Breeders : 10

Never did two siblings share a more fitting surname than the sisters Deal. After a good long time off, incorporating what one can imagine has been spent in quite a lot of very bad behaviour, return not with the exuberant high-energy guitar pop that so endeared them to a generation otherwise forced to listen to Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine, but with something a lot mellower.

If there's an overt influence, then it's of The For Carnation, on whose excellent 1999 album Kim Deal appeared in a low-key role. Here on '10' atmosphere is all, and while no-one could realistically claim to have been grabbed by the scruff of their neck by the infectious tune, this is nonetheless a very moving (and quiet) record indeed.

John Robinson