The Manic Shine sure play a mean guitar, but as front man Ozzie Rodgers says, they’re pretty much open to any influence, and as such there are a number battling for attention here.

‘Ball and Chain’ kicks off with a hot-rocking two-pronged guitar attack, which continues unabated through the frantic, if clichéd, ‘Brakes’ and standout track ‘Haze (Singing My Name)’. It has a cool stoner-rock riff and is more measured, but with the catchy chorus it would be good live, especially with its hard-rocking finale.

In fact The Manic Shine seem to like a big chorus as much as they enjoy a badass riff. ‘Blind Love’ and ‘Orbit’ give away their pop sensibilities while the “taking on the world” vibe of ‘Hold On (Together We’ll Keep Dreaming)’ unfortunately runs to the predictable and gives the impression they’re really trying for that killer chorus that’ll get them noticed.

There are also some progressive rock elements jostling for position on closing tracks ‘Reset’ and the bonus ‘Binary’, although they maintain the hard riffing and hooky chorus. The end result is something of a mixed bag; musically they’re pretty spectacular at times, but occasionally it gets a bit sonically crowded.

3.5/5

‘Trial and Triumph’ by The Manic Shine is out now through PledgeMusic.

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Words by Edward Layland (@EdwardLayland)