Luke Ritchie - The Water's Edge

Two years in the making, Luke Ritchie's debut LP The Water's Edge is highly telling of the time invested in it.

In the world of singer songwriters, there's far too many trend-grabbing, leightweight types around at the moment. Sometimes what you really find yourself longing for is something with a bit more impact, a bit more heart and soul. This is Luke Ritchie.

His music is beautiful in a sombre, moody way - it's dark, bleak, haunting, but posessed of an incredible richness of texture. The Lighthouse dips and soars with a voice that feels like it could cary to the end of the galaxy.

The album hurries through into the galloping intensity of Shanty and its stomping, earthy beat. Ritchie's songs have the quality of a conversation where the eye contact never breaks; The Water's Edge holds you there, on the precipice of complete attention. This album feels physical, of the land, rough-hewn from the elements themselves. Cover It Up sees Ritchie mixing things up, going for a more low-slung feel while the epic, string-laced balladry of Words is a real album highlight.

Ritchie undoubtedly sounds at his best when doing his own thing, but still manages to find time to encompass a number of contemporary sounds too; Butterfly goes for a tongue-tripping medley of sentences and ends up sounding like Ed Sheeran, while Lonely Second could pass itself off as a Mumford & Sons track.

During the recording of the album, Ritchie produced a podcast to accompany the song-writing process, and there's a definite notion this a man who's never at a loss for words. There's a speakeasy confidence at all times, a relaxed but electric readiness.

November sees Ritchie set to support Rumer, he's also gearing up for a number of solo dates:

Regal Rooms (London) - 21st October
Hare & Hounds (Birmingham) - 3rd November
Fulford Arms (York) - 6th November
Bush Hall (London) - 7th December

The Water's Edge is released on the 21st November.