THE break-up of Jeff Martin's Canadian outfit The Tea Party late last year was a shock event, following the release of their Seven Circles album and tour in 2004. Martin at the time heralded the album as a healing process for them all after a couple of rather unpleasant years.

That album left many critics nonplussed with its heavy rock stylings, simplistic lyrics and apparent abandonment of the qualities that had made The Tea Party a fascinating outfit since their inception in 1990.

At the same time, Martin was buying property in WA, where his wife hails from, and talking about producing Australian bands, which was perhaps an indicator of a geographic split if not a professional one.

Now relocated to Ireland, Martin has released his first solo album and he has harked back to the safe ground of the Tea Party's heyday: lots of eastern instrumentation (tabla, sitar, tanpura for starters) and oblique references to religion, linked by his poetic sensibility and earthy, powerful voice. There is a predominant use of acoustic guitar, certainly more than on Seven Circles , and tunes like The World is Calling and Where Do We Go From Here sound like vintage Tea Party. One wonders just how left field Martin would have to go for such a distinctive voice to not sound like Tea Party, though. There is little divergence from that style; he goes delta blues on Black Snake Blues , a little bluegrass on Good Time Song .

"Where do we go from here?" Martin asks, but the answer is vague. Rather, this is a man exorcising some ghosts. He clearly refers in Angel Dust and Stay Inside of Me to dissatisfaction with his previous life. "That crazy life was too much, I felt a bit out of touch, so I'll stand alone and I'll be free if you stay inside of me," he sings.

This is a ruminative album; Daystar even has a spoken dedication at the start, adding a certain intimate quality which pervades many of the tracks here. Only the slick production undermines this feeling; on Where Do We Go From Here the lavish backing almost submerges his lyrics.

This is a laid-back, warm Martin, singing ballad after ballad about losing touch with one's self, the completeness of love and the fear of its loss. "I'm climbing up towards the truth, I see myself I am renewed," he sings on Where Do We Go From Here . This album seems largely a step backwards towards the vintage Tea Party sound of The Edges of Twilight ; maybe the next album will answer the question.

Rate: 3