Lorna - Heart of Wire

1. Sounds We Hear, 2. As She Goes By, 3. Whatever Happened to Andie Walsh?, 4. November Kicks Again, 5. Old Shanklin Sunset, 6. Whose Idea, 7. Mina and Marco, 8. What Took You So Long?, 9. Chasing Amy

Lorna's fourth record finds the Nottingham, England sextet delivering another gorgeous album of bittersweet melodies and stirring musicianship that alternately flirts with Scottish pop and Lynchian closing time ballads.

Lorna’s husband and wife team of Mark Rolfe and Sharon Cohen-Rolfe showcase their patented vocal harmonies over more buoyant compositions on Heart of Wire than on 2008's downbeat and acoustic-driven Writing Down Things to Say, such as the unstoppable "As She Goes By," which picks up on the towering pop traditions perfected on Teenage Fanclub's Songs from Northern Britain.

Sharon Cohen-Rolfe's delicate voice shines on the Belle & Sebastian-esque "Old Shanklin Sunset" and the string-laden "Whose Idea," which blends the stillness of This Mortal Coil with the delightful movements of Camera Obscura.

Steeped with woodwinds, strings, and the occasional addictive electronics that might be heard on a Stereolab record, Heart of Wire still takes time to breathe, and explores time and space with serene compositions such as the Twin Peaks-inspired closer "Chasing Amy" and the orchestra-laden "Mina and Marco" which utilizes a passage from a 1934 piece by English composer Edward Elgar.

Listening to a Lorna record is to welcome aural surprises with two open arms, whether wrapped in syncopated rhythms (e.g. American Analog Set-infused "Whatever Happened to Andie Walsh?"), enveloped inside Matt Harrison's soaring flute melodies ("Sounds We Hear"), or punctuated by the sporadic, pulsating electronics that are peppered throughout the album.

Heart of Wire includes a reworking of "November Kicks Again" from Lorna's 2001 debut 7", a version of For Stars' "Whose Idea," and guest vocals by Words On Music labelmate Jason Gough of Coastal ("What Took You So Long?").