Solange - Sol Angel And The Hadley Street Dreams

Sometimes the best albums come from the unlikeliest of sources - and this is a perfect example.

As sister of Beyoncé Knowles, former member of Destiny's Child and global pop icon, Solange might have seemed destined to live forever in the shadow of her famous sibling.

Her 2003 debut, Solo Star showed strong promise but ultimately failed to catch the public's imagination, something she'll be hoping to change with the release of her second effort, Sol-Angel And The Hadley Street Dreams - and, as Lemar once sang, 'if there's any justice in the world' she'll do just that.

Clearly nodding to the recent success of 'retro soul' records by the likes of Amy Winehouse and Duffy, but at the same time making the sound her own, Dreams is a near-perfect collection of songs. Boasting a voice strong enough to more than give the 'other' Ms. Knowles a run for her money, songs like the infectious, Sandcastle Disco, the dreamy, God Given Name and lead single, I Decided pay homage to 60s Motown acts like The Supremes while at the same time sounding bang up to date.