As is befitting her place in the UK prog scene, Londoner Kim Seviour makes her solo debut with a concept album: Recovery Is Learning deals with her ongoing struggle with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (aka ME), and as such is clearly a deeply personal piece of work.
Seviour possesses the kind of dramatic, crystal-clear voice you’d find onstage in the theatres of London’s West End, dripping with emotion and perfectly suited to the lush, tasteful rock – forged in the Porcupine Tree mould – that envelops it. The waltzing title track in particular drives the narrative along, thanks to a passionate delivery.
There’s hope at play too. ‘I’m strong now,’ she sings on closing track Morning Of The Soul, before launching into a heartfelt spoken-word poem.
Despite being the end of the record, this is the moment that feels like a starting point for Seviour, and one she can grow and experiment from now she’s laid the foundations.
