The name Ian love probably wont mean a lot to you but if I mention his teenage punk band Burn do alarm bells start to ring? What do you mean it's too obscure a reference. I'll try again. Cast your minds back a few years ago to a band called Rival Schools. The penny's dropped and if it hasn't you really need to listen to some modern music and move the dial away from Magic FM. Anyway Ian Love sang with Rival Schools, but the New Yorker has also spend time in rehab since then. Now married with a young daughter he's now released his debut album inspired by the birth of his baby girl. Considering his musical background it's surprising how gentle an album this is. It's amazing the calming effect of being a husband and father can have on a man isn't it?

"The Only Night" has a soft and gentle vocal from Ian and it's folk fused, dreamy, chilled out ambience is especially wondrous, an organic sound, made by being recorded with the rest of the album at Ian's home. Inventive wordplay like "as the stars jump side to side" bring a smile to your face and although not especially commercial it would fit snugly onto any radio playlist considering the current popularity of singer songwriters. "Old Enough" has a more urgent sounding guitar strum with this track having the feel of vintage Simon on Garfunkle with a nod and a wink to the 60s sound of that era. There's also some Johnny Marr style licks with a mantra of "Yes you're old enough" with orchestral outro. The country feel continues on "Don't Let Go" with a lilting piano motif, slow and languid, great to drift off to on a splendid summers evening, perhaps in your conservatory or garden with a lovely glass of wine, perfect scenario for this sultry song.

"Hold Me Now" isn't as you could well imagine a cover of the Thompson Twins 80s hit single but a deceiving slow paced country flavoured song. I say deceivingly because mid way through without any warning rock guitars and raucous ones at that emerge on top of some rather nifty bluesy mouth organ, displaying there's some rock'n'rol in Ian Love when the mood takes him.

This is an album where the singer songwriter is at peace with himself, content to make music when it suits him in a relaxed and comforting environment i.e Chez Love. There's a lot of natural joy on this is album which is infectious to the listeners.

Nicholas Paul Godkin