The last time we heard from Stella Farnan was alongside the release of ‘The Blue’, the stark and enthralling fourth single to be pulled from her forthcoming EP. With three other teasers already in the mix, it seemed difficult to know where a track like ‘The Blue’ should fit within Stella’s shapeshifting sound, particularly when her previous cuts had been as immaculate as they were. However, at the time, we described the track as “raw honesty’, and now in the context of her full EP, it’s stunning to hear how self-assured Stella sounds as she makes her first fully fledged step into the fold.

Even when the songs are dealing with uneasiness, self-assuredness if a common them across Come Stay At Mine. From the opening chug of ‘Liar Alive’, Stella is instantly assertive and gritty, while an intricate soundscape expands around her sharp vocals. It’s a steely-eyed introduction, and a mood that shifts with ‘Love Spill’ and ‘Boxes’ up next, which trade the previous track’s unsettling production from classic indie-rock sensibilities, as Stella serves up her stickiest hooks over waves of radiant instrumentals and woozy grooves. Moments later, EP highlight ‘Don’t Make A Sound’ follows suit as it blossoms into a tangle of rich guitar chimes and an evocative lilt, while Stella’s performance emanates with warmth as her voice soars over the ebbing layers.

With Come Stay At Mine rounded out by ‘The Blue’, there’s hints of what has come before - whether that’s the steady composure of ‘Focus’ or ‘Liar Alive’, or the more emotive moments we heard from tracks like ‘Act Like A Party’ - but it also manages to best encapsulate Stella’s ability to transform her vulnerability into strength through her music. While the rest of the EP was loaded with sparkling and soaring highs, ‘The Blue’ resists to temptation to fully burst open, and instead concludes the listen with Stella’s stunning vocals and undeniable songwriting smarts front and centre, unadorned and completely potent.