Jangle

Irish singer-songwriter Kieran Halpin's twelfth album Jangle neatly encapsulates the contradiction endemic among contemporary songwriters of his ilk. While lyrically they bring back graphic reports from the front-line of modern life (politics, religion, war, relationships etc) they seem to remain untouched by any of the stylistic, technical and sonic innovations of the past 30 years.

This might be less significant were the songs and/or the performances of sufficient power and passion as to render such concerns redundant. Unfortunately this is rarely the case. That said, Halpin's voice has a passion and a grittiness which he puts to admirable use on the caustic 'The Christian Thing' and 'Jesus Was A Jew'. On 'The Last One Fallen In The War' his voice evokes Tom Waits' healthier brother, and 'Jangle' itself is a plaintive song of loss.

Unfortunately tracks such as 'I Will Remember Love' sound bland, jaded and dated, although maybe a singer of the calibre of Finbar Furey might breathe some urgency into that particular example. Only on the moving organ-driven 'Loneliness Is Your Only Friend' and the lengthy 'Ashes' do they turn in performances that rise above the ordinary.

Try as I did, I couldn't quite accept the press release claim for the album as "a creative leap". Halpin has done a lot better than this in the past, and I suspect he'll do a lot better in

the future.