The son of Alvin Stardust, Adam F was weaned on traditional musicianship. He plays most instruments on Colours himself. The clean drum and bass breaks are accompanied by swathes of jazz trumpet, saxophone, flute and indulgent Fender guitar solos: pure jazz fusion with cheesy brass/synthesiser stabs reminiscent of 1970s TV theme/incidental music-- Pat Metheny meets Starsky & Hutch. Listeners are sharply divided--loving or loathing it, considering it either jazz genius or insipid tack, although everyone agrees the Tracey Thorn collaboration is dreadful. Stand-out tracks include Top 20 hit "Circles" ("Tick, tick, tick, tick...") and "Music In My Mind" with it's vocoder. In a brilliant darker moment, "Metropolis" creates Alfred Hitchcock suspense using a perpetual drone like a swarm of killer bees and a "Wildstyle" repetitive scratch. Meanwhile, there are more highly original sounds on "Jaxx", where a drum beat merges with smashing glass. --Sarah Champion