The BBC Music Video Festival is back for another brilliant year and whilst we love our home in sleepy Norwich, we’ve decided that we’d like to make it easier for everyone to see some of the sound and vision magic that we’ve had from the last year…

That’s why the BBC Music Video Festival now happens all over the country on the network of BBC Big Screens in 20 major towns and cities between 19th September and the 1st October.

Sure, we began collecting the great and the mad from the realms of the Norfolk countryside, but three years on, it has spiralled out of all control, covering the UK in a wave of multi-coloured, multi-genred, magnificent and momentous music video from Britain, Europe and beyond.

On every screen, you can not only catch some of the best videos from the year from artists including King Creosote and Jon Hopkins, Wiley, Slow Club and loads more, but also see some some incredible and unique content from your area.

Focusing on the new and the great from both film and music, we’re taking the year’s best promos and giving them a shove into the limelight by screening them to the public over two weeks.

Also, in Norwich you can watch the definitive three and a half hour rolling showcase on Europe’s largest fixed digital gallery – Fusion at The Forum. Featuring Plan B, Metronomy, Elbow, Dels, Eskmo, Manchester Orchestra and so many more you’ve heard and never heard of – all hosted by Huw Stephens in digi-Huw form.

Check out some of our submissions here: www.vimeo.com/bbcmusicvideofestival

We’ve also got some great events lined up including talks from the director of this:

And the creator of this: www.sbtv.co.uk

And there’s loads and loads more listed here: http://bbcmusicvideofestival.tumblr.com – most of which are free!

Submissions for this year are closed, but we love people to let us know about their favourite videos, show us their own videos and generally banter with us about music video at:
www.twitter.com/bbcmusicvidfest
www.facebook.com/bbcmusicvideofestival
or email us at bbcmusicvideofestival@bbc.co.uk

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The BBC Music Video Festival is a post from: wewillrockyouqueen.com

Artist: Kasabian
Album: Velociraptor
Recommended by: BBC Radio 1 Review Show, Zane Lowe

With the release of their fourth album, Velociraptor!, just around the corner, Kasabian are preparing themselves for another assault on the British charts. The Leicestershire-formed band’s previous two LPs, Empire (2006) and West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum (2009), both debuted at number one in the UK, and their eponymous debut of 2004 continues to rack up the sales. Will Velociraptor! prove just as successful? The single Days Are Forgotten, out now, is sure to serve as a barometer of sorts; look out for where it charts on Sunday. Guitarist, producer and primary songwriter Sergio Pizzorno answers our questions about what is, even on one listen, clearly Kasabian’s boldest album yet…

How are you feeling, now the album’s release is imminent?
I’m impatient for it to come out now, because it’s been finished for ages really, since April. And the fear of it being leaked… it’s a nightmare. It happened to the last one – that leaked about a month before it was due to come out. I think we’ve survived it this time, but now I just want it out there. I’ve spoken about it a lot, and now I want it on the shelves so people can buy it.

That must be a strange feeling, dreading a leak. On one hand you want people to hear your new music, but on the other you have to keep it under wraps…
It’s just a shame, because there’s something so amazing about getting new music on the day it’s released. The way the curiosity builds… I suppose it’s natural to want to have a listen, but in this day and age nobody seems able to wait for the finished record. They want to hear the whole thing, now. It’s nice, I think, and really exciting, when you wait for a release date.

I can certainly remember waiting for Our Price to open, so I could buy new CDs before going into college…
I can too, I used to do that. It’s a real shame about piracy these days, but what can you do? I suppose you’ve just got to get on with it. I mean, with artwork and the music together, you get something that’s worth buying. That’s how we’ve thought about our albums – we want people to want to buy this, not steal it. That’s the way around it – rather than give in, be more creative, have more ideas so that people will want to own what you’ve made.

Let’s talk first impressions of Velociraptor!… I listened to it a few weeks ago, and what struck me was how confident it sounds, and how big it all sounds. It’s full of this feeling that Kasabian are now a band that could try anything, all stylistic bets were off in the writing process…
That’s the way it was, definitely. It was strange to become as big as we did off the back of West Ryder…, because that was meant as our experimental album, our psychedelic journey into madness. We’ve sort of done things the wrong way around – perhaps we should have had this album out before that one, and that’d have made more sense. But that experience made us realise that people do want to be blown away, they do want to be taken to different places, and the way to become as big as we have might well be down to never giving in, and to try new things all the time. But we definitely didn’t want to repeat the West Ryder… formula; we didn’t want another psychedelic record. We wanted to make what was a pop record to us, a record full of melodies and pop structures. But we still wanted it to be ‘out there’…

I’d say, certainly, the variety across the new album is quite striking. Was there no fear that the myriad sounds, from mariachi flourishes to Led Zep-style bombast, would lead to a rather disharmonious album experience, that it’d just be a selection of tracks rather than a coherent whole?
(Laughs) Yeah, that was a thing, as there were moments where we wondered if it’d all fit together. But then we thought back to West Ryder…, and realised that we could f*** the rules. I mean, to have Goodbye Kiss on the same album as Switchblade Smiles is insane, but you just have to think of something like The White Album to realise that mixing things up like that is fine, actually. That’s got Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da on the same record as Sexy Sadie – it shouldn’t work, but it does. If it’s good, I think people will go with you. And right now, people have had 40 or 50 years of great music, so tastes have become accustomed to so much different stuff. So as long as something’s good, I think it’ll always work.

And hopefully, given the fanbase you’ve attracted over your past three albums, there will be plenty of faithful followers willing to go along with your new sounds on this album…
Hopefully, yes. But what’s brilliant is that you just never know. That’s really exciting to me, that unknown – it’s a great feeling, not knowing what people are going to make of it.

Given the huge success of West Ryder… – it went to number one, and was nominated for the Mercury – are you worried at all about this album not performing quite as well, critically or commercially?
Well, it depends… If we weren’t so proud of the record we’ve made here, and we were doing it for the wrong reasons – i.e. we were in this for the money – then I think we’d be worried. Also, if we were just doing this for the money, then we’d have released an album a lot sooner after West Ryder…, to capitalise on that album’s success. You know, we’d be keener to stay in people’s minds, so we’d be churning something out just for the sake of doing so, really. If that was the case: yes, we’d be bothered if this album didn’t go to number one. But honestly, I know that I can sleep easily at night knowing that we’ve made a great record here. We’ve never really needed anyone else’s acceptance for us to feel satisfied – I think it’s a waste of energy if you’re doing this sort of thing exclusively for other people, rather than to satisfy your own needs. Once you reach that stage the music is bound to become stale. I hope that we’ve always strived to mess things up a little.

Well I’d say, certainly commercially, Kasabian have nothing left to prove, which opens up the possibility of your albums being more and more adventurous…
Definitely. It’s amazing that all of our previous albums have done over a million copies in the UK. In this day and age, that’s incredible. I mean, it’s a b****** to sell any kind of record, so that’s really been something for us. But our success, like I said, has come because we’ve never given in. We’ve really worked for this.

I get the impression from the variety of sounds on the album that perhaps Tom (Meighan, vocals) and you don’t share quite the same taste in music. I’m wondering who is the hip hop head, and who’s digging their classic rock vibes…
Well, it’s fair to say that we do listen to a wide variety of stuff. On the tour bus, we’ll go from Faust to Boards of Canada to Roy Orbison to the Stones, so there’s an eclectic mix going on there. I don’t think we can lie about stuff like this, so we’ll admit to liking something regardless of whether it’s seen as cool or not. Because great music produces a physical reaction – you’ll start moving, or your hair will stand on end – and you can get that from a track that some people might think is crap. But as long as it triggers that reaction, I think, that’s all that matters, which is why what we’re into has always been so varied.

And Dan the Automator’s involved again, after he produced West Ryder…; what brought you back to him for a second time?
I don’t think there was anyone else for this record. It took nigh on six months to write and record this record, and I worked so well with Dan last time that it was just the thing to do.

Because you do some of the production yourself, how do you separate the musician side of you from the producer side of you, when it’s your own material you’re working with?
The thing is, the way I write, I never end up at the studio with an acoustic song. I’ve always arrived with the finished track in mind, so stylistically it’ll already be in its right place. I don’t even call what I do at home demos anymore, but what I record by myself tends to go onto the album as it is, stylistically anyway. The best way to describe it, really, is like you’re working on a canvas: it might take four months to finish, as you’re adding and taking away layers. Sometimes in songs there are three or four ideas going on at once, building those same layers… You can never get bored of it.

But if you were to do all the production yourself, without the sounding board of Dan – who, of course, is a pair of ears detached from the band itself – it could go on forever, couldn’t it? It’d drive a man mad, picking tiny parts of a song away, and building them back up…
Yeah, that is true. But it’s also… I dunno, it amazes me, and I like that control over everything. If something’s not quite right, I like to know that I can change it. I want to make everything perfect.

I felt, from the one playback I’ve had, that Velociraptor! sounded fairly ’studio’ heavy, what with the strings and various effects. Are you going to be able to play all of it live?
We’re about a month away from rehearsing for the arena tour, but the early signs are good, and the tunes we’ve mastered are sounding incredible. The only thing is the strings, as there are a few tracks with really epic arrangements on them. Now, I’d absolutely love to take a string section with us on tour, but it’s rather expensive carting around a 50-piece orchestra. So we’ll record the strings onto a tape and play along with that. It’s such a beautiful thing to have. But other than that, it’s mainly ‘rock band’ elements at play, so it’s really easy.

Perhaps there’s scope for a one-off show with an orchestra? Perhaps at a festival next summer?
I’d love that. I’d absolutely love to do that. I’d also love to play this album from start to finish at a show, that’d be beautiful. But yeah, at some point it’d be incredible to get a string section in to play with us. If we’re headlining a festival, that’d be amazing.

Finally, what have been your favourite albums of this year, so far?
Well, I really like the Sleigh Bells album, but that came out last year didn’t it? It’s 2011 now, isn’t it? S***, I can’t choose that then! I like the Miles Kane album, that’s done well; and the new Black Lips album is incredible too. It’s fantastic, the job Mark Ronson’s done on that album. I know their work from previous albums, so I was a bit worried Ronson would clean them up too much. But he hasn’t – he’s kept them true to what they were, and even refined them a little. It’s a great record, that.

Read the BBC Music review of Velociraptor!
Kasabian – Official Site (external link)
Read more Album Reviews Q&A articles on the BBC Music Blog

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BBC Album Reviews editor Mike Diver on why the Mercury Prize is a vital promotional event in the UK music industry.

Last night, PJ Harvey became the first artist in the 19-year history of the Mercury Prize to take home the award for a second time. Her eighth studio LP, Let England Shake, was the pick of the shortlisted 12, triumphing over collections from the likes of Adele, Tinie Tempah, Elbow, Metronomy, Ghostpoet and Anna Calvi – read reviews of all of the nominated albums here. She is a deserved winner, an artist who has only ever followed a path of her own design, never compromising for the sake of commercial success – though, through maintaining such integrity at every turn, she has attracted an audience large enough to send her victorious album into the UK top 10 when it was released in February 2011. She’s a one-off, and artists of her ilk should be celebrated whenever an opportunity presents itself.

But, inevitably, the Mercury has again come under attack from certain corners of the music industry. Every year, there is criticism – disgruntled commentators bemoaning the high regard held for this popularity contest over any other (the BRITs aside, maybe); the fact that every album considered for the Mercury must pay an entrance fee (around £200 this year, plus a number of CDs for the judges); that the Mercury doesn’t cast its net wide enough to recognise music from the heavier end of the spectrum, and that its picks from the jazz, folk and (previously) classical worlds are ‘token’ at best. It’s natural, of course, to want to find fault with a process that one’s own interests aren’t involved with, so I can sympathise with label bosses, artists and associated individuals representing music that, to date, hasn’t had a Mercury spotlight pointed its way.

The most notable genre yet to be shortlisted (if you discount Biffy Clyro, Muse and Therapy?) is metal – this year’s Mercury shortlist announcement saw a small crowd of protestors assemble outside, noses out of joint because Bring Me the Horizon’s (admittedly very good, and very worthy of a final 12 spot) latest album, There is a Hell…, was not in the running. Those noses straightened, rather, when it was later revealed that BMTH’s record wasn’t submitted for consideration. The band’s label hadn’t bought into the Mercury system, and there are smaller stables out there which will flatly refuse to pay to have their product included in the judging process. But from where I’m sat, the massive exposure the Mercury provides is well worth risking a (grand scheme of things) £200 or so – and, face it, if you truly believe in an album, you’re going to want the best for it, aren’t you? And that expenditure could produce better coverage than the same spend on a standard PR campaign ever could. Claims that the pay-to-be-played entry process is exclusive are nonsense, of course – by charging every entrant the same fee, the Mercury ensures this is an entirely inclusive set-up. Any album through any label of any size can be in the running – just look at how recent years have seen records by the likes of The Invisible, Sweet Billy Pilgrim, Burial and (this year) Ghostpoet feature amongst the shortlisted LPs. The labels in question don’t have sacks of cash lying around. The albums weren’t worked out of ivory towers. These are relatively low-level operations, comparable with those who have so far refused to put money where their hearts are.

Of course, there are those who genuinely cannot afford to enter their albums. Which is a shame. But suggesting that the award’s entry system is in any way discriminating is an argument that holds water like a sieve. As for the award’s bias towards mainstream sounds over those from the margins: bear in mind that the shortlist, and winner, is decided by a panel of judges; a consensus must be reached. The wilder the record, the less likely that many a listener will click with it. It’s a fact of the matter borne out by record sales, by airplay, by festival slots, by almost every aspect of the public-facing side of the music business. Experimentation is encouraged – PJ Harvey is an artist who’s always played with how her public perceives her, shifting styles from album to album like a chameleon alters its appearance from branch to branch – but fringe-level material is, unfortunately, sure to be the choice of a single soul rather than embraced by the majority of the Mercury panel.

Which might lead you to conclude that the Mercury isn’t perfect. I’d agree. But it’s a special event, the only awards ceremony in the UK that truly celebrates the art that goes into creating an album, a piece of work that – in today’s commercial climate of digital sales and pick-your-own tracklistings – has perhaps lost some of the value it had before the rise of iTunes et al. The arguments that spin off from the shortlist, online and on air, are brilliant – every blog, every magazine, will have their own picks for who should or shouldn’t be nominated; and, subsequently, the reader/listener discovers a load of new music. So it’s actually the Mercury’s ‘failings’ in the eyes of its critics that comprise the reason why it matters so much. If we all agreed, all of the time, on the records that make the final cut, how boring would that be? Personally, I’d stump the £200 or so just to have a faceless blogger on a website I’d never previously heard of write that the album in question was, or absolutely wasn’t, a worthy contender. Because through this exposure, far beyond the ultimate list of 12, we can all discover the very best music that Britain and Ireland has to offer. We find ourselves drawn to the outsiders courtesy of alternative prizes (of which several now run every year), drifting from daytime playlists to after-dark noises, exploring new worlds that we’d never experienced before, all as a direct result of the Mercury selection.

But this is just my opinion. Feel free to disagree – it’s the nature of the Mercury Prize, after all.

Find more Mercury Prize coverage on the BBC Music Showcase pages

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Why the Mercury Prize matters. is a post from: wewillrockyouqueen.com

These days, there are so many places you can find music online, which makes it all the more exciting when someone recognises you’re doing a good job and cutting through in such a crowded market place.

So, I’m thrilled that BBC Radio 1’s website has been recognised this week with a nomination in the BT Digital Music Awards category for Best Place to Discover Music. The award ceremony takes place at the end of September, but before that can happen, the award needs to be voted for.

Our fellow nominees in this category are Last.FM, Mixcloud, Resident Advisor, SB TV, and Shazam, and the winner will be chosen via a public vote. If you’d like to vote, you need to register on the awards website.

Radio 1 is also being recognised in the judged category of Best App for its mobile website, and the BBC iPlayer has been nominated in the Best Place to Hear Music category.

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Award nomination for Radio 1 is a post from: wewillrockyouqueen.com

BBC Album Reviews editor Mike Diver selects his favourites of August 2011.

After a slow start, August picked up to deliver some truly excellent albums in its second half. Here are 10 worthy highlights from the month that was.

My album of the month

Hudson Mohawke – Satin Panthers
(Warp, released 1 August)
Recommended by: Benji B, Zane Lowe, MistaJam

(I’m cheating slightly, as this is an EP, but I’ve played it more than any other release of August, so here it is, at its rightful place atop the pile – MD)

“Hudson Mohawke’s second EP for Warp, and his first new material for the esteemed electro label following 2009’s debut LP Butter, is a five-tracker that leaves the listener immediately keen for more. In the slick synths and crystal keys of All Your Love and the hypnotic sparkle of opener Octan there’s the suggestion that this man’s second LP will be some progression from said debut album. This is the sound of pigeonhole-free ambition slowly being realised, and it’s sounding great.”

Read the full review
Stream the EP in full on Hudson Mohawke’s official YouTube channel (external link)

The best of the rest

Azari & III – Azari & III
(Loose Lips, released 1 August)
Recommended by: Annie Mac, Rob da Bank

“This album is louche and intoxicating. The sweet and honeyed tones of the vocalists belie their gender, though anyone who’s caught the quartet live, when the singers can be seen in heels and wigs, know their aesthetic is not dictated by chromosomes… Matching sweat-glistening action with a dark, fruity class, Azari & III is one of the finest electronic pop records you’re likely to hear in 2011.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video to Hungry for the Power (external YouTube link – contains violent and sexual scenes, and language, which may offend)

Jay-Z and Kanye West – Watch the Throne
(Mercury, released 12 August)
Recommended by: Radio 1 Review Show, MistaJam, Zane Lowe

“There’s an obvious brotherly connection, and Kanye rhymes with the zeal of a younger sibling looking to topple his older relative once and for all. At times, Watch the Throne is triumphant and celebratory: No Church in the Wild is a moody gospel stomp with primal screams and an insistent guitar riff, while Lift Off finds Kanye trying to match Beyoncé’s soulful moans with Auto-Tuned verses of prosperity.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video to Otis (external YouTube link – contains language which may offend)

Blood Orange – Coastal Grooves
(Domino, released 8 August)
Recommended by: Nick Grimshaw

“Scenester, shape-shifter: is Dev Hynes – now appearing as Blood Orange – a Zelig-like chancer or a gifted chameleon? If the jury remained divided over his output with art-noisers Test Icicles, it should leap up and whoop now. Coastal Grooves is fabulous. Slinky, noir, 80s-influenced dance-pop, it makes all the right decisions, by accident or design. It’s better at being Metronomy than Metronomy are.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video to Sutphin Boulevard (external YouTube link)

The Weeknd – Thursday
(Self-released, 18 August)
Recommended by: Trevor Nelson, MistaJam

“Thursday is a great mood piece, and Tesfay’s frail vocals are oddly affecting when compared to the usual hip hop approach of uncompromising braggadocio. Some may find his effects-laden style grating, but the same could be said of anyone from Kanye West to Madonna. And, on the evidence presented so far, few would say with certainty that Tesfay couldn’t one day attain a comparable level of commercial success. File him beside Frank Ocean as an RnB star set to climb to new heights in 2012.”

Read the full review
Watch the semi-official video to The Birds (Part 1) (external YouTube link – contains language which may offend)

The War on Drugs – Slave Ambient
(Secretly Canadian, released 22 August)
Recommended by: Lauren Laverne, 6 Music Album of the Day, Marc Riley

“In a bold and brave move, this album begins with a bang, Best Night immediately satisfying. No pre-amble, no fade in; just high-tempo krautrock. As a whole this album may be more confused than your average reality show star at a Mensa meeting, but it’s full of decent songs with a lot of heart. Give it a listen before the global economy truly collapses and you have to sell your stereo.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video to Baby Missile (external YouTube link)

Toddla T – Watch Me Dance
(Ninja Tune, released 22 August)
Recommended by: DJ Target, MistaJam, Zane Lowe

“An update of Soul II Soul’s Club Classics Vol. One, Watch Me Dance is an unfashionable record. It won’t fit snugly into either pop or urban radio schedules. It refuses to play the niche game. And Club Classics Vol. One defined its times because people got to hear it. It would be a crying shame if a record so accomplished, relevant and unifying never gets to be heard. Because, right now, this album is necessary.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video to Watch Me Dance (feat. Roots Manuva) (external YouTube link)

Will Young – Echoes
(RCA, released 22 August)
Recommended by: Dermot O’Leary, radio 2 Album of the Week

“For his fifth album, representing something of a new chapter for Young following his best-of set, he has teamed up with super-producer Richard X. And it works: Echoes is a fantastic, perfectly crafted adult pop album for people who’ve long wondered if such a thing existed anymore. It deserves to be reasonably enormous. Bravo, Will.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video to Jealousy (external YouTube link)

Lil Wayne – Tha Carter IV
(Island, released 29 August)
Recommended by: DJ Target, Westwood, Semtex

“Even an average Lil Wayne album still outshines the efforts of many a contemporary, and at its best this set is a riveting listen. If you thought him too weird for your tastes previously, Tha Carter IV is the album to introduce you to the never boring world of an artist whose importance remains so significant that, should he finally collapse like the star he is, he’s likely to take half the rap game with him.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video to Six Foot Seven Foot (external YouTube link – contains scenes and language which may offend)

Other Lives – Tamer Animals
(PIAS, released 29 August)
Recommended by: Dermot O’Leary, Tom Ravenscroft, Lauren Laverne

“Tamer Animals is the Oklahoma quintet’s second album, following 2009’s eponymous album and, back in 2006, the debut under former alias Kunek. Neither matches this watermark of quiet grandeur or strikes the same balance between lavishness and restraint. If band lynchpin Jesse Tabish’s choruses don’t instantly lasso like, say, Adele or a Simon Cowell prodigy, his tunes appear to swoon through the air and might haunt your deep sleep. This is the most uniquely sublime, meticulous and heroic 40 minutes of 2011.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video to For 12 (external YouTube link)

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BBC Album Reviews editor Mike Diver selects his favourites of July 2011.

I know what you’re thinking: July hasn’t been particularly amazing for new album releases. And you’re right. It’s been a barren month. So I’ve chosen only six picks this time, instead of the usual 10. Some good news for albums-buying types, though – the schedule for August is fairly incredible (not to mention wallet-breaking).

My album of the month

The Horrors – Skying
(XL, released 11 July)
Recommended by: Zane Lowe, 6 Music Album of the Day

“There’s no fault to be found with Skying – truly, every song here hits its mark, and while The Horrors are evidently a band happy to change its spots from record to record (and steal a few licks, too), only the most ungracious of observers could deny that they’ve now crafted two of the finest British albums of recent years. Their New Gold Dreams have become brilliantly real.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video to Still Life (external YouTube link)

The best of the rest

North Sea Radio Orchestra – I a Moon
(The Household Mark, released 4 July)
Recommended by: Freak Zone, Jarvis Cocker

“The third NSRO album sees Craig and Sharron Fortnam changing tack in subtle but significant ways. The old poets have been sidelined in favour of self-penned lyrics that neatly reflect their very English sense of melody and the female Fortnam’s light, sad, pretty, folkie-meets-chorister voice. It is genuinely very beautiful.”

Read the full review
Watch a performance/recording of Berliner Luft (external YouTube link)

Zomby – Dedication
(4AD, released 11 July)
Recommended by: Gilles Peterson

“The beauty of Dedication is the way it takes a sound palette familiar to the dancefloor, but uses it to paint an unfamiliar picture. When gunshots ring out on Witch Hunt, a wisp of choral synth and flickering snare, it feels less like a gangsta move and more like a metaphor only its maker understands. He probably won’t elaborate. Credit to this fine record that, when you actually listen to it, the need for explanation feels like the last thing on your mind.”

Read the full review
Listen to Things Fall Apart on 4AD’s official YouTube channel (external link)

Dave I.D. – Response
(!K7, released 18 July)
Recommended by: Nick Grimshaw

“For all the darkness that reaches around these pieces, like a tide washing in around one’s feet, leaving them buried in the silt, there’s an accessibility that suggests that Dave I.D., should he want to, could follow the path of The xx and create sparsely beautiful works that cross demographics. Look long enough and, you never know, he might just crack a smile at his great achievements here.”

Read the full review
Listen to an official stream of SumR on YouTube (external link)

Little Dragon – Ritual Union
(Peacefrog, released 25 July)
Recommended by: Lauren Laverne, Gilles Peterson, 6 Music Album of the Day

“It’s an uncompromising consistency, masked by the band’s playful imagination and born from an unerring commitment to their art, which makes Ritual Union so rewarding. This band’s gradual edging over the precipice of mainstream acceptance has been richly deserved; now, everyone should hear this dragon roar.”

Read the full review
(No official video content available)

Japanese Voyeurs – Yolk
(Fiction, released 11 July)
Recommended by: Rock Show with Daniel P Carter

“Their sound has often been labelled grunge, but that’s not entirely accurate: there are heavier forces at work here, riffs and ideas from metal bands. But the grunge link is understandable because Japanese Voyeurs also love a good melody, and Yolk is packed with memorable choruses that you’ll find yourself singing along to before you realise what you’re singing.”

Read the full review
Watch the official video for Get Hole (external YouTube link)

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If you’re feeling like there’s not been that many great new albums released in the past few weeks, you’re absolutely right: July has been a lean month and no mistake. But the schedule explodes come August, with highly anticipated discs stretching from there until the darkness of winter descends again. Here is a selection of forthcoming long-player platters to keep an ear open for.

Nero – Welcome Reality
Released: 15 August
This dubstep duo from London were on the BBC’s Sound of 2011 list at the start of the year, and has enjoyed chart success with their singles Me & You and Guilt. Signed to Chase & Status’ MTA Records, the pair will be hoping that their dancefloor hits translate into a debut album to savour.
Watch: the official video for forthcoming single, Promises (external YouTube link)
Previous album: N/A

Wretch 32 – Black and White
Released: 22 August
Another artist to have made this year’s Sound of… list, and also tipped by MTV to make waves in 2011, 26-year-old Tottenham rapper Wretch 32 has enjoyed mainstream success with his singles Traktor and Unorthodox, both of which have been top five hits. Black and White is actually his second album, but is certain to reach a far wider audience than his 2008 debut, Wretchrospective.
Watch: the official video for Unorthodox, featuring Example (external YouTube link)
Previous album: Wretchrospective (not reviewed on the BBC)

Other Lives – Tamer Animals
Released: 29 August
Other Lives could well be set to be this year’s Fleet Foxes: an indie-folk act from across the Atlantic whose sublime sounds are tailor-made for mainstream audiences. Hailing from Oklahoma, the five-piece’s music has already decorated several stateside television shows, ranging from Ugly Betty to Grey’s Anatomy. Darlings of the music press before their new collection has landed, expect Other Lives to fill the weirdie-beardie-shaped hole in your collection in the second half of 2011.
Watch: the official video for For 12 (external YouTube link)
Previous album: N/A

Bombay Bicycle Club – A Different Kind of Fix
Released: 29 August
This Crouch End outfit were unlikely stars of 2010 as their second LP, Flaws, racked up the plaudits and broke into the UK top 10. Their third collection hasn’t wasted its time in coming together, emerging just 13 months after its predecessor. A Different Kind of Fix will see the four-piece return to their electric roots after the mellowed-out acoustic vibes of Flaws. Will the public be as receptive? We shall see, soon enough.
Watch: N/A
Previous album: Flaws (review)

Lil Wayne – Tha Carter IV
Released: 29 August
The release date of this set has moved around more times than hands and feet in a game of Twister, but it now looks like the final Monday of August will bear witness to the long-awaited follow-up to Lil Wayne’s globe-conquering Tha Carter III, released in 2008. Said set sold over a million copies in its first week of release in the US alone, and combined amazing commercial success with a phenomenal critical reception. The rapper’s albums since – misjudged rock LP Rebirth and the mixed-bag affair of I Am Not a Human Being, both released in 2010 – haven’t matched the brilliance of Tha Carter III, so the pressure is on for Lil Wayne to deliver an overdue classic. Has a prison spell dulled his edge? Don’t bet on it.
Watch: the official video to 6 Foot 7 Foot (external YouTube link, features content and language which may offend)
Previous album: Rebirth (review)

Red Hot Chili Peppers – I’m With You
Released: 29 August
Studio album number 10 from the funk-rock veterans sees guitarist John Frusciante replaced by new member Josh Klinghoffer, and the band’s double-disc monstrosity of 2006, Stadium Arcadium, forgotten for a leaner 14-track collection. Lead single The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie might have a curious title, but it’s purely Peppers-by-numbers stuff. Not that their millions of fans around the world will mind, as any return to the mass-appeal sounds of their By the Way LP will be welcomed.
Watch: N/A
Previous album: Stadium Arcadium (review)

DJ Shadow – Less You Know, the Better
Released: 5 September
In the year that his highly influential (and frankly unprecedented) debut Endtroducing… celebrates its 15th anniversary, Californian samples-and-beats master DJ Shadow finally releases his fourth long-play set. Arriving five years after the too-many-cooks misstep of The Outsider, Shadow fans will be hoping for something a little more in keeping with the ambitious instrumental hip hop that made the man’s name.
Watch: N/A
Previous album: The Outsider (not reviewed on the BBC)

St Vincent – Strange Mercy
Released: 12 September
St Vincent is Annie Clark, a Dallas-born artist who has been involved in both the Polyphonic Spree and as part of Sufjan Stevens’ touring band. Her two solo LPs to date, 2007’s Marry Me and 2009’s Actor, were both met by great critical acclaim, and this third set could be the one to take a truly alluring talent into the mainstream. It’s about time.
Watch: teasers for Strange Mercy on 4AD’s official YouTube channel (external link)
Previous album: Actor (review)

Laura Marling – A Creature I Don’t Know
Released: 12 September
Brit-winner and Mercury Prize-nominee (twice) Laura Marling has gone from indie-folk outsider to a seriously hot commercial property in the past 18 months or so. Her previous album, I Speak Because I Can, is certified gold in the UK, and all concerned will be expecting this third collection to fare better still. Initially announced for a 2010 release, this album has seen its release date moved almost as many times as Lil Wayne’s new disc – but it’s unlikely anybody’s going to mix the two up on the high street.
Watch: a video preview of A Creature I Don’t Know (external YouTube link)
Previous album: I Speak Because I Can (review)

Kasabian – Velociraptor!
Released: 19 September
Britain’s biggest band – so says their PR blurb – have again worked with Dan the Automator, who manned the mixing desk for their previous LP, 2009’s psychedelia-meets-stadium-rock effort West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum. If the sound of their fourth disc’s lead track, Switchblade Smiles, is anything to go on though, this is going to be a rather more adventurous affair, the Leicestershire four-piece embracing electro alongside a smattering of classic rock references (and a smidge of mariachi sonics, no?). Reportedly heavily influenced by hip hop, too, Velociraptor! could well be the set to make this band’s doubters of the past eat their dismissive words.
Watch: the official video for Switchblade Smiles (external YouTube link, contains flashing images)
Previous album: West Rider Pauper Lunatic Asylum (review)

Ed Sheeran – +
Released: 19 September
Britain’s brightest new pop talent – and not just because of his hair (“best ginger ever” reads one YouTube comment) – Ed Sheeran’s already tasted success as his debut single for the Atlantic label, The A Team, reached number three on the domestic chart in May. His flexibility is quite remarkable, able to switch from almost-folk acoustic fare to gritty grime lyricism, and + seems sure to be the first entry in a catalogue of compelling long-players.
Watch: the official video for The A Team (external YouTube link)
Previous album: N/A

Björk – Biophilia
Released: 26 September
More than just an album, Björk’s Biophilia is a multi-platform, multi-media project which will be released as a series of apps, as well as on conventional formats. She premiered material from this collection at the Manchester International Festival earlier this year, to great acclaim. Its lead single, Crystalline, recalls classic electro-organic Björk, albeit with a fantastic jungle breakdown at the track’s close. There’s no other artist like her, and this album is sure to be one of a kind in 2011.
Watch: the Biophilia app intro, as narrated by David Attenborough (external YouTube link; the video to Crystalline will be online on 26 July)
Previous album: Volta (review)

Nicola Roberts – Cinderella’s Eyes
Released: 26 September
Cheryl Cole aside, no member of Girls Aloud has really made an impression in a solo guise – and even Cole’s hold on the charts has loosened of late. But Nicola Roberts could well deliver the best GA-alumni album yet with Cinderella’s Eyes, a collection that’s been shaped by contributors including Metronomy’s Joseph Mount and Frenchman Dimitri Tikovoi (whose credits include The Horrors and Goldfrapp). On duty for this set’s lead single, Beat of My Drum, is feted Philly producer Diplo, and the results are expectedly upbeat, twitchy and percussion-savvy. Holy Moly called the track “a barnstorming British pop moment”, and the Guardian named it one of 2011’s best singles. A few more like it and Cinderella’s Eyes will be an album that even the biggest indie snob will find impossible to ignore.
Watch: the official video for Beat of My Drum (external YouTube link)
Previous album: N/A

Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds
Released: 17 October
The self-titled debut from Noel’s new project is, inevitably, one of quarter-four’s most-anticipated releases. Recorded in London and Los Angeles, the 10-track set features material that might have one day made the Oasis cut, had the brothers Gallagher not fallen out with each other so dramatically. Can Noel trump Liam’s Beady Eye and deliver the better of the two post-Oasis projects? As he was the creative heart of the Britpop legends, it’s certainly a possibility. Interestingly, Noel has also mentioned that he’s a second album on the horizon, too, which is a “far out” collaboration with experimental electro duo Amorphous Androgynous. Double the bang for your buck…
Watch: the High Flying Birds press conference from 6 July (external YouTube link, contains language which may offend)
Previous album: N/A

Drake – Take Care
Released: 24 October
Drake’s Thank Me Later was my favourite album of 2010, and the Canadian rapper’s down-tempo debut certainly wasn’t short of fans come the best-of rounds at the end of last year. With production talent including Kanye West, Q-Tip, The Neptunes and Dr Dre involved in the making of this second collection, it’s certain to be a very big deal indeed. While new songs have surfaced in 2011, Drake is yet to confirm the tracklisting for Take Care. Bated… breath…
Watch: the official video for Marvin’s Room (external YouTube link, contains language which may offend)
Previous album: Thank Me Later (review)

View full post on BBC Music

Upcoming attractions: 15 albums from the second half of 2011 is a post from: wewillrockyouqueen.com

So the shortlisted albums for the 2011 Mercury Prize are confirmed, and what a lovely spread they make. Personally, I am really pleased to see albums by Ghostpoet and Metronomy in there – both are uniquely British collections, packed full of character and containing a raft of memorable songs. But everyone has their own favourites, of course – and if you need a little steering, or just want to be introduced to an artist for the first time, follow the links below to read about all of the nominated records and listen to previews.

Adele – 21

Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi

James Blake – James Blake

Elbow – Build a Rocket Boys!

Everything Everything – Man Alive

Ghostpoet – Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam

PJ Harvey – Let England Shake

Katy B – On a Mission

King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine

Metronomy – The English Riviera

Gwilym Simcock – Good Days at Schloss Elmau

Tinie Tempah – Disc-Overy

Listen to the nominations as they happened on Lauren Laverne’s 6 Music show. For more Mercury Prize content, head to the 6 Music homepage.

View full post on BBC Music

Mercury Prize 2011: Reviews of all nominated albums is a post from: wewillrockyouqueen.com

BBC Album Reviews Editor Mike Diver selects his top 10 records released in June 2011.

It’s been another month of very high standard, so finalising a top 10 has been difficult. Some of these came quickly – Bon Iver’s latest is incredible, likewise current sets from The Antlers and Destroyer. Others fought for their spot, seeing off some impressive competition from the likes of Devon Sproule, Silkie, Foster the People, Battles, Atmosphere and Brontide (not to mention chart-conquering collections from Beyoncé and Arctic Monkeys). But, once the dust settled, this is what I was left with…

(Note that I do not include reissues here, but expanded releases from Marvin Gaye and Suede are among the month’s best ‘new’ old albums.)

My Album of the Month

Bon Iver – Bon Iver
(4AD, released 20 June)
Recommended by: Lauren Laverne, Victoria Derbyshire, 6 Music Album of the Day

“There can be no doubt that certain critics will have come to this album expecting it to fall short of the precedent set by its predecessor. That it doesn’t, and actually far surpasses the still-echoing resonance of that debut set, is indicative of its standing as one of 2011’s most absorbing, affecting and downright brilliant LPs. It just goes to show that there’s really only one act capable of ‘doing a Bon Iver’.”

Read the full review
Watch the video to Calgary on YouTube (external link)

The Best of the Rest

SBTRKT – SBTRKT
(Young Turks, released 27 June)
Recommended by: MistaJam, Zane Lowe, 6 Music Album of the Day

“This album is paced like a perfect DJ set – it reads the listener with incredible insight, combining the immediate and familiar with intense passages of warm-up, breaking to allow for moments of blank space and reflection. The mix of shiny vocals with tight, accelerated textures is steeped deep in a glorious combination of two-step, UK funky, dubstep, US RnB and Chicago house.”

Read the full review
Watch the video to Wildfire on YouTube (external link, contains scenes which may upset)

The Antlers – Burst Apart
(Frenchkiss, released 6 June)
Recommended by: Gideon Coe

“The Antlers’ 2009 album Hospice was one of those niche successes. The sort that has the blogs purring, the odd clued-up broadsheet too, but doesn’t quite stretch beyond the word-of-mouth glass ceiling. For Burst Apart, the New York trio have made their sound a little fuller – in the sense that an aircraft hangar’s fuller if you throw in a sofa. No surprises then, just a collection of mesmeric, epic stillness.”

Read the full review
(No official video available.)

Shabazz Palaces – Black Up
(Sub Pop, released 27 June)
Recommended by: Lauren Laverne, 6 Music Album of the Day

“The effect Shabazz Palaces have on the listener can sometimes be bewildering – Youlogy, for instance, sounds like two Edan tracks playing simultaneously. When it works, though, this is an insidiously funky listen. Two highlights come at the end: the penultimate Yeah You rides a beat soaked in saturation and echo, while Swerve… concludes the record on a sussed, lyrical note. Hip hop on Sub Pop? Frankly, it’s hard to know why they didn’t think of it before.”

Read the full review
Listen to Swerve… on Sub Pop’s YouTube channel (external link, contains language which may offend)

Gillian Welch – The Harrow and the Harvest
(Acony, released 27 June)
Recommended by: Another Country with Ricky Ross

“If there’s a case to be made for formulating something serious out of classic pop and old-time hokum, Gillian Welch and her songwriting partner David Rawlings make it as well as anybody. So while just a bit of drums and bass would probably have broadened the record’s appeal, we must give thanks for this stubborn duo’s independence of mind. After all, it’s the quiet ones that get you in the end.”

Read the full review
(No official video available)

Wiley – 100% Publishing
(Big Dada, released 20 June)
Recommended by: N/A

“100% Publishing is a clever balancing act that allows the casual listeners in and retains them with riffs and tunes you can’t ignore, but makes sure it’s insubordinate enough to keep the regulars happy. Most importantly, though, once again Wiley has kept grime moving forwards with some truly audacious sounds.”

Read the full review
(external link)

Patrick Wolf – Lupercalia
(Hideout, released 20 June)
Recommended by: Tom Robinson, Victoria Derbyshire

“Over the space of five albums, Wolf has confirmed himself as one of the UK’s genuinely interesting pop stars. Lupercalia manages to walk the fine line between upbeat and irritating, between unabashed happiness and over-sentimentality. The fabric of the songs seems imbued with joy, and it’s testament to the quality of the songwriting that you don’t feel alienated by what are incredibly personal lyrics. It’s an all-inclusive love in, basically, and all the better for it.”

Read the full review
Watch the video to House on YouTube (external link)

Com Truise – Galactic Melt
(Ghostly, released 27 June)
Recommended by: Rob da Bank

“The spectre of occult Scottish pranksters Boards of Canada casts a shadow over Com Truise’s compositions. It’s not the only string on his bow: he’s a dab hand at deep, Vangelis-style beatless blowouts, such as opening track Terminal. He’s not attempting anything revolutionary on Galactic Melt, but he demonstrates a sight more depth than a lot of stuff that’s been tagged as chillwave.”

Read the full review
Listen to Brokendate on Ghostly’s YouTube channel (external link)

Samiyam – Sam Baker’s Album
(Brainfeeder, released 27 June)
Recommended by: Benji B

“Sam Baker’s Album operates within recognisable Brainfeeder territory: instrumental tracks with sound so compressed you feel like you just got off a long-haul flight without performing the Valsalva manoeuvre; unquantized, misshapen beats. But within these familiar parameters Baker successfully applies his creativity, making funk-derived sample-based hip hop sound fresh.”

Read the full review
(No official video available)

Destroyer – Kaputt
(Dead Oceans, released 6 June)
Recommended by: 6 Music Album of the Day

“This album is as much as about atmosphere as hit singles, as the strident guitar line of the conversational Song for America proves. Few tracks clock in below five minutes, while the closer, Bay of Pigs, a come-down hymn which makes a case that the second summer of love never ended, registers in at many more, yet wastes not a second. Kaputt is a genuine classic, unlike anything any other artist will release in 2011.”

Read the full review
Watch the video to Kaputt on YouTube (external link)

View full post on BBC Music

The best albums of June 2011 is a post from: wewillrockyouqueen.com

The last few weeks have flown by, now there are just 3 shows left in my current Thursday night 11pm Radio 2 series looking at some of dance music’s most delectable moments. A big thank you to everyone who’s texted , emailed and tweeted (dj_dave pearce) during the shows, I know quite a few people having been raving in bed tuned in with a cup of tea (including Norman Cook and Zoe Ball who emailed last week while they were tucked up in their pyjamas like Eric and Ernie! )

This week I’m throwing a spotlight on the mid to late 90’s when dance music continued to explode around the UK. The illegal raves had shut down but now came the Superclubs and legal dance festivals began to spring up around the country. There are some wonderful records in this period which will be enjoyed for generations to come, so over the next couple of weeks it’s especially difficult to know where to begin. I’m looking forward to hearing your tales and your favourite club nights if you are a late 90’s raver.

Debbie Harry is on this week’s show along with Boy George who will be telling us about some of the music that’s inspired him in his dj career on his lifelong adventure through clubland. Next week I’ll be looking at the emergence of acts like Basement Jaxx, Chemical Brothers, Groove Armada, Underworld etc who took dance music to a new dimension. Phil Oakey from The Human League and international superstar DJ Paul Van Dyk will be joining us too.

So hope you can join me live at 11pm on Thursday or if that’s too late you can catch up and listen again on the iplayer through the Radio 2 website.

View full post on BBC Music

40 Years of Dance Tunes – The 90s is a post from: wewillrockyouqueen.com

I have been covering Glastonbury Festival for BBC TV since 1997. Every year this week makes me feel like I am a nervous farmer just before harvest, scanning the skies anxiously. Of course the weather will be what the weather will be and it never seems to dampen that famous Glastonbury spirit that enables a city to spring up in a valley outside Glastonbury almost overnight and for those sudden citizens to behave with Caribbean charm and good manners while they are together in Avalon.

Although I have been covering Glastonbury for 15 years I have spent most of my time at the festival trudging between the trucks from which we broadcast that back onto the Pyramid Stage and across the stream to the BBC compound where our central presentation position and our catering tent resides. That’s a long and squelchy trudge when it’s muddy…..

Our coverage has grown over the years and now spreads across BBC Two, Three and Four, red button and online at bbc.co.uk/glastonbury with the attendant catch-up services, not to mention the substantial coverage on BBC 6 Music with support from Radio 1, Radio 2 and Radio 4.This year we are filming the Pyramid, Other, West Holts, John Peel and BBC Introducing stages and bringing some 15 different artists from the Dance Village to the Acoustic, Spirit of ‘71 and Avalon Stages to the BBC TWO presentation area to perform for the channel. We have around 38 hours of broadcast across the terrestrial and digital channels, half-hour highlights from a wealth of sets will go up on BBC online and hopefully even more will rotate on red button.

Glastonbury is surely the richest and most eclectic three day live music event in Europe and probably the world and the BBC’s coverage across the weekend is undoubtedly the largest and most ambitious live music TV broadcast going. Being big means trying to create real appointment to view moments with the headliners who regard the last slot on the Pyramid Stage as a date with destiny. We broadcast these headline moments live to air these days and try and build up to them like a boxing match as BBC Two comes on air to catch the electricity of Bono and co, finally stepping off their own gargantuan tour to show they can still deliver as a four-piece, in a field with a festival crowd that isn’t the regular U2 punter they encounter at their own gigs. We work hard with each act to capture their performance distinctly as they adjust the stage and bring their screens, lasers and what have you to bear on their career-defining moment.

BBC Three tries to show the audience substantial amounts of the likes of Tinie Tempah, Jessie J, Plan B and Mumford & Sons while BBC Four offers heritage performers including Morrissey, BB King and Kool and the Gang. Television hours means we can’t show all of each artist and many of the artists don’t always want us to show all of everything, as they or the BBC may be faced with technical problems, playing in a field in quick turnaround without much of a soundcheck.

Glastonbury is so impossibly rich – just study the list of artist and stages on the Glastonbury and BBC websites that it’s impossible to capture it all. We have crews out in the field bringing you live and edited reports from far-flung areas like Block 9 and The Rabbit Hole and alongside those acoustic moments, we bring cabaret performers and poets to our presentation area to try and hint at what the festival has to offer. Changing between BBC services isn’t quite like stumbling in the dark between stages but the BBC’s multi-platform offer is all about choice and we try to use our services not only to bring you the big Glastonbury moments but also to discover some of those unpredictable and surprising treats that you stumble accidentally upon and that make Glastonbury the greatest festival in the world.

Did I already say that?

Mark Cooper is the Creative Head, Music Entertainment

View full post on BBC Music

Glastonbury and BBC TV: How it works is a post from: wewillrockyouqueen.com

May 2011 has been another fantastic month for new album releases. It was tough, indeed, to narrow my favourites down to the 10 you see below. Enjoy them, for each is a little slice of genius to get entirely wrapped up in.

Editor’s Album of the Month

Wild Beasts – Smother
(Domino, released 9 May)
Recommended by: 6 Music Album of the Day, Marc Riley, Bethan Elfyn

“Anyone who has seen the video to lead single Albatross will have an idea of what to expect here: an uncommon beauty, distilled through disquiet, presented at what appears to be high-definition half-speed. This is a world away from the boisterousness of the band’s debut, Limbo, Panto – a world of self-discovery, unexpected achievements and focused development. Wild Beasts are the most inspirational, intriguing, effortlessly enrapturing band at work on these shores.”

Read the full review and listen to previews
Read our Album Reviews Q&A with Wild Beasts
Watch the video to Albatross on YouTube (external link)

The Best of the Rest

The Beastie Boys – Hot Sauce Committee Part 2
(EMI, released 2 May)
Recommended by: Lauren Laverne, Zane Lowe, 6 Music Album of the Day

“The Beasties’ seventh full-length-proper, Hot Sauce Committee Part Two, is scads of fun, its first half especially so. Their wizard blend of goofy creativity and deft discipline ensures that the best tracks here are simultaneously scattershot and focused. To cook up such joyful nonsense probably takes a helluva lot of effort, but it’s the Beasties’ gift to make this seem easier than falling off a mountain bike, and an infinite amount more fun.”

Read the full review
Watch the video to Make Some Noise on YouTube (external link)

Gang Gang Dance – Eye Contact
(4AD, released 9 May)
Recommended by: Rob da Bank, Bethan Elfyn, Gideon Coe

“They weave a soundtrack to future parties, held on space stations spinning around the outer rings of Saturn. Little here seems to be connected with terrestrial movements; and when there is a flash of something comfortably graspable, like the oriental clinks of Adult Goth and the fairground pulsations of MindKilla, they’re surrounded by the otherworldly presence of frontwoman Liz Bougatsos.”

Read the full review and listen to previews
Watch the video to MindKilla on YouTube (external link)

Austra – Feel It Break
(Domino, released 16 May)
Recommended by: The Late Show with Stuart Bailie, Don Letts

“Katie Stelmanis, bassist Dorian Wolf and drummer Maya Postepski have created something that plays as a carefully balanced, organic whole, like an inadvertent concept album. That’s more a testament to the skill with which it’s been put together than because it lacks standout moments; in fact, half the songs here could be released as singles, as Austra are as melodic as they are melodramatic.”

Read the full review and listen to previews
Watch the video to Lose It on YouTube (external link)

Dels – Gob
(Big Dada, released 2 May)
Recommended by: Huw Stephens, Lauren Laverne, 6 Music Album of the Day

“The most successful British MCs stay true to what they do and know, and Dels is in this mould. Honest lyrics backed by off-kilter and unexpected production from Kwes, Micachu and Joe Goddard of Hot Chip give this album this album a rough, unique edge. An impressive statement of a debut, Gob is just as good as the moment we first witnessed the fitness.”

Read the full review and listen to previews
Watch the video to Trumpalump on YouTube (external link)

True Widow – As High as the Highest Heavens and from the Center to the Circumference of the Earth
(Kemado, released 2 May)

“Despite myriad reference points to be heard across this set, at no point do True Widow come across like a blatant sound-alike of any single act. Which is, really, why this record is such a certifiable success: it has one recalling great stoner-friendly LPs from the past, while presenting a fresh take on music which, courtesy of its common reluctance to shift from second gear, has frequently been at risk of turning stale.”

Read the full review and listen to previews
Watch the video to Skull Eyes on YouTube (external link)

Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat – Everything’s Getting Older
(Chemikal Underground, released 9 May)
Recommended by: Jarvis Cocker, Late Junction

“It’s easy to revel in Moffat’s bleak wordplay and his everyman observations, but behind the black clouds and bitterness there are reminders of love and tempered optimism. Breathless and romantic, lovelorn and lusting, his characteristic honesty and intensity regales us with stories of debauched, primal rutting, guiltless affairs and the apathetic aftermath.”

Read the full review and listen to previews
Watch the video to The Copper Top on YouTube (external link)

Planningtorock – W
(DFA, released 23 May)
Recommended by: BBC Introducing in Wales

“Though it’s frequently disconcerting, W is also thoroughly engrossing, creating an alternative musical universe in much the same way as The Knife, the Swedish act with whom she collaborated on 2010’s opera Tomorrow, In a Year. Evidently at home in the studio, Rostron imagines a darkly melodramatic world of shadows and sleek metallic edges, her electronic setting industrial and semi-gothic in a similar fashion to current critical faves EMA and Zola Jesus.”

Read the full review
Watch the video to Doorway on YouTube

Thurston Moore – Demolished Thoughts
(Matador, released 23 May)
Recommended by: Tom Ravenscroft, 6 Music Album of the Day, Lauren Laverne

“There are only subtle shifts between Moore’s songs and producer Beck’s airy arrangements, but that’s hardly a criticism since this mood piece sucks you in. In a career of benchmark highs, he’s made yet another; and by doing the unexpected, it shows that whatever the sound of his records, the punk inside Moore still lives.”

Read the full review and listen to previews

SebastiAn – Total
(Because, released 30 May)
Recommended by: Annie Mac

“Total is a breathlessly brilliant set that whips the listener this way and that, skipping between styles with confidence. There’s house and techno, silken funk and futuristic soul, and even skull-shuddering drum’n'bass. There’s plenty enough of Sebastian’s own character on show to make this one of the most enjoyable dance albums of 2011 so far. Justice, your move…”

Read the full review
Watch the video to Embody on YouTube (external link)

View full post on BBC Music

Editor’s Pick of New Releases, May 2011 is a post from: wewillrockyouqueen.com

BBC Album Reviews Editor Mike Diver guides you through some of the acts who will be hoping to make the shortlist for this year’s Mercury Prize…

The deadline for labels and the like to enter records for this year’s Mercury Prize has passed – so if you’ve not submitted your latest long-player yet, best not to bother. The shortlist for the annual award won’t be announced until July, but the cut-off for entries gives us an opportunity to look over some of the contenders. In other words, we’ve an excuse to revisit some of the very best British and Irish albums of the past 12 months. And who are we to pass up such a delightful way to spend an afternoon…

So, here are some of the finest albums (listed alphabetically) from domestic acts to have come out since The xx won the Mercury in 2010. If some make the list of 12, we’ll be very happy indeed.

Adele – 21
(Released January 2011)
Well, this one needs little introduction. Adele’s second album has dominated the UK albums chart since its release, its supremacy only now threatened by a certain Lady Gaga. The singer’s debut, 19, made the Mercury shortlist in 2008 – can her new release go one better?
BBC review
Watch the video to Rolling in the Deep (YouTube link)

Admiral Fallow – Boots Met My Face
(Released March 2011)
Brilliant indie-folk from north of the border, recorded at Glasgow’s celebrated Chem 19 studio, this debut set from Admiral Fallow is perhaps the closest any act has come, so far, to capturing the magic of The Delgados – who were nominated for their album The Great Eastern back in 2000. An outsider for a place on the shortlisted 12, certainly, but this is a great LP which deserves a bigger audience.
BBC review
Watch Admiral Fallow performing on the BBC Introducing Stage at T in the Park 2010 (YouTube link)

And So I Watch You From Afar – Gangs
(Released May 2011)
Instrumental mightiness from Northern Ireland, ASIWYFA have been collecting fans on the underground for several years, but their new album represents a real step forwards for the Belfast-based four-piece. Gangs comes recommended by Zane Lowe, who tends to know a thing or two about decent rock music. It might not have any lyrics, but when the music’s this vivid they’re hardly missed.
BBC review
Watch the band performing Think:Breathe:Destroy live (YouTube link)

Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi
(Released January 2011)
Anna Calvi was the first artist from the BBC’s Sound of 2011 shortlist (of 15 – visit the homepage) to release an album in 2011, and it was an immediate critical success. That it broke into the UK top 40 shows that it’s not only journalists who were swayed by her powerful singing and guitar prowess. With fans including Nick Cave and Brian Eno on her side, Calvi was never likely to disappear from the limelight as quickly as she arrived, and a Mercury nod would be further confirmation of her continuing appeal.
BBC review
BBC interview
Watch the video to Blackout (YouTube link)

Arctic Monkeys – Suck It and See
(Released June 2011)
Winners of the Mercury in 2006 for their debut album, and shortlisted the year after for their Favourite Worst Nightmare follow-up, could 2011 see the Sheffield indie titans (pictured, below) add a third nomination to their impressive list of achievements? Reports regarding their fourth LP are mixed so far, and the singles haven’t been as strong as those from past collections – but never underestimate the power of the Monkeys. Suck It and See will surely be a commercial success, whatever the critical verdict.
Watch the video to Don’t Sit Down ‘Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair (YouTube link)

Bellowhead – Hedonism
(Released October 2010)
With their live sets steadily becoming the stuff of folk legend, this multi-member collective founded by Jon Boden and John Spiers could be a surprise package in 2011’s shortlist. They offer a contemporary twist on folk tradition, with some 20 instruments used and no fewer than six vocalists coming to the fore. Lively is an understatement. They’ve been stars on their own circuit for a while, and Hedonism’s great reception (and chart placing, peaking well inside the UK top 100) could see them striding from niche audiences into far wider recognition.
BBC review
Watch Bellowhead performing Cross-Eyed and Chinless (YouTube link)

James Blake – James Blake
(Released February 2011)
Another artist to have appeared on the BBC’s Sound of 2011 list, ranked second behind Jessie J, James Blake’s transition from dubstep upstart to pop experimentalist seems to be complete, his eponymous debut going out of its way to sever ties with anything nearing conventional dubstep motifs. An ambient treasure, this album was a bit hit with the critics around its release – but has its lack of obvious singles damaged Blake’s longer-term prospects? Perhaps, but a Mercury nod would certainly help attract more fans.
BBC review
Watch the video to Lindisfarne (YouTube link)

Bring Me the Horizon – There Is a Hell, Believe Me I’ve Seen It. There Is a Heaven, Let’s Keep it a Secret
(Released October 2010)
Metal rarely matters at the Mercury – although Biffy Clyro’s place on the shortlist last year suggests that maybe the judging panel is coming around to heavier sounds. If so, the ambitious third album from British metalcore outfit Bring Me the Horizon could represent in 2011 for the more raucous end of the musical spectrum. Topping domestic rock and indie charts when it was released in October 2010, There Is a Hell… showcases a young British talent trying to expand their sonic palette, and doing so successfully.
BBC review
Watch the video to Blessed With a Curse (YouTube link)

The Burns Unit – Side Show
(Released August 2010)
More acoustic-ish indie/folk loveliness from Scotland, this lot feature King Creosote and Emma Pollock amongst their ranks. Side Show is a wonderfully conceived, superbly consistent affair, its production tight and its performances exemplary. It’s further proof of a burgeoning new folk scene operating just below the mainstream in the UK, one where collaboration isn’t a means to split royalties on a chart hit, but a way of furthering an individual artist’s abilities.
BBC review
Watch a mini-documentary on The Burns Unit (YouTube link)

Kate Bush – Director’s Cut
(Released May 2011)
Old songs done differently: not necessarily a recipe for critical success, but Kate Bush has reinvented material from her The Sensual World and The Red Shoes albums in a style that sets them truly apart from the originals. Granted, some fans have been less than impressed – but few can doubt that Bush’s new release isn’t the work of an artist still full of inspiration.
BBC review
Watch the video to Deeper Understanding (YouTube link)

Eliza Carthy – Neptune
(Released May 2011)
Nominated in 1998 for her album Red Rice and again in 2003 for Anglicana, fiddle player and vocalist Eliza Carthy is no stranger to the Mercury. A multi-award winner at the BBC Folk Awards over the years, she’s a bright star shining over her musical world – but the Mercury is yet to pick a folk artist as its winner. That said, Neptune is far from a standard folk album, taking cues from myriad sources to wind up a very varied, but superbly realised and immediately engaging, set of uncommon class.
BBC review
Watch Eliza Carthy performing (Britain is a) Car Park live (YouTube link)

Cat’s Eyes – Cat’s Eyes
(Released April 2011)
A collaboration between Brit Faris Badwan and Canadian Rachel Zeffira (a couple personally and professionally), Cat’s Eyes (pictured, below) is one of the more unusual collaborations of the year so far, combining 60s girl-group harmonising with some wonderful ethereality and just a smidgen of gothic grandeur. Their eponymous album is a woozy delight, clocking in at under half an hour but delivering a fuller experience than many a longer set. Badwan has been shortlisted before, in 2009 as a member of The Horrors. But a shortlist spot for Cat’s Eyes would undoubtedly be sweeter still.
BBC review
Watch the video to I Knew It Was Over (YouTube link)

Chase & Status – No More Idols
(Released January 2011)
The dance duo who set Plan B on the road to stardom when they used his vocals on their top ten single End Credits, Chase & Status are steadily playing catch-up on the UK soul sensation in terms of sales. Although Plan B’s The Defamation of Strickland Banks failed to make the Mercury shortlist in 2010, No More Idols is popular with the bookies to make a mark on 2011’s prize. It has divided the critics – a 1/10 score in NME; a near-perfect write-up from The Independent – but Chase & Status are slowly becoming superstars themselves. And a place amongst the Mercury runners and riders would add some significant critical kudos to their current commercial success.
BBC review
Watch the video to Blind Faith (YouTube link)

The Count & Sinden – Mega Mega Mega
(Released August 2010)
More domestic dance producers here, but where Chase & Status invite established pop presences to sing on their songs, this pair has always had an eye on the underground. So, instead of Plan B and Cee-Lo Green, here we have rappers Rye Rye and Trackademicks and the summery indie-pop sounds of Mystery Jets. Arguably, it has produced far better results: the contributions complement the productions, rather than stealing away the spotlight. The one instance where this might not be the case: Katy B’s turn on Hold Me. The London singer’s rise to the upper echelons of the pop scene has been remarkable, but well earned. That The Count & Sinden spotted her talent at such an early stage is proof of their well-tuned collective ear.
BBC review
BBC interview
Watch the video to Addicted to You (YouTube link)

Darkstar – North
(Released October 2010)
Now signed to Warp, Darkstar are moving in the same direction as James Blake: away from the dubstep scene that first embraced them and into more adventurous, texturally dynamic territories. North, the group’s debut LP, was a strange release for Hyperdub to tackle on paper; but its mix of 80s synth-pop, soulful vocals and enrapturing beats has proved most addictive. Perhaps they can repeat Burial’s feat of 2008, and register a second Mercury nomination for the highly influential London label operated by Steve ‘Kode9′ Goodman.
BBC review
Watch the video to Gold (YouTube link)

Dels – Gob
(Released May 2011)
Hip hop at the Mercury has, a handful of exceptions aside, largely been represented by just two acts: Roots Manuva and Dizzee Rascal. But the emergence of Dels and Ghostpoet (words on him a little further down there) is sure to challenge this would-be duopoly – both are phenomenally talented artists, offering original spins on tried-and-tested formulas. Gob is a riveting listen, intense and intelligent, standing left-of-centre but delivering memorable truths on a spread of subjects both universal and deeply personal. There’s great production here, too, from the likes of Kews and Micachu. He might bemoan the daily grind now, but recognition from the Mercury would surely see those days fading from Dels’ memory.
BBC review
Watch the video to Trumpalump (YouTube link)

Kit Downes Trio – Quiet Tiger
(Released March 2011)
A jazz release has never triumphed at the Mercury, but having been nominated once before – just last year, for Golden – Kit Downes is well-placed to make that breakthrough for his chosen genre. A greater sense of experimentation seeps forth from Quiet Tiger, Downes evidently eager to expand upon what he achieved an album earlier. The way instruments are weaved together is quite remarkable, and if any jazz album stands a chance at this year’s Mercury, this one has to be among the front-runners. And if not, perhaps another nominee-past? Led Bib’s Bring Your Own brims with newfound vigour, which could yet propel its makers to another shortlist spot.
BBC review
Watch Kit Downes Trio performing Skip James live (YouTube link)

Dutch Uncles – Cadenza / Everything Everything – Man Alive
(Released April 2011 / August 2010)
A set of zippy indie anthems from Manchester, Dutch Uncles’ second album is a masterpiece of befuddling motifs and monstrous hooks – though they never abandon their underlying pop tendencies for a bit of overly clever-clever composition. A trove of unexpected turns, Cadenza is a captivating listen which surprises with some regularity. It’s comparable in design to Everything Everything’s Man Alive LP of August 2010 – which could also be in the running for a shortlist space, especially since the band (again, from Manchester) recently earned Ivor Novello nominations in the categories of Best Album and Best Song Musically and Lyrically.
BBC review
Watch the video to Cadenza (YouTube link)

Brian Eno with Jon Hopkins and Leo Abrahams – Small Craft on a Milk Sea
(Released November 2010)
Eno could feature on the Mercury shortlist twice – his new album, with poet Rick Holland, is due out at the start of July. But if he does take a spot as one of this year’s nominees, it’s likely to be for his collaboration with composer Jon Hopkins (responsible for soundtracking the film Monsters in 2010) and guitarist Leo Abrahams. Something of a love-letter to his own ambient work of the 1970s during its quieter passages, Small Craft… is a smooth listen which only finds ripples spreading across its surface when guest musicians make their presences felt. But while it’s relatively unremarkable compared to the best of Eno’s catalogue, there’s no doubt this can transport the listener away from the everyday with ease.
BBC review

Frankie & The Heartstrings – Hunger
(Released February 2011)
Sometimes, fun is enough. This debut from Sunderland five-piece Frankie & The Heartstrings won’t win any awards for originality, but its infectious energy spreads as if uncontrollable. A little Dexys, a little Orange Juice, and a little Futureheads: it’s a great gumbo of pop-rockin’ sounds of the past and present, and sure to leave a smile on any face. Should the Mercury panel need a pick-me-up, this fits the bill perfectly.
BBC review
Watch the video to Hunger (YouTube link)

Friendly Fires – Pala
(Released May 2011)
Again, Pala isn’t a record that overflows with fresh ideas. Instead, its makers – already nominated for the Mercury once, for their eponymous debut, in 2009 – have worked on refining the best elements of their sound to date. So, Pala is all summery vibes, tropical percussion and sing-along vocals. It’s about as difficult a listen as Velcro is a complicated means of tightening up your shoes, and the band’s cross-demographic (and generation) appeal means they’re certain to tick the panel’s populist boxes.
BBC review
Watch Friendly Fires performing Live Those Days Tonight live (YouTube link)

Ghostpoet – Peanut Butter Blues and Melancholy Jam
(Released February 2011)
Perhaps the most striking new voice in British hip hop to have surfaced since the rise of Roots Manuva, Ghostpoet’s (pictured, above) maudlin musing about this, that and the other might sound duller than dishwater on paper – getting drunk here, doing better for yourself there. But the reality of this record is way better than any expectations could have been set for, understated production emphasising the genuine ache and emotion in our protagonist’s voice. The new Mike Skinner? Oh, please – this fellow is better already, with just one album under his belt. If Ghostpoet wins in 2011, this writer will feel that the right decision’s been made.
BBC review
BBC interview
Watch the video to Survive It (YouTube link)

Gold Panda – Lucky Shiner
(Released October 2010)
Despite his superb critical standing, Four Tet has never featured on a Mercury shortlist. But the comparable sound of Gold Panda could nail that achievement at the first time of asking, the Germany-based Brit’s debut already picking up the Guardian’s First Album award in January. It’s a really engrossing work, skittering from propulsive percussion to introspective ambience, via scratchy samples and an overall feeling of lo-fi warmth. It’s as if it wasn’t constructed on a screen at all, but by a secretive band of brothers playing arcane instruments from a dusty parallel dimension. All in all, it’s a slice of solid-gold wonderfulness.
BBc review
Watch the video to Marriage (YouTube link)

PJ Harvey – Let England Shake
(Released February 2011)
One of the early favourites at the bookies to take this year’s prize, PJ Harvey’s latest is a powerful collection of war-inspired songs which lingers with the listener long after the record’s faded to silence. It’s an album that falls in and out of love with England, too – every step is taken warily, caution conveyed through another singularly brilliant performance from Harvey, a singer who seems to grow in confidence and range as she gets older. A winner in 2001, Harvey doesn’t need the Mercury to boost her sales or reputation – but should she win in 2011, it will be for what is perhaps the most challenging album of her career.
BBC review
Watch the video to The Words That Maketh Murder (YouTube link)

The Horrors – Skying
(Released July 2011)
If the third studio set from The Horrors makes the cut-off point for 2011’s Mercury (I think it does: it’s scheduled for 11 July), then it stands a good chance of making the final 12 given their last album, the excellent Primary Colours, was one of the best LPs shortlisted for 2009’s Mercury. This one’s lead single, Still Life, manages to sound like Simple Minds without sending the listener running to the hills. Some achievement.
XL Recording’s ‘video’ for Still Life (YouTube link)

The Joy Formidable – The Big Roar
(Released January 2011)
Big riffs, big choruses, big production: yep, The Big Roar is big alright. The Welsh trio have existed at the edges of the mainstream for a while – but a major label release for this debut has given the indie-rockers the support needed to truly take their anthems to the biggest-possible audiences. It’s a tremendous statement of intent, bursting with confidence – but perhaps this year’s Mercury is a little too early for them, as the prolonged gestation of this set has led to a little inconsistency. Album two could be the one that really flies.
BBC review
Watch the video to Whirring (YouTube link)

Katy B – On a Mission
(Released April 2011)
A pop star for the post-dubstep market, Katy B’s ascension from guest singer to spotlight-hogging headliner has been rapid, but she deserves her crack at the top of the charts when her solo material is as gripping as what’s presented on this debut. Measured melodies, wonderfully flexible vocals and delivering the sense that this is just the beginning of a beautiful career, On a Mission is one of 2011’s best dance long-players, of any sub-genre. The girl (pictured, below) could sing the phone directory to a rudimentary beat and it’d still be worth moving to.
BBC review
Watch the video to Broken Record (YouTube link – contains flashing lights)

King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine
(Released March 2011)
One of those quiet albums one expects little from at the outset, Diamond Mine soon gets under the skin and stays there forever. A tender collection of reflection, King Creosote (aka Kenny Anderson) sings with the broken-down resignation of a man certain that his fate is set in stone – and it’s against those stones he’s about to be dashed. But there’s hope, too – as the album closes, Your Young Voice looks not to the past but to the future, to the next generation and their dreams. You might just shed a tear.
BBC review

Kode9 + The Spaceape – Black Sun
(Released April 2011)
A menacing darkness creeps across this second collaboration between the Hyperdub founder and vocalist The Spaceape – Black Sun is not a record to put on when the desire to shake one’s money-maker takes hold. Think more along the lines of Leftfield trapped in Lee “Scratch” Perry’s Black Ark with the reggae legend already holding the matches. It seems to exist out of time, in a space unoccupied by any other album in 2011, neither in the pre