A TRIO of talents squeezed into a sound-proofed workshop in a back garden in Mardy to produce a spectacular musical noise.

And the end product of their fortuitous coming together is a pretty impressive debut album by Ragsy, a veteran of TV's Saturday night hit, The Voice.

The 36-year-old performer from Aberdare, picked to be a part of Sir Tom Jones's team in the second series of the popular show, is delighted with what emerged from the humble but hi-tech garden shed.

It was in this outwardly unremarkable habitat on the edge of Abergavenny that he teamed up with producer Chris Peet and mixing maestro Simon Pritchard to create Ouch!!! - the title of his fine firstborn CD which came out last month.

'It's good. I'm pleased with it,' declared a chuffed Ragsy, real name Gary Ryland, a name which he dropped a good quarter-of-a-century ago.

'It was written in Aberdare, recorded in Ebbw Vale and mastered in Abergavenny. It's very much a local production. It's been a joint effort in every phase,' he said of his baby.

The title of the album refers to the emotional torment he was enduring at the time of putting the songs together.

But getting the album into the market place is a dream come true for the singer-songwriter whose impassioned compositions don't sound too dissimilar to the wondrous warblings of his chums The Stereophonics, a favourable comparison Ragsy is happy to acknowledge.

"This is a lifetime's achievement for me. I've never quite got this far before because I have been let down over the years. It's a massive goal for me, a massive album," he enthused.

His cohorts feel the same way.

Simon, currently working on remixes of some classic retro albums, opined, "Chris and Ragsy wanted an earthy, acoustic feel to the sound...something which was reminiscent of what was being heard in the late 70s and early 80s.

"It took a fair bit of hard work to get what Ragsy wanted because he is a perfectionist. We bounced a lot of ideas off each other."

He added, "It's Ragsy's intimate journey...his musical story of the path he has taken over the last few years. The sound is a mix of Dire Straits, the Cranberries, Coldplay and others. It's a grounded album which is acoustically driven. It's well rounded and very poignant. I love it!"

Chris, who recorded Ouch!!! in Northhouse Studios at his Bridge pub in Ebbw Vale, was equally enthusiastic.

"There is a very clean-cut and clinical feel to it all. It's very gritty and real," he said.

It is the third album he has worked on. His second was in Pavia, northern Italy, where he worked with a combo if well regarded Italian musicians who went under the name of Lowlands. Among their number was one Antonio Rigo Righetti, the accomplished bass player who has played with the Italian superstar Ligabue.

The last word goes to the Ouch!!! man himself.

"It's not a doom and gloom album. My songwriting was very cathartic - and it saved me a lot of money on shrink bills!" he joked.

Anyone interested in absorbing Ragsy's distinct sound can do so by checking out the album on his website http://www.ragsymusic.com">www.ragsymusic.com