IT'S a mighty long way from 1982's A Distant Shore - hell, it's five years since mum-of-three Tracey Thorn has sung at all - but Out Of The Woods is brim full of brio. Picking up the baton from Everything But The Girl's electro-crossover hits like Missing and Walking Wounded, Thorn has roped in Berlin-based techno guru Ewan Pearson and veteran Brit-house icon Charles Webster. It shows.

The results are a smooth assimilation of influences from the poise of Dusty to the sweat of Marshall Jefferson. There's flashes of '70s disco pomp, winsome '60s folkadelica and even fizzing '80s neon pop. Grand Canyon is a deep house revelation, Nowhere Near boasts the most delicious horns and Here It Comes Again has arguably her greatest vocal ever. A most welcome return.