Siobhan Donaghy - Ghosts Format: Album Release Date: 20th Jun 2007 Label: Parlophone Rating:  Siobhan Donaghy, ex-Sugababe and first solo album flop, hits back with one of the best pop records of recent times. Despite her record label's press release making dodgy comparisons to Madonna, this is truly a great record and acts as a timely reminder that pop music in the 21st century is actually in rude health. The sparkling single 'So You Say' owes much of its understated production to the latest Arcade Fire record with Siobhan's voice floating angelically over the top. The genuine excitement for me with this release is encapsulated in this song, yes there are hooks here and there but the song actually takes careful effort on the part of the listener. The subtle nuances of the intertwining backing and lead vocals and the chattering drums take time to fully appreciate. This isn't an instant sing-a-long single and this  album isn't full of pop-tastic singles.  The record has frequent changes of style, 'Medevac'  does addmitedly sound a little like 'Ray Of lIght' era Madonna, with its slightly terse and cutting vocal line and strange lyrics "Medevac me, Medevac me out". The strengths of the album outweigh the very infrequent drops in quality that the album occasionally suffers from (see "12 bar acid blues" - diarrhoea imagery anyone???). The dedication to creating a slow burning artistic record rather than a cheap pop-lite cash-in has to be commended. The resulting album should be treasured...

Written by: David