New York singer/songwriter (by way of Pittsburgh) readies her self-described "more mature, fuller sounding" sophomore album, successor to 2008's Curled Up Toes In Red Maryjanes...a regular at Brooklyn and Lower East Side pass-the-hat music clubs...new album is produced by the fine multi-instrumentalist and studio knob-twiddler Jimi Zhivago (Kim Taylor, Ollabelle) // Release: The Blooming Hour (late May) // Sounds like: swaying, halcyon folk/pop with some lushly embroidered production on the edges...the subtleties may take a second listen to discern, but the effort is rewarded...Nicholls is in possession of a disarmingly appealing voice // What we like: the gentle persistent tug of the Kate Bush cover "Be Kind to My Mistakes", Zhivago laying a sonic foundation that simply sneaks up on you...the lovely cello snaking through the sweet music box ballad "All the While"...the Nick Drake-ish Brit-folk charm and harmonies of "Mayfair"...

Just as unhurried as it is precious and reflective. The atmosphere is serene; you’ll pick every word that is uttered and find a world that normally goes at a million miles an hour slow to a relaxing canter.