Emily Maguire - Keep Walking (Album)

Twenty seconds in and the hairs on the back of my neck are standing fully to attention. This soft and rich voice is pouring out of the speakers and she is singing in an impassioned and passionate manner with no effort or strain.

Her vocals are perfectly matched to the lyrics and her observations on people and on her life and the world around her are both personal and universal – sometimes forehead-slappingly obvious to boot.

I am hearing echoes of Laura Nyro here and even of Nick Drake but the music is original, difficult to pigeon-hole and moving: this isn’t folk but it isn’t pop or 'Singer/Songwriter’ either even though it has elements of all of these. What it is is sophisticated and adult and witty and involving. This is the music that the four characters in 'Sex & The City’ should be listening to when they are alone and not trying to impress each other.

Musically this is very, very good and the strings especially are delightful but the voice is the thing that will bring you back again and again – that and the songs. This is one of those albums that does not benefit from the descriptions of a hack such as myself – experience this for yourself and benefit from a wonderful listening experience.