It doesn’t take HUW COSTIN and his second solo album, SOMETHING/NOTHING, long to get to the heart of the matter. Less than 45 seconds, in fact. Amidst grand orchestral sweeps and cannon shots of brass, the Nottingham based singer, songwriter and producer – who’s also worked with Brian Eno, Echoboy and Mark Lanegan, as well as being part of Earth The Californian Love Dream and The Cold Light Of Day – delivers the killer line: “Yes, I believe / that we are doomed”. It’s not the most optimistic opening to an album, but anyone who’s heard Costin’s debut album, Regrets, will know that lyrical transparency and candid sincerity are trademark qualities in his work. But, just as he was on that splendid debut, Costin remains a master at tempering the sometimes-gloomy realism that lies at the heart of his songs with an optimism that is rare. Doomed we may be, yet this time Costin’s got a simple suggestion: “take as much love / as you can get”.