Hors play

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DESPITE having a stage name that sounds like a Native American Indian clown, Tickley Feather's Hors D’Oeuvres isn't the big barrel of laughs you would expect.
Although Feather, real name Annie Sachs, fits the mould of 2009 - being a quirky female singer-songwriter with an electronic leaning - her vibe is a morose one more in line with someone like PJ Harvey than Little Boots.
Recorded in a rundown Virgina farmhouse, the LP relays the ramshackle atmosphere of its conception, mixing one-finger keyboard melodies, drum machine rhythms and her brooding voice in a blend of distorting studio effects.
And while tracks like the shoegazing Trashy Boys and the delicate Roses Of Romance have appeal, too much of this album is buried beneath the haze of echo and reverb and delay for it to be noticed.