howdy and slightly longer since their Grand Prix heyday. Some things have changed – they’ve founded their own label, and recorded this album in Chicago with Tortoise’s John McEntire – but the heart of the band still lies very much in the hands of the Blake, Love and McGinley trio and their desire to craft simple yet effective guitar pop. Indeed, Man-Made puts the emphasis very much on the simple, opting for a back-to-basics approach to production that sadly leaves it a decidedly underwhelming listen.
Part of the problem lies in the songs themselves, in past years their strongest hand but here – Norman Blake’s four terrific contributions aside – meandering aimlessly in a world of booming bass and drums and unconvincing vocals. Those Blake moments (‘It’s All In My Mind’, ‘Slow Fade’, ‘Cells’ and ‘Flowing’) see the band right back at the top of their game, but ultimately aren’t enough to lift the record out of its overall mediocrity. There’s an awful lot of goodwill still towards Teenage Fanclub but two so-so records in half a decade might just be the stuff to test it.