A marvellous mix of music influences, acoustics and electronics, Andy Bell’s new album opens with a piece called Panic Attack, whose title is a little misleading, since in reality it’s a mini masterpiece of chiming, melodic motorik. Something like Manuel Gottsching and Michael Rother engaged in a friendly fretwork battle. The vocals and riffing recalling the rush of The Paris Angels’ Perfume. Rother actually guests on the Dot Allison-fronted cover of The Passions’ I’m In Love, a very cool collision of kosmische and shoegaze. Madder Lake Deep too is a flashback to the sound of bands like Slowdive, My Bloody Valentine and Bell’s outfit, Ride. Raising aching, longing arcs of guitar-generated, romantic Robin Guthrie-esque shimmer. 

Apple Green UFO fixes fuzzbox shapes to a loose, funky rhythm, which could have come straight outta early `90s Manchester. Musique Concrete is another baggy-beat-ed beauty. Bongo’d, conga’d, and riding live bass and drums, like The Stone Rose’s Fool’s Gold reprised, but with bleeps replacing John Squire’s axe. 

Pinball Wanderer starts out sorta folky – don’t forget Bell’s versioned Pentangle before – but via multi-tracking the maestro slips seamlessly into feedback-fuelled psychedelia. The Notes You Never Hear features Bell’s fragile falsetto, repeating the line, “Nobody can break me” while in the midst of a loved-up inner flight. Like Screamadelica-era Primal Scream back at some afters, not coming down, but still high as a kite. Finally, Space Station Mantra weds a wordless chant to mellow, but still mind-altering interstellar rock that patiently takes its time to lift off. 

Andy Bell’s Pinball Wanderer is out now, care of Sonic Cathedral.