Granted, it sounds like it should be shit, but somehow he has produced an acute confessional portrait of a lover of tradition and folklore trying to scrape his way through a plasticised world. It's a marvel, as is the whole album. The Scotsman is a precious commodity.  Full text...

Less traditional than 2004's Just Beyond the River, The Year of the Leopard specialises in precisely the kind of romantic early-hours confessional its song titles suggest: Woozy with Cider, 5am, Us Late Travellers. With Yorkston's guitar and voice - the kind that sounds dolorous even when it's singing about the first rush of new love on Summer Song - gently supported by concertina, woodwind and double bass, this is music that slowly charms rather than immediately stuns you, taking time to work its way under your skin.   Full text...

More often than not it’s pretty easy to guess what’s coming next on The Year Of The Leopard, but that doesn’t once distract from the underplayed elegance of an album more sparkler than firework.  Full text...

He dresses like a geography teacher and his musical and vocal roots draw on the woody spirit of Martin Carthy, the godfather of Britain’s first trad folk renaissance, but Yorkston’s third album has an intimate drama that feels very current.  Full text...