Johnny Flynn

Sillion

Mumfords/Marling pal comes of age. As the star of Channel 4 sitcom Lovesick and scion of a Brit acting dynasty (his half-brother was one half of Robson & Jerome), it’s tempting to view Flynn’s musical endeavours as a dalliance. Performing as a solo folkie or with his band The Sussex Wit, it’s been on the backburner for a couple of years since the birth of a daughter. Such experiences have given new depth to the 33-year-old’s songcraft. Slow-building opener Raising The Dead ponders the weirdness of seeing his late father in his tiny child’s features, while Heart Sunk Hank, whose crackly audio results from partial recording in a Voice-O-Graph booth, considers the impact of his frequent absences on his spouse. In that light, Sillion’s political dimension, including a take on the traditional Barleycorn, feels more genuinely motivated. Mostly bolstered by an electrified ’Wit, with brass, fiddle and more, it’s Flynn’s warmest outing so far. Andrew Perry