Maranna McCloskey

This debut EP by the 27-year-old former lead singer with Oige gets off to a brilliant start with ‘Fraser Island’, co-written by McCloskey with Aisleain McGill. An original song inspired by an Aboriginal folktale and written in a traditional Irish style, it’s beautifully set off by McCloskey’s cool, assured voice. The rest of the recording doesn’t quite live up to this early promise, alas – her interpretations of the Dougie MacLean classic ‘Caledonia’ and ‘Bonny Light Horseman’ aren’t markedly different from what you might hear in a high-quality session on any continent. Her gentle rendition of ‘John O’Dreams’ does go some way towards making the song her own, though, with lovely ethereal harmonies in the background.