Blue Roses - Blue Roses

Within its first few opening seconds, Blue Roses’ debut is leaping about the place like Kate Bush in the video for Wuthering Heights. The Bush comparison is, I imagine, an inevitable one, considering the classically-honed vocal dexterity and pastoral piano ‘n’ strings arrangements, but there’s also a unique quality that, unfortunately, only shines through on occasion. The cello stabs lend a dangerous edge to Can’t Sleep and I Wish I… begins with jazzy, suspended chords and a Joni Mitchell-like vocal performance before morphing into Philip Glass-style minimalism. Indeed, the musicianship is excellent throughout, although perhaps that’s ultimately a drawback; most of the songs are too well-polished, detracting from what should otherwise be a charmingly eccentric album. However, the dreamlike Doubtful Comforts and the lo-fi Rebecca draw the listener back in, and give a glimpse of the songwriting potential that this Yorkshire collective undoubtedly have.