Send "Emma Pollock " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Bbc |
 The Delgados were one of the UK’s most consistently excellent bands. The Scottish quartet, of whom singer Emma Pollock was a founding member, released five studio albums, and were Mercury Prize nominated for their fantastic third, The Great Eastern, in 2000. That would prove to be their finest hour, but their other records come just as highly recommended.Since their split in 2005, Pollock has followed a solo path. Her 2007 debut, Watch the Fireworks, was enjoyable but suffered from recent-memory comparisons to her former group. The Law of Large Numbers – released through Chemikal Underground, the label set up by members of The Delgados and once home to Mogwai and Arab Strap – benefits from further time having passed. It opens in stately fashion, Hug the Piano a solo on the titular instrument. But anyone expecting a wholly delicate affair will be in for a shock when Hug the Harbour follows – clean guitar motifs and precise percussion give the song a military feel, and Pollock’s voice sounds sharper than ever. The warmth of her accent remains, but her words cut deeper. Which is a good thing given the lyrical treats spread across this set – though her first vocal relies heavily on easy rhymes, come the midpoint of this release the ante has received a considerable uplift. House on the Hill is exquisite, a song of amour going awry as the object of one’s affection finds the arms of another: “I wish that I could have it all again,” Pollock sighs, “but now it’s too late for me”. In her voice there’s real ache, and the silencing of the music around her on the chorus emphasises this longing....full text |
| Drownedinsound |
| You can sometimes tell a lot about a record from its cover. Take the one above. It’s deceptively simple, employing typefaces that hark back to another time, with weathered edges and precise alignment of slight elements to make a greater, considered whole. When opened up, the inner sleeve is layered up with a simple yet intricately accurate scientific diagram to denote who plays what on the record. It is calculated mathematics in action and yet simultaneously a work of art. And it’s the perfect packaging for The Law of Large Numbers, the slow-burning but utterly delightful record that marks Emma Pollock's return to Chemikal Underground after starting her solo career with a brief dalliance with 4AD. Almost every song has its own unique charm(s) that will continue to unveil themselves after hours of listening, with more of a ‘band’ feel to it than a solo effort thanks to the variety of instrumentation. Take ‘Red Orange Green’ with its timeless clock-ticking backbeat. Initially it’s the guitar line kicking in that draws your attention, but that subsides and gives way to your trying to work out which combination if the title lyric is coming next before all of these are rendered mere foreplay for the booming entrance of the (weirdly emotional?) piano at the two minute 16 second mark....full text |
| Nme |
| When going solo from a respected indie act, one should always ask ‘What would Björk do?’ Pollock – honey-lunged heroine of Scottish bluster-popsters The Delgados – disregarded this rule by chasing $$$s on her 2007 solo debut. Now Pollock has rediscovered her former band’s grandiose esoterica and stark, scratchy danger: ‘Hug The Harbour’ is tribal alt.pop, ‘Nine Lives’ sinister ragtime jazz and ‘I Could Be A Saint’ sounds like the most tuneful slashings of a serial killer nicknamed The Xylophone. Think Flo and Regina stalking Nick Cave; the music box threat of ‘Red Oranges Green’ or ‘Confessions’’ sultry electro wouldn’t be out of place on Björk’s ‘Post’. Now, where’s the swan dress?...full text |
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