All three of this week's new releases deal in story-telling.

Anais Mitchell - Young Man in America [Wilderland] ... "We live in dispiriting times. Wolves howl, civilisation is in regression and Anais Mitchell offers us a cycle of songs to deal out some instances."

Jim White - Where It Hits You [Yep Roc] ... "Jim White's new album has a folky spine to it ... He likes his songs on the lengthy side, but there are also some that pack a punch within a few minutes."

Shelley Hirsch and Simon Ho - Where Were You Then [Tzadic] ... "Hirsh is a New York composer, singer and raconteuse ... You'd probably find her filed under 'Experimental' if our local record shops ran to such a category."