Reviewed by Tony Cummings

When most rock bands announce their forthcoming retirement they go out with a hastily-compiled Best Of package. But Bleach, formed in 1995 at Kentucky Christian College (the same establishment that gave us Audio Adrenaline) have gone out with a serious creative bang. For 'Farewell Old Friends' is the band's bet ever album which makes some of the catchy but slight garage pop of their early albums seem distinctly limp by comparison. Here producer Oran Thornton has layered up veritable 10 feet thick walls of guitars over which singer Davy Baysinger's plaintive vocals glide with impactful dynamics. One particular gem is the opener, "Write It Down" while "Sufficient", a worship song homing in on forgiveness, is equally memorable. If you're looking for Brit-pop sounding rock with edge you shouldn't overlook Bleach's swansong.

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