Most people will have first come across this trio through their breakthrough album, 2007’s Puzzle. Critically well-received and commercially successful, their fourth studio album achieved mainstream recognition not due to any artistic compromise on their part but more due to sheer, bloody-minded perseverance. For those who were immediately taken with Biffy Clyro’s unique blend of hard-rocking brashness and melodic dexterity, there is no doubt at all that Only Revolutions will satisfy their high expectations.

It’s much more difficult to gauge exactly what the uninitiated will make of this, and therefore a much more interesting way to try to describe the Biffy Clyro sound. So here goes: Tuneful, grandiose, orchestral, exhilarating, earnest, quirky, very very Scottish. That last point may sound lazy and perhaps even a little racist to the incredibly over-sensitive, but it’s just a reflection of taste; there’s a good chance that if you like Frightened Rabbit or Glasvegas you’ll lap this concoction right up.

Opening up with The Captain, a magisterial stomper with a stadium-style anthemic chorus, it’s blatantly clear right from the outset that Biffy Clyro are on top of their game and loving what they do. This might sound like stating the obvious but it’s actually key to their charm; if they weren’t 100% behind their output things would come across cheesy and embarrassing, but their evident enthusiasm is infectious and addictive.

A great little jangling guitar riff and solo on Bubbles cements the group’s rocker credentials, albeit through the measured contribution of Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme. There’s some seriously weird-sounding instrumentation on Born On A Horse, a warbling, groany thing that must come via some inventive synth-work. It’s pretty funky though, and like all of the band’s imaginative instrumental choices, it works well.

If the penchant for building up to a noisy, full-sounding, cacophonous climax seems somewhat jading and even a bit risky, it does sometimes look like the ambition will sag under its own weight. Nonetheless, the formula consistently delivers in spades, with Mountains perhaps the best representative of the style. Cryptic, oblique lyrics belted out by urgent, strong vocals and built around an irresistibly catchy melody.

Simon Neil’s voice remains as raw and heartfelt as on Puzzle, he continues to sound like a heavier, rockier Scott Hutchison and this is by no means a bad thing. After all, Frightened Rabbit’s under-the-radar Midnight Organ Fight was one of the best albums of 2008 and hopefully the similarity between the respective band’s main vocalists will prove mutually beneficial in terms of gaining widespread popularity.

Only Revolutions proves to be another bold step forward for the three lads from Ayr and, while there’s definitely still room for improvement and experimentation, it’s indisputable that Biffy Clyro are one of the most exciting rock bands around at the moment. Cliché this might be, but if you don’t give this album a listen then you’re missing out big time.

- Sebastian Clare

Check out one of the best tracks on Only Revolutions: