With the release of the single "Play Me A Christmas Song", Stephen Dowd manages to bottle the very specific, blue-hued silence that falls over a living room once the wrapping paper has been cleared away. It is a curious thing, really, how a melody can act less like a sound wave and more like the smell of a candle that was blown out five...

Nishy, whose family tree stretches across many countries, infuses alternative R&B and pop music with a distinctively global flavour. She makes the most of the opportunities presented by her varied background to create a sonically complex tapestry that resists easy categorization. Memories From A Vinyl, her first album, is an amazing maiden release that echoes the eclectic mix of her French, Mauritian, and Indian background via...