Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

A new album from Carolyn Oates is a welcome event after "Toast", a song from her last album was a pretty regular feature on the Cross Rhythms play list. Working at a grassroots level, Carolyn has been gigging on the Australian scene for a while even opening for acts like Delirious? when they've toured there and playing in Sue Rinaldi's band down under. An excellent singer/songwriter who takes rootsy music and gives it a rocky edge, Carolyn sometimes has a deadpan delivery like a female Billy Bragg and her songwriting is equally incisive. Carolyn wrote all the songs, produced the record, played all the guitars and half of the drums herself, so there's no doubting the talent involved in making this! Her cutting observations on the influence of popular culture, "Stuff That's On The Telly", brought a wry smile to my face and at the other extreme the beautiful understated optimism of the acoustic "Lift Your Head" has a healing quality. Other outstanding tracks include the melancholy and longing of the mellow "Cloud Away" as Carolyn struggles to find direction in the midst of difficulty and the sheer contentment of the title cut. Carolyn's skill is in capturing poignant emotions and; whether painful or joyful; communicating them in a bittersweet album that's worth chasing down.

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