Caitlin Cary

With her former Whiskeytown sparring partner Ryan Adams getting all the glory these days, Cary has taken full advantage of this opportunity to show that the band wasn't a one-man operation. In fact, While You Weren't Looking is a much more mature and fully realised work than Adams has managed thus far. With producer Chris Stamey, Cary has crafted a timeless collection; every note is perfectly in place and her unaffected voice recalls the smoothness of Fairport Convention's Sandy Denny. The predictable tales of heartbreak are also handled with impeccable grace, with Cary's fiddle undercutting the emotion at perfect moments. To make things even better, there's a bonus mini-disc of a few of her rawer performances, among them a classic lover's duet with Adams, "The Battle" (although not the George and Tammy duet of the same name). Cary's debut shouldn't just be for Whiskeytown completists, as it heralds the arrival of a new, great voice in folk rock.