I get a lot of albums sent to me from local musicians.

There are few times however, when you genuinely think to yourself 'How come this guy hasn't got a major deal?' I'll stick my neck out here though, and say this album from local musician Nick Bold is one of the best, most polished albums I've heard this year (and you can include commercial big label releases in with that!).

Nick's been a part of the north-west singer/songwriter scene for some time now, more often than not performing several times a week, gradually building up a solid reputation, and perfecting his live stage show. And now he's come out with a cracker of an album!

He's no stranger to success though, with his former band Virginia Wolf being signed to Atlantic and having supported Jimmy Page's The Firm on a US tour.

After a short period away from the music business though, he's now turned pro again, and come up with an album that's...well, hard to fault. Ten tracks that cover a variety of styles, but still retain an individual identity...and that's the mark of a quality musician. Standout tracks include 'Somewhere Man', 'Outta your Love' and 'When it all comes down', but there isn't a bad track on it.

There's been a lot of hype in the media recently about David Gray, but Nick Bold is just as good (if not better, due to a wider variety of style).

Yeh, there's a quality singer/songwriter right here on our doorstep. I wouldn't be surprised to see him get a major deal on the strength of this album... it would be criminal if he didn't.

Alec Martin