Beans on Toast returns with a new studio album, Survival of the Friendliest. Written with old friends Blaine Harrison and Jack Flanagan of the Mystery Jets, it’s an album all about hope, positivity and camaraderie that chooses to celebrate the very best of human nature. Written early-on in 2021, Survival of the Friendliest is a direct reaction to the dreariness of those hard Winter months. Sidelining the endless negativity of social media, Beans turned back to nature and began to focus squarely on the brighter-sides and silver-linings of life, from a time when they seemed few and far between...

If you can get past Beans on Toast's vocals (some can't) there's much to enjoy here. While Beans isn't the world's greatest singer, he's a damn fine song writer. This is a record that finds the long-established protest singer changing his tune to one of eternal hope and optimism, peace and possibilities.

If we're being honest with ourselves, there's not a whole lot of positivity out there at the moment and so Survival of the Friendliest is like a breath of fresh air that just might blow away those gloomy cobwebs.

For that reason, if nothing else, this is an album that deserves to be heard; to be given a chance. Song like 'Humans' and 'Let's Get Married Again' have a catchy core that is almost impossible not to start tapping your feet to. Other tracks (like 'The Commons') are more story driven, with the tune taking a back seat.

An upbeat, positive collection of songs that is at least worth a quick listen to see if it's something for you. You'll either not get it, or put it on repeat for weeks.

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Nick Smithson