The songs of Empress are built around the soft, whispered vocals of Nicola Hodgkinson and musician Christopher Coyle's delicate touches on keyboards and guitar. Together they make little tunes which are often so fragile they threaten to fall apart at any moment. The melodies are simplistic but no less captivating for all that. 'The Summer December Starts' sets proceedings off with a cold shiver and another noteworthy moment is 'The Worry And The Wine' gradually easing in Hodgkinson's vocal over Coyle's spare, hypnotic guitar chords. 'For Trains' is the clearest indication of Hodgkinson's guest appearances on Hood records; her cracked, tearful vocal the perfect accompaniment to a melody so brittle that it stutters and teeters on the brink of collapse but is the most beautiful and inventive moment on the whole album. At a mere twenty-eight minutes in length this is a brief and uncomplicated little pleasure.