WE all know how certain music magazines love to shoehorn new acts into neat little compartments; well, since the death of tragic genius Elliott Smith, the section which alphabetically lies between The New Morrissey and The New Nirvana has remained sadly empty.

This is no longer the case; the more compartmentally-minded of you may like to know that Martha's Vineyard (a small island off Cape Cod) has produced The New Nick Drake.

Twenty-year-old Willy Mason shares Drake's cryptic, poetic lyrics, unshowy folky croon, and intricate guitar work, although his songs last night proved to be more harder-edged and openly socio-political than those of his forebear (but of course, the title of The New Bob Dylan has been claimed by grumbling prodigy Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes).

A sell-out Fibbers crowd watched in rapt silence as Mason performed a flawless solo acoustic set, which justified the hype and converted many curious newcomers. Although several audience members were familiar with Mason's back catalogue, the majority had been tempted along by the many column inches and the rousing protest song Oxygen, which has set up a permanent residence on Radio One. The imminent full-scale release of debut album Where The Humans Eat will introduce many more to Mason's raw brand of lo-fi bluesy acoustica, and deservedly so.

Updated: 11:24 Monday, February 07, 2005