ComfortComes

Polly Scattergood – S/T

Polly Scattergood’s story is one of those with a feel good and almost vintage feel to it. She moved to London at age 16 and worked her way through music school till she was eventually noticed by Neil Ferris. Neil then introduced her to the people over at Mute Records. Since, 2007 she has released a few singles here and there including last year’s “Nitrogen Pink’ which, was one of the wonderful highlights of the last half of 2008.

The Essex born Polly is unlike other contemporary singers out there. Polly has an sense of maturity and grace in her voice that is not found in a lot of the young singers today. The albums first two tracks “I Hate The Way” and “Other To Endless” have already seen the light of day as singles prior to the albums release. “I Hate The Way” is a seven minute plus journey through the darkness into a gorgeous epic that finally ends on a strange abstract note. “Other To Endless” is another slow building epic that has Polly ask us the question “Do you think I should end this?”

“Please Don’t Touch” is the track that has the most commercial potential on the record. I think this song in the right place could really push Polly to that new level. “Poem Song” is charming for the simple fact that it feels very organic and rough. It sounds like it was recorded in maybe a few takes and feels like Polly is singing directly to me. “Nitrogen Pink” is the track that got me to swoon for Polly’s tunes late last year and it does nothing more than continue to reinforce that.

Polly’s debut album is a sharp and rewarding listen. It does not even feel like a debut at all. She has a certain wisdom and charm in her songs that makes her seem much more seasoned. Polly deserves a place in our collections this summer with her stunning debut.