Latest releases reviewed

THE LITTLE WILLIES
The Little Willies
Milking Bull Records
****

Lest you think this is a bunch of raucous punks with a salacious moniker, the Willie refers to Willie Nelson. This is not a tribute band in the sense that their debut album covers the tracks of the great Texan; but yes, in the sense that these five resident New Yorkers (loosely) follow his artistic path and that of other country folk with a 10-gallon hat full of class. What started out as a casual weekend gig on New York's Lower East Side for expert musicians with a common affection for great country has now been turned into a loose-limbed, warm and humorous album of fine originals and (mostly) great covers. Of course, any band with Norah Jones on vocals and piano is well ahead of the posse - never mind the naysayers, she just oozes class. But this is a collective effort, with Lee Alexander (bass), Jim Campilongo (guitar), Richard Julian (guitar and vocals), Dan Rieser (drums) all playing their part. Low key and lovely. www.thelittlewillies.com  - Joe Breen

WILLARD GRANT CONSPIRACY
Let It Roll
 Loose
****

The eclectic international musical collective formed around American singer-songwriter Robert Fisher has come up trumps with this sixth album under the WGC banner - albeit with a great sense of world weariness. The centrepiece is the nine-minute-plus title track, which ducks and dives into life, death and the light beyond: "Nothing for nothing/your god's a pretender/ there's no room in heaven/now or hereafter/there's nothing to dying/except a rope's soft whisper . . ." All of this has great potential to be tiresome, but Fisher's slow-building songs are lavished with colourful instrumentation, from fiery guitars to swirling violin and enough hooks on which to happily hang your ears. While the choice is not exactly cutting edge, with shades of everything from Jim Morrison to The Waterboys, Fisher nonetheless has a rustic dignity, a compelling strangeness and a voice of great presence, which helps make this one of WGC's best efforts. www.wgc.hinah.com  - Joe Breen

ALISON O'DONNELL & ISABEL NÍ CHUIREÁIN
Mise agus Ise
Osmosys
**Veteran of 1970s folk rockers Mellow Candle, Alison O'Donnell returns to the musical fray with a confusing ragbag of songs that straddle traditional, folk, gospel and jazz faultlines - and frequently plummet between them in a valiant effort to resist their conflicting gravitational pull. From the electric guitar, reeking of a '70s hangover, on opener The Blackcap, Mise agus Ise (Myself and Herself) flounders like a petulant teenager. Isabel Ní Chuireáin's tunes struggle for air in between gulping mouthfuls of cabaret (Armistice Day), fraught country gospel (Hangover from Hell) and power balladry (In the Web). Fleeting whispers of inventive accordion aside, this is a perplexing snapshot of a duo who've done better work elsewhere. www.alisonodonnell.com

Siobhán Long