Boys

‘Boys’ is Tidwell’s long awaited second album, and after two years in the studio the woman described as Nashville’s own Little Sparrow” (an undisguised reference to Edith Piaf) has eclipsed her opening set with nonchalant bravado. ‘Boys’ is the product of this history: it owes as much to Depeche Mode and Joy Division as it does to Loretta Lynn and Johnny Cash, and as much, if not more, to Great Britain as to The Grand Ole Opry. It’s an unlikely and unworldly mix, flowing effortlessly from Solid State’s immaculate equilibrium to the krautrock-inspired Seventeen Horses, and from the John Hughes-esque nostalgia of So We Sing to the homespun R&B-influenced Bad News. There’s also the starry-eyed majesty of Palace and the touching innocence of Oh, China, while the archly titled Being Crosby a duet with Jim James of My Morning Jacket, whose immediate acceptance of her invitation to work together "was a dream come true" - sounds like Joni Mitchell and David Crosby calling to one another across Laurel Canyon.