FamilialBella Union ****

CD CHOICE: The Radiohead drummer was first heard singing on Neil Finn's 7 World's Collideproject from a few years back, and he used that time in front of the mic to play through some of the songs that would end up on this, his first solo album.

With a few members of Wilco and various 4AD personages helping him out in the studio, this was never going to be an angsty synth- sounding work. Indeed, it is worlds away from Selway’s day job. Other Radiohead members gone solo have vaguely stayed within the parameters of the group’s sound, but Selway, in his current “doing a Dave Grohl” phase, is drawing from the Nick Drake/Tim Buckley well.

From the opening track (the understated but beguiling By Some Miracle), a pace and rhythm is set, and it never really deviates. These are folk-tinged, melancholia- marinated, intimate confessional pieces from a man of a certain age. And so beautifully executed.

Both All Eyes on Youand the stand-out Ties That Bind Usbenefit from Selway's gift of knowing just when to add or take away. Instrumentation is used in a measured manner, and in the forefront throughout is Selway's caressing vocal, which fits perfectly with the hushed dynamics of the songs. The "fragility" is provided by lyrics of doubt, regret and a certain philosophical resignation. Sometimes you feel like you're listening in to a private conversation.

There is nothing startlingly new in the music; Selway has found a musical path that suits, and on his first solo outing he’s not going to go walkabout. But what there is is a rare sense of delving deep into an established genre and managing to bend and fashion new and entrancing shapes.

Soulful, engaging and affecting – Familialis a quiet gem of a record. philipselway. com

Download tracks: Ties That Bind Us, By Some Miracle