Footprints Through The Snow is an elegant and sweet natured album that takes a Conor Oberst / Elliott Smith drift through tales of heartbreak and poignantly hopeful woe. Every so often it teeters in the direction of the Valley of the Twee, and with Belle & Sebastian currently lost on the spaceship T-Rex, there’s room for Ant in the valley. Ant’s voice is sweet, the songs are coy and charming, full of plaintive violin, wheezing harmonium, twinkly keyboards and strummed guitar, but none of this threatens to set the world on fire. It’s good, of its kind - there’s a lot of wistful daydreaming, and nowhere does anyone repeatedly sing “You’re beautiful...” in a constipated yelp. By track 9, though, it begins to outstay its welcome. There’s no real change in pace or melody, and nothing much to make you sit and listen right the way through. Thirteen tracks of much of a muchness, as pleasant as that muchness is, is a little bit too much. There’s not much else to say, really, so here are some reference points: Magnet, Gravenhurst, Bright Eyes, Aberfeldy and The Magic Numbers. He’s Swedish, by the way, and he recorded this album in Italy. On track 8, he sings about London and the Isle of Wight.

'Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant', their 4th album on Matador Records, opts for a subtle, intimate palette that reveals its charms only in its own sweet time.

To coincide with Katie Melua’s arena tour in October and November, Dramatico release ‘The Katie Melua Collection’. This two disc set is a musical summary of the 24 year old’s journey so far with 17 songs - including 'The Closest Thing To Crazy', Nine Million Bicycles', the number 1 duet with Eva Cassidy 'What A Wonderful World' and 3 previously unreleased bonus tracks – and a live DVD filmed earlier this year in Rotterdam. Highlights from Katie’s three albums (‘Call Off The Search’, ‘Piece By Piece’ and ‘Pictures’) are joined by ‘When You Taught Me How To Dance’, from the film Miss Potter, and three new songs recorded for this album release - Toy Collection (written by Katie for the MySpace film ‘Faintheart’), ‘Somewhere In The Same Hotel’ (a slow, bluesey song co-written by Katie and Mike) and ‘Two Bare Feet’ (a brand new, up-tempo, foot-tapping Katie/Mike co-write).