Oisin Leech
★★★★
Cold Sea
OUTSIDE MUSIC/TREMONE. CD/DL/LP
Cinematic first solo album from Lost Brother.
Co-vocalist with Alex Turner on the Arctic Monkeys’ cover of Baby I’m Yours, singer in indie nearlymen The 747s and half of dark Irish acoustic duo The Lost Brothers, Oisin Leech is in lush, filmic mode on his solo debut. On an album recorded in just four days on the Donegal coast, M Ward plays guitar on the stately October Sun, Bob Dylan’s long-term bandsman Tony Garnier adds bass throughout and Irish folk giant Donal Lunny brings the bouzouki. It’s a warm, reflective collection, sometimes with strings and synths and it moves with galleon-like serenity, most notably on the brief Maritime Radio, where twinkling guitars back a reading of the shipping forecast, and the instrumental title track. Leech’s understated vocals add Nick Drake-style rue and John Martyn-esque mystery to Colour Of The Rain, but he’s no plagiarist: he’s taking his own path.