Gia Ford may hail from Sheffield, but musically she bears very little resemblance to other acts with that city’s rich lineage. She’s about as far removed from Arctic Monkeys as you can imagine, and there won’t be much chance of mistaking her for The Human League or Cabaret Voltaire.

In fact, after listening to A Room Within A Room, her second album, you’d swear she was from the sunny climes of Los Angeles. Her music very much sits squarely in the category marked, sometimes unfairly, ‘Adult-Oriented Rock’. The closest comparison would be someone like Lissie, but with a slightly more English sensibility to her.

Ford’s songs are dominated by her voice – a rich, expressive instrument that sounds a bit like Florence Welch but with the bombast turned down. In the best kind of way, she makes music in the old-fashioned way – there’s no eye on algorithms or trending topics, but just on the songs. There’s a very ‘live, in the studio’ feel to most of A Room Within A Room, which may not help it stand out from the crowded field of her contemporaries, but it gives her songs an immediate warmth and immediacy.

Opening track Liberty is a bit of a slow-burner. Introduced by a jazzy piano motif, it then gradually transforms into a gently soaring anthem. Diamonds Coming Down, which follows, is even better, an insistently catchy, almost funky number inspired by the “shining creatures” to be found in the classic documentary about the New York ballroom scene, Paris Is Burning.

Other highlights include the brass-laden melodies of A Spy In The House Of Love (no relation, sadly, to the Was Not Was song of the same title) and Shell which moves from stark Tori Amos-style piano ballad to softly swelling pop-rock. At Least For Now is another fine moment, where Ford seems to channel Christine McVie-era Fleetwood Mac into a lush, warm folk tune.

The only problem with A Room Within A Room is that there’s not too many moments which grab you. There’s no real standout track, no one song that you could state with any great certainty would make Gia Ford a star. Tracks like Cathy or God just kind of drift by, without making much of an impression.

There are some great moments though. I Guess My Time Has Come doesn’t so much nod towards early Radiohead as grab them in a big bear hug, and is a great example of what Ford can do when fully unleashed. Closing track Versions Of You also stands out, a big, sprawling epic way to sign off with Ford’s voice being shown off to its best advantage.

It may not be the album that brings Gia Ford the commercial breakthrough that she’s obviously being groomed for, but it certainly shows her to be a talented and impressive songwriter. Hopefully, her third album will see her taking that leap into the mainstream.