CD CHOICE:This week's CD of the week is RA RA RIOT's The Rhumb Line****

RA RA RIOT ****

The Rhumb Line V2

Twelve months ago it looked like The Rhumb Line would never be recorded. Having garnered plaudits for their high-energy live shows, things came to an abrupt halt for Ra Ra Riot following the tragic death of drummer John Ryan Pike. After much deliberation, the band decided to carry on - lucky for us. This debut from the Syracuse, New York five-piece (with guest drummer Cameron Wisch) provides the missing link between Final Fantasy and Arcade Fire, bringing together the refined- pop string arrangements of the former with the canyon-sized compositions of the latter.

With the main melodies being carried by violinist Rebecca Zeller and celloist Alexandra Lawn, Milo Bonacci's guitar and Mathieu Santos's bass lines play second fiddle (no pun intended). This helps separate Ra Ra Riot from the guitar-heavy posturing of their contemporaries.

Under Ryan Hadlock's lean production, each track offers a comforting familiarity. St Peter's Festival has the preppy energy of Vampire Weekend without the over-stylised mannerisms. On Winter '05, Wes Miles's saccharine voice swims over the sonorous string harmonies and supplies the right amount of brittle vulnerability to his tale of loneliness.

Given the band's history, it's perversely apt that one of the most up-tempo songs, Dying Is Fine (lyrics borrowed from an e.e. Cummings poem), gives a defiant two-finger salute to the afterlife.

In fact, the album is full of morose lyrical references that contrast with the innate bustling hope of the music. Can You Tell, Suspended in Gaffa (a Kate Bush cover) and Run My Mouth envelop the listener from their opening notes and go straight for the heart with their blissful hooks, yet never come close to collapsing under the weight of their own lofty aspirations.

For a record so inherently shrouded in mourning, The Rhumb Line works as a jubilant testament to a deceased friend and ranks as one of the freshest debut releases of the year. www.rarariot.com BRIAN KEANE

Download tracks:Winter '05, Can You Tell, Suspended in Gaffa