The Barker Band - Sorry For The Kissing (BB Records) Tipped by everyone from NME to Vogue, The Barker Band, led by twins Jake and Sam Barker, are making plenty of waves with their rootsy, alt. country pop songs. Sorry For The Kissing is their third long player, and the general consensus among those who know such things is this maybe the time and opportunity for the band to break through, big time. There’s no doubting their ability to write songs that are instantly catchy with plentiful hooks, and that might be enough to divert attention from the big old elephant in the corner of the room; they’re an Americana band from West London. Unless you’re seeing them live on a regular basis and you’ve a craving for a souvenir of some great nghts out, Sorry For The Kissing is almost pointless. And anyway, I find traffic cones work just as well. I don’t want to sound wholly negative about a band who are obviously talented - vocalist Nella Johnson is a star - and an album which is perfectly enjoyable. I just wonder whether it’ll be played instead of a Jayhawks or Son Volt album, on any other great American roots band you care to mention. Feel free to prove me wrong. www.barkerband.com Rob F. Next