8/10

For more than the last decade, UK outfit Firestations have established themselves as one of the more progressive additions to the nation's indie-folk arena. Regularly adopting these broad and sprawling aesthetics in which to call their own, their tenure to date has been filled with rich and emotive compositions, all looking to add something new to their evolving sound. And with another flurry of much-loved offerings under their belt lately, they return with their fourth studio album 'Many White Horses', a collection that sees them adopt a more sombre mood as it plays.

Stripping back much of their usual fanfare, 'Many White Horses' has been described as more of a solo album by the band’s singer and songwriter Mike Cranny. While the other members do make their presence known in subtle ways, the heart and focus of this new release lays at Cranny's feet as he looks to offer up a more refined and tender direction this time around. Moving with this subtle elegance from track to track, Firetstations find themselves in one of their more progressive guises to date, as if to wave in the next phase of their musical evolution so far.

While separated from their previous records, 'Many White Horses' still has plenty of that warming nature Firestations have always managed to conjure. Breathing with life and vigour across all nine tracks, they continue to cement themselves as one of the more interesting and innovative names doing the rounds right now.