Sfumato

These Things Between. . .Learn to Love Records ***

Don't be fooled by Daithí Ó hÉignigh's stage name. Sfumato (a painting technique utilised by Leonardo Da Vinci) may conjure images of exotic sounds, but the multi-instrumentalist's debut album is as Irish as it comes. More often than not, These Things Between . . . is steeped in the folk world, with gently strummed acoustic guitar, faint percussion and meandering melodies allowing tranquil tracks such as Pound and Flyto Me to softly simmer away. But Ó hÉignigh's clever use of The Discovery Gospel Choir adds rich blasts of harmony to Gold and Lace and Ostia, while the title track and Mo Ghrá flirt with the trad world, Kíla's Eoin Dillon's uileann piping informing the former. More experimentation in that vein wouldn't have gone amiss, but this is an unquestionably easy listen, nonetheless. sfumatomusic.com

Download tracks: These Things Between, Fly to Me