Richard Hawley - 'Truelove's Gutter'

It has to be said it has been a long time in the waiting for Richard Hawley to get the recognition he deserves. Despite being in 90s bands Treebound Story, Longpigs and Pulp and making the Mercury Prize nominated album Coles Corner, it took until 2007’s Lady Bridge to catch everyone's attention. Hopes are high for Richard Hawley's 6th solo offering.

One thing is for sure - he has been a busy boy. Hawley spent last year touring with Elbow and co-producing the Made in Sheffield album for Tony Christie. He then moved straight onto recording Truelove's Gutter over eight months. On first glance at the track list, it seems as if he hasn't actually finished it yet, it has just eight tracks. But fear not - they are eight BIG songs, two of them running around 10 minutes long and the album as a whole is almost an hour of listening bliss.

Hawley is known for naming albums after being inspired by his beloved home town of Sheffield and Truelove's Gutter is no exception, as he told the Sheffield Telegraph;

"The name actually comes from a really old Sheffield family - some of the earliest Sheffield names I've found are Truelove, Hawley and Staniforth - but the juxtaposition of a word like truelove with gutter just puts me in mind of a place where broken things end up.''

The naming of this album is interesting, thoughtful and poetic - just like the record itself. Truelove's Gutter could be called a concept album, each track naturally progresses and tells a story. It feels understated and grand all at the same time.

The opening track As Dawn Breaks is beautiful, with Jonny Cash-esque soft vocals, bird calls and incredible ambience. Don't Get Hung Up In Your Soul has lovely twanging guitar and a haunting quality. Remorse Cod features great guitar solos and apparently when recording it drummer Dean Beresford played with his hands instead of the sticks.

In another bid to get different sound effects, very unusual instruments have been employed, like the waterphone, which is a brass bowl that contains water (duh), it creates an ambient, dreamlike sound. Even stranger is the use of a cristal baschet. This is a large instrument with oscillating glass cylinders that vibrate to create a strange sound range, giving an eerie effect. Both instruments really set the scene and give a rich, dark sound.

Truelove's Gutter is gentle and touching. Unlike Lady Bridge you couldn't call this a pop album, there aren't really any catchy tracks to grab your attention. This is a different experience altogether. You could listen to this album over and over, finding more from it each time. The slow, down-tempo style of each track means that you can really listen to the lyrics, you have time to soak them in or simply let Hawley's voice wash over you. This is late night listening with good company and a glass of wine.

It may seem like to some that this is a brave album to make, rather than pulling out a crowd pleaser. You feel like you are being welcomed into his world and he can take you there with ease. In this way it isn't a brave album, but in fact a very honest one and possibly his best yet.

Download a copy for £7.99 at www.7digital.com or buy a copy at www.amazon.co.uk around £9.

www.myspace.com/richardhawley