Jun 09 2008 11:07 am,
Cathy Davey
‘Tales Of Silversleeve’
(Parlophone)
It’s funny how one tries not to compare a girl singer to other female artists for fear of implying that men exist in a completely separate artistic category. Nonetheless, it feels right to mention the likes of Juliana Hatfield and Fiona Apple when talking about Cathy Davey. But the best thing about Davey’s second album is the amount of different reference points she hints at without ever marginalising her own personality. And so ‘Mr. Kill’ may evoke the image of Apple, Kate Bush and Nina Persson in some kind of sing-off – but, as always, it’s Davey’s own sense of soul and fun that whole-heartedly directs proceedings.
