Full of contrasting dynamics and a broad cavalcade of emotions Dear River is a fascinating exploration of self, place and people which sees Emily blend her own story into the wider joys and sorrows gleaned from her rigorous researches into others' experiences of travel and emigration. With producer Calum Malcolm (The Blue Nile) at the helm, the result is a beautiful, sensitive, provocative and at times surprising album.

"I'm so happy with this album", says Emily, barely containing her excitement, "The whole concept means so much to me and although the songs are quite personal, they also feel like they could be other people's stories - it's the best recording  we've done."

The Dog House Sessions 

There is a more personal story involved in the development of these songs that extends way back to the start of 2011 when Emily first started writing for the new album.

Emily explains: "At the start of 2012, we began work on the arrangements for the songs in the same way as we have always done - just the four of us in a room together, playing acoustically and enjoying the process of bringing the songs to life.

We wanted to have a record of how the songs sounded in this bare acoustic form, similar to how we recorded Despite The Snow. So earlier this year we went into The Dog House studios near Henley-on-Thames and recorded all eleven songs live in one day. We were so happy with the results that we decided to put them all on this bonus CD - we hope you enjoy them too!"