Various: Rough Trade Shops – Heavenly 25 | Album Review

It's a little astonishing to realise that Jeff Barrett's idiosyncratic record label has been in business for a quarter of a century. Over that time, the label has introduced the world to Manic Street Preachers, Doves, Saint Etienne, Beth Orton, Ed Harcourt and many more.

However, the compilation to mark this landmark anniversary focuses more on the present and future than the past, with tracks from each of the label’s current acts as well as a disc of its recent Record Store Day releases.

There's a broad sweep of sounds on board, veering from the tough, pulsating, canny groove of Toy's It's Been Too Long and the weathered blues croak of Mark Lanegan's Sad Lover to the lovely folk hues of Jimi Goodwin's Didsbury Girl.

A compilation very much in keeping with the label’s ethos and trajectory to date.

[ heavenlyrecordings.com ]