Sea Wolf is essentially Alex Brown Church backed by a revolving cast of musicians. With this in mind, it makes sense that Leaves In The River comes across as a solo songwriter’s record, closer to Elvis Perkins’s Ash Wednesday than Irving’s excellent Death In The Garden, Blood On The Flowers.

Church’s songs carry gravitas and sincerity but Leaves In The River never becomes a burdensome listen. The lilting up-tempo melodies of ‘You’re A Wolf’ and ‘Black Dirt’ compliment Church’s lyrics and, where necessary, counterbalance their more maudlin tendencies.

After years of sharing songwriting and vocals with Steven Scott and Brian Canning in Irving, it’s impressive to hear an album that is entirely Church’s. His debut EP as Sea Wolf hinted at a talent that is further realised here, most notably on ‘Middle-Distance Runner’, a heartbeat kick drum ushering in intertwining cello and acoustic guitar, and Church’s voice at its most elegantly downbeat.

Mark Grassick