Paolo Nutini is only 18 years old, but with a voice and an album far older than his years you’d be mistaken for thinking this prodigy had been resident on Heartbreak Boulevard for decades. The Paisley-based Scottish/Italian singer/songwriter has an eclectic background and has been quietly gaining attention after several years playing small gigs and selling T-shirts at others; soon to play Edinburgh’s T on the Fringe festival and having just opened Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Dundee last month, Nutini could be on track to make the big time.

But beyond the increasing momentum, what of the album itself? Opening to an unexpectedly rocky sound with ‘Jenny Don’t Be Hasty’, about a girl moving all too fast – ‘I’m only 18!’ he cries, attempting to disentangle himself – Nutini moves seamlessly into the delicate, emotionally taut acoustic piano number in ‘Autumn’. Although the subjects aren’t exactly groundbreaking, or can even seem a little frivolous in the case of ‘New Shoes’ (everything’s better when you’ve got a new pair of shoes apparently) even if taken metaphorically, that track and others all have such a full, accomplished sound and shape that even the simplest lyric becomes something a little special. Nutini’s voice also adds important weight, being at once sweet yet edgy, sounding at times like a young and more raw Peter Gabriel (‘Alloway Grove’).

These Streets could well be one of those albums which through its subtle mix of highs and lows, sweetness and melancholy, could reproduce the triumphs of Damien Rice’s O, tapping into not only the emotions of the listener, but – put simply – being a collection of songs of significant and enduring quality. Amidst the dislocation and soul-searching evident throughout the tracks, there’s an underlying sense of hope and exploration; despite his notably mature perspective Nutini’s youth imbues the album with an optimism not yet dimmed by curmudgeonly cynicism. These Streets sounds familiar yet refreshing, a little alt-country, a little poppy yet always entirely of a piece. An exciting beginning.
(4/5)

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