Even if Izia were not the daughter of Jacques Higelin, we would be completely justified in reviewing her debut album. The Parisian singer-songwriter has an extraordinarily powerful voice for someone so 'petite' and she belts her rock numbers out with the same raw emotion as Janis in the sixties, her songs boring through your body and hitting you right in the gut.

Izia's eponymous debut album contains a number of musical gems, the first and foremost of which is Let Me Alone, a potential chart-topper on which Izia shows off her raw energy and vocal prowess against a melody that lodges instantly in your brain. Back in Town, Life is Going Down and the excellent Blind with its compelling Red Hot Chili Peppers-style intro are three more reasons to worship at the rock shrine of Izia.

There is no denying that family connections have played their part in Izia's lightning rise to fame. Releasing a debut album on a major label in France where 'guitar rock' is never a best-seller would be nigh on impossible for a similar-sounding band like The Elderberries. But Izia assumes her identity and proves her worth behind the mike, rocking through a series of loud, in-your-face tracks that are perfect for pub audiences. The only criticism we have to make about Izia's otherwise impressive debut is that her album could have been slightly more nuanced in the studio. Izia has a tendency to rely too heavily on visceral vocals and raging guitar riffs and a little more variation would have been enjoyable here and there. All the more so as the Parisian 'rockeuse' proves she is more than capable of toning things down and delivering convincing rock and soul cross-over on The Light and Sugar Cane.

Having friends in the right places is not enough to assure a long-term career in the music business. However, judging by the strength of this first album, Izia proves she has the talent to go the distance with or without her media connections!

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 Listen to an extract from >Let me alone

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