As pleasant surprises go, this album is up there with the best of them for me in recent times. When I started reading her name alongside the likes of Elbow and REM in the press release, as well as her being nominated for last year’s Choice Music Prize alongside some of Ireland’s blandest, I wasn’t filled with hope. Taking Best Irish Female at The Meteor Ireland Music Awards (the Irish equivalent of the BRITS) hardly helped - well done to Westlife, The Saw Doctors and Aslan for their awards too, by the way.But blinking blimey, it’s a cracker; a clever, sparse and quietly funky album, finely self-produced and then beautifully polished by Sneaker Pimp Liam Howe. Davey’s vocal is reminiscent of nineties indie popsters Nina Persson, Juliana Hatfield and Tanya Donelly, but the music is far more interesting. While it screams pop from every pore, the arrangements are imaginative and intelligent with a sleepy Serge Gainsbourg feel that is totally beguiling.In an interview with blog The Torture Garden, she described how she thought Tales of Silversleeve turned out as, “music I’d like to dance to. And not serious dancing. Just child-like, please don't catch me on camera kinda happy dancing”. And that’s a great description - while there’s a lot of great songs on here, highlights are definitely toe-tappers 'Reuben' and 'Moving', which reminded me a bit of cultured takes on 'More More More' by Carmel, if anyone’s old enough to remember it (if not, it’s on YouTube, kids); just joyful celebrations of making music and jumping about, with bouncing baselines and feel-good jazzy percussion. And the subtler stuff works too, with some moody pianos, Hammondy sounds and jazz lounge chic filling in the gaps.Davey also excels in the lyrics department, which is easy to overlook when the music is so overwhelming. Oh, and did I mention broody opener, 'Sing For Your Supper'? Sublime. Yeah, you guessed it; I’m totally smitten. This is quite simply a corking album that deserves a far bigger audience than it will probably get. 88%[Download Cathy Davey Tales Of Silversleeve]Links Cathy Davey [myspace]