Perry Blake - California

Reekus - 2002 - 47 minutes

Sligo man Perry Blake's career may still be under the radar over here, but in the rest of Europe the success just keeps on coming. They've been warming to the glow of 'California' since its release last April and probably wondering why we're so bad at playing catch up.

Backed by the string arrangements of Italian composer Marco Sabiu and Tindersticks man Dickon Hinchcliffe, Blake's glimpses of people living a state of mind is one of those great escapes it's very hard to get away from. His gift here is to take a subdued, grown-up collection of songs but make them sound like they deserve day time radio.

In 'Saying Goodbye', 'Ordinary Day', 'Good Morning' and 'Venus of the Canyon' he has a quartet which is up there with class of Ferry, The Blue Nile and anyone else who can turn a night around. It could be hard to move some of these songs from CD to venue but like the title suggests, the beauty of this album is the dreaming.

Harry Guerin

Tracklisting: This Life - California - Pretty Love Songs - Saying Goodbye - The Road to Hollywood - How Can The Knower Be Known? - Ordinary Day - A Face in the Crowd - Morning Song - Venus of the Canyon