The albums thread - 2014

[Buzzer]

I think I've got a candidate for album of the year - for me anyway. Lamb - Backspace Unwind.

They've been only slightly more prolific than Portishead but as with them, the wait was well worth it. I'm much more at home with this kind of electronic music than say the more ambient/experimental Autechre or Caribou or Aphex Twin, I guess it's my love of all things trip-hop, and I've been listening to this album constantly since getting my hands on it yesterday. They've been very sneaky about not releasing too much from the album but the title track is a phenomenal tune. I'd quite forgotten just how much I love this band who have managed to bubble under quite nicely for 20 years now. I think it surpasses Tricky and Neneh Cherry's respective 2014 albums too. It's a beautiful album, it really is.

 

[Mellotron]

Still all about Trust - Joyland for me. Stunning dark electro, taking some pretty horrible 90s techno sounds and doing wonderful things with them.

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[tinycowboy]

A bunch of 7/10s:

Allo Darlin - We Come From The Same Place: pleasant, heartfelt twee indiepop, a little earnest at times. Bright Eyes is a charming standout.

Engineers - Always Returning: pretty much Engineers by numbers, but, if you like them, that's a good thing. The usual gauzy glaze of keyboard, passionless treated vocals, occasional guitar flourishes without ever rocking out, lyrics like an intense therapy session with a slightly odd corporate psychologist. Fight Or Flight is the standout - a classic Engineers track, gleaming and uplifting. Title track verse nicks a bass line I wrote in 1989. I won't be suing - my chorus (and bridge) is a lot better.

Caribou - Our Love: nice enough. I like this kind of music either to be weird, melancholy, or slightly sinister/dark undercurrents. It's not that weird, it's fairly melancholy, occasionally dark. However, and I'm not being sarcastic, any tune that reprises the pulsating chords of Good Life for an extended period is just fine by me - that one's the best track. Forgotten which one that is.

Ex Hex - Rips: bit rock and rolly for me. One play only. Kind of like Joan Jett and the Blackhearts doing some okayish songs; lots of string bending and trashy repeated chords masquerading as constituting an interesting experience. Not for me - too monochrome.

The Vaselines - V Is For Vaselines: slightly trudging indie pop/rock. The tunes are quite good, but nothing that special. The Lonely LP is my favourite - nice tune, but not quite end of year list stuff.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

A bunch of 7/10s:

Allo Darlin - We Come From The Same Place: pleasant, heartfelt twee indiepop, a little earnest at times. Bright Eyes is a charming standout.

Engineers - Always Returning: pretty much Engineers by numbers, but, if you like them, that's a good thing. The usual gauzy glaze of keyboard, passionless treated vocals, occasional guitar flourishes without ever rocking out, lyrics like an intense therapy session with a slightly odd corporate psychologist. Fight Or Flight is the standout - a classic Engineers track, gleaming and uplifting. Title track verse nicks a bass line I wrote in 1989. I won't be suing - my chorus (and bridge) is a lot better.

Caribou - Our Love: nice enough. I like this kind of music either to be weird, melancholy, or slightly sinister/dark undercurrents. It's not that weird, it's fairly melancholy, occasionally dark. However, and I'm not being sarcastic, any tune that reprises the pulsating chords of Good Life for an extended period is just fine by me - that one's the best track. Forgotten which one that is.

Ex Hex - Rips: bit rock and rolly for me. One play only. Kind of like Joan Jett and the Blackhearts doing some okayish songs; lots of string bending and trashy repeated chords masquerading as constituting an interesting experience. Not for me - too monochrome.

The Vaselines - V Is For Vaselines: slightly trudging indie pop/rock. The tunes are quite good, but nothing that special. The Lonely LP is my favourite - nice tune, but not quite end of year list stuff.

Ha. It's a pretty obvious Inner City "reference" isn't it?

 

[spring hall convert]

Listening to the Eagulls record again in preparation for their show at Green Door this evening. Still loving it. Angry, massive hooks & shout along choruses. Owes a big debt to Killing Joke.

 

[Theatre of Trees]

Another Deers single on the way

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[Herr Tubthumper]

I have been listening to the new Kompakt Records sampler a lot recently. These are pretty much an annual affair but they took last year off due to their 20th anniversary. As you can guess it's a round up of their sound and covers their base house and tech sound plus some of their other artists from the farther reaches of their roster. The quality never let's up on this release-in short it's fantastic. 25 tracks and not a single dud. I cannot emphasise how brilliant this label and this series of samplers is. If you like electronic and/or dance music you could do a lot worse than listen to this link for 3 minutes as it will give you an overview of the label and a flavour of this particular release.

http://www.theguardian.com/music/video/2014/aug/29/kompakt-total-14-video-review#comments

Now go and buy it. You will not regret it.

 

[Spun Cuppa]

Another vote here for Caribou's Our Love

Just listened to the 180gm 1/2 speed mastered vinyl version and unusually, it has blown me away first listen. Most new music takes me 4/5 listens before it grabs me

I've read glowing reports on them playing live, and their popularity will no doubt put them into bigger venues, and they are now top of my 'must see' list

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Another vote here for Caribou's Our Love

Just listened to the 180gm 1/2 speed mastered vinyl version and unusually, it has blown me away first listen. Most new music takes me 4/5 listens before it grabs me

I've read glowing reports on them playing live, and their popularity will no doubt put them into bigger venues, and they are now top of my 'must see' list

I had the album on CD and the missus heard it, and then went out and bought the same vinyl you mention. It's pretty powerful this album!

PS tickets in the bag as well.

 

[CorgiRegisteredFriend]

Bought the new Half Man Half Biscuit album - Urge For Offal- yesterday. Hoping to give it a listen later on.

 

[thedonkeycentrehalf]

Bought the new Half Man Half Biscuit album - Urge For Offal- yesterday. Hoping to give it a listen later on.

Got it delivered on Thursday - it is a bit more raw than the last couple of albums but still the usual great lyrics (Midge Ure looks like a milk thief).

 

[CorgiRegisteredFriend]

Got it delivered on Thursday - it is a bit more raw than the last couple of albums but still the usual great lyrics (Midge Ure looks like a milk thief).

Saving it for the drive in to work tomorrow. Sure it will greatly lift the usual Monday Morning gloom.

 

[spring hall convert]

New Sleater-Kinney song - http://www.gigwise.com/videos/95305...irst-new-song-in-nine-years-hint-at-new-album

Amazing news.

 

[spring hall convert]

Caribou - Our Love: nice enough. I like this kind of music either to be weird, melancholy, or slightly sinister/dark undercurrents. It's not that weird, it's fairly melancholy, occasionally dark. However, and I'm not being sarcastic, any tune that reprises the pulsating chords of Good Life for an extended period is just fine by me - that one's the best track. Forgotten which one that is.

Totally with you. A couple of excellent tracks, a lot of nice stuff but his weakest outing since he took the Caribou name.

Seeing them next Friday (31st), always good live.

 

[spring hall convert]

I needed cheering up after Saturday and here it is.

Sleater-Kinney album in January 2015
UK dates in March 2015.

Get in.

Dug this out from that "personal avourite album" that we did in the summer

Sleater Kinney – The Woods

Released: 2005
Label: Sub Pop
For Fans Of: Bikini Kill, L7, Hole, Nirvana, Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs
Reccomended Tracks: Entertainment, Rollercoaster, Long Time For Love/Night Light



Very few artists leave us on the frustrating high of producing their most commercially successful and critically acclaimed album but that is exactly what all girl three-piece Sleater Kinney did with their final album The Woods one of the finest albums produced by rock bands of either gender in the naughties. It’s now left as a tease of where this outrageously talented outfit could have gone.

Formed in 1994 by Carrie Brownstein (currently starring in ace American comedy Portlandia) and Corin Tucker - both of whom had paid their dues in various Riot Grrrl outfits orbiting Kathleen Hanna’s game changing group Bikini Kill – the band had slowly moved away from their Olympia, Washington punk roots to a sound closer to Sonic Youth at their commercial peak across their 6 previous albums. However, despite this ongoing evolution, The Woods was a step further than anyone would have anticipated.

Featuring an ear-breakingly big production courtesy of Flaming Lips, Mogwai and future Tame Impala producer Dave Fridmann it’s one of those rare records that manages to sound comparatively mainstream whilst not abandoning the band’s previous ideals. It’s hard to work out who or what is the star. Janet Weiss, now Stephen Malkmus’s drummer of choice, is super humanly powerful behind the drum kit, Brownstein and Tucker’s guitars riff and snake around each other like they’re telepathic and as always with Sleater-Kinney the juxtaposition of Tucker’s Tina Turner-esque howl and Brownstein’s detached, childlike, sneer is a joy to behold. The left-leaning feminist lyrics are typical of their output, bullish and outspoken, yet at times heart-breakingly tender especially on the ironic-yet-vulnerable Brownstein-fronted 'Modern Girl.'

Critically adored and peaking at number 80 in the Billboard chart the album was far from a failure but deserved to reach a far greater level of mainstream acceptance. Sleater-Kinney really could have been the new Nirvana.

 

[tinycowboy]

Weezer - Everything Will Be Alright In The End: I love the blue album. Nothing else really though, apart from the odd single here and there. This is OK, but not brilliant. Best track is Go Away with Bethany Cosentino - very nice pop/rock. Cleopatra strangely references the Phenomenal Handclap Band. Return To Ithaka is a nostalgic return to Only In Dreams. Other than that - just OK.

 

[tinycowboy]

I needed cheering up after Saturday and here it is.

Sleater-Kinney album in January 2015

I'm on for this...

 

[Tarpon]

Roundhouse Mon 23 March. It's all rather caught me on the hop.

 

[tinycowboy]

Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - Days Of Abandon: this was actually released back in May, but never mind. Yet another 7/10. Nice in places, rather dull in others. At times, I long for a really loud guitar like the one in Ithaca by Mogwai to rip through one of these fey tracks and inject a little bit of excitement. As it is, it's tuneful, melodic, twee indie that starts to drag after a while.

Now, dare I review Scott Walker and Sunn O)))? I'm not sure I do......

 

[Buzzer]

dare I review Scott Walker and Sunn O)))? I'm not sure I do......

Please do. I found his previous album 'Bisch Bosch' practically unlistenable, a giant free-form jazz w*nkfest. I'm curious to know what this collaboration with an ambient metal band sounds like.

Sort of Sun-Ra to Sunn O)))....