The Islanders

Before Art Brut frontman Eddie Argos formed a band, he was a postman, living the hipster dream in a horrible flat in Bournemouth. His girlfriend, Amy Mason, was kicked out of her house by her mother and so she moved in too. The Islanders is their story; a wistful recollection of hard times and young love, and of a holiday to the Isle of Wight that offered a brief chance to escape.

Mason provides the words and Argos the music, in a generally successful recreation of a bygone romance. There's a faded-pier elegance to Mason's monologue, and though Argos cribs some of the music from Art Brut's back catalogue, tracks such as 'B&B Anxiety' are a great showcase for his jaunty songwriting.

The problem is Amy and Eddie just come across as incredibly irritating people. There's a total lack of self-reflection in their archive of art school clichés. Pez dispensers, charity shops, Hubba Bubba – Mason's monologue runs the gamut of faux-poverty and cultural misappropriation. She harps on about their poverty and need for a little island of tranquility in their lives, but nips back to her mum's to get her washing done at the weekend. It's just a little woe-is-me.

Mason's a strong writer, however, so if you can grin and bear the boho chic it's a tightly realised piece. It also has an evocative late-90s flavour that clings to you like wisps of seaside candy floss.