Julie Burchill once described St Etienne's nostalgic pop as the aural equivalent of "a perfect 60s girl jumping ceaselessly in slow-mo into the perfect MG". Fitting that description even better is El Perro Del Mar, the alter-ego of Swedish singer-songwriter Sarah Assbring. Looking like Jean Seberg and sounding like a softer Nico, El Perro sings of loss and longing against walls of majestic sound; every twist and turn of gentle narratives with titles like Party and People aches with romance and sadness.

Although glamour haunts the gloom when girl-group backing vocals and moody keys set the scene, real sorrow stalks these tunes. "I'm going now to buy me some candy/ On a Saturday night," Assbring sings on the opening track; by track eight, "this loneliness ain't pretty no more". The finale, Here Comes That Feeling suggests hope is on the horizon, but this album is in essence a wonderfully melancholic indulgence.