Album Review: Mountain Echo by Jodie Marie

There's a Duffyish hue to Jodie Marie's first album, insofar as she's also a young Welsh singer whose sound has been refined by Bernard Butler. But while his hand may be on the production tiller – his big strings and wall-of-sound drama make their inevitable (and generally agreeable) appearance – it feels as if Jodie Marie is, at the very least, co-steering the ship. Whereas Duffy's plumped-up sound was indebted to Lulu, Jodie Marie's velvety, bittersweet touch suggests the emergence of a female Richard Hawley, the wonder being that a 20-year-old can weave such an intimate spell.

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Discovered in the same Pembrokeshire area, launched through a similar indie label, and partnered with the same acclaimed producer, it's little wonder that 20-year-old Jodie Marie has been described as the "new Duffy. " But despite the presence of former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler on board, her debut album, Mountain Echo, has little in common with her fellow Welsh songbird's Rockferry. The jaunty brass-led Motown of "I Got You" and the string-soaked "Remember Me" could quite easily sit alongside the likes of "Mercy" and "Warwick Avenue," but elsewhere, its 11 tracks provide a much more intimate and stripped-back affair inspired by the blues of Bonnie Raitt rather than the classic soul of the '60s.

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