Yes indeed, this is a most pleasant album, thoroughly benign. Good to the ears, soothing to the mind. Ryan Myddleton has written that ‘there isn't much that beats a small party of people and a guitar to share between them' and such warm, gentle sentiment pervades the whole project. The keywords would be ‘60s-style folk troubadour' and ‘mellow'. In the harsh world we live in, I'm certainly not going to complain at that.

Les Cousins club. Early Al Stewart. Not the stark intensity of Bob Dylan, but a nice, relaxing, good vibe. An album to eat your vegetarian supper to; or one to have on in the background while you sit by the fire, drinking mulled wine and playing draughts. It's poignant that the hope for a better world that once came with such music - an expansion of the ‘small party of people ...' sentiments - has long perished, but on the other hand it's good to see this style extant - in the early 80s new wave and synthesisers were threatening the perpetuation of anything remotely hippyesque.

This character is consistently confirmed, never challenged. (Even the cover art has a gentle surrealism that is thoroughly 1968.) And why not, when there was nothing wrong with this style in the first place? Well, to be honest I would have preferred wittier, more distinctive lyrics and more originality of sentiment (or at least a fresher album title), but let's let that pass. Let's say instead that the lyrics take a back seat and complement the music appropriately.

Ryan sings and plays guitar very pleasingly. I could have done without the bass and drums, but piano, violin, cello, harmonica and ukelele all enhance nicely, and the glockenspiel is a particularly good touch.

Besides, I'm favourably disposed towards people who have a ‘y' in their name where you would expect an ‘i'. Why? I don't know.

Writer: Rychard Carrington