"London is there for the taking. A rich city - food, women, gold. My men have come a long way for this. I say we take London - now!" So goes the opening gambit of the new Herbaliser album, a statement of intent if ever there was one. So how do they plan to take the capital? By stealth, it seems, and by way of worming their way into every musical genre imaginable.

They might be known as a hip hop act but it's soon clear the duo of Jake Wherry and Ollie Teeba can apply themselves to cinematic funk, jazz and even gangster rap, although it has to be said some excursions are more effective than others.

Long time collaborator Jean Grae returns to contribute four tracks, and her deceptively lazy style of rapping is as well acquitted to the bold Nah' Mean, Nah'm' Sayin' as it is to the quasi-lullaby Close Your Eyes. Roots Manuva, too, returns to the fold for Lord Lord, his immediately recognisable tones almost wounded here as he prowls like a hurt animal. The brash single Generals suddenly sounds out of place in this company, and where its multitude of upfront vocalists was thrilling it now sounds over-aggressive.

In between albums Wherry and Teeba have been busy providing theme music for the Playstation and Motorola, not to mention Guy Ritchie's Snatch. On the evidence of two tracks here they could be up for a lot more soon, as they would fit perfectly into any US detective movie. Geddim is the most immediate, a superb piece of funk led by the piano's left hand. Gadget Funk is almost as good, its opening build up paced to perfection before a brassy explosion.

Elsewhere the duo are proficient in nocturnal, smoke screened music, with Close Your Eyes, Sonofanuthamutha and Song For Mary the pick of the bunch. They close with a tribute to Serge Gainsbourg, a monologue from guest Katerine.

It's all very well having a multitude of musical personalities, but do they all hang together to make a coherent record? At first the answer would have to be no, but after repeat listening the structure appears to make sense. You do, however, need to be broad of musical mind to appreciate the extremes of Generals and Close Your Eyes, but you can be pretty sure there will be something to take your fancy here, something to elicit a reaction rather than pass by unnoticed.

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Mercury Prize 2009 nominees