Austen’s bright country-influenced music was heard loud and clear at the recent Country2Country Festival out at London’s 02. With a sharp band behind her, a lot of empathy and accent on melody make the act listenable but retain the necessary punch to make this strand of music effective and crowd-friendly. So here is Liv with a new single – a two-track release – displaying her voice and songcraft.

Don’t Regret A Single One is an Austen composition and she co-produces with Jon Wright. A reverberating intro underlined by steady drumming brings in the driving vocal, clear and tuneful. Delay-ridden electric guitar slivers keep the sound airy and adds those 3-D touches that radio loves. The lyric as per title centres on looking ahead, regretting nothing and should connect with her following. I like the fact that the electric bass is kept fairly sparse, the ensemble sound is quite busy enough. The song does lend itself to performance, as we experienced.

The other track on this release is The Next Time is altogether stealthier and concerns a complex partner and the ensuing difficulties for our lass – those dreadful men, eh Liv? – with the key line “ You weren’t there when I needed you “. The singing is insistent with neat harmonies, a jaunty catchy melody all underpinned with chattering rhythm guitar. Plus an agile bridge, a brave twist that pays off. The overall song is infernally catchy.

You are advised to see Ms Austen perform to truly appreciate this material. We did talk to Liv at C2C and will run the chat in the near future.

Pete Sargeant