The Isle of Lewis has given birth to many a celebrated writer and musician – Ian Crichton Smith, Alasdair White, Alyth… and most recently Stornoway troubadour The Boy Who Trapped The Sun, aka Colin MacLeod. Swapping the beautifully bleak panorama of the Hebrides for London in 2007 to work with Universal Music’s Geffen label, the singer-songwriter has co-written with the likes of Ed Harcourt and Grammy nominated Sacha Skarbek on his debut album, Watermark EP.

The result is a wistful, melancholy album, with candid lyrics about the pains of love and lust: “she told me they were only friends / and slept in two distinctive beds / I knew this wouldn’t last / I crossed my heart and hoped / that it would never fall apart / but it did”. His voice has the expressive sadness of Tanita Tikaram or Damien Rice, but that’s not to say that The Boy Who Trapped The Sun is just another folk singer. His voice is dulcet, and it’s perfect Sunday afternoon listening material. But – and there is a but – the EP, though only four songs long, doesn’t altogether emphasize the range that MacLeod’s voice quite clearly has. The songs are agreeable, they are melodic, but they don’t stand out from one another. It’s a tuneful EP, but there are other songs of his available online that are far more stirring. Home is a far more upbeat song, and I’d Smoke All Day If It Wouldn’t Kill Me has more thoughtful, witty lyrics. Sadly neither of these are on the EP.

The Boy Who Trapped The Sun is slowly building up a fan base outside of north western Scotland. After his performance at Latitude this summer, the Independent described him as an “incredible” singer-songwriter. All of this is pretty impressive for a musician who doesn’t yet have his own official website. All in all, he’s a promising musician to watch out for. Live performances of folk music are nearly always better than listening to a CD, and MacLeod certainly has musical capability. Just a little more diversity and bravery needed.