Canadian Farrell Spence previously had a career as an actress, comedienne and writer (she has an entertaining blog too) before returning to her first love after appearing regularly on the Chris Isaak Show and receiving encouragement from him and his band. This debut album emerged from her home recording studio a year ago. Its UK release now comes a few months before a follow up should be available. She may be based in cosmopolitan Vancouver now, but it is the country sound of middle Canada where she spent her youth that inhabits this CD. A freight train whistle and rail clatter are its very first sounds, and it's the claustrophobic relationships and stunted dreams of isolated prairie town life that fuel many of the songs - "Nothing ever happens in a town called hell" and "These things were never meant to be / For boys like you and girls like me" indeed.

It has a dusty wind blown lonesome flavour with clear and crisp playing of acoustic and steel guitar and occasional fiddle; sweet sounding but at the same time an indie album that steers clear of schmaltz and over production. Spence learnt to record and engineer herself as part of financing the album and has done a fine job. A comparison could be drawn with someone like Nanci Griffith perhaps - it's never alt-country raw, but definitely not a product as routinely pumped out by the Nashville candy production line either. A series of poetic ballads paint backwoods portraits and flow like a good whiskey - smooth but with a bite. Her voice is beautiful - smokily reserved and soulfully mournful, and again, seems to make just the right contribution to the overall sound.To say there is no immediate stand out track is more a compliment to the overall quality and unity of sound rather than to decry something missing. One of the couple that are not her own, the Mary Gauthier song 'I Drink' is a classic old school 'cheesy' country heartbreaker. One for the big dress and big hair at the CMA award show. 'A Murder Of Crows' is hauntingly atmospheric with nice unexpected use of distant trumpet and, as the name implies 'High Fever Blues' strays to the blues with some delicate picking that Gillian Welch and David Rawlings would be proud of.

This should be the sort of record that is a commercial success and helps give straight-ahead country a good name, but in the US that arena is seemingly still full of crossover music geared to black-hatted urban cowboys. Let's hope there's enough room around the margins for this to get some love there and also here. It won't blow your cowboy boots off, but will have the front porch swing swaying gently at dusk, with the liquor bottle rustling in its brown paper bag and the growing darkness hiding the odd tear. 73%

Links Farrell Spence [official site] [myspace] [personal blog]