Lene Marlin : Another Day
Virgin Records

There are two types of singer-songwriter: There're the commercial chart toppers, such as Norah Jones, Vanessa Carlton and Avril Lavigne who churn out the most catchy songs from nowhere and will be featured on every 'best of' collection in the next five years. On the other end of the scale there're the low key singer-songwriters such as Jewel and Heather Nova. Lene Marlin falls into the latter category, hence her new album is Another Day, as opposed to another dollar.

The title track is a sexy, racy, seductive number with a bold strut and a significant step forward from the material she wrote for 2001's debut Playing The Game. There's a host of ballads on the album, the most notable being the calm My Love or the sedate Fight Against The Hours.
    However the slow/fast song configuration means there's no middle ground or gear changes, just first and fifth which comes across as too structured at times. Although when you've got Whatever It Takes and Faces, who needs second, third and fourth?

The strength with the more low key singer-songwriters is that there's less hype and expectation surrounding the albums. Another Day is one of those hidden gems which appears from nowhere and will stay in your record collection long after the billboard posters and cover shots disappear. Another Day is a well crafted album where Lene Marlin courteously presents the songs in their purest form - there isn't a commercial or political undertone in sight.

:: Paul Newbold