Matt Berry - Witchazel (2011)

Underpinning Matt Berry's debut album, a loving recreation of late-1960s folk psychedelia, are two realisations. First, without the benefit of hallucinogens, it's hard to listen to someone wittering on about bushes and badgers and keep a straight face. And even if this were possible, the chances are no one would take the debut album from a comedian best known for playing Douglas Reynholm in The IT Crowd seriously anyway. Witchazel accordingly comes packed with daft lyrics ("I don't give a damn for the cows and the sheep as they strain to excrete"), mood-puncturing sound-effects and a preposterous cameo from Paul McCartney, cheerfully scuppering any notion that Berry might be in earnest. You understand his trepidation – but Berry should have the courage of his convictions. Because musically Witchazel is enchanting, awash with delicate, twinkling melodies, its soaring trumpets (Take My Hand), pastel sweeps of guitar and oboe (The Pheasant) and crafty soul-funk inflections genuinely impressive.