Let's be honest - the Netherlands are not renowned for musical exports to the UK and rest of the world. More often than not, the country is maligned for giving us 2 Unlimited and Vengaboys, rather than boasting a solid rock, folk and jazz background. From the latter genre, Nederland can now boast a real jewel in their musical crown - Caro Emerald.

Borrowing sources, influences and songs from the '40s swing-era, Emerald, whose real-name is Caroline Esmeralda van der Leeuw, has been a considerable sensation in her native homeland, not least for the performance of her debut-album, issued last year. For 30 weeks, "Deleted Scenes from the Cutting Room Floor" topped the Dutch album charts, beating the previous record set by Michael Jackson's "Thriller" - that's pretty good going, by the way.

After winning a few awards back home, her label Grandmono Records have continued to issue various singles from the album, including "Back It Up", "Stuck" and two tracks that gained an element of airplay over here, "A Night Like This" and "That Man", the latter of which featured a nostalgic video directly influenced by '50s film-credits and Blue Note/ Capitol jazz-album sleeves - you can watch here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFA6dEwWOb4. Her obvious current comparison could be Paloma Faith, but she's perhaps a bit more 'trad' than that, maybe more in the style of boogie-woogie or big-band swing.

Whatever her style, her popularity has meant she's sold out her upcoming Shepherd's Bush show in December, which in turn has prompted her to return to the UK in 2012 for more shows around the country. First stop is Birmingham on 15th March, followed by London's Roundhouse (16th), Glasgow (18th) and finally Manchester on the 19th. Tickets are on sale from Friday with prices nudging £25 (or £28.50 for London). She's a real show-stopper!!