Since being deposed as the vocalist for Hartlepool trip-hoppers Sneaker Pimps, Kelli Ali has had a busy, if little heralded, solo career. Her work to date including recording with the likes of Bootsy Collins and Marc Almond alongside a busy touring schedule and solo projects that broke with the roots of her former bandmates into the poppy Tigermouth and the darker electronica-tinged Psychic Cat. Her third album for One Little Indian - ‘Rocking Horse’ - represents a complete paradigm-shift. The apparent unfounded tangential foray into the arena of modern and avant-folk has resulted in a whispered gem.

Opener ‘Dancing Bears’ sets the tone; the slow lilt of a finger-picked acoustic guitar and gentle pastoral wind and strings bubbling underneath soft vocals. Immediately this brings to mind the autumnal instrumentation from Drake’s Bryter Lyter and the expressionistic inflections of Joanna Newsom. Although Ali’s voice is a very different beast to Newsom’s husky Appalachian yelps and wails, they share an endearing ability to both envelop and entertain. Ali’s vocals can sound wounded, seductive and playful and while some of those quavering notes can sound fragile, this lack of opacity lets the ochre shades of the compositions filter through the shifting vocals, plays of cello, guitar and wind patterning and shaping the album.

The sparse Cardinals-esque opening of ‘One Day At A Time’, gives way to the archaic dreaminess of ‘The Savages’. The doleful Elizabethan theme conjuring a pastoral folk scene not unlike the psych-folk of Espers. The central lullabies are capped by the standout title track, the Iberian accent of the introduction building into a claustrophobic interchange between a bluesy drone, pounding toms the North African assonance of the wailing strings. Rolling through the plush valleys of ‘September Sky’ leads into the plaintive trio of ‘A Storm In A Teacup‘, ‘The Kiss’ and ‘Flowers’. It really is a testament to the composition and production on this album that it works at all. Rocking Horse manages to pull together disparate instrumentation and genres and melding them into a delightful whole. The penultimate track, ‘What To Do’ a perfect example - combining a lounge jazz rhythm section with chamber arrangements.

The album does have its niggles; the primary of these, is that again like Newsom, Ali’s voice has a love or loathe quality which is ultimately where most will judge this album. While a complete leap from her previous albums - cynics might call it an obtuse reaction to criticism of supposed earlier “chart grabbing” - there are some strong reference points and influences, the title track especially, leaves Bat For Lashes ringing in the ears. Hardly a bad thing, here’s hoping time and experience crystallises this formidable talent into something wonderful and unique to add to the pantheon of experimental British females.

‘Rocking Horse’ isn’t perfect - but sitting inside with a brew, cans on, watching the squall of late autumn through the window it seems close enough.