Popping up all over the show, Beth Ditto's appetite for tabloid inches obviously hasn't passed after her infamous nude NME cover (who gave her the top spot in 2006's NME Cool List), and with a new Gossip album to promote it's no surprise.

The threepiece from Olympia, Washington - the home of riot grrrl - should now be coming into their own, and with the legendary Rick Rubin at the production desk, all signs are looking promising.

However, it's debatable whether Gossip have pushed themselves as much as they could have. Sure, the sound itself is better than ever, with Ditto's muscular, cut glass vocals enjoying perfect exposure, and the songs still stand up with the riotous indie rock we've come to expect. But rather than bounding into centre stage, Gossip appear to be settling snugly into the plush sofa of fame - at the expense of their tunes.

Music For Men, featuring drummer Hannah Billie on the cover artwork (channeling James Dean and Morrissey), is an expansive beast. Lead single Heavy Cross is doubtless a strong track, and establishes the record with aplomb, but then we veer off into worrying territory, where Genesis (the 80s funk-lite of Pop Goes The World) and Elton John (the misplaced housey piano score on Love Long Distance) linger like the ghosts of your dad's record collection.

Some Michael Jackson-ish moments are more (or less) inspired, but it's Four Letter Word, with its crytal cut 8-bit electro pop backbone that La Roux would dream of, that stands the 3-listen test. Ditto's vocal majesty is of course undeniable, and a like an Aretha/Annie Lennox hybrid she storms through Music For Men - but come on now, how many more 'woah woah wooooaaaahss' can we take?

With some songs overlong, and the new ideas seemingly not quite fully realised, the record runs the risk of sounding indistinguishable from any other Gossip material. The hints of angry brass in Spare Me From the Mold are a tease, and while Vertical Rhythm builds and burns like toned down garage rock fronted by a Motown diva, it doesn't seem to quite spread its wings.

Recorded in Rubin's plush Malibu studio, perhaps the temptations of the good life were too assuring. Regardless, let's not write off Gossip just yet - the proof of Music For Men's power, despite Rubin's best efforts, will be in the live-show pudding.

Have a listen at www.myspace.com/gossipband

Buy Music For Men on CD from Amazon for around £7 or download it from 7digital.com for around £5!