THIS week, we’ve decided to go more mellow and understated in our review choices. By the time you’ve read this, at least two excitement new albums to review will have been released, which will keep us busy.

First is an album we’re looking forward to a lot in the form of The Last Flight, the new album from Public Service Broadcasting detailing the life, adventures and demise of American female aviator Amelia Earhart.

What we’ve heard so far in the form of the four songs out of the nine long track listing all sounding terrific and distinctly different in the form only Public Service Broadcasting can earnestly pull off. More on that next time.

The other is a new greatest hits compilation by the Lightning Seeds. While we could ostensibly review it as it is a compilation, we’ll wait until its out to see if there are any surprises.

In addition to the aforementioned greatest hits, the track listing contains some album tracks which the band say are important to the story of the band. But as we said, more about that in the future.

This week we’ve decided to visit a 2004 solo album by Ian Broudie, the lead singer of the Lightning Seeds.

The first and obvious thing to note is that it is not the Lightning Seeds despite being the work of the same man and that is the reason it is a solo album for all intents and purposes.

Tales Told is a reflective, stripped back album containing minimal instrumentation and themes.

It was conceived during a difficult time for Ian Broudie, what with the Lightning Seeds being put on an indefinite hiatus and the divorce from his wife and mother of Riley, his son.

He had gone back to producing bands, this time with young bands from Liverpool, namely The Coral and The Zutons and members of these bands provided the backing music.

During downtime in his hotel room, Broudie reportedly turned to writing songs to pass away the hours and it was these songs which formed Tales Told.

Rather than the melancholic, saccharine sweet synth pop of the Lightning Seeds, Tales Told could be defined as more in the realms of the folk genre.

The lead track, Song for No One is a bright jaunt which probably comes the closest to straddling the line between Lightning Seeds and Tales Told.

He Sails Tonight is a haunting melody which wists you way to sea, while Smoke Rings is a genuine joy of a track – which Top Gear fans might find familiar owing to its use in the notorious episode where the duo went on a disastrous caravanning holiday to Dorset.

Some tracks are purely instrumental, namely Super Cinema and Something Street.

Overall, the album is an excellent treat that you’ve probably not listened to yet, and perhaps this is the time you should.

If anything, the only criticism of it is the fact that if anything, the album is a bit too short. You’re left wanting more.