Doubtless you'll already be familiar with the dubious marketing campaign which helped to foist Sandi Thom into the public eye and up to the top of the singles charts. With or without a cynical marketing campaign, though, something about her debut, I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker, has clearly touched a lot of people. What exactly that is, though, we certainly don't know, because to our ears it's dreary rose-tinted drivel sung by a girl with a voice like wind billowing up an old drainpipe.

The disparity between Thom's alleged savvy exploitation of the Net and the very retro, techno-phobic vibe of this album is strikingly apparent - if it's innovation you're expecting, you'll be sorely disappointed. Rather, Thom takes us on a whistle-stop tour of her exceptionally conspicuous influences, from Joni Mitchell (on Little Remedy) to Carly Simon (on album closer, Time). Elsewhere, the sound of fellow Scot KT Tunstall is liberally swiped, most notably on opener Horsepower, which gives its snappy acoustic guitar rhythms a country and western edge reminiscent of Black Horse And The Cherry Tree.

If you're a fan of classic Seventies folk-pop, then the style of Smile... It Confuses People may well hold some appeal, but Thom lacks the charisma or the musicianship to bring the sound into the 21st century without coming over like a covers act.

An uninspiring debut.