Maeve O'Boyle - All My Sins - The Music Critic

The debut album from this 21 yr old Scottish lass is one of the finest records we have came across this year. The heady mix of folk and pop is a refreshing change from the mass produced fodder that clogs up the charts. With Contributions from Deacon Blue's Ricky Ross and The Blue Nile's producer Calum Malcolm twiddling the knobs, this is a classy affair from start to finish.

Released on Linn Records, the recording arm of the world leader in high quality audio equipment, the production is faultless. Calum Malcolm has done an outstanding job.

O'Boyle has been building a name for herself within the music industry for some time now and this album shows what a talented songwriter she is. Blessed with a voice that is able melt your heart (or shatter your ear drum when required), she uses it to tweak every last bit of emotion on the 10 songs on the album. This is evident on the touching Facing Home, a tribute to her grandfather, while the spine tingling Butterfly is breathtaking.

Pray It Never Happens and Old Greenwich Time demonstrate a skill as a songwriter way beyond her years, while the highlight of the album, Taxi, an ode to late night Glasgow, was written when she was only 13!

I could go through every track on this album giving it a glowing review, but all I need to say is that this album deserves to be in your collection, as it is the best album of the year so far.