King Creosote

Unless you're the Juno Awards people, it might seem strange to refer to someone who has released over 40 albums as a "new artist." But this is how Domino Records is presenting the music of Fife, Scotland's Kenny Anderson to North American audiences. Thrawn compiles a dozen songs that Anderson recorded as King Creosote, covering the second half of his 12-year career. It's easy to see on tracks like the heavy-handed piano chant of "Twin Tub Twin" and the farmhouse twang of "Little Heart" that King Creosote represents the same drama-yearning, fun-lovin' Scottish indie-folk scene that produced Badly Drawn Boy and James Yorkston. When Anderson steps up the BPMs for "No One Had it Better" and the impeccable "You've No Clue Do You," his ability to make sprawling verses and tripping over themselves choruses sound charming becomes apparent. If anything, Domino continues to do what it does best with the release of Thrawn: collect a few career golden tracks and re-package them for North Americans to "discover."