JIM BOB
POP UP JIM BOB
CHERRY RED
★★★
It’s hard to believe that, armed only with a guitar and drum machine, Carter USM topped British charts in the early 90s. Almost three decades later, frontman Jim Bob’s lost little of his wit, accent or anger, and he’s gained a band, The Hoodrats, who add grit and romance to Jo’s Got Papercuts and If It Ain’t Broke’s gobby punk. #ThoughtsAndPrayers, in which boys are still stuck cleaning chimneys, is especially acidic, but the mournful You’re Cancelled & We’re Done and Truce’s spoken word ramble offer elegies for the UK.