Winner of Best British Female Solo Artist prize at this year’s Brit Awards as well as the best solo artist at the NME awards, Laura Marling is a sensational singer and songwriter. Last year, Marling announced that she would release two albums. The first, I Speak Because I Can, deservedly became an overnight success. She later announced a change of plan and that she wouldn’t be releasing the second album that year, but assured her millions of fans worldwide that the album would be better due to the delay. Indeed, A Creature I Don’t Know is absolutely brilliant!

Laura’s bold voice and folky lyricism transcend her incredibly young age. Being such a great young talent hasn’t always served her well though: she apparently once chose to perform on the street after being denied entry to one of her own performances for being under-age. This has my vote for one of the greatest albums of the year!

Emily Harms is Marketing Manager of Readings.