The Pierces - You & I

God bless The Pierces - for delivering one of the best albums of 2011. The feeling with You & I - their fourth record to date - is that as an album, it represents an intense personal relationship between us - the listener - and the two Pierce sisters; Allison and Catherine. You need only look at the tender beauty of tracks like The Good Samaritan to see that truth laid bare in their music.

You'll Be Mine, Love You More, Glorious - placed together in tandem here, we see the record's singles in a new light, and as the tour de force they really are. One of the reasons I've been so forward in championing The Pierces over the last year is that they deliver time and time again - and these three singles are proof of that.

You & I is by far one of the most consistent albums this year and in its fusing of indelible pop hooks, dreamy folk charm and the sheer personality of the sisters, it delivers a breathtaking winning streak from end to start.

Much has been made of the band's involvement with Guy Berryman of Coldplay, and his involvement is telling in the band's sound. In many ways, You & I is like a female companion piece to the very male majesty of Coldplay's Viva La Vida album - hints and essences of the 'Coldplay sound' glimmer everywhere across You & I; the finest of embellishments to an already highly accomplished record.

The sounds of 70s easy listening are back in a big way right now; just look at the success of Plan B and Adele. And if anything, The Pierces do it even better than these two, for their sound isn't attached to any contemporary music trend - instead, they are timeless; the album portraying a kind of alabaster beauty which never dulls or ages.

As such, You & I stands as a stellar collection of artistry. Functioning both as an ensemble of powerfully individual tracks - any of which could be a single - but also like a real 'album' of old. This is the story of The Pierces and it is writ for all to see in the tracks of this album.

If I had to pick a highlight, it'd be the epic Space & Time, with its simply divine chorus. The song just seems to open up in front of you like some kind of gateway to another dimension, the girls voices truly at their most angelic best here. We Are Stars, which previously served as a b-side to Love You More, is another standout.

You & I is available to buy from Amazon now.

The Pierces - Glorious

With new track Glorious, The Pierces confirm their place as having one of the most brilliant run of singles in recent years. First Love You More, then You'll Be Mine... Glorious makes it a hat-trick. With a chorus of "God bless the world, it's so glorious", the track is suitably uplifting and sisters Allison and Catherine carry the whole thing off with ease.

The duo have a real knack of striking the precise balance between up-tempo toe-tapper and gentle balladic beauty. In the sweeping guitar licks and swelling string sections, we feel as if we are rushing across the plains of America to the girls' homeland. "It got so lonely when you turned away," they sing, but we are only left wondering at how anyone could turn away from a song as lovely and enchanting as this.

The Sun has the exclusive premiere of the track's video and even this seems imbued with this hazy sense of forgotten years that The Pierces have come to capture in their sound. There's pretty retro dresses, filmic sepia-toned touches and shots of packed music halls. In this track comes an intense rush of emotion, as with their previous singles, The Pierces have this mastery of hitting exactly the right spot to send shivers of delight and reverence down you. It's in the beautiful harmonies, it's in the twinkling guitar and percussion. Truly Glorious.

Glorious is released on the 23rd May with their album You & I following a week later.

The Pierces - Me And Him

I can't heap enough praise on The Pierces. I fell utterly in love with their Love You More EP last year and I think the same is most definitely happening with their new You'll Be Mine EP too. Aside from the title track being a quality slice of chilled out pop bliss, there's a real treasure of a ballad on there too in the form of Me And Him.

The song is bewitchingly haunting in its sheer beauty. It's almost nursery rhyme-like in its melody, all innocence and sweetness. Delicate guitar strums away, conjuring up images of campfires on starry country nights. This is music to strike straight at the heartstrings. I defy anyone not to feel even just a little moved by this song. It's just simply wonderful.

Pre-order the You'll Be Mine EP here.

The Pierces - You'll Be Mine

The Pierces’ Love You More EP was one of my favourite collections of tracks from last year so I approached their new single with a little trepidation, not sure if they’d ever be able to live up to their previous glories. Thankfully though, their new single You’ll Be Mine allays all fears. It’s stunning. Again, love provides the theme for the girls’ folksy, poppy hybrid sound.

There’s a beautiful sun-kissed Balearic feel to the song; it speaks of long blazing days in the Mediterranean sun, and even longer nights relaxing on the beach as the waves rush into the shore. There’s touches of New Order’s classic Republic album here and more than a dash of Empire of the Sun’s We Are The People. Driven by a tuneful acoustic strum and delightful music-box-esque sparkle, the melodies are spot on, with a charming little refrain that will stick right in your head. As with the Love You More, this is utterly bewitching, demanding constant repeat listens.

You’ll Be Mine is released on 7^th March.