With lushness and passion Emaliana Torrini makes amends for penning Kylie’s number one ‘Slow’, as she plucks a tear jerker from her second album ‘Fisherman’s Woman’. The half Icelandic/half Italian enchantress takes the listener on a journey through friendship and the quirky nature of it. The best of Bjork, Carina Round and Joanna Newsom oozes out, but Emiliana still retains individuality and her enthusiasm leaps out at you. The lyrics recall tales of black coffee and broken hearts with the aplomb of Maeve Binchy;

“Coffee is pouring out my ears.
It's the only thing they have in here
And my heart stops beating.”

‘Thinking Out Loud’ sees Emiliana slow down vocally and instrumentally initially, as a slow bluesy and brassy introduction to this reflective B-side, drifts you away. The track builds with aplomb to an upbeat accompaniment, yet staying vocally maudlin throughout, while the deep songstress tells of feelings of regret and longing. When the vocals cease, the instrumentals pick up further to provide an upbeat horn fuelled end, in order to allow the listener to think up their own happy ending to an otherwise sad tale. Here we have simply another spellbinding effort from the epitome of integrity and crispness.

www.emilianatorrini.com

David Adair