My Head is an Animal Universal Republic ***

Pop radio listeners will be acquainted with Of Monsters & Men's full-throttle folk-pop thanks to programmers and DJ's fondness for the band's Little Talks tune. The Icelandic six-piece's debut album has already had a good run on the back of that track and was originally released at home in 2011 and in the US earlier this year. It's easy to figure out OM&M's appeal: a bundle of robust, durable and radio- friendly tunes that swing from lush, downbeat, muted, cute tracks (King and Lionheart, Yellow Light) to the joyous, gleeful stomp of Little Talks. What keeps you locked into the occasionally twee and often hippie grandstanding is the band's sinewy songwriting and arranging skills, which ensures that their ambitious, action- packed (from glockenspiels to horns) musical barrage is always on the right charming track. ofmonstersandmen.is

Download tracks:Little Talks, King and Lionheart