the Retrospective Review

The Big Move: RR Goes to Tumblr

2010-07-25T10:43:00.000+01:00

The internet has certainly moved on since I first used it. Back in the day, the best you could hope for was a forum over at InvisionFree. In fact, they were all the rage in my youth. That followed with LiveJournal, and WordPress. By the time I set up the RR, Blogger seemed to be the obvious, logical choice. Now, however, with the general ease-and-simplicity of Tumblr, it makes more sense to change up and move over there.

The move started earlier this past week. In fact, there are already two new reviews up (Delorean's Subiza, and Bombay Bicycle Club's Flaws) as well as a look at the Mercury Prize nominations.

From here on, the RR will try to be a little bit more professional in its approach to reviewing. So much so that I've started seeking out new writers, to give the place less of a bias when it comes to what we review and what we ignore. I'm also looking out for any bands who are tinkering with demos and such, and think a review may do them some good - and while places like PopJustice and Pitchfork may throw lame attempts in the bin, we'll take what soliciting we can.

I'm also hoping, with the added 'staff', we can come to some sort of regularity in terms of reviews, editorials, and such. I'm considering digging up the Introductions again - since I had fun with the TripHop guide, but then University got the better of me. All I can say is "Watch this space"...well...that space.

That all said and done, you can now find The RR at:

http://retrospectivereview.tumblr.com/

Update your newsfeeds, and enjoy. We're back on the road!

The Strange Boys @ The Globe, Cardiff

2010-06-28T12:33:00.000+01:00

On a hot summer night, would you... Wait a minute, this neither involves Meatloaf, or the Wolf with the Red Roses. It's just the sweat-drenched sauna that was The Strange Boys at The Globe, Cardiff. Hailing from Austin, TX, and having just performed at Glastonbury's 40th anniversary, the band were freshfaced and eager to put on a show. It's just a shame that in such an intimate venue, the main thing on everyone's minds (and brows) was the sweltering heat which either stuck you to your seat, or kept you spending at the bar.

The opening act, Cardiff's very own The Method, were the result of what happens when five unhinged gentlemen with a penchant for trumpets, organs, and chaos in general, take the general layout of music and turn it on its head. There was definitely a tinge of the punk here, as well as the psychadelic, and the funky. Having seen guitarist Johnny perform solo as Johnny Alchemist, I sort of knew what to expect, but, even then I was blown away by the depth, the structure, and the overall showmanship put into such a set - it wasn't big and flash, but it had all the charisma needed to play a much bigger stage, to a much bigger audience - the solid, groovy basslines; the underlying darkness given away by the synth; the indescribabilty (not a word - Ed.) of it all... And when they finally gave way to Sex Beet, I must admit I was ready to rock, and possibly roll.

What was then brought to the stage was a shambling minimalist performance in all senses of both words. The three appeared mismatched, as though they had fallen through a thrift store on the way in, and when they finally tried to grace us with music, it actually wasn't all that good. Think The Horrors if they did songs by Bombay Bicycle Club, and the bassist was dead. Then you'd be in the right ballpark, but you'd still be digging for the metaphorical hidden body. Generally, aside from the helium-esque qualities of the vocals, it sounded as though it was half-baked - it was too noisy to be 'punk' but too pop to be 'noise rock'. I don't know if the levels should be blamed (by that, the tech guy...) or the band. In the end, a bad workman always blames his tools - so I must regretfully brand these as a band to give a miss next time they're on a bill...

Thankfully, when they disappeared back into the crowd, the stage gave way to what can only be described as rockabilly sensibilities. Though the general genre-range of the crowd was 'indie', these guys stood out like a sore thumb - and were all the better for it. Gingham shirts, denim jeans, white undershirts; all they needed was some greased back hair and a toothpick and I'd be sure there was some stereotyping going on. However, looks aside, what The Strange Boys brought to the stage was in fact the best piece of rock'n'roll ever - it lived by the DIY ethic, layering it with rockabilly, and general caterwauling to great effect. Even the saxophone of ex-Mika Miko Jenna Thornhill was greatly appreciated (personally).

Though what do you say about a band that's working a sound that seems to be making a possible comeback? You've got the polished traditionalism of The Baseballs and the classy pin-up girl in Imelda May. What you get from the Strange Boys, as evidenced last night, is a sense of "down-to-Earth garage band". If Buddy Holly had been born that little bit later, I think this is what his music would have sounded like. It's all evidenced in how straightforward their set was last night - some songs, some crowd interaction; generally a traditional "band", which is a refreshing thought knowing that they'd already played Glastonbury.

Overall it was a night of ups and downs. Well worth seeing The Method, slightly marred by Sex Beet, but the mood certainly picked up amidst the punk-try and western hoedown that was The Strange Boys. Honestly, I'd go and see them again any day.

8/10

Grasscut - 1 Inch / 1/2 Mile

2010-06-27T13:22:00.001+01:00

To mention the name Grasscut at this point in time is, truthfully, the way to get a response equalling "Who?" Sad as that truth is, it's what puts them out in that great moment of Tony Wilson-esque "History". No doubt the speech has made its rounds on this blog quite enough, but, to refresh you on it (breifly - Ed.): A moment in history doesn't require a vast following: 3 at the death of Julius Caesar, 13 at the Last Supper, a few dozen at the first Sex Pistols gig in Manchester which lead to Factory Records being created. Therefore, this little-known Brighton twosome are obviously destined for greatness in the world.

The debut album of Brighton-based duo Andrew Phillips and Marcus O'Dair, simplistically titled 1 Inch / 1/2 Mile, is a musical map of the lives and times of the British Isles. Travelling from the Suffolk South Downs, via Wales, Brighton, and the words of Ezra Pound and Hilaire Belloc, the sounds that emanate from this album encapsulate a sense of electronica, and a long-forgotten time. In places, it is woeful, folorn, a total post-punk, post-apocalyptic masterwork. In others, it actually reeks of Steampunk, but, I am hesitant to call it that, since it's more structured and narrative; a sort of Steamfolk, if you will.

From almost sounding like a half-baked 65 Days of Static, this duo build up the album through High Downs, Old Machines and Meltwater, before falling into what I can only describe as the best piece of sampling I have heard thus far. That comes in the shape of The Tin Man, a song that involves a creaky gate recorded on a mobile phone, "the People's Tenor" on a '20s vinyl, and the story of a man with a metal cane. It is at this point where the Marmite Factor comes into it - you'll either love the high-pitched, antiquated vocals from the recorded gramophone, or you'll loathe the entire project thus far. From then on, it drifts between Eluvium and 65DOS in equal measure; ambient, enthralling, and slightly quirky.

Personally, there are few faults within this album. Okay, that was far too subjective. Objectively: There are flaws. They're not gaping holes, but they do strike you as obvious ones - sometimes the melodies don't match the sampled lyrics. Other times, the songs just sound out of place (Muppet being a key example). However, what it does is falls into that category of music that I actually think lacks a name at present. It's in there with groups like the Unextraordinary Gentlemen, or The Correspondents. If labelling and genre pigeonholing were my cup-of-tea, I'd have to pin them all under the same Retronica label.

So, insofar as Retronica goes, this is a pretty decent attempt at reconciling the past and the present. This is also a pretty good attempt taking a road-less-travelled. In fact, despite it probably fading into obscurity very quickly, I think 1 Inch / 1/2 Mile has all the makings of a genre-definer, if taken into the fold, and given pride of place with the other Retronica albums of note. Here's hoping, eh?

Overall: 6/10 - A bit ropey in places, but, all the trappings of a good, solid album lie under the cracks in the masonry.

Top Track - The Door in the Wall

Ellie Goulding - Lights

2010-05-18T10:13:00.000+01:00

The other day, I switched on the TV to see what could only be described as Thriller meets Fight for this Love. It was in fact the video for Ellie Goulding's Guns and Horses, a single which is probably as infectious as the rest of her repertoire. Coming out of nowhere and in less than a year, thanks in part to Frankmusik, she has stormed the charts and become a mainstay on radio and television. Perhaps, three singles down, now is the right time to take stock of what she's capable of?

Lights is the debut album of Ms Goulding, an ex-drama student from the University of Kent, who had a bit of a lucky break and managed to catch the ears of the BBC Sound of 2010 pollsters. From her high horse, she's managed to put out an album of debateable quality. On some levels its perfect electropop, and on others its just-another-pop-album.

It has its strong points. It's really quite a good party album. It starts off really strong, in fact extremely strong. You get the little vocal hiccup of "Wow, her voice is a bit scratchy" on Guns and Horses, but, then you get into it and the beat picks up; it's just what you need these days. Smiley-happy-pop. What Ellie could have managed with the first four songs is an EP of monumental proportions - I mean, it would have made an epic piece of popular music if she'd just released up as far as Under the Sheets on one short-player.

If she'd done that, however, you'd miss out on the magic to come. The Writer actually shocked me. I was so used to the teeny-bopper pop-fusion that it was becoming rather habitual to expect more uptempo "tuneage". This could be the point that you go "What?" because I sure as hell did. That said, it's a very good what. This is the Ellie that people need to see, because otherwise she's going to be pigeonholed as an electronica artist like every other two-bit act out there.

Then it's all lost. It's back to the uptempo downtrodden sound of the rest of the album. It's fair to say that perhaps she manages to shine through even more by juxtaposing that little gem in amongst all this sand; the diamond in the rough and all that. I suppose other songs come close to bringing out that brilliance, but it covers it over with drumtracks and sequencing. For an electronica album though, I should be happy with what I'm being given, because it's not bad at all for a first attempt.

Overall: 7/10 - A bit generic in places, definitely worthy of praise though.

Top Track: Starry Eyed (though personally I prefer The Writer...)

Darwin Deez - Darwin Deez

2010-05-17T12:00:00.001+01:00

Twee Pop has always interested me, but in the sense that it's unfathomable. Some people do it really well, and some people just do some jamboree of horrid sounds. Yet, some Twee nonsense always seems to make it on to every summer playlist ever made - this summer, it's the turn of the tin-earred, 80s reject that is Darwin Deez, a man whose allure I can't quite fathom.

So, we've learned in the course of this album that Darwin Deez, the frontman who suddenly seems so cocky by naming a band after his persona, and then their first album after the band that's named after him, is a talentless hack. Sure, in the world of indie it's all fun and games to be "punk rock" and tone deaf, but, when it comes to music I've heard tone deaf songs sound half good, even when they're half-baked.

What you get with this eponymous album is half-baked ideas for songs which almost all sound the same and blend into each other. Sometimes, when they're good, they're ruined by the crackly, pitchy vocals of Mr Deez himself. So, yes, punk rock, Neutral Milk Hotel, all that. But for this, it just doesn't fly. You cannot hide behind something like that; you have to admit that as indie cindy as you may be - you are not a rockstar, or a popstar, or even a personality for that matter. You are just ruining music.

It's all well and good for me to go off on a rant right now, but the reason this album is so terrible is because it's just lacking in that drive to push itself to do something a bit more. I mean, I could have turned off after a couple of songs and said "You know what, this is an alright EP" but, it's just like pushing a boulder up a hill that doesn't stop - I lost the will to live when the same chords and droning, whining vocals came in yet again on the next song.

So, some advice: Mr Deez. If you're ever allowed to make another album, please think about making things interesting for the listener. Think of it as scrapbooking. Put in loads of elements; mix it up a bit. Don't just create a family album where all the photos were taken on the same day and call it done

Overall: 3/10 - Samey, boring, lacking drive. However, Radar Detector. Addictive.

Top Track: Radar Detector

The National - High Violet

2010-05-16T16:37:00.000+01:00

Ohio seems to be one of those lesser-known musical centres. It's given us Trent Reznor, Screaming Jay Hawkins, Marilyn Manson, and to a lesser extent Dave Grohl. Still, amongst all that acoustic chaff, there's got to be something worth listening to, right? Well, that's where The National come in. The all-American sextet have had 3 years of projects since their last full album, Boxer, in 2007, and now, they're back on top form.

Everyone could immediately switch off after the first track on High Violet. I'm sure you'd all like to. Terrible Love is indeed that: terrible. It's slightly off-kilter when taken in with the rest of the album. It's a jarring start. It's something I don't like. However, once Sorrow kicks in, that's when the album becomes what it is: it's a contemplation; it's a message; it's an album that a lot of rock bands are doing these days - the meaningful one before they fade into obscurity again.

This is coming across all wrong, right, readers? The intro says they're on top form, but I've just said they're going to fade into obscurity. Well, that's just it. It's an album that wins you over, and that's what I want to do in this: You need to be won over by it. No amount of critique could tell you how good it is, because frankly every critic, myself included, is dry-humping the hell out of this. I've read the reviews; I've seen the scores; I didn't believe.

What this album manages to do is envelop you in a sense of total tranquility. Think what Coldplay tried to do with Viva la Vida, but better. This isn't quite rock and roll, but, it's one of those albums that you shouldn't let pass you by. There's the urge to call it indie pop; there's the urge to compare it to a more peaceful Editors, Joy Division or other band with a sonorous soloist up front. Of course, it is neither one nor the other of these. It could be compared to a silk robe: simple on the surface, but intricate beneath. Yet, it's that something which defies all comparison which makes it a perfect soundtrack.

It could be raining outside, and you could be inside with a hot beverage; it could be a rare, sunny day, and you could be reading Dostoevsky; either way, this would be the soundtrack to it all. It doesn't ask to be played loudly; it doesn't ask for attention like all others of the same genre, trying to hold you in their complex riffs, with their overdone everything. None of that here. Simplicity is the name of the game. That's why you should listen.

Overall: 8/10 - A bit of a rocky start, but, once it gets flowing it lives up to the hype, if not surpasses it.

Top Track: England

The Dead Weather - Sea of Cowards

2010-05-16T01:57:00.002+01:00

Unless you've been living under a rock, you'll know of The Dead Weather. They hit Glastonbury last year as the 'secret act' that everyone had been speculating about; they came totally out of left field, and stormed their way right into the rock scene like every other project the enigmatic Jack White has been involved in. There's a song that says "You've got to keep the Devil way down in the hole", but, when it comes to the diabolic genius of Jack White, and his collaboration with Alison Mosshart (The Kills), Dean Fertita (Queens of the Stone Age) and Jack Lawrence (The Raconteurs), it's probably best to let him out, and into your headphones.

Ballsy and Bluesy are the first things that spring to mind with Sea of Cowards. I've said it before: there's something raw, visceral, untamed and edgy about this side of Jack White's projects. Sure, The White Stripes were always 'blues-garage-rock' and The Raconteurs kind of touched on this, but where The Dead Weather dare to tread is a no-man's land, piled high with Spinal Tap-esque amps, and populated by the rotting corpses of Muddy Waters, Les Paul, and Blind Lemon Jefferson...

Beyond those pure blues-and-roll riffs, what else has it got? Well - it's like injecting molasses into your ears. It's sludgy, slow, and yet, the sugary-sweet high is over in a matter of seconds. I was quite shocked on first tuning into this, finding it to be a little over 35 minutes in length. Whilst that definitely explains how it was able to be pushed out in 15 months, it doesn't explain how it could be so darned good. You find yourself reaching the end and wanting more; so much more.

The single Die By The Drop is probably the point where White, Fertita, Lawrence and Mosshart pin up the sign "Abandon All Hope Ye Who Enter Here". It's definitely the point where the album hits its mainstream zenith, and then begins the winding, country road back down to the bayou, head bobbing all the way, foot tapping, and maybe even a wry smile available. If you liked it up to now, this is the real turning point. For me, it was where I turned it up even louder; but it might well be where you walk away.

What this album packs into its almost minuscule time-frame is amazing, frankly. I'm sure people who are fans of bands like Lightning Bolt and hardcore punk outfits will no doubt say that it's easy to do. Yes, it is easy to cram songs into an album. However, it's not easy to find yourself the kind of consistent quality that is provided from start-to-finish with this. It's probably the progression that should have been in the fusion between the dark and the Americana, instead of psychobilly. In fact, it's a slice of Mississippi Mud Cake heaped with some of the smoothest whipped cream; it's an afternoon treat that'll leave you salivating for more. It's Jack White at his best.

Overall: 9/10 - Probably one of my favourite albums of the year so far. I cannot deny that this is just what the doctor ordered.

Top Track: Gasoline

Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip - The Fable of Izeekabee

2010-03-21T13:04:00.000+00:00

As a rare Easter Egg, I decided to rise from the metaphorical dead, like some obvious blasphemous metaphor, and provide you with some up-to-date music reviewery. Today I got my grubby mitts on a copy of dan le sac vs Scroobius Pip's newest little ditty, rather oddly titled The Fable of Izeekabee.

Now, first up it should be known that this song isn't their single. That, in fact, would be Get Better, a song which I haven't even bothered to look into (which is quite bad). Secondly, it should be duly noted that Scroob has admitted that he writes the lyrics after the music - whether that has changed, I don't know, but, it's a noteworthy piece.

The Fable of Izeekabee, anyhow, is a four minute romp in which the music never quite seems to match the lyrics. I kept expecting, during the intro, Swedish electro-vixens The Knife to get involved, which soon gave way to Flaming Lips Yoshimi-esque distortion-buzzing. The lyrics, however, just seem totally diverse from the tune - no real link, just the fact that they seem to barely fit in. Maybe it's intended, what with the message here...

Soon, though, it gets into its groove. It finds its niche, and that's when the song gets good, but, it takes a whole 2 minutes before it feels secure in itself and sounds like the old Scroob and le sac that always worked together, like cheese-flavoured chalk, or like the riff amongst the raff separating the wheat from the chaff. It's just a shame a lot of that chaff seemed to get involved early on, when it needed to hook. When it does hook, however, it gets you line-and-sinker too. If you're not into it by now, just turn it off and consider coming back when you're more in tune with yourself.

Then, when it comes to an end, it ends perfectly. It's not ostentatious, it's not overly wordy, it's not trying to be something that it's not - in fact, it's being good old Scroobius Pip writing the way he writes best. It just shows the genius of the man, right down to the spoonerisms that Ronnie Barker would have been very proud of.

My final thoughts, however, are totally the opposite of what I've written. It's not a wishy-washy piece. It's a grower. It's a good'un, well worth a listen. It comes across like the soundtrack to a piece written by Aaron Diaz of DresdenCodak. It has the set up - it builds the story, it develops it, and then it concludes it nicely. It comes across like the new version of The Emperor's New Clothes, but with much more of a moral message: "Don't be such a show-off, you self-righteous prick."

7/10 - It took three listens to be very enjoyable, though it still jars at the start, but, it's always made better by the ultimate spoonerism ending. I eagerly anticipate the album.

To get your own copy of The Fable of Izeekabee, text UGLY to 81088 and follow the instructions that Scroob and DLS send back.

A Note From The Editor: Indefinite Hiatus

2010-01-18T00:01:00.028+00:00

This weekend I was going to take some time and continue on with the Introductions Series, looking at alt-folk from Neutral Milk Hotel, through Beirut and Devotchka, back to A Hawk and a Hacksaw.

Instead, I seem to have been snowed under with other commitments in my life, like my course, finding an actual job, and generally enjoying what time I have left in this country. As much as I love this blog, and I love my music, something had to give - it couldn't be the course; it couldn't be my lifestyle; so, it was this blog.

As of now, The Retrospective Review is taking an indefinite hiatus. There will be no posts on this blog as of today, though I will be maintaining my personal blog.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you'll come back whenever I find the time to start this up properly.

Gorillaz - Demon Days

2010-01-15T12:00:00.002+00:00

When the world seemed like there was no hope for music left, along came Damon Albarn, fresh from Blur, and he took some cartoon men and made them sing. And what they did was take the base of trip-hop, and tear it up to make their own music. Their debut album wasn't exactly trip-hop, as hip-hop over dub; and their second album was more hip-pop, but, buried under it all, under the paint and the facades was the last of the trip-hop albums: Demon Days.

What Gorillaz managed to do with this album is create music for the masses. It was still lyrical; it was still poetic; it still had that dark vibe taken from the trip-hop of the nineties. And yet, it was different. It was a unique slice of the mind of Damon Albarn. It was something that the kids growing up had never heard before. Aside from Gorillaz, there wasn't a large mainstream group putting out this kind of music.

I find Demon Days interesting. It blended the sounds of Blur, and more than just Albarn's vocals, with the electronic world. O Green World took on a distinctly Blur-esque sound, but yet moulded it to fit in with the Gorillaz persona. They took on hip-hop; they took on any challenge that came before them. It was inspiring.

Admittedly, for me, as a person who struggles with traditional hip-hop, I find this album hard to listen to. Songs like El Manana just don't 'do' it for me. I don't know what it is, but, I still can see the value in the songs I don't like. I suppose, in a way, it's the same as asking a fan of hip-hop to listen to Burzum without any prior warning - you're not always guaranteed a good answer. Ironically, when MF Doom gets involved on November Has Come, a true hip-hop tune, I loved it.

So, what are you getting here? Like I've said. It's not pureblood trip-hop. This is the progression. This is hip-pop in a sense; it's got the background, but, it's floated into lands unknown. A warning to all fellow travellers. Here be dragons, and rappers.

Overall: 7/10 - Ironically, it's the fact that it's not trip-hop enough that makes this progression lose marks. Compared to the others, it's just an album; but, it's an evolution away from the years of Portishead, and Massive Attack.

Top Track: All Alone

Télépopmusik - Angel Milk

2010-01-14T12:00:00.000+00:00

Another day, another oldie. This time, I've crossed the English Channel and ventured to France for some of the finest trip-hop on the continental side of Portishead. I am, of course, talking about Télépopmusik, the French trio responsible for some of the dreamiest trip-hop of the last decade. While Sneaker Pimps were busy being wordy, Imogen Heap was busy being Zach Braff's favourite singer, and Portishead were swimming in a pool of Bauhaus, these guys were concentrating on the more ethereal, dream-pop side of their respective label. And five years ago, they put out their last album, Angel Milk.

A fifteen track romp through the realms of trip-hop seems a bit daunting at first. It's not exactly the easiest genre to get into, if you're not looking for background music, or you're not drunk, I find. So, when I decided I'd finally get around to listening to this beauty, I wasn't so much pleasantly surprised as lulled into a false sense of security.

It starts perfectly fine. In fact, I could have enjoyed a full album based around the songs it started with and finished with. They were trip-hop of the finest order; comparable with Portishead. They weren't lacking in anything, and they flowed so nicely. Then, jarringly came three songs in the middle, starting with Love's Almighty, which just trudged along slowly, lacklustre and depressing. It was like trip-hop on a massive K-hole.

Sure, the three songs I'm singling out are decent; but, in terms of this album they were a total wall of 'low'. It really did bring a bit of a downer of the whole experience. It went from being such a free flowing album - a river of music, if you will - to like wading through treacle. I think, particularly with Love's Almighty, when they come in and say "Okay, okay, start again" and it picks up the 'oomph!' that they potentially saved themselves from me wanting to turn off.

Still, 15 tracks later, I was still listening to it, and, when it ended on that lovely note, I went back and listened to it again. "I always feel better after I fly
I fly every morning for at least fifteen minutes or so" says the final song. I agree, at least if flying is anything remotely close to this album.

Overall: 8/10 - I think the closest I've got to enjoying foreign experimental stuff this much was Bjork, and even she was a tough cookie to crack. This one just melts in your mouth; saccharine sweet, with the occasional lemon bitterness.

Top Track: Stop Running Away

Sneaker Pimps - Splinter

2010-01-13T12:00:00.002+00:00

The new Millennium was about to arrive. The first waves of the Y2K hysteria were beginning to show, and it had been a year since Sneaker Pimps had asked singer Kelli Dayton to leave so they wouldn't fall foul of being compared to Portishead. Admittedly, it was a wise move, since Becoming X had sounded suspiciously close to the realms of Portishead. Still, as 1999 rolled onwards, they released a new album, fronted by Chris Corner, Splinter.

The difference between Portishead and Sneaker Pimps became really noticeable when Chris Corner took up vocals. The songs sounded so different with a male vocalist, but, still, in the background the trip-hop remained. In its own way, that's what mattered. It didn't need the difference between Corner and Dayton, because in the end, the music was so different that it stood out in its own way.

It borders on electronica. It borders on pop at points, but it's still dark enough to warrant being reasonably downtempo. The tracks on this album are amongst my favourites done by Sneaker Pimps. The follow-up, Bloodsport would end up sounding like a proto-IAMX, Corner's current project. The previous album had only been a stepping stone. This was true musicianship. This was a final fuck-you to the decade. Hell, if we were all going to die out in some Y2K related mishap, then this album would have been testament to the brilliance of our minds - Remember when we sent Coldplay and Bowie or whatever into space, well, we should really have sent Sneaker Pimps - Low Five.

Personally, I think this is not only the soundtrack of a generation; summing up the end of the nineties with its grunge and its hardcore, its jungle and its dying post-punk acts, but it's also the soundtrack for a new generation, one brought up in recession and war and hate. It's dark, but it's not depressing. It's disco, if the mirrorball wasn't working and the bouncer didn't look like he wanted to kill you.

Going out on a limb, it's probably Chris Corner's best work. It has its weak moments, yes, but, it's got a good mix on it in a way that many albums don't seem to think about. I fail to get bored by it. It's beautiful, but hardly ever talked about. It is to the world of albums what Yeats' Cloths of Heaven is to the world of poetry.

Overall: 8/10 - It's dark, it's highly underrated as an album, and it deserves the recognition that it should have had a decade ago.

Top Track: Low Five

Portishead - Dummy

2010-01-12T12:00:00.008+00:00

Bristol, 1994. A phenomena is about to be released, a album that will cause a band to transcend its genre and become part of hipster parlance for years to come; propelling the band to relative fame. This Mercury Prize winning debut saw off the likes of Oasis, fellow trip-hopper Tricky, and big boys like Van Morrison, to become one of the few albums I'd dub a necessary evolution of British music. Portishead released Dummy.

Portishead's debut was far more than just a necessary evolution in British music, following on from the darkness that was post-punk, with the drug-fuelled addiction of Madchester, to compete with the guitar-addled blight on the face of the country that was Brit-Pop. It had to stand out, and, coming from where it did, it managed that effortlessly. Downtempo, moody, full of an angst that the kids of the early nineties seemed to be searching for in their grunge, it came out of the left field and hit with a big impact.

What can I say personally about it? It's an album that's done a lot for me. It's probably the reason I managed to transcend from Goth to indie, because it was an easy step to go from Portishead's Dummy to the available levels of Post-Rock out in the mid-noughties, like Sigur Ros, who are pretty much pixies doing a happier, mumbly version of trip-hop. It's an album I personally love; without it, where would we be?

It's filled with songs that people need to hear. It's a musical education. Not in the sense that it expands your mind and makes you think about a terribly important period in music, like Rock and Roll or the Blues, but because it's just musically brilliant. Before this, there wasn't anything that really sounded anything like it, as far as I am aware. And after Dummy came out, there seemed to be an explosion of this kind of sound in trip-hop and in gothic electronica. It was genre defining. It was music.

The lowest it gets is the slightest of troughs with Wandering Star and It Could Be Sweet. Even then, they are only a small irrigation ditch, adding to the beauty. Surrounding that are perfect fields of electronic music. So go, and walk amongst them, and enjoy it for what it's worth.

Overall: 10/10 - A defining moment in musical history, or at least in this genre. Without it, there would be a void. It's truly a diamond in the rough; a jewel in the crown of British music. All hail, the Dummy.

Top Track: Biscuit

Massive Attack - Blue Lines

2010-01-11T12:00:00.011+00:00

In Bristol, 1991, a movement began. It wasn't until later it was given its official name, but it started with a group of layabouts who took two styles of music and fused them effortlessly in what is now known as trip-hop, an underappreciated genre in this day and age. That band was Massive Attack, and they started the ball rolling with their album Blue Lines.

Listening to Blue Lines, you really pick up a sense of where a lot of the bands who followed took their basis from. It's definitely the granddaddy of all trip-hop albums. If proto-punk was what eventually gave us the Sex Pistols, then Blue Lines is the stepping stone which gave us this wonderful genre.

Blue Lines fuses the rhymes of hip-hop with downtempo rhythms which just soothe the soul, and at the same time meld together in a way that prompts thought and outgrowth in the listener. It's hard to describe, because it's not really the definitive article. It's not trip-hop as sold by Portishead, or Sneaker Pimps circa Becoming X; it's like the missing link between the moody early 90s stuff, and the more wordy noughties era. In effect, it's the fork in the road where a trip hop artist can say "I want to be like Shara Nelson" or "I want to rhyme like Daddy G".

Personally, I've been wowed by this album. It's a rare, unmistakable feeling when you delve back to the roots of a genre and find everything suddenly falls into place; when you suddenly understand how one anomaly fits into the puzzle, because of how it was and not how it is. From slow, bouncing songs like Lately, to fully-orchestrated dance wonders like Unfinished Sympathy, via the downtempo hip-hop of Blue Lines, this album is a melting pot, and I love it for that. None of it jars; none of it suddenly breaks the effortless flow of the rhyme and rhythm. It's just good. Simple as.

Overall: 10/10 - It's effortless; it's simple; it's a few guys from Bristol trying their hand at hip-hop with a more moody, poetic outlook, and what we got in return was an album that would define a genre. Simply amazing.

Top Track: Unfinished Sympathy (honourable mention to Blue Lines)

Introduction: Trip Hop Week

2010-01-11T00:01:00.008+00:00

As of this week, I'm taking on a bit of a change to the blog. I've decided to see if I can fill out the (roughly) 35 weeks before I go on hiatus whilst I spend a year in Italy and Spain improving my linguistic skills. So, for the next 35 weeks, I'll try to delve backwards in time, and look at some of the different genres of music, using a wide array of artists.

So, for this week, I've chosen Trip-Hop, the weirdly soothing, sort-of-psychadelic late 90s sound that originated with experimental acts like Bjork, and progenitors like Massive Attack, and carried on through heavyweights of the genre like Portishead and Morcheeba. It carried on into the noughties with the big players still involved, as much as groups like Gorillaz, Sneaker Pimps and Télépopmusik. It's just not one of the most widely recognized genres; a lot of people seem to like it, but even so they're all spread out, unlike other genres.

This week's articles will include:

Télépopmusik: Angel Music - A seminal hit from the French trip-hoppers of the noughties. Due for an appearance again this year, with a new album, these guys have always hidden slightly under my radar, but are well worth the listen.

Portishead: Dummy - Arguably the album that began it all; the success that is. It's sound is well-known. Kids have been well-versed in this album, but, they seem to have sunk back into hipster obscurity lately. It would be a crime to discuss trip-hop without this beauty.

Sneaker Pimps: Splinter - Nearing the turn of the century, Sneaker Pimps, one of the mainstays of the original Trip-Hop movement turned to vocalist Kelli Dayton and said "We want to do it our way, and not sound like Portishead" and what they churned out with Chris Corner on vocals was something unique. It was this.

Massive Attack: Blue Lines - Back to where it all began in Bristol. Without this album, the foundations of trip-hop would be slightly wobbly, resting on the shoulders of other Bristolians Portishead.

Gorillaz: Demon Days - I suppose this is where the line blurs, where trip becomes hip, and hop becomes pop. Damon Albarn of Blur takes his little side project to stellar heights with this album, and honestly, as pop as it is, it really does warrant a good listening to!

I hope you'll tune in for the next five days worth of blogs.

Lawrence Arabia - Chant Darling

2010-01-08T09:00:00.011+00:00

Lawrence Arabia is the project of one New Zealander named James Milne. His folky sounds came to my attention via Race Horses, and the fact that they're both playing in Cardiff next weekend (and I'm hoping to get tickets). As the last of my reviews before I start my new project on this blog, I figured it was only right to give this guy a review. This is his second solo album, and it goes a little something like this...

Lawrence Arabia make indie folk seem effortless. The album itself isn't particularly outstanding; it fits into the category of "indie pop" in the same vein as Camera Obscura, and Belle and Sebastian, making sounds that are too perfect and bubblegum; bordering on folk, bordering on pop. Think of him as a New Zealander Pelle Carlberg, if you will; although nowhere near as infectious. Maybe a wry smile here and there when you agree with a tune.

Still, what is good about this album is the fact that it manages pop without being pretentious about it. It's not pop in the sense that you'd think of Cher or Tom Jones; Fall Out Boy or The Beatles. It's pop in the sense that he sings so sweetly and composes songs that seem so deep and layered sometimes that they could be real hits, if it weren't for the lack of catchy lyrics.

I think this one is hit or miss though. For me, it's ups and downs; certain songs are really good, others aren't exactly worth going back for. I suppose you could say it's an average album then? Not really; the good songs are really good, and the 'bad' songs aren't actually bad, they just pale in comparison to the really good songs. I suppose that's what you get when it's something decent, for once.

Overall: 7.5/10 - I really think it's pushing to be a good album. It's definitely above average, but it does have those moments where you hit a sub-par song and think "Wait, what happened!?" Definitely a grower though.

Top Track: The Beautiful Young Crew

Le Reno Amps - So For Your Thrills

2010-01-07T21:00:00.008+00:00

It seems I'm having a week of inspiration; finding music that I've never really given a chance, even if it's not necessarily new. Popping up today in my ears is Scottish alt-folk quartet Le Reno Amps, a band who, for the last 3 years, have sat on my hard drive doing little more than stagnating slowly. So, three years after receiving this album for doing a promotional review for a magazine (which I believe was never actually published), I'm going to get around to giving So For Your Thrills a real work-out!

Le Reno Amps were never my scene back when I was handed this album and told "Go downstairs, there's a free PC there that nobody uses. Give it a few listens; let it grow on you, or just review it straight off...whatever. Just get it done. You can keep it after; we don't tend to hang on to these promotional CDs." So, that's how I got a hold of it, free and for gratis, and it proudly sits with a few other promotional CDs (like a hot-off-the-presses promo of Feist's My Moon, My Man) in my CD drawer at home.

Aside from that short history lesson, what else can I tell you? Le Reno Amps, a nice anagram of founding members (Al) Nero and (Scott) Maple, began way back in 2004 up in Aberdeen before moving to Glasgow, in order to gig more and still keep their jobs. They had their first official 'debut' as a fully-fledged group in 2006, and released this album in April 2007 (a month after I was handed that promo copy). Some call them indie, some call them alt-country, and they...well...I don't think they stoop so low as to label themselves.

So For Your Thrills is all one could expect from an alt-folk album. It borders on the side of Belle and Sebastian's indie pop shenanigans, but, by some fluke miracle, it comes out sounding highly original - less like a half-assed Bright Eyes, slightly more fleshed out than Bob Dylan, and more like a genuine band in their own right.

Harmonicas, harmonies and harmless infectious-indie-pop aside, there's the obvious issue of quality. Particularly with Tree House, there's a sense that they don't exactly sound stellar vocally; but, neither does Conor Oberst or that Fishermans band I reviewed the other day. It's a minor point to pick up on, but, there's not much else to pick on, honestly.

Maybe I'm getting simpler in my old age, and I just want an acoustic guitar and an accordion, and a melody which makes me sway and wish I had a lighter to hold in the air, like some dilapidated, ageing hippie, reliving his 'good old days'. Thinking of it, the simplicity of this album is just beautiful. It's not cocky; it's not showy; at least not until the final song where it goes out with a bang. Still, Charles Mingus once said:

Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity.

He was right.

Overall: 9/10 - What can I say? It's inspired simplicity. The vocals make me think of Bob Dylan, but it has something a bit more there. Maybe it's because it's less political and seems to just be a jamboree of contagious fun. Maybe it's just good.

Top Track: Deserted Sons

Editorial: 'Classic' Album Covers become Collectable Stamps

2010-01-07T11:51:00.000+00:00

Today I awoke to the news that the Royal Mail have released music-based stamps. Those sneaky beggers slipped under my radar and released a set of stamps based on album covers from the last 50 years (it would seem). With covers from Coldplay's A Rush of Blood To The Head through Bowie's Ziggy Stardust, via London's Calling and Tubular Bells it covers a wide swathe of what can only be described as popular rock-and-roll in the last half century.

More shocking than the fact I only heard of this literally a few hours ago, is the fact that the Queen herself approved of all of them. Does this mean she's a closet Blur fan, with Parklife in amongst the fray. Either that, or, what they mean by 'royal approval from the Queen herself' is more like a wave of the hand saying "Yes, dear, go make some more stamps. One has a country to run." - personally, I prefer the first image; HRH the Queen rocking out to Pink Floyd, as she artistically selects The Division Bell's cover from their back catalogue to feature in this list.

So with this news out there, click the image below to be taken to the Royal Mail website where you can spend a silly amount to own a few stamps with pictures of album covers on them!

Race Horses - Man in my Mind EP

2010-01-06T22:56:00.001+00:00

It seems that all I'm doing lately is reviewing EPs, but that's the way it is right now. It's only just 2010, and I've not found an album to interest me, only the odd EP. This time round, it's a favourite of mine, Race Horses (formerly Radio Luxembourg) with their four track Man in my Mind.

As Radio Luxembourg, when they appeared on Welsh music programme Bandit, I can admit I was in love with these guys. I've never heard such amazing songs come from the Welsh medium; the closest I've got was The Poppies a few years ago, and even they pale in comparison to the synthetic pop that was presented by these boys. (Yes, that was meant to be a pun...synthetic...drugs...psychadelia...what all the media outlets say about these boys).

Anyway, Man on my Mind is the follow-up EP to Diwrnod efo'r Anifeiliad...or at least it would be if the preceding EP wasn't in Welsh under their guise of Radio Luxembourg, and this one is in English to come before their album due at the end of this month. It's not a long EP, it's a filler in all honesty. Still, open mind and all that.

The thing about this EP is that the title track sounds like the English successor to the old Welsh tracks I love so much from this band. It's the Henry Tudor to their original Owain Glyndwr - it's not a direct successor, but, I'd still support it. It's erratic enough to warrant being in their collection; and catchy enough too. From there, though, it all seems to be a bit up and down. Mostly down, until it throws itself off for a twee finale the likes of which is worthy of praise.

However, for an EP, it really is just that, it's a filler between projects, and right now it's a nice introduction for kids who've never heard of Race Horses before today. It's nothing special, but, neither is it so dire that you shouldn't listen to it. In fact, I'd recommend getting it just for the opener and the closer, which are both cracking songs - especially the way the closer opens with what can only be described as the theme to an 80s kids show involving puppets before blasting into something more reminiscent of The Futureheads or some such indie pop group.

Overall: 6/10 - Bearing in mind it's an EP, and making this comparative to the Fisherman's EP, it's good, but not spectacular. Still, give it a listen if you like indie pop.

Top Track Last Boat To Dove

Fishermans - Fishermans EP

2010-01-05T17:38:00.000+00:00

So it's 2010, everyone, and I've decided to start off with a true Independent album. This was recorded in the basement of a band member's house, on a lone microphone, and it is the debut EP of Chicago eight-piece Fishermans

When you see the phrase "recorded in Kevin's basement on one mic" you instantly know you're either onto a winner here or a total wash-out sham. Luckily, for the guys and gals in Fisherman's I quite enjoyed their debut.

The eponymous EP was released last May, and I've just stumbled across it in my looking for some new music to keep me entertained in this new decade. It's like a cross between a lo-fi Arcade Fire, and Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin; it has that obvious DIY feel to it, but it has that nicely layered effect you get from groups in the Chamber Pop and Twee Pop world. I tapped my feet and bobbed my head along, and wondered how the hell they sounded so good; it doesn't sound autotuned, it just sounds like it says on the tin.

The best bit about it is the fact that it's free-ish. I bought it off a Amie Street, so I suppose the band are getting a fee from me; but, it's also up (as I later discovered) for free download. Who can complain about getting a rather good album, for free? I wouldn't. Especially when the songs are quite amazing for something so evidently low-budget. From a pre-apocalyptic love song in 2012 through the haunting White Oak Woods and out into the faux-noir of This Is No Time For Historical Accuracy, this is a self-done, indie album of the highest order that you deserve to hear this year.

Overall: 8/10 - For a self-done EP, it doesn't half sound good. I suppose if it had been professionally done, with all that autotuning and nonsense, it might be worthy of more, but, it's a decent first-effort for a band just starting out. I just wish I'd found it earlier.

Top Track: This Is No Time For Historical Accuracy

The Top 10 Underrated Albums of the Decade

2009-12-20T16:09:00.001+00:00

I'm a little bit behind Rolling Stone, but, I can safely say my list was compiled before theirs went out to be published. This has just taken me a while to get round to uploading. Let's cut the crap, and just say that the next 10 albums are going to require no pompous words, just a synopsis and possibly an example of their brilliance:

10. Final Fantasy - Has a Good Home
Canadian genius (for there is no other word for him) Owen Pallett has spent the last decade sneaking into our music, bit by bit. He's arranged strings for Arcade Fire, Beirut, The Last Shadow Puppets, and even Mika. His own music takes that compositional flair of his, and makes itself known in its own light, without the name of another artiste to cloud it. It's just a shame he's relegated to relative obscurity, while those he has composed for have all the praise. Check him out.

9. Peace Burial At Sea - This is Such A Quiet Town
This is underrated for one reason, and one reason only: nobody has ever really looked at any of the bands from the old Captains of Industry label with any real positivity. Sure, Gay for Johnny Depp are suddenly hitting the lips of ever indie kid from here to eternity; Sucioperro has been rocking round the clock for as long as Marmeduke Duke have been putting out albums. But, PBAS never really got the break they deserved. Think of them as Britain's answer to the slowly fading goth scene.

8. The Most Serene Republic - Population
Back to Canada we go for the sweetest dream pop album this side of a candy coated rainbow. All you need to do is turn it on, and melt. I liked their first album, I wasn't so fond of their latest offering; this, however is just brilliant. Just pick it up, listen, enjoy.

7. Pelle Carlberg - In a Nutshell
Sweden usually offers the finest indie pop in the world, and this decade has been full of groups like Peter, Bjorn & John, and Suburban Kids with Biblical Names. Even in the last year, Lykke Li has broken onto the mainstream scene. Pelle Carlberg, however, has lain happily in his Labrador Records catalogue, strumming as soulfully as any Bon Iver or Samuel Beam. Really, he's a beam of light in the Aurora Borealis of Swedish indie.

6. TEAM - The Penalyn L.P.
Another northern band from that now-defunct northern label Captains of Industry. Verifiable post-punk effort from the team that is TEAM. Many a time have they been confused on last.fm for another, more-or-less famous group. In my mind, however, there is only one TEAM, and this album is what should have put them on the radar.

[Sadly, this one is soo off the radar, I'm going to send you all to Last.fm]

5. The Blow - Paper Television
This album, personally, got me into lo-fi electronica. It was the stepping stone I needed. Thanks go to WOXY.com for airing Parentheses one day many years ago; and now, here it is, in the top 10 underrated albums of the decade. Simply put: YACHT, one half of this pair, is the best thing to happen to unsigned remixes since...well...himself. And the rest is just down to the simplicity of the songs; they're catchy, because they're easy to learn.

4. This is Menace - No End In Sight
As far as supergroups go, they usually consist of "Hipster A" and all his hipster friends; or "Rockstar A and friends" featuring "obligatory aged rockstar". This, on the other hand was the best post-hardcore/metal supergroup of the decade, and the only one which springs to mind. From collaborations with Matt Davies of Funeral for a Friend and Colin Doran of Hundred Reasons to Mikee from Sikth, this band, based mostly around members of Pitchshifter, really should be part of every metalhead's collection.

3. Jacob Golden - Revenge Songs
His favourite Daniel Johnston song was recorded on a tape-deck before he was born, apparently. That fact aside, Jacob Golden is to music what Monet was to art; it's beautiful, blurred only by the artists own ability to, (in Monet's case not see straight), be able to pen and sing from the depths of his heart. Revenge Songs captured my heart back when I first saw Mr Golden play live, and I really think he's deserving of a much higher accolade in this list, but, I'm slightly biased towards the winner...

2. My Latest Novel - Wolves
What comes out of Scotland is, on most occasions, superb. Belle and Sebastian, Biffy Clyro, and Mogwai all hail from 'north of the border', becoming part of what can only be described as "musical history". This, however, is a band that hit the floor running, and then faded away into silence due to relentless touring. Admittedly, they have a new album out, but I've not heard it, so I can't comment. Still - this is the best underrated folk album of the decade, bar none.

1. Venetian Snares - Detrimentalist
"Underrated?" I hear you cry! It's a bit of a shock to the system, when the rest of the list has been pretty good folksy, happy (with the exception of This Is Menace) easy to please all stuff, to see that this is the album I feel has been most underrated this decade. All you have to do is listen, and you will see that you have been wrong about Pendulum and the Prodigy; this is the way electronic music should be made. Jungle is massive! And all that jazz.

The Top 50 Albums of the Noughties!

2009-12-12T19:30:00.038+00:00

This is it guys and gals! Not only has the year almost reached its end, but the decade is approaching its final, earthshaking crescendo. Now, usually, I like to sit down and do a "Top 10" for the previous year, based on a list of songs and a list of albums; but, the end of a decade only happens once every ten years...so, it's time to think BIG or, at least, vaguely larger than normal.

So, I spent the last few sleepless nights perfecting the Top 50 albums of the Decade, in my humble opinion. Very few people will agree 100% with my view; but, it takes all sorts to make a world. Links in the title lead to the Amazon UK page for said album, should you want to buy it. So, let's get looking!

50 – Spiderman of the Rings – Dan Deacon
It's an underrated classic. The people of the world honestly don't know what they missed out by not buying this album en masse. I came across it in 2007, a few weeks after its release, and was thoroughly impressed by the simplicity of this masterpiece of indietronica. It's worth owning just for the 12 minute epic that is Wham City, a song about bears, rats, big sharks, sharp swords, bees bees bees, mace lakes, green snakes and Christ knows what else. Sums up the disorganised chaos of the noughties infinitely.

49 – Citrus – Asobi Seksu
I really recommend people pick this up. It's another 'latter-half' album from 2007. I didn't stumble over this gem until mid-way through Uni last year. I was thoroughly impressed, because it's shoegaze, but then it's not as shoe, and all the more gaze. Think less mumble, and more sweet whisper. Now, while their self-titled album was epic, this one blew it out of the water in no time flat. Check it out for 'Strawberries' 'New Year' and 'Thursday', the most perfect trio of opening tracks ever penned!

48 – Feels – Animal Collective
...and then God created experimental indie, and he saw that it was lacking, so he threw in a Panda Bear and a Geologist to create a band that was to become synonymous with hipster-chic in the noughties. Feels, to me, is probably the most accessible of the Animal Collective albums, and therefore needs a place in this list; it's not so much epic, as a staple of every hipster's collection, bar none.

47 – Comalies – Lacuna Coil
If you don't like this, then you are a dick. “I can't like it,” I hear you cry, “It's Goth metal”. Well, grow up, because Christina Scabbia is not only the best thing to come out of Milan since St Ambrose, but her little Italian group have skimmed the surface of popular metal in the guise of sexy Goth rock. Comalies is a must-have from the noughties if ever there was to be an album which propelled a band to near-mainstream notoriety in Europe; or, as mainstream as you can get when the only people who care are metalheads.

46 – In Case We Die – Architecture in Helsinki
The age of the huge group was begun by Slipknot, and bastardised by The Polyphonic Spree. Architecture in Helsinki come in as the happy middle-ground...the very, very, very happy middle-ground. Twee Pop to the power of seven, this is what Juno's soundtrack should have been; this is what your teenage years should have sounded like; this is what you wish your girlfriend was. In Case We Die doesn't push boundaries, but, it pushes you to smile...

45 – We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank – Modest Mouse
Everyone will hate me for this. I know, I know; Good News For People Who Love Bad News is plenty more epic (hell, it went Platinum!). This, on the other hand, is a whole other kettle of fish. This is a side of Modest Mouse that wasn't seen before. This is jangly guitar, this is Johnny Marr, this is Moby Dick on E. In short – it's not their best album by copies sold, but, it's one giant leap in the right direction for them.

44 – The Back Room – Editors
Is it Interpol? Is it Joy Division? No. It's Tom Smith, the moany Mancunian with a voice like treacle. Simple enough to summarise – noughties post-punk = Editors. “You don't need this disease, no, not right now”, but you damned well need this album.

43 – What it is to Burn – Finch
I defy you to tell me that Finch should not feature in the list of the top albums of the decade. I defy you to tell me that Finch were not an integral part of your life if you were aged between 12 and 16 in the early part of the decade, and had succumed to the true side of 'emotional hardcore'. If QOTSA had 'Songs for the Deaf', this album is 'Songs for the Needy'. Get it done.

42 – The Decline of British Sea Power – British Sea Power
I have nothing to say on this album. It speaks for itself. All I will note is: “Where the hell did this come from? It's a diamond in the rough, polished even more by the turd that was British Sea Power's follow-up album”.

41 – Deadwing – Porcupine Tree
Who says Prog is dead? This isn't showy, Genesis-and-Rush-era Prog. This is beautiful, pop-rog. This is a CD you could buy your Genesis loving dad, and he wouldn't complain that it was crap, or the music of the youth. It's another gem of the decade that wasn't overrated, but, neither was it underrated either; it's just an album whose beauty speaks for itself.

40 – The Fall of Math – 65 Days of Static
Math rock is a confusing subject. Are 65DOS even Math Rock, I sometimes wonder. Meshuggah are often classified as Math Rock/Metal; so, I'll call these Post-Math. Simply put, this is the soundtrack to a movie that you wish you'd written; this is the soundtrack to a post-apocalyptic rave, starring Denzel Washington and Samuel L Jackson; this is Snakes on a Motherfucking Plane, on a Boat. Just when you think it's going to fade out, on Aren't We All Running, your speakers are flooded by the Gerard Butler-esque wails of a band that won't go out quietly. This isn't Sparta; this is Static.

39 – The Black Waltz – Kalmah
Screw Black Metal; screw Power Metal; Viking Metal was where it was at in the noughties. We had Turisas, we had Tyr, we had Manegarm, Ensiferum and Falchion; heck, we even had Korpiklaani. They all pale into insignificance when put head to head against this gutteral bit of troll metal. Simple equation for you: Viking + Troll = Epic Win. Not one for the faint of heart, but, good if you like your metal with a bit of meat on its bones. Om Nom Nom, snowman.

38 – London Zoo – The Bug
As Tippa Irie states on this album: “Remember there is only one rulin' selecta, and it's The Bug.” And, boy oh boy, was he right or what? This is a monstrously phat piece of Grime. I know, I just ironically used the word “phat” to praise a piece of underground music, but it's better than any of the words I know. If you're not into grime and dancehall when you start listening to this, you will be by the end. Seriously, best album of the underground.

37 – Cassadaga – Bright Eyes
Sure, Conor Oberst can sing, dance, and play the harmonica, but, this wasn't nearly as great as everyone make it out to be. It's just one of those things, I suppose. Still, it wasn't a bad album either. If you like your country done by a kid from Nebraska, it's your cup of tea; but, if you don't, steer clear. I suppose this was a hit or miss album, but, what it managed to do was create a scene for Conor to embrace, which in turn led to Monsters of Folk, the Mystic Valley Band, and brought him to British shores after a lifetime away from us.

36 – Those Who Tell the Truth Will Die; Those Who Tell The Truth Will Live Forever – Explosions in the Sky
Possibly the hardest choice in making this list was where to put this album. It had to feature, as it is the Mona Lisa of all post-rock albums, brought to shame only by their only other EITS album to feature on this list. It is a monster of its field, a giant amongst the other players; it is God, in CD form...maybe it's only Jesus, but, it's still one blasphemous comparison away from being great.

35 – Strange We Should Meet Here – Idiot Pilot
Electronica + Emo + Acoustics = Idiot Pilot. There isn't much more you need to know, other than when this album was released, this was considered by many a teenager to be quite a brilliant piece of ingenuity, never heard before by our virgin ears. What can I say – if you listen, you will be hooked.

34 – Greater Right of the Wrong – Skinny Puppy
This album could not go by without a mention. When I started the list, it was going to be around #50, and then I re-listened to it, and fell in love all over again. It's not for everyone, but, it's a key player in the electro-goth/Graver scene in this decade, and was what got me hooked on listening to a certain Tampa Bay-based radio station during my formative years.

33 – Iowa – Slipknot
This list would not be complete without this bunch of lunatics making at least one feature. This is their first entry on the list, and for me it's not quite their best, simply because it doesn't have that draw. It's like watching a fight; you cringe, but you don't want to look away. In this case, you think “This sounds like it's been raped,” but then you keep listening. If you want a similar experience without having to own the album, pull some razor-wire through your ear canal.

32 – Gulag Orkestar – Beirut
Gypsy Punk was brought to us by Gogol Bordello, and Beirut's Zach Condon brought us the Gypsy-Klezmer sound without us having to associate with ex-soviet runaways, or actual Klezmer groups. It gave us some brilliant tunes to hum, made us feel wordly, and features heavily in everyday Hipster conversation. Spiffing.

31 – Details – Frou Frou
We were told, as lovelorn teens, by Natalie Portman in Garden State that “This band will change your life” (regarding The Shins), but I feel the quote is more appropriate for Imogen Heap's Frou Frou side-project. Not only is it sweet and ethereal, it's a dead ringer for a life changing album. You can have all sorts of mood swings to it; and, what's best, it transcends any musical boundary I could ever think of.

30 – A Weekend in the City – Bloc Party
We were young, we were stupid, and we allowed Kele Okereke to put this album out. After the wonderful sugary chocolate that was Silent Alarm, this was a tepid cup of coffee, with sweeteners. It was bland, it was harmless, it was pop. In short, it was a good album, worth having in your collection and with a few belters on it, but, it never struck me as winning the race.

29 – Funeral – Arcade Fire
Another one of those “It's in every Hipster's collection.” This is the epitome of indie pop. If Architecture in Helsinki was the Happy Middle-Ground in the age of the group, and The Polyphonic Spree was the sugary sweet centre; then Arcade Fire took this album and made it the chocolate frosting on the cake. It's so good you keep picking at it. I just wish I could have placed it higher, but, with everything else ahead of it, this is as far as it could come, sadly.

28 – Ellipse – Imogen Heap
Only 3 places away from her Frou Frou album, Imogen Heap makes her second appearance on the chart with this year's awesome piece. Really, this woman should not be allowed to make music, because what she makes is so infectious it's worse than listening to Cheryl Crow, but, so much less of a guilty pleasure. She's the sugar in my tea, and the jam on my bread. Love doesn't sum it up enough.

27 – Soviet Kitsch – Regina Spektor
What can I say? She's a talented young woman. There is no more to it. Soviet Kitsch summed her up perfectly; there was and has been nothing better in her career than this album. It's saccharin sweet, while also dark. It's that coffee you drink to get over a bad night out. I know I've used too many food related metaphors lately, but, I think this is the end of the trail for that. She's just naively sweet, and yet also worldly beyond her years in this. Worth it? Yes.

26 – Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots – The Flaming Lips
Oh, Em, Gee. Oh Yoshimi, They won't believe me; but you won't let those robots defeat me. Oh yes indeed. The Flaming Lips. Those crazy crazy men, who knocked Mercury Rev and The Fiery Furnaces off the top-spot of my “bands I love” list back when I was 16. A simple conceptual album, all it needed was...well, actually, nothing. Sample at your own risk.

25 – Sigh No More – Mumford and Sons
This is just an orgasm in an album. There is nothing more to say about it. These boys came out of nowhere and hit me at the end of this year, and won me over in no time. I may have said I didn't exactly like it back when I wrote my review of it, but it grew on me; so much so I think I want to marry it.

24 – The Information – Beck
This is what I was waiting for with Beck. Guero and Odelay were brilliant, but The Information took what was brilliant about Beck and amplified it. It was just simple to get into, and easier to enjoy than any previous Beck album. In fact, I'd recommend you start here and work backwards.

23 – The Milk-Eyed Mender – Joanna Newsom
I couldn't go through a whole 50 albums without Ms Newsom popping up somewhere. She's just peachy. If someone ever could play Princess Peach from Mario perfectly, it'd be Joanna Newsom, and this album is way. I'd gladly sail away with her on a winter's day, even if ships are fallible (I say). We'd have a caravel made from a little wicker beetle-shell, with four fine masts and lateen sails. It'd be awesome, you guys!

22 – Picaresque – The Decemberists
Storytime with Mother couldn't compete with this one. If you can't enjoy it, you're an idiot. Simple as.

21 – Vol 3: The Subliminal Verses – Slipknot
This reminds me of being 14 again. It propelled Slipknot to pop status, and I know that's a bad thing to some of you, but I think it gives people access to a band who changed the face of metal by saying “Well, if Limp Bizkit and Korn are doing nu-metal that way, we'll crank it up a notch and do it our own way, and fuck what you think.” - And what they eventually made was this. And I love it.

20 – Electric Version – The New Pornographers
There are indie albums, and there are Indie albums. This one capitalises every letter, and really doesn't give much room for manouvering. Not only is it party music for the hipster crowd, it also features the lovely Neko Case, which, superficially, is a plus point for any album in the world ever.

19 – Infinity Land – Biffy Clyro
Possibly the best Biffy Clyro album ever, this opened up the floor for them to leave Beggar's Banquet on a high note. It was perhaps the best album of that year but I'm biased. Still, everyone should own a copy.

18 – Songs for the Deaf – Queens of the Stone Age
Oh, Kyuss, was a good band. QOTSA was a good band. And then this came along, and it is the pinnacle of their existence and probably the pinnacle of popular stoner rock in the noughties. All I can say is “This is an album which any rock fan should own.”

17 – Her Majesty – The Decemberists
Folk folk folk folk. There is nothing more in this album than good old fashioned folk. It's also an album that can make people feel happy. I really like it, but that's just me. It's better than The Crane Wife; it's better than Picaresque, and it's better than anything The Decemberists have put out ever. It is simply the best thing they've done.

16 – Humbug – The Arctic Monkeys
Everyone will wonder why this is the only Arctics album on here; well, it's because it is by far, their best; it's mature, it's gritty, and it sums up what I feel should be the progression of Indie. It should be a progression that follows the mood of the time; not always twee and proper, but also a bit of angstyness during those angst-filled years.

15 – The Earth is Not A Cold Dead Place – Explosions in the Sky
Explosions in the Sky are able to make music that requires no lyrics because its so grandiose in scale. This album epitomises their sound perfectly, and was mostly featured on the brilliant film 'Friday Night Lights', which should really feature on a list of “Films of the Decade” to be honest. Get it. Introduce yourself to Post-Rock in style.

14 – Frances the Mute – The Mars Volta
There's experimentalism and conceptual albums, and then there's this. This is Prog on a whole new level. Why does this need featuring? Because, if you've not heard this album, then you need to, because it is a whole other style of awesome; it's just amazing on another level. It takes some getting into, but, sit down, and go for it. It's the Harry Potter of all albums.

13 – I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning – Bright Eyes
The world of folk has been rocked by Conor Oberst for many a year, but, when he released I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning in the same year as he released Digital Ash, it was more of a shock than normal because both albums are bloody awesome; this one though, this one was the soundtrack of the decade for many a lovelorn teen.

12 – Relationship of Command – At the Drive-In
Gah. What is it with this album? It's better than Frances the Mute; but, it's also on a different scale for comparison. It's just the forefather of any Post-Hardcore which exists nowadays; if it was not for At The Drive-In, a lot of you emokids wouldn't even have your music. So respect, yo!

11 – Silent Alarm – Bloc Party
Yes. Yes. Yes! This ticks all the boxes; hits all the buttons; hell it ticks the buttons and punches the boxes. It's a bloody good album, and deservedly won them a Mercury Prize nomination. Shame it didn't win, because it's bloody good; it's amazing!

10 – Parachutes – Coldplay
Yes. It's the top 10! It is the final 10! Parachutes was the reason Coldplay hit a chord with all the kids. I mean, if you lived in the noughties, and weren't a child, you'd know all the words to Yellow; how to hum to Trouble. This is where the real music begins.

9 – Deja Entendu – Brand New
Another album that anyone worth their salt who spent some time in the noughties, at least if they spent time listening to rock, would know all the words to. This is not only their best album, but a brilliant piece of 'emo'/'punk'... Everyone should own this, just for the singalong moments.

8 – Youth – Matisyahu
What happens when you take a Hasidic Jew and introduce him to reggae? You get Matisyahu, a New Yorker with mad skillz who can rap over reggae beats, and show the passion he has for Yahweh in a sincere manner. The man is a genius, lyrically; a showman; and worthy of being in any Top 10 of this decade!

7 – Hold Your Colour – Pendulum
Drum and Bass hasn't exactly been something huge on this list. Obviously, we haven't had a decade of brilliant DnB; in the 90s, it would have been something different. Still, Hold Your Colour introduced a new generation of kids and kidettes to the world of Drum n Bass, and it was actually decent, rather than half-assed and not thought through. Nowhere near as lame-pop as In Silico, so it deserves to be mentioned, no?

6 – Come On And Feel The Illinoise – Sufjan Stevens
In the age of Twitter, we all tweet; and this is like birdsong to my ears. Sufjan Stevens's voice is so melodic; his songs are so beautiful; and yet, there's always an undercurrent to all of them. Illinoise is the album that everyone should have in their collection; and I've said that a lot in this, but, if you don't own this...I don't want to know you.

5 – Origin of Symmetry – Muse
Who knew that Muse would feature here? Obviously, it had to be done. They've not only changed the face of popular music, but they've also brought out one amazing album after another. Origin of Symmetry started that off, where they left behind the harder sound shown in some of the songs in Showbiz in favour of more melodic, operatic, and generally “prog rock”-ish songs. That move would be the best thing they ever did.

4 – The Flying Club Cup – Beirut
What strikes me as worthy of being in the top five in this album is just the sheer depth of storytelling. Sure, the Decemberists tell stories, but Zach Condon tells stories that mean something; he tells the tale from the point of view of the widow; and much of it is set around France, rather than Eastern Europe, a set of songs from his own experience and knowledge. Brilliant for humming and singing to, and worthy of hipster notoriety.

3 – A Rush of Blood to the Head – Coldplay
Do you remember that song which propelled Coldplay to international success? Clocks? Well, that was this album, and this was a strike of brilliance. It was pop, it was catchy, it was timeless; and Chris Martin didn't sound like the pretentious arse he sounds like now. This is Good Coldplay; this is pre-Sellout Coldplay. This is music.

2 – Absolution – Muse
Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. One word: YES! In short, this album is an opera; it is not a rock opera, but a true opera of apocalyptic proportions. If, when the day comes, the world ends and it needs a soundtrack, I urge everyone to play Absolution as loudly as possible, with the hope that if we go out, we go out with a bang.

1 – Discovery – Daft Punk
For the world's most awesomest brilliantest album in the world in the last ten years...there are few words which can describe it. It's far too amazing to be brought down by the words I can't even come up with without the use of a dictionary. I recommend, however, not buying this album. I reckon, you should go out and buy Interstella 5555, which is the anime version of the album and settle in for the full audiovisual experience.
Without Daft Punk, this decade would not have seen the number of French electronica bands that crawled out of the woodwork in the last few years; we wouldn't have those songs which sample Daft Punk and sell more copies than the original; we wouldn't even have music. It's brilliance astounds me, and should astound you too. Love it; love it; love it!

Dashboard Confessional - Alter the Ending

2009-12-09T15:17:00.000+00:00

I'll be the first to admit I haven't picked up on anything that Chris Carrabba has done in the last four years. Apparently there have been three Dashboard Confessional albums since I last tuned in and paid attention to the epic whining bitch that is Dashboard, back in the day of black hair, black nails, and generally monochrome clothing. So, I decided to look into the latest album, when I was informed that there was one ironically floating around.

Alter the Ending is the 6th album that whiny bitches Dashboard Confessional have released in the last decade. Six in nine is a good number, especially when all the songs still sound exactly the same as the last time I listened to them. It's always that "Could be on a movie soundtrack where the whiny bitch gets dumped by his far-too-good-for-him girlfriend" kind of track, one after the other. I think Chris Carrabba sums it up, ironically, in his opening track: "I struggle so hard to believe"...and I do, I struggle to believe that someone can have this much angst bottled up inside them, when they're 34 and should be out working, or with their wife.

So, what can I say about this?

Is it a masterpiece? No. Not really. It's another slice of the same pie we've been force-fed by Carrabba since 2002.
What about the title track? Well, that's pretty lame; the opener is a stronger tune than the overly pretentious "post-hardcore" "Green Day wannabe" balls that's been thrown out with the name of Alter the Ending.
So, it's bad? No. I wouldn't say it's bad. I'd just say that it's been done to death. Carrabba is flogging a dead horse, with all the dead horses in the world. Sure, if you can stick 45 minutes of his bitching and moaning; or you're a 15 year old girl going through a tough break-up, it's alright. Passable, I believe is the word the Four Yorkshiremen would use - "Aye, passable that..."
Why are you skirting the issue? Isn't it obvious? I don't like this album, but I think it has its merits; in that, it poses a very good question - Do people still give a shit about Dashboard anymore? Oh, that, and the fact that I admittedly couldn't listen to it to the end. I'd actually prefer to have the Jo'Bros latest trash pumped directly into my brain while strapped to a chair a la Alex DeLarge.

And that's my five cents. Sure, it's not the best review ever, but, neither is it the best album ever. Sheesh.

5/10

Top Track: Until Morning

Che: Part One and Part Two

2009-11-20T18:02:00.000+00:00

It takes some balls to go from being a doctor to a revolutionary, but in the 50s and 60s one man took it upon himself to be the liberator of the Latin American world. At first it was all fun and games, and he was the self-styled hero of the Latino world, and then, the tables turned and his life was cut short, propelling him to a stardom rarely seen in revolutionary figures. That man was Ernesto 'Che' Guevara, and recently Steven Soderbergh took it upon himself to adapt Che's life into a feature-length film.

We've already seen The Motorcycle Diaries where Mexican heartthrob Gael Garcia Bernal took on the role of 'Che' during his travels across Latin America taking in the poor conditions in which the people lived and still live. That film opened my mind up to the Latin American identity, and, as a student of Spanish, it's something I should really have looked into sooner. Without going on too much of a tangent, one can say that this is perhaps the best place to start with 'Che'-related materials (whether it's reading the actual Motorcycle Diaries, or watching this adaptation).

Only four years passed between the release of that film, and this new Biopic which takes on the heavy task of portraying a part of the life of 'El Che' in which he became the 'romanticised' hero of the Latin American people and a cult figure amongst the rebellious youth. In a way, this is a hard task, because people already have their preconceived ideas of him, as the man who freed Cuba from oppression; as the person who was unjustly martyred for his cause.

What Soderbergh manages to cram into the space of these two films really sums up the life of Ernesto Guevara in a way which doesn't add to the myth of 'El Che'. It takes away the myth, and creates the man. Benicio del Toro's performance as the asthmatic, cautious Che who suddenly becomes embroiled in more than he probably should be, taking on too much of a Communist bent, and ultimately dying for his cause, is stellar. I actually felt as though I could have been watching the man himself.

What I don't marvel at however is the fact that in the first instalment, El Che is passionate about his cause but not to the point of insanity, whilst in the second one, he is almost on the verge of having a screw loose in the way he handles himself. I haven't really looked into his life, so I can't say whether this is artistic licensing on the part of the American Soderbergh, or whether Che genuinely took his cause far too seriously.

In all, it's worth watching. However, the film is, of course, in Spanish so there are a lot of subtitles to read. If you're into the whole Cult of El Che, then get watching it to fill out the gaps in your knowledge. If you're just after a film to sit down for the night to watch, skip it - while the first instalment is entertainment, the second one is far too deep and political for my liking.

Overall: 7/10 - It's no Motorcycle Diaries, but, I suppose you can't say "His life should have been less political and more entertaining for the big screen". A worthy contribution to the demystification of El Che.

Biffy Clyro - Only Revolutions

2009-11-18T17:42:00.000+00:00

As a long time Biffy Clyro fan, I've recently lost faith in the ability of the trio to create music that is true 'Biffy'. I fell in love with Blackened Sky, enjoyed Vertigo of Bliss, and spent many many weeks with Infinity Land on repeat. It was only after the release of Puzzle that I began to feel that they had lost their pizzazz. I'm ashamed to say that it hasn't returned in Only Revolutions.

After leaving Beggar's Banquet, and joining Warner Bros. it seems as though 'the Biffy' have lost it. Gone are the days of spit-and-sawdust; gone are the days of chugging riffs and walls of sound. Only pop-rock remains, in such a way that people are able to listen to 'the Biffy' from all walks of life - it's not something I disdain, I just feel like they've done the whole 'maturing' thing when they really didn't need to.

Anyway, enough of my personal opinions. On a more objective level, Only Revolutions provides something of a buffer from the old Biffy and provides people with an album that they can listen to without having to think that they're going to offend anyone in the room - there are no moments where I thought "I have to turn this down/off", there are just moments where it was good-natured, radio-friendly pop-rock...it's an album of hyphens, to be quite honest.

It's a far cry from the days of Jaggy Snake and I suppose, if it had to hark back to something, it's almost an album of Justboy-esque serenity. It's on a level where parents and children alike can feel like they're listening to music, and not listening to Simon Neil bashing out chords and tearing his voicebox apart.

However, it's not what I'd call a good album by previous Biffy standards. It's on a whole different plane, so it's unfair to say that it's not good; but, it's also unfair to say that it is good because it just slots into mediocrity. Personally, I'd tell you all that if you wanted to listen to Biffy Clyro to give this album a miss and go out and buy Infinity Land - turn it up, and enjoy the 'real' Biffy from a time when they didn't seem to care what people thought, and managed to produce music of a certain calibre that is actually hard to find today*.

Overall: 6/10 - It's pop. It's alright. It's nothing major. It just slots into that "rock" category that you find on the radio - Still, if you're not into all that thrashing about and being a tit, give this a go and you might at least pass yourself off as 'rock n roll'.

Top Track: That Golden Rule

*On a semi-related note, it seems the blame rests with Simon Neil, who, as a member of Marmaduke Duke, has also toned that band down immensely from their debut (and so far best) album. Shame.