Album reviews

SCOTTISH NATIONAL JAZZ ORCHESTRA Peter and the Wolf Spartacus Records

IT was writer Ayn Rand – and not Mick Jagger, as is sometimes claimed – who said: “A thing worth doing is worth overdoing”. The witticism could be a motto for both saxophonist, composer and bandleader Tommy Smith and actor and performer Tam Dean Burn, whose consummate skill in a variety of disciplines is sometimes marred by a tendency to excess.

Put the pair of them together and the problem is inevitably amplified. One of the reasons why Sergei Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf is the unchallenged champion work of classical music for young people is that it tells its story briefly, the orchestral instruments supplying the characterisation to a fairly concise narrative.

Smith’s arrangement of the music for big band and Liz Lochhead’s Scots vernacular version is over twice as long, and I can imagine youngsters who might be enthralled by the original becoming impatient.

Burn’s performance is certainly expansive and in no danger of being overshadowed by the band, while that of pianist Makoto Ozone (as Peter) is, if anything, understated. There is as fine playing from the SNJO members as we know to expect (notably from Martin Kershaw on clarinet) and Smith’s writing is also as reliable, drawing on the most melodic and popular styles of mid-20th century writing for jazz orchestra.

KEITH BRUCE

SEAN MCCONNELL SECONDHAND SMOKE Go! Entertainment

ATMOSPHERIC, guitar-twangy folk pop is the order of the day on American singer-songwriter Sean McConnell’s 13th album. He may not be too familiar a name this side of the pond, but the Tennessee artist is worth a punt if his kind of easy-listening, mellow and, at times, atmospheric country pop is your thing.

He has written songs for the likes of Tim McGraw, Meat Loaf and the Plain White T’s, so there’s a weighty amount of talent here. A handful of the tracks would fit nicely on Radio 2, such as the beautiful Devil’s Ball, a calm ballad backed with melodic reverby guitar, and the rousing, glorious Alien. Shaky Bridges is a lovely track, punctuated with the ole’ country music staple, a wobbly harmonica. It’s not ground-breaking music, but McConnell is clearly a skilled songwriter and performer.

LUCY MAPSTONE

ARIANA GRANDE THANK U, NEXT Republic Records

GIVEN that the past eight months of Ariana Grande’s personal life have featured a whirlwind relationship that crashed on the rocks, the world seemed to wait for the Grammy Award-winning singer to harden and pull something savage out in the bag. But surprisingly, Thank U, Next is a romantic, fuzzy offering, completely at odds with her personal life.

It eclipses 2018’s Sweetener, a cathartic effort after the Manchester terror attack at her concert, and its impactful singles, by being softer, raw and fuelled with emotion. The music is dreamy and waltz-like, interspersed with vocal clips that could be straight from a vintage movie, all hazy and sepia-tinged. At times euphoric, Grande softly sings lullaby-style melodies over chiming isolated beats, laying out the grand ideas of romance, describing all the wonderful things about a relationship.

There are also small hints that the 25-year-old has experienced too much too soon. She swings through a range of moods: wistful, heartfelt and optimistic, apologetic, self-analysing and empathetic towards the lovers she’s serenading, resulting in an album that is a total celebration of love, a truthful catalogue which documents the happier aspects of a relationship – or at least what Grande has recently been through. She’s gracious, grateful and Thank U, Next is timelessly romantic. SOPHIE GOODALL

NOUVELLE VAGUE RARITIES Kwaidan Records

HOW has it been 15 years since Nouvelle

Vague’s self-titled album sauntered into the ether, with their soft melodies and dreamscape lyrical sighs? To celebrate, the French collective have re-recorded their favourite tracks. Here is a stripped-back sound; it almost feels like a relaxing beach holiday, there are birds chirping in the background and Moody has a jazz-like lilt rather than their usual bossa nova vibe.

Israel spins the feel of a spaced out bazaar (which, let’s be honest, is not particularly likely in real life). Previous covers of U2’s Pride, Dexy’s Midnight Runners’ Come on Eileen (which is stunningly beautiful and fragile) and The Stranglers’ Get a Grip on Yourself are respun.

A large selection of these fantastically relaxing and coffee-shopesque pieces have come from Bande a Parte. Whether you are a long-time fan or have never dipped your toes into the glassy pond that is Nouvelle Vague, this is an album that you need to hear.

RACHEL HOWDLE