Jenny Lewis with The Watson Twins – Rabbit Fur Coat (Rough Trade)

The Voice is soft, floaty and warm, slipping effortlessly around lithe instrumentation and intoning alternately sweet/romantic and dark/thoughtful tales of love, God and un-PC outerwear. The Voice belongs to Rilo Kiley singer Jenny Lewis, and Rabbit Fur Coat, her solo debut, is a compelling and frequently remarkable journey through treasured country, gospel and Southern folk territory. Fans of Neko Case and Mazzy Star alike will find much to admire, from the lyrical wit and melodic punch of 'Rise Up With Fists' and 'Born Secular', to the affecting title track, an emotional, doomed familial lament which, like much of this album, could have been written any time in the last 50 years. And the harmonies! Wonderful, near-edible stuff.

Charlie Ivens

The Beautiful New Born Children – Hey People! (Domino) album review

Domino have done their best to shroud this release in mystery: an unmarked CD-R was allegedly handed conspiratorially to a member of staff by "someone" already signed to the label. But rudimentary sleuthing reveals The Beautiful New Born Children to be German. One of them plays guitar with electronic tricksters Schneider TM, and boy, they don't half make a speedcore racket. Six of Hey People!'s nine fuel-injected songs zip by in under two minutes; album closer 'Up And Down And Round And Round''s seven minute duration feels bludgeoningly lengthy by comparison. Frenetic, razor-sharp high speed riffage and grotesquely overloaded vocals are the orders of the day – if you want subtlety, look elsewhere.

Charlie Ivens