It feels like an age that I have been a fan of Tom Honey in his guise as Good Weather for an Airstrike, but it seems that it is only since 2011 and the advent of A Summer, if my library is to be believed. But in that time his music has grown and deepened, become richer and more nuanced.

I have been waiting for the long flight that I am currently on to indulge myself in his latest offering, Little Steps, hoarding something new in the anticipation of delight. A risky thing, delayed gratification, sometimes it’s a mistake to wait and sometimes, like now, not at all, waiting for a good moment, the right moment makes it all the better.

In part Little Steps is so recognisable from his previous work; opener Hello, Darling feels comfortingly familiar, but from here on in it all becomes a little different, gloriously fresh and uplifting. The more prominent rhythms and instrumental threads add greater light and shade, a musical colour palette that is even more rewarding than before. The ten tracks are distinct but roll effortlessly into each other, a sprinkling of field recordings add sparkles of embroidery at the edges, but the thing I appreciate the most is the greater evidence of ‘real’ instruments, and especially the guitar sound redolent of Vini Reilly that creeps in only to disappear again like a long lost friend.

I have honestly loved everything Tom has put out but for me this is by some way the best thing he has yet done and Little Steps is out via Sunseasky Productions or Norman Records in the UK, or via the Bandcamp site. The scant thirty seven minutes are truly a delight, he creates a blissful space, uplifting and hopeful, serene and enveloping, in these days when I follow Morrissey’s advice to avoid the news, Little Steps is a place of solace and warm positivity. Thank you Tom!