Moon Theory - Moon Theory (Ursa Minor)

As Liberty X might put it, this album is Sexeeee! Whether she's bellowing with the full power of her lungs or purring softly, there is an undeniably seductive quality to Kaeti O'Ghara's voice that is incredibly appealing. But on top of that, and this is what makes this album so special, is the almost breath-taking flexibility of her voice and the crisp clean production of TSO.

With any new act, you automatically look for comparisons. With Moon Theory, the list is so long and diverse that it reveals just how many music styles they mix together. Take 'Thirst no more', a cross between the trip hop sound of Portishead and the angry indie rock of Scheer, or the smooth Morcheeba-esque vibe of 'momentary'. Then there's the more electro vibe of 'feed your master' with a nod in the direction of Curve, that explodes now and again into a riot grrrl style battle cry and, even stranger, a hint of Britney Spears! On 'Hunger', Kaeti manages to sound like a cross between Sade and Bjork.

And Moon Theory manage to do all this without sounding contrived or messy, the unpredictability of the music is covered smoothly and expertly, with abrupt changes in pace made to seem natural.

I gotta complain about the way the storming track, 'blasphemy' stops halfway through to make way for an acted out scene of the band being busted in some sort of Orwellian fantasy of future censorship. It's interesting the first time, but after that it's just annoying. These things are better left to the end of an album. That aside, though, this is a fabulous debut and points to a shining future for Kaeti and TSO.

Donnacha DeLong