Imagine that you're driving through a city in the very late night or very early morning. Now and then, there are signs of life -- a woman staring forlornly from her apartment window, tired men slouched in all-night restaurants, a young couple arguing in front of a dingy storefront. All of them fade and vanish as the new day dawns.

Journey to the End of the Night lives in the shallow half-light between night and morning. It's familiar territory for the Mekons, who plumb its depths for eloquent tales of desperation, survival, loneliness and vain hope. Each song takes you inside the apartments, diners and conversations you've seen before, embroiling you in a series of missed connections painted in shades of grey.

In most cases, it's the cold, wet grey of a rain-drenched city. That's how "Myth" begins, with a drenched, countrified narrative that slogs its way into the drunken gutters of "Out in the Night". The sepia-toned aura of "Last Weeks of the War" offers a male/female dialogue on failed romantic manoeuverings, while "City of London" lets Sally Timms croon in Petula Clark style, putting an upbeat gloss on images of failure and degradation. When Timms sings "I've got problems you wouldn't believe / but I'm not quite ready to talk about them", you feel like you've failed as a listener. The Mekons have let you into this world, but you aren't a trusted confidant; the characters in these songs have lost too much to care who hears their soul-baring.

The Mekons sound like nothing so much as themselves, but it's easy to notice the variation of "Mekonized" styles. The cynical "Tina" incorporates a dancehall groove, and "Cast No Shadows" takes an ironic gospel approach to its dark anthem.

There's a happy ending here, of sorts. While "Something To Be Scared Of" hits the lowest ebb of squalor and darkness, "Last Night on Earth" turns the mood on its ear -- after all, when you've got nothing left to lose, things can only get better.

Like a good novel, Journey to the End of the Night is full of indelible moments. The literate lyrics are connected by additional text passages which set the scene for each song, forming a disjointed narrative. You can read the album like a book -- but it's not a book that ends. The sequence begins again each night, a new set of characters searching for salvation. Everyone makes this journey, to some degree. That's why some of Journey to the End of the Night's lyrics seem so familiar. In some small way, you've been there.