Dan Sultan: Get Out While You Can (Arts Victoria/Southbound)

Sultan from Melbourne -- father Irish, mother Aboriginal -- is a hard one to put in any box: tracks here are reflective but mainstream country rock, others more alt.country, then he delivers some rural balladry and a broken-down acoustic folk ballad. Then things rock out.

This also opens with a terrific slice of Sixties soulful pop balladry on Goddess Love and Dingo rides a Johnny Cash freight train guitar. Cadillac and Mustang is a soul belter with a stabbing horn section. 

This makes for very enjoyable diversity but although his voice is expressive and strong when required it lacks a little character.

My guess is he is one to see live and powerful though this, his second album, is in places (the driving ballad Walk Through My Dreams, the melancholy Old Fitzroy) it would be under lights in a bar when he would sweat and shine.