Thirty years since their first single Arab Strap return with their ninth studio album very aware of their age. Half-Told Tales is music by people who’ve been around a long time, and whilst most bands don’t start from a viewpoint that lends itself well to getting older, Arab Strap are one of those rare bands that actually has more to say with age rather than less.

Aidan Moffatt’s half-spoken half-sung vocal reportage has always been the heart of Arab Strap, and his poetry that’s extremely rooted in the here and now with observational wit that skewers is as vital and present on Half-Told Tales as ever. The band know exactly who they are and what they’re there to do with post-punk that suits the material perfectly, a danceable backdrop that makes the darkness go down easier. I Get Noise opens groovy and sardonic, followed by You You You built on an electro drum machine and eighties synths. Be A Man is pure storytelling about fatherhood and raising a son to avoid the worst manosphere influences of the modern age, and the profound relief that comes from finding out your son hates the same things you do. Fighting For You is more ambitious and biting, a parody of the mythologized past and Glamour Magick is a massive highlight with Moffat reeling off all the ways he’s staying young, a perfectly aimed dig at self-optimisation podcasts and the disgusting vanity of an entire industry built on the fear of aging. Gape gets more reflective, and Under Offer is an even more spacious poem with beautiful piano about letting go emotionally of a house up for sale that has meant everything. Beats Per Minute closes the album with what sounds at first like silly facts you might find on a pub quiz until it arrives at its final point. There is so much on Half-Told Tales that’s a remarkable response to this exact time, and pretty much everyone could learn something from listening to it, no matter what age they are.