There are already a batch of exciting new music releases announced for 2007, but one release that should not be over looked is former Ash guitarist Charlotte Hatherley's sparkling sophomore solo album, The Deep Blue, out on March 5th. Hatherley split from Ash last year and spent the summer recording the fresh sounds on Blue in Italy with PJ Harvey drummer Rob Ellis and Producer Eric Drew Feldman, whose awesome resume also includes touring with Harvey as well as having been a member of Captain Beefheart's Magic Band and Pere Ubu, and notably producing the Pixies' Trompe Le Monde. XTC's Andy Partridge also contributed, co-writing the track "Dawn Treader."

Hatherley released the album's first single, "Behave," in December and it's a sickly sweet treat with warbley guitar hooks teetering over Hartherley's sugary delivery of the track's twisted lyrics of submission, desperation and co-dependence. The album follows in the path of the single with Hatherley's excellent and underrated guitar-playing angularly bouncing alongside and against Ellis' non-flashy and on-the-money drums. Feldman's production is roomy which provides Hatherley the freedom to expand on harmonies, which got squashed in the cluttered production of her 2004 solo debut, Grey Will Fade.

Blue's quieter moments are particularly exciting. On the album opener "Cousteau," Hatherley croons ghostly "Ooohs" over a slinky guitar line and twinkling piano to a gorgeous effect just before those "Ooohs" spill over into the next track, "Be Thankful," and continue on through out it's duration. It's a great one-two punch of an album opener with oddly placed percussion in the middle, reminiscent of Kate Bush's The Dreaming**. The album flows nicely from washy and ethereal moments to punchy power-pop-guitar-gallops through out, sometimes in the same song. Charlotte's just plain dark, darkly comic and, at times, hopeful lyrics are delivered deceptively with sweetened tones. It's trick is to slowly seep in, and then not let go.***

Hatherley will release a second single, the brit-poppy "I Want To Know," and begin touring in February, just prior to the album's release.

Announced Tour Dates:

Recommended Viewing:
the very cool video for "Behave"


**The writer acknowledges this is his third or fourth "Kate Bush" comment in recent months...oddly, it's just coming up a lot lately. He swears, he's not obsessed or anything!

***I Can't stop listening to "Behave," that guitar hook remains solidly in my head all day. I have to play the song to cure it.