The Reindeer Section - You Are My Joy

I first heard of the Reindeer Section a couple of years ago, when I found out that Belle & Sebastian (one of my favourite bands) were contributers. The album Son of Evil Reindeer offsets raw emotion and heartbreak with some beautiful instrumentation, including some B&S style orchestral backing music. The mood here is far brighter than on the previous, more experimental Y'all Get Scared Now, Ya Hear and the line-up of Glasgow-centric collaborators ( 27, though it seems far from crowded ) have put together an unashamedly melodic set of songs.

The Reindeer Section - Cartwheels

Fans of Snow Patrol, Belle & Sebastian, Alfie, Idlewild, Arab Strap, Mull Historical Society et al can buy this album with complete confidence. To the uninitiated, it could serve as an appetiser for any of the above (particularly Snow Patrol, as it's predominently a Gary Lightbody project).

I've read the album described as "hot chocolate for the ears", and I think that describes it just perfectly. It is simply gorgeous music to just lie down and wrap yourself up in. A delight to listen to every time it hits your speakers.