Absolute Radio: Discover real music

I have got most of the album already, illegal downloading! However, I am still going to buy the album as it is so good that I have to have a hard copy. Well done guys!!xx

Rating: 5 out of 5

Biffy Are Back, and although slightly different to Infinity Land before it, Puzzle does not dissapoint. All the leaked material and singles have been stunning, especially the latest single 'Living Is A Problem Because Everything Dies', great video and even better song. Highly recommended and set to be the defining album of the year, MON THE BIFFY!

Rating: 5 out of 5

Well, I certainly don't buy into the idea that this is watered down Biffy Clyro. It's simply better realised, and these are some of the best rock songs I've heard in years. Fantastic performances (without being over the top), superb lyrics, and the whole thing is just heartbreaking.

Really very highly recommended.

Rating: 5 out of 5

The fourth album from a band which has had little commercial success just goes to show how good this band really is. Personally i have been a fan ever since hearing Liberate The Illiterate in a friends car and seeing them live which promptly led me to purchase the Vertigo of Bliss, then Blackened Sky and so on...

So what makes them so good? First and foremost it is their live shows, this band tours ALOT, however with the recent change of labels (beggars banquet to 14th floor) they had to stop for a while and the recording of the new album was slowed down. Im expecting them to resume some packed tours as per norm soon! Their shows are very very good, this is what causes their (extensive) fanbase to be very dedicated to the Biff, epic songs like Joy.Discovery.Invention are a fan favourite and you have to see them play it live to truly appreciate it, i think.

Back to the albums, the word which sums them up is diversity. Each album is very different in its own right, Biffy are truly a progressive band. Blackened sky is the first one and where anyone interested in Biffy should start, Vertigo of Bliss (the name taken from a quip from the Devil in the book I,Lucifer) is very different, the biggest jump between albums is this one.

Next came the somewhat bizzare Infinity Land (the name taken from a description of heaven from serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer), more difficult to get used to than the previous two but still a good album none the less, this album features the song 'Wave Upon Wave Upon Wave' which was the first song written about the death of Simons mother.

So now we have Puzzle, some critisms include it's too commercial and it's not as inventive as before but i have to disagree entirely with these comments.

Firstly, Biffy is the last band to ever cash in, yes the music is more 'accessible' but thats because the album was created differently to the previous 3. This time they wrote the lyrics first, then wrote the music afterwards. This is the opposite to the last 3 which was the other way round (info taken from the dvd which came with the special edition). It is just a conicidence their 'sound' this time around suits radio more.

So in my eyes, Radio 1 etc are cashing in on Biffy's talents rather than the other way round. I don't really mind if they become more commercial to be honest, the more people that hear true bands such as this rather than the manufactured rubbish around these days the better!

Biffy described this album as a journey, listen to it throughout or dont bother, i think this goes for all 4 of their albums, listening to them in chronological order really shows how the band have changed over the past 6 - 7 years and shows how they're different to alot of the samey bands that are about these days.

By the way, one interesting aspect about this album is the 2/15ths, 4/15ths and 9/15ths songs. These are 1 song split up and this is done to fit with the albums Puzzle theme (one song in pieces, scattered throughout the album, put them together to fit one song).

So that's my thoughts, if you've picked up this album and felt a bit underwhelmed due to the hype surrounding them, give them a 2nd chance and listen to their earlier stuff and see them live when they come to a venue near you, you never know you might just see them in a different light!

Rating: 5 out of 5

I bought this on the basis of pre-release reviews, which had all been glowing.

For a long time I'd been meaning to get around to listening to this band. I thought this album might be the right opportunity.

Despite very promising intros to the songs they all rapidly kick into that sort of phase-perfect pitch-corrected multi-part-harmony emo rock that can be purchased by the yard with no need to further specify the content. They would have no trouble placing this album on the correct shelf in BnQ based on what it says on the tin. No surprises are in store.

I am sure this will do very very well with teenagers in the UK and the states, who find modern rock production techniques transparent. If you aren't put off by that springy, slightly robotic sounding perfection of production you'll be fine with it.

I have to say I was very disappointed, in spite of being unable to say there is much wrong with it. Perhaps more inspiration is to be found in their earlier recordings.

Rating: 3 out of 5