PHILIP SELWAY Familial (2010 UK 10-track vinyl LP - 'Familial' is a collection of sublimely fragile, haunting and heartfelt songs that will surprise many, and not only because drummers traditionally don't do this kind of thing. It is so persuasively good, it sounds like Selway has always been a singer-songwriter. The seeds of Selway's solo album were planted back in 2001 when Neil Finn organised an impromptu gathering of talent, including Johnny Marr, Eddie Vedder, Lisa Germano, former Soul Coughing bassist Sebastian Steinberg and Radiohead's Ed O'Brien and Selway, in aid of charity, which resulted in the '7 Worlds Collide' album. Philip then invited Germano, Steinberg, Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche and multi-instrumentalist Patrick Sansone to come and make the record with him. Yet despite the rock pedigree on show, 'Familial' is as far from a rock record as you'll get. But neither are its ballads defined by folk, but something much wider and more contemporary. Curiously, there's very little defined drums on the record, with more percussive loops/textures. Sometimes the beats and instrumental colours are so subtle, it sounds like the acoustic air in the room is setting the mood. It leaves space for the lyrics, which clearly come from the most intimate of places. Includes the single 'By Some Miracle')