Uncut

Songs of alienation and madness from reclusive Chicago genius

Comeback from woman who should have been Madonna

Debut solo album from Mojave 3 and ex-Slowdive singer/guitarist

Ely, Hancock and Gilmore in full flight

Britpop nearly-man gets pastoral

Latest instalment in one man's crusade to keep the spirit of the '60s alive

Third nu-soul album by sometime writing partner of D'Angelo

Debut from Cocteau Twin-championed Texan psych-pop quintet

Swan song from prolific Dayton, Ohio combo, while frontman flies solo

Like Damien Jurado or David Ackles, Toronto's Rutledge is a master of gothic understatement. This wintry debut—shrouded in slow-tempo melancholy—is slyly addictive. Against spare backdrops of folk-country guitars, mandolin, piano and the odd banjo, Rutledge sounds weathered beyond his twentysomething years. An array of talent is on hand, not least of which is the reclusive Mary Margaret O'Hara (woefully underused on just one track, "A Letter To Heather"). Otherwise, Rutledge judges the balance perfectly.