THIS WEEK’S CD RELEASES

Afterglow Ásgeir (One Little Indian)

A TENTH of the Icelandic population are reckoned to have their countryman Ásgeir’s debut album In The Silence. So, no pressure on his follow-up then... His debut was breathy, electronic fused folk in the manner of James Blake or Anohni, and while those comparisons still hold, this is a much more varied, ambitious and impressive album. He confounds expectations with the pounding prog rock influence on Here Comes The Wave In. Dreaming and Nothing are delicate as gossamer but there is steel in his sound now.

From A Room, Volume 1 Chris Stapleton (Mercury)

Having artists such as Alison Krauss and Adele record your songs is a pretty good calling card. However, Chris Stapleton had been playing in bands such as The Steeldrivers for years before the success of his 2015 debut Traveller. The Kentucky miner’s son is a country artist that, yes, owes much to Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard but you would guess that Bob Seger and Tom Waits are also influences. The quality of his songwriting, his excellent voice and his ass-kicking music render genres irrelevant. It’s just a very fine album.

We Rise Morrissey & Marshall

Every time I see the name Morrissey & Marshall I do a double-take to check that the former Smiths singer isn’t involved. Happy to report then that on their debut, Dublin duo Darren Morrissey and Greg Marshall have gone a long way to earning more than the raise of an eyebrow. Channelling Happy Mondays (Play On, Stand Down), Cast (Beautiful World) and the Beatles and Oasis at their most direct, Morrissey & Marshall deliver 10 well-constructed catchy songs – with no trace of a Smiths influence.