RM Hubbert - First & Last

(Ubisano)

Once a member of the now defunct Glasgow instrumentalists El Hombre Trajeado, guitarist RM Hubbert delivers his debut solo release and proves that there’s much to be said for working hard on your craft. Here, he flexes his post-rock sensibilities with an Arab Strappy-inflected second number, ‘For Maria’, and nods towards the telly heaven soundtrack canon with heavy hints of the arpeggio-happy theme tune to Jack Hargreaves’ rural TV series Out of Town, in the gorgeous ‘Jumphang’.

The recurring flamenco-tinged motifs and fretboard-slapping antics may get a little overly familiar by the time you’re done listening, but First & Last has enough acoustic pleasures to have you returning should a mellow mood take you.