Well it seems that everyone's favourite pop punksters are back with a new marketing strategy. Mc Fly, compromising of Tom Fletcher (lead vocals/guitar), Danny Jones (lead vocals/guitar), Harry Judd (drums) and Dougie Poynter (bass guitar) are giving away new album 'Radio:ACTIVE' for free with the Mail On Sunday coincidentally with the announcement of a forthcoming arena tour. A band with their finger on the pulse, or a shameless cash-in?

Just a few short months ago Radiohead turned the music industry upside-down with their honesty-box release of In Rainbows. It was a brave move indeed. But with the truckload of free publicity, asking fans to pay what they like actually turned out to be a shrewd move.

Unfortunately in this instance it seems a contrived choice to release their 'stadium' album with the torrid Daily Mail. A publication with little interest in independent record labels (Mc Fly recently created their own Super Records) or seemingly with the band themselves before now.

But as for the music?

Mc Fly, forever filed under the guilty pleasure title have created some of the best pop songs of the last few years. 'Radio:ACTIVE' is all about finding that critical acclaim that has so far alluded them. For further proof see the lead single's, Green Day-lite, couplet "So don't pretend you hate us when we sing our songs/'Cause we all look the same in the dark". It's loud and punchy sure but you can almost hear the last roll of their creative dice.

One For The Radio? Possibly. One eye on America? Most Definitely.

Album opener 'Do Ya' is at best a weak version of 'That Girl', whilst 'Smile' is a Beach Boys pastiche that won't suffer repeated listens well. Ditto for the achingly pedestrian 'Falling In Love', thus far its all about as radioactive as tap water.

However the album soon becomes worth it's £1.50 price tag when the startling key change of 'POV' kicks in. A raincloud of bruising guitars finally hallmark the return of Tom Fletcher's brooding vocals. Similarly 'Corrupted' treads the successful path of Paramore. A direction you just wish they had followed through as it's quite possibly their best song to date. Lyrically they're reaching out further than before too "Do you remember how it started?/Fairytale got twisted and decayed".

Dark and adventurous, this is the calibre of tune they'll need if they are to make their "LA Temptations" a reality.

A solid album then, but too hit-and-miss to garner the industry applause they so desperately crave. You get the feeling that a couple more listens to 'Dookie' and they may well have got it right. Either way, 'Radio:ACTIVE' is still the best thing to appear in the Mail On Sunday for sometime. It has to be remembered though, that ain't much of a compliment.

Lee Sentino