Confident vocal work, deft arrangements, and tasteful restraint mark the sparse debut solo EP from Edmonton musician Amy van Keeken. For a first release, it certainly feels like veteran work, which makes sense given van Keeken’s laudable contributions to such bands as The AwesomeHots and The Secretaries. The standout track here, for me, is “Fire For You,” an emotional song accompanied by guitar and cornet which sounds like that first night each year whereupon a city collectively agrees winter has begun. Given that we have lived to see 2013, van Keeken also scores poetry points upon proving herself able to properly use the word “twittering” for its delectably evocative quality on “You in My Mind.” The disc contains five songs, but on the tracklist they are numbered 1-2-3-4-6. I took a couple of listens trying to decode this seemingly capricious stroke but had to say uncle; sometimes people just do those things. (Independent, amyvankeeken.bandcamp.com) Daniel Emberg