The young, mysterious buzz band is a mainstay of British music culture. In 2019, the most-hyped-of-them-all are improv rockers Black Midi, but way back in 2011 that title went to Manchester’s Wu Lyf, a kind of cider-soaked Arcade Fire approximation whose name reverberated around the music press for some time before they – inevitably – announced their breakup via YouTube. Three years on, bassist Tom McClung struck out as lo-fi, indie pop star Francis Lung, his music more introspective if not overly original. A Dream Is U is his first full-length solo project, and one that comes with the promise of sounding “like a short Mancunian boy single-handedly trying to incite Beatlemania”. Rather, this record sounds largely like Lung referencing the era through the prism of the homages that followed – most notably Elliott Smith, whom he evokes almost uncannily on the tender Unnecessary Love. Elsewhere, while The Lie is flecked with Rubber Soul touches, the pleasantly jangly Up & Down is part-Norwegian Wood, part-new wave rock. Throughout, though, A Dream Is U comes with a patina of familiarity, with its perfectly crafted piano lines and grandiose string arrangements. The lyrics are equally hackneyed, McClung’s promised message of “addiction, faith, and love in all of its confusion” conveyed through make-of-them-what-you-will lines such as “if you could accept yourself you’d be happy”. Out of the harsh glare of the hype machine, Lung has the potential and the melodies, but would do well to rediscover some of that youthful bluster.