This long-awaited follow-up to her acclaimed debut Poor Horse, the more hopeful sounding We’re Smiling was recorded in stolen moments over the past two years in various studios around Ireland and mixed in the famed Black Box in France. Despite this, it doesn’t sound the least bit disjointed or uneven; if anything it’s a more cohesive sounding record than its predecessor, thanks largely to a stellar backing crew and crystal clear production courtesy of the ubiquitous Karl Odlum.
Scott’s ace card is undoubtedly a voice that, like the Cocteau Twins’ Liz Frazer or Portishead’s Beth Gibbons, is a winsome and evocative thing, transporting the listener into her world. Add a quirky songwriting approach and you have something fairly unique around these parts. Things start out on a strong note with the dreamy opener ‘Hot Day’ which boasts an insistent, almost trancey chorus, with Scott’s beguiling tones and the repeated line “waiting for you” lodging in the listener’s brain, remaining there long after the song has faded. Likewise with the more downbeat ‘Feather For Feather’, which boasts a kind of Nirvana unplugged texture with an even more compelling melody. ‘For A Dream’ begins with a psychedelic Beach Boys harmony before transforming into a Patti Smith-like punk-poet stream of consciousness trip. With strings, acoustic and electric guitars, ‘Imelda’ is another soaring tune that faintly recalls 1970’s chanteuse Judie Tzuke, while ‘She: Jubilee’ almost comes across as a suite, made up of several distinct pieces, which she somehow pulls together.
Even towards the end things rarely sag and a song like ‘Skin Deep’ is as good as it gets here. With chugging, restrained rhythms, otherworldly melody and characteristically blunt lyrics – “Skin deep, love is a creep, it’s kind of a drug, it’s kind of a sleep” – it’s yet another highlight on a record replete with memorable moments.
Plenty here to smile about!