English folk chanteuse Laura Marling returns with her third album A Creature I Don’t Know, a record of remarkable poise and nuance, one that doesn’t shirk from emotional introspection and musical experimentation. It’s ringing with lush instrumentation and deft witty lyrical touches, reinforcing Marling’s position as one of England’s premier female songwriters and performers. Though Marling may have won the Brit Award for Best Female Performance earlier in the year, her style has not been compromised, a superficial pop record this is not.

Rather it is a record that blends genres, experiments with vocal delivery and takes you on an exhilarating journey through the mind and imagination of Marling. A journey filled with fleshed out narratives and characters. Opening track "The Muse" is nothing quite like what Marling has released previously. It’s full of jazz-infused swagger, with some deft and darting piano touches and tight percussion.

"I Was Just A Card" is an early highlight of the album, largely due to a beautiful vocal performance from Marling, and some glorious instrumentation which builds to a strong guitar driven crescendos – which is sure to translate well to the live setting.

On "Don’t Ask Me Why", Marling’s vocal remains composed and controlled, bearing up to the scrutiny of being placed front and centre. Some have suggested that Marling sounds dispassionate, yet the emotion in both the instrumentation and the lyrics are palpable and transfer somewhat into the vocal performance.

"Don’t Ask Me Why" segues nicely into "Salinas", one of the standout tracks of the record. It begins sparsely with a delicate vocal from Marling, before the instrumentation kicks in, wonderfully darting banjo lines and a driving guitar rhythm.

"The Beast" is both beautiful and devastating; it’s stark and confronting and thematically firmly located within the folk tradition. The instrumentation on the track just emanates emotional anger, the guitar an ominous bluesy fuzz.

"Night After Night" offers a strong contrast from the previous track, with Marling performing solo; just her controlled delicate vocal and plaintive guitar. It’s both powerful and affecting, full of wonderful lyrics packed full of imagery and emotional intensity.

"My Friends" again featured building instrumentation, the stirring guitars and banjo becoming a recurring feature throughout the record, which features some great vocal accompaniment helping it to distinguish it from the other tracks.

"Rest In The Bed" features some lush choral backing vocals, which really accentuate both the bleakness and the emotional quality of the track. "Sophia" is a delicate and subtle track, featuring a beautiful vocal performance from Marling and is probably one of the strongest tracks on the album. It’s transition from delicate track to stirring countrified romp marks it as the antithesis of the dark and brooding "The Beast".

The album comes to a roaring conclusion with the "All My Rage", a morbid but ultimately, exhilarating sea shanty that features some of my favourite lyrics on the record.

Marling has created an album here that is both exhilarating and affecting. It’s a record that sees Marling maturing as a musician, and becoming one who is not afraid to push the boundaries of her craft. Despite the few genre diversions on this record, Marling has maintained the rawness and emotional honesty of her earlier records, and produced an album of remarkable quality; which takes the listener on a journey, which flows with such wonderful ease.

Review Score: 9/10