On his debut solo album, former Walking On Cars mainman Pa Sheehy confirms his status as a masterful storyteller. He also suggests, in effect, that everything happens for a reason.

Maybe It Was All For This is a pensive album that pieces together the puzzle of the singer’s past with a tender hand. There’s a hopefulness woven through each song, right from opener ‘Towards The Water.’ Sheehy turns introspective on ‘Calling Off The Search’, with a resoluteness to his echoed vocals, underpinned by gorgeous violin.

On single ‘My Old Friend John’, meanwhile, he details how it feels to love a troubled soul, sharing a stirring narrative over an acoustic backdrop. The tempo picks up on ‘It’s All Been Done’, a catchy number shot through with an infectious joy.

Elsewhere, the ride from ‘By The Side Of The River’ to ‘Glasheen Road’ traverses a wide-ranging spectrum of emotions and life experience, driven by a gifted vocalist who has lived every word.

He brings us back to the present on closer ‘Wretched’, which despite the title, is truly celebratory. “There’s no peace in the place that I’ve always been running from,” Sheehy sings over crashing drums and orchestral flurries, bringing the record to a wonderful finale.

8/10