Strike the Colours - Seven Roads

(Deadlight Records)

Jenny Reeve is a well-kent face in Scottish indie circles, having worked with Idlewild, Malcolm Middleton and The Reindeer Section in the past. This second album from her current project is a subtle and considered affair, a collection of simple but effective pop tunes flecked through with folk and displaying assured songwriting prowess. Reeve’s breathy voice is as emotive as ever on the plaintive ‘If I Don’t Belong’ and spine-tingling opener ‘Cold Hands’, but her bands are actually at their best when they crank it up a notch, evinced by the tumbling climax of ‘Safety in Numbers’. Quality stuff.