Gwyneth Herbert
The Sea Cabinet
Monkeywood ***1/2
The singer-songwriter’s first release in three years, a concept album based on the story of an imagined woman who walks the beach alone picking up things she finds, taking them home, and adding to her “sea cabinet”, the origins of the album lie in the singer’s time spent preparing material by the sea in Suffolk. “Whimsy that takes itself seriously,” Herbert has commented on the very music hall-like material here; and recording them the singer, who also plays piano and ukulele on the record, finds herself in familiar company with her road band of guitarist Al Cherry, bassist Sam Burgess, and drummer David Price, who has also co-produced the album. Hugely talented guest vocalist Fiona Bevan also appears on a couple of tracks one of which ‘I Still Hear the Bells’ is an early standout on a quirky, oddly Edwardian album evoking a bittersweet faded glamour. ‘Promises’ finds Herbert defiantly in her prime, and it’s an audacious sometimes riotous sound to frequently thrill to. Stephen Graham
Released on Monday. Gwyneth Herbert plays Wilton’s Music Hall in London from 23-26 May, and then tours www.wiltons.org.uk