The start of ‘Uncertain Silence’, the début album from Keepers of Doubt will hit you. I don’t just mean the opening track; the opening second of track one Out of My Hands – a blast of jangling guitars – will pique your interest straight away. The drums, bass and eventual second guitar add layers and the song build nicely for the opening forty seconds. Unfortunately, that foundation is put to no use as, right when the vocals kick in, the song loses its way. It’s as though the lyrics and the music were written independently and the two had to be adapted to fit around each other, eventually compromising what had seemed so promising.

I would be delighted to tell you that it is a rare aberration in the album. Instead it’s symptomatic of most of what’s wrong with the album. A series of interesting, creative and exciting intros that, somewhere or other, lose the plot and end up disappointing. Little Secret, for example, has a sinister opening with deep, hushed vocals and a creepy guitar hook. Thirty seconds later, it transforms into a bland, hookless, pop song.

The very next track, Stares in Silence, starts off in a very similar way but avoids the pitfall of its predecessor. Instead, it highlights the second major problem with the album: the vocals. While it’s often fine to wear your influences on your sleeve (Interpol do it with Joy Division, for example), you have to be careful that you don’t come across as a karaoke version of your heroes. Here, it’s not quite managed. Lead singer Marc seems to spend the album trying to sound like Eddie Vedder and a lot of the time it just ends up sounding like an annoying faux groan. The aforementioned Stares in Silence and Go It Alone are prime examples.

It’s not all bad, it had to be said. Soul of a Ghost, for example, is a fantastic song. It genuinely sounds like something Pearl Jam (sorry for that Vedder reference again, but it can’t be avoided) would have released in their heyday. It’s the most restrained the band, vocally and musically, are in the 38 minute playing time and by far the most engaging. Unsung Hero and No Time for Doubt are strong tracks also.

Perhaps the problem for Keepers of Doubt is they are trying too hard. The vocals are too often pushed beyond breaking point and too many ideas, no matter how good they are, cannot be sustained in one song. They may have a great album in them one day. ‘Uncertain Silence’ is not it.