Tom McRae

Tom McRae has been turning heads around England just by virtue of the fact that he is a singer-songwriter with much more than simply one guitar and the truth.

Sure, he plays the six-string, but the arrangements throughout his debut album are more off-kilter, with cello, hammond, harmonium and programming embellishing his sound, as well as the more orthodox instruments. Indeed, one can’t help thinking by turns of a male Beth Orton or a Nick Drake for the new millennium.

Funnily enough, it is during the second part of ‘One More Mile’, when McRae’s band kick in behind him, that he really cuts loose. This debut could have been even more dynamic if he were backed up by an orthodox rock trio on more of the songs.

That said, there is still enough quality here to more than warrant your attention. ‘Bubblegun’, although slightly Radiohead-ish in tone, is still bloody powerful stuff. ‘A And B Song’ is a modern-day parable on life and how to live it, where the spirit of Dylan flits in for a sermon from the couch. ‘Sao Paulo Rain’ is rich in both emotion and imagery.

McRae’s lyrics are more ethereal than bog-standard calls to arms, and his sweet voice renders even the most dodgy rhyming couplet listenable.

Current single ‘You Cut Her Hair’ is a brilliantly haunting anti-ballad, with some of the most unsettling lyrics you’re likely to hear outside Michael J. Sheehy or Nick Cave.

The highlight, though, is ‘Draw Down The Stars’, which is simultaneously as warm and comfortable as your favourite jumper and as breath-taking as the first realisation of love.

The pace is a little uniform by the time you reach the closing stages, but this is still a mightily impressive debut.