There's a certain unfairness in any description of Dot Allison's career which ends in autumn of 2004. Because by this time the hype surrounding One Dove's debut single Fallen has long faded, as has the stirrings of electroclash-related gossip surrounding her second album We Are Science. Visions, her collaboration with club veterans Slam achieved one of those releases that never quite makes it into the public eye, and the words 'Dot Allison', no matter how you say them, mean very little to your everyday inhabitant of planet Earth.

So far, anyone reading this who's never heard of Dot Allison is unconvinced. The world's full of wannabe pop starlets, they're saying. If she didn't make it, it's probably for a reason. But no... we're at the far end of the curve here; Dot Allison is slow and steady sales, to people who want to buy. There's no chart-topping stuff here - you buy Dot Allison because you like electronica enough to pay, because you dream of Fischerspooner with Goldfrapp vocals.

Goldfrapp's a good place to start, actually. Wisely choosing to leave her debut band, One Dove, Dot's first foray into solo territory was the chilled and mournful Afterglow (1999), incredibly similar to Alison Goldfrapp's early work, and just as complex. Soaring vocals and restrained synths, Dot presented a piece of work that was lush, beautiful, full and, for some reason, referred to as 'the creamy album' by Dot Allison fans.

Three years pass, and 2002 sees the release of We Are Science into a musical landscape forever changed by Fischerspooner and Felix Da Housecat. If you've no idea who Fischerspooner are, then We Are Science is unlikely to appeal. Because We Are Science is Fischerspooner with pure, clear, female vocals. Dark, pulsing beats layer over each other with a beguiling simplicity. The vocals, too, are stripped back to a minimalist masterpiece.

Which brings us to the present. Today is the 10th of October, 2004. Dot Allison has, once again, quietly disappeared, leaving in her wake a barely-released single collaboration with Slam, the wonderful Visions and some further collaborations with Death In Vegas. A second collaboration is promised for Slam's forthcoming album, but aside from this the casual Dot Allison fan is left to simply wait...

...until when? Apparently Dot's new material will be 'darker', concerning days spent, long ago, in Glasgow. No producer, no song titles. Here's to another three years wait...

...until 2007. Exaltation Of Larks appeared with very little fanfare. Amazon reviews are generally positive, for what it's worth; I have yet to hear it.