An album full of stripped-back singer songwriter goodness.

Some albums are loud and noisy, others quiet and intimate. This glorious debut falls firmly into the latter camp. Clara Mann is a multi-disciplinary artist who enjoys painting and works in a range of mediums. Prior to Rift there were a few EPs and singles to explore. Five of these ten tracks have been released as singles, though choosing what to send out into the world must have been tough as the quality bar is high here and no track feels like it is there to make up the numbers.

This tuneful, soulful, almost confessional style, recalled to me Joni Mitchell, Laura Marling and maybe a hint of Beth Orton. Mann sites her influences as Jacques Brel, Edith Piaf, Judee Sill, and Tom Waits. The French connections coming from her living in France until her teens.

The production is intensely minimalist. When Mann sings into her microphone, I get the impression she often sings very physically close to it. There are sometimes little distortions, or background hisses from this process lending a raw immediacy to proceedings. A couple of the tracks were recorded in a friend’s living room. Many tracks are mostly just a guitar and/or a piano accompanying. Only a couple expand to more than two instruments. It is captivating, spellbinding stuff. The lyrics are well considered. Opening track ‘It Only Hurts’ focuses on a recent seeming break-up and sets the tone for all to follow. ‘Till I Come Around’ has a slow, considered vocal that goes sharply higher in places before a harmony joins in, amplifying the power.

Stylistically I can see her getting invites to folk festivals, yet being equally at home in a range of Indie settings. She is doing a small headline tour to celebrate this release before supporting a couple of artists on tour. Reading Indie Life will be catching her supporting Youth Lagoon, which promises to be a very special evening of music indeed.

It might be a little too sedate for some tastes, not quite different enough from track to track for others. For me, I could lose myself in the quiet meditations on life here for quite some time. I know this is going to get a lot of repeat listening as I get to grips with the lyrics, finding something else chiming with me on each listen. It is haunting, soulful, genuine and puts me into a contemplative mood. Neither any of the tracks, or the album, outstays its welcome. Often, they tail away whilst you are still in full enjoyment of them. It doesn’t matter though as something else equally beautiful and engaging will be along in a few moments. This is a must listen, if it doesn’t connect with you fair enough, but if you fall for it this is going to sweep you up entirely.