Boa Morte - Soon it will come time to face the world outside (Shoeshine Records)

The cumbersomely titled debut album from Cork-based quartet Boa Morte is a delight to tired ears. A reflective mix of melancholia and soft-spoken delight. 'Tonight she said' is a beautiful song built on a gentle, bare guitar melody, while the vocals and strings in the chorus are almost tear-inducing in their honesty. 'Tonight...' is but one jewel in Boa Morte's shimmering crown. The entire album is aglow with more stars than a summer night sky.

From the haunting opener 'Clarence White' through to the slightly up-lifting 'Tired eyes', the stunning 'December' and on to the closing track, the atmospheric instrumental 'Milking machine', this is a perfectly rounded collection of emotional outpouring. It may sound quiet and unimposing enough to be background music, but, to really appreciate this, you need to let it wash over you, uninterrupted.

A brief pause for breath in an all too hectic world, Boa Morte have created morning music to ready you to face whatever surprises life may hold in store.

Ken McGrath