Out Now / Self-release

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It’s immediately apparent from the first note where Inside by Ruby Roux is going to go. She’s a singer-songwriter armed with a piano and voice that’s strong but still filled with quirky character.

The songs are suitably dark. She clearly has a talent for picking the most interesting chord rather than the obvious one for her songs. On opening track The Man she perfectly weights each key press as an unidentified atmospheric instrument adds to the darkness in the background.

Second track Cold As Ice continues in the same vein but strips back the formula – largely featuring just her soulful voice and a piano. Feels So Good mixes things up a little by sounding very jazzy – that noir formula for jazz that you expect to hear echo over shots of people drinking in hotel bars. By the end, her voice gets higher and it builds to a satisfying ending.

The minor problem is that lyrically, her songs appear to not dig deep enough. Her lyrics are not clumsy or obvious but they’re also nothing we’ve heard not heard before. A more original approach to these would do wonders for the end product.

Fourth track Bed Song breaks that mold. It’s cheerier in tone but darker with it’s lyrics. The details show it off as the strongest song by far, with lyrics detailing: “You left for London that day, you packed all your things in your brown leather suitcase, kissed me on the cheek and stroke my hair, but I didn’t think you would simply leave me.”

Ruby Roux is a genuine talent who could go far. Final track Bed Song shows how good she can be with a little bit more trial and error. The rest of this collection is still strong and ranks her amongst the best singer-songwriters in Preston but I hear enough to suggest she can do even better.

For fans of: Rae Morris, Regina Spektor, Ellie Goulding

Best track: Bed Song

8/10