Gossip - Music for Men

Rating:

* * *

You may have heard of Beth Ditto (Kate Moss' larger-than-life bestie and fashion's unlikely new It girl). You're less likely to have heard of her band Gossip. And less likely again to have listened to any of their music.

Formed in 1999, the American band are now on their fourth album,

Music for Men

. But this is the first to attract any real international attention - and even then, it is all to do with the contentious frontwoman than any real music credentials.

Currently at the centre of a very public - and very amusing spat - between

GQ

columnist Alex Blimes and celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, Ditto has become the subject of much discussion lately.

Some hail her as the welcome antithesis to her super-skinny model mates; others claim she is a poster child for obesity and a poor role model.

But while her physical attributes have sparked a chain of chattering, little has been said about her music or the band. So let us try ...

Music for Men

is a solid and competent showing of dance punk, with some moments of genuine brilliance.

The beguiling

Dimestore Diamond

hears Ditto turn down her bellowing battle cry to a shimmering, fragile coo, to great effect. She also turns in some hits at full volume, with the stonking Heavy Cross and shrieking frenzy of

8th Wonder

.

But equally, there are moments of cheesy pop horror that are simply unforgivable.

Love Long Distance

is reminiscent of bad 90s outfit M-People, while

Men in Love

's shrill nasal chorus will make you wince as Ditto whines her way through it.

Not that any of that really matters. Ultimately, your response to this record and appreciation of it will be determined by which camp you sit in - pro or anti-Ditto.

It is impossible to separate the audacious (and often obscene) tabloid persona from the music, leaving it - and Ditto's bandmates - hidden in her prolific shadow.

Joanna Hunkin