Well it took me nearly a quarter of the year but I finally bought an album worth treasuring in 2006 (and no doubt beyond). While the big players are busy explaining their ill-advised double albums (who thought this was a good idea to revive?) or talking to mathematics professors to determine which weekend to release their new blockbuster, it is little gems like this that are slowly inhabiting my air space.

Quite frankly I'm happier for it.

Having caught Senorita Cloher & her superb backing band The Endless Sea live last year, I have been waiting to see if they could capture their great dynamic on stage and transport it to their debut long player. It seems they have, recording it live over a handful of days under the watchful eye of Paul McKercher with a swag of talented guest musicians (Charlie Owen, Mia Dyson and Bic Runga amongst others) lending a deft hand.

Dead Wood Falls, a name that conjures up images of a troubled community in a Terrence Malick film (but in reality has a more straight forward origin than that), is an album brimming with fascinating characters and the tales they have to tell. This multi-protagonist approach fits well with Cloher, a former NIDA student who seemingly falls into different personas (be that female or male) while still sounding genuine.

There is the stripper in 'Red Room' who pleads with the patron to not make her beg. Sung in this sweet angelic voice with a thread bare guitar backing, if you don't listen intently to the lyrics then you may miss the desperation in her voice to grab the hard earned dollars.

On the other hand you have the broken man in 'Rain' who believes he is beyond saving but wouldn't mind seeking solace in the company of a woman. 'Rain' (first heard on 2005s Permanent Marker EP) could well be the most poetic song currently doing the rounds.

But Cloher can also be emotively direct with the best of them and 'The Longing Song' is ample proof of that. "I'm falling after you, until I'm proven wrong that's what I'm going to do," she declares to her unrequited love, as you the listener wishes her love is eventually returned in kind. The same can be said for current radio single 'Better Off Dancing', a nice slice of up-tempo country that will hopefully attract the masses post-haste.

Though the songs that comprise Dead Wood Falls are fleshed out with multiple instruments and backing vocals, it manages to keep a 'demo' like feel to the whole proceedings. While it may be considered fanciful to be reminded of such landmark recordings like Springsteen's Nebraska when listening to Jen Cloher's album, such connections are not without merit and should at least be flagged for future years when we look back on the career of this welcome addition to the musical landscape.