Gorgeous. Simply gorgeous. A debut album from a singer-songwriter from New Jersey, What The Night Said is like a wonderful amalgam of Iron & Wine's lushly plucked guitar and melody, Sufjan Stevens' inventiveness and Josh Ritter's warm voice - and maybe a measure of what Snow Patrol used to have. It's not all softness and Jose Gonzalez bedsit introspection, though - there is a fair measure of rock edge among the largely acoustic instrumentation. Will Stratton may remain, like Tim Easton, an under-recognised talent, which would be a huge shame - it is hard to imagine that anyone who bought Turin Brakes' second album wouldn't have been better served by this disc. Songs like Katydid, Sonnet, I'd Hate To Leave You and Night Will Come would be highlights of any songwriter's album. The vignettes at the core of each song are rendered perfectly - tales of small things beautifully told. Suggesting that Stratton is an artist to watch would do a huge disservice - this album deserves space on your shelf right now.

ACE rating 9/10

The Dexateens' Red Dust Rising had a lot about it, but was distinctly second-class Drive By Truckers, with its Southern rocked-out sound thrown at some OK songs. Hardwire Healing takes a significant step towards their Southern brethren, however, by building gritty rock on some great core material. Nothing is over-thought, but songs like Nadine are just plain great songs, earnestly told. Elements of Lynyrd Skynyrd, blues, punk, country and bar-room brawls run through Hardwire Healing. It's not an album full of cutting-edge invention, nor is it full of complexity, but that's not the poster on the wall of the gig. The rock on Hardwire Healing is better realised, the changes in pace more mature. The Dexateens are still not quite the Drive By Truckers, and they really are in exactly the same space, so whether you need two such bands is up to you. If two is just the start of a good night for you, though, they're the next on the list.

ACE rating 7/10

Apples in Stereo have always had a cult belief that they would go onto great things. So, after a five year absence, it is easy to get the impression that there is a lot of reputation hanging on this new album. That is an impression reinforced on first listening... Although there are over 20 'songs', half are simply interludes whose presence seems more like tinkering (or padding?) than anything else. The ELO-lite sound is still present, but here Robert Schneider deploys tones of Oasis, Teenage Fanclub and Cotton Mather to rock it up a little. Unfortunately, although the sound is full of energy, lush sweetness and pleasant anthems, the songs themselves are rather rote - Energy is mostly an awful, repetitive chorus that goes nowhere. It is hard to think of a good reason to get excited about New Magnetic Wonder, and perhaps by extension, Apples in Stereo themselves. There is nothing here that isn't better done elsewhere.

ACE rating 6/10