Polly Scattergood - Polly Scattergood

Happy/Sad/Rinse/Repeat

Bittersweet’s a difficult thing to achieve over the length of an album. Too much of the downers leaves the happy notes sounding trite; too far the other way, and run the risk of seeing the sad parts sounding contrived. Doing it effectively is a balancing act that most artists fail miserably at. Not so Polly Scattergood, the latest addition to a female singer-songwriter genre which is fast becoming overwhelming. Indeed with her eponymous debut, Scattergood achieves a poise that would make Olympic gymnasts proud.

From the frankly epic opener ‘I Hate The Way’, via the haunting heartbreak of ‘Untitled 27’, a track so thoroughly, deliciously depressing it would be unbearable if not for the brilliant sequencing of following it with the Cabaret-styled happiness of forthcoming-single ‘Please Don’t Touch’ (Amanda Palmer, beware), to the wonderful ‘Bunny Club’ and beautiful closing offering ‘Breathe In, Breathe Out’, the album scarcely misses a beat. Armed with pop hooks to die for, a lyrical dexterity that never fails to raise a smile (or a tear - this remains bittersweet territory, lest we forget) and an unfailing ability to perfectly balance the sweet and the sad, this is a wonderful opening offering.

It isn’t without its dud notes, though; ‘I Am Strong’ ventures too far into Kate Nash territory, adding nothing interesting whatsoever. Sadly for an artist so adroitly capable of skipping genre at will, it sticks out as a particularly sore thumb; an entirely unnecessary afterthought, best never entertained. To focus too closely on criticisms, though, would be to do Miss Scattergood a tremendous disservice. Rarely does a debut album herald the emergence of an artist so at ease with their own sound, and capable of pressing all the emotional buttons to such brilliant effect. Polly Scattergood - really, rather good.

C.S.