en http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/ Thu, 1 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 Thu, 1 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 60 http://www.audioscrobbler.net/data/webservices http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal The Last.fm journal for SometimeWorld. Last.fm journals are a place to talk about all things music. http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2013/03/30/5scu9m_2013:_first_quarterly_report Sat, 30 Mar 2013 10:22:47 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2013/03/30/5scu9m_2013:_first_quarterly_report It's been a pretty wicked year for music so far and we're only three months in. I'm still chasing my tail trying to find time to listen to all these gems. Here are a few that stand out so far, plus a few random thoughts below.

* Unknown Mortal Orchestra - II
I just couldn't duck the buzz of this release as it received generally positive acclaim from the various parties I tend to trust when it comes to music. "So Good At Being In Trouble" has been on constant rotation at my place since the day I first heard it on JJJ. It's psychedelic, it's funky and damn tasty!

Favourite track: So Good At Being In Trouble



* Emancipator - Dusk to dawn
I found myself completely enthralled with the first 6 tracks here, just in a trance of total goodness. A fine example of the downtempo/trip-hop sounds I so desperately crave. I do think he needs to change it up a little though, it tends to fall flat three quarters through and the rest kind of just passes me by. I'm loving the jazzy elements though! No question of the guy's talent and taste but it needs something else to keep it interesting.

Favourite track: Outlaw



* My Bloody Valentine - m b v
Love the drums! Surprisingly fantastic, who woulda thought! Consistently strong all the way through. "Loveless" is an amazing album but I don't think I put it as the unquestionable album of the 90s like so many people do. As such I find this new one just as good. They're both unreal. Lay back and let it invade your brain. Just happy this thing exists really.

Favourite tracks: Only Tomorrow If I Am



* Foxygen - We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic
Hooked right from the get go. This is fucking awesome. Influences are in abundance and all over the show. Early favourite "No Destruction" sounds like MGMT trying to channel the Rolling Stones with vocal flourishes of Bowie and Dylan! Big time Velvet Underground vibes going on too, hell even some Funkadelic. Melting pot of all the good shit. Clocking in at just over 35 minutes I'm always left wanting more. Bravo boys!

Favourite tracks: No Destruction Shuggie Oh Yeah



* The Black Angels - Indigo Meadow
Some serious ass kicking psychedelic rock here from the veterans who always bring their A game. Got a chance to see them last year at Harvest fest, it was fucking wild. "Evil Things" has one hell of a crunchy riff so simple and yet so badass.

Favourite track: Evil Things



* Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Push the Sky Away
Digging this. I wanna talk about track number 8, "Higgs Boson Blues". This fucking song. It's one of the greatest I've heard in ages and it sounds EXACTLY like one of my all-time favourites, Neil Young's terrifying "On the Beach". Clocks in at eight minutes but I could listen to those lazy crazy horse chord changes and high pitched backing vocals forever man! Nick sounds amazing on this song. Gotta check it out folks.

Favourite track: Higgs Boson Blues



* Yo La Tengo - Fade
My long-overdue intro to the band that I've had recommended to me countless times but never got around to listening to. I find myself really intrigued by the sounds on this album, not really what I was expecting them to sound like at all actually. I'm reminded of those two lovely bands Pram & Broadcast throughout, and even the softer side of Can believe it or not. A pleasant listen.

Favourite tracks: Before We Run Well You Better



* The Men - New Moon
These lads are truly hard to pin down. What seemingly started as a hardcore punk/garage rock band has now evolved into a multi genre-bending amalgam of psychedelic rock and classic early 70s FM rock. Two tracks here in particular where they really open up are fucking spectacular. "I Saw Her Face" sounds like what NY & Crazy Horse wish they sounded like last year. "Bird Song" is fucking spectacular with that bright harmonica, piano and slide guitar. Sounds very much like one of my favourite contemporary psychedelic rock bands, Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound. The two punch punk combo in the middle ("The Brass, "Electric") bring the group back to their punishing roots. Also want to mention the heart-breaking little ditty of an instrumental in the middle of the record "High and Lonesome" is really beautiful and breaks up the album perfectly. These guys are incredible.

Favourite tracks: Bird Song I Saw Her Face



* Bonobo - The North Borders
And his back! His previous work was my album of the year in 2010, and planted the seed leading me to the wondrous world of trip-hop/electronic/downtempo/etc. I was lost for words on first listen, and subsequently still very impressed. It's noticeable that Mr. Green has elected for a more beat/dance orientated sound not unlike his first two albums. He has managed to do this without sacrificing all those pretty little organic subtleties only he knows how to employ in production oh so well. The dude is a master at implementing vocal samples into the mix and his well picked selection of guest vocalists continues. I'm hearing a bit of a FlyLo influence on the Badu track which is VERY exciting. This music just fucking melts me, I love it. Potential AOTY.

Favourite tracks: Heaven For the Sinner Jets Towers



* The Flaming Lips - The Terror
When trying to explain the Lips to other people one thing I've always said was from album to album and in some cases song to song, there are elements of both extraordinarily honest despair and sadness, as well as unbridled love and enthusiasm and pure joy. You always know right after the low, a big fucking high is coming. All 12 Lips' albums up to this point had this. "The Terror" does not. I keep waiting for that big, beautiful chord change to rip open the sky and bury this unrelenting darkness but it never comes. The record ends and every time I'm left with myself to ponder what the fuck did I just experience? The album opener is one hell of a jam that sounds like something from "Embryonic". "Try To Explain" just fucking rips my heart out man, it's devastating. Those wash of synths set it up, but Drozd's slightly out of key oohs and aahs in between the verse and chorus just get all up in my feels. All the greatest lips songs have such vivid imagery, and for whatever reason I feel just fucking alone and lost floating in space or some shit listening to this song. Like I said, this is usually alright because I know shortly there-after Wayne is gonna be my superman and sing some happy bubblegum shit to take the pain away, but it never comes.

This is the same for many of the songs on "The Terror". I think "You Lust" probably could have been culled a little but I love that main motif that kicks it off, reminds me of The Terminator or something. That little ambient part at the end reminds me of Requiem, needless to explain further. "Always There In Our Hearts" sounds like a companion piece to track 1 and thus ending this terrifying piece of music right where it begun. No happy ending. I don't know if it's the circumstances of Wayne's split with his wife, or Steven's reported mini-relapse, but this is unquestionably the darkest the Lips have ever been and for some fucked up reason this excites me very much. After all the experiments over the last 24 months I never would have thought I'd like this as much as I do. 30 years and still going, who the fuck knows what the future holds for The Flaming Lips!!!?

Favourite tracks: Look... The Sun Is Rising Try To Explain

]]> http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2013/01/05/5ppm2y_2012:_my_top_%2350 Sat, 5 Jan 2013 03:18:27 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2013/01/05/5ppm2y_2012:_my_top_%2350 Intro.
And here I find myself almost 12 months to the day with another yearly favourites list. It was a pretty amazing year I thought, the best in recent memory as far as quantity is concerned. Quite a few of my most anticipated ended up in disappointment but there were also many surprises and new artist discoveries for me. Years past I've posted a top 25 and perhaps struggled to round out the back end with quality albums. However that was never a problem with the incredible amount of solid records released over the last 12 months.

Check it:

#50 Matthew Dear - Beams
I wasn't very fond of his previous record and I guess I just never really returned to it. This one however is more to my liking. The tempo is slower, the bass has this nice vibration throughout and the production is just so crispy! Off-kilter, other-wordly etc. etc. I like the instrumental passages the best, not big on the dude's voice but I love the playful electronic atmosphere.

Favourite track: Temptation



#49 Thee Oh Sees - Putrifiers II
Lo-fi revivalist psychedelic proto-punk garage-rock and/or pop.. or whatever the fuck you want to call it had a very big 2012 and my list will no doubt emulate just how swept up in it I have become. Nice clean production here compared to some of the other like-minded folks releasing records this year. This is a potential climber, I gotta get around to listening to it more because I'm really enjoying the sound of this thing.

Favourite track: Wax Face



#48 Balmorhea - Stranger
I know I can always count on this band for a pleasant listen. Instrumental post-rock with an overwhelming "Americana" type feel. Yawning chasms and wide open landscapes etc. Really vivid imagery. They make some of the greatest movie scores that never existed.

Favourite track: Artifact



#47 Lotus Plaza - Spooky Action at a Distance
Potential roadtrippin' tunes. Sounds a little like The War on Drugs, a little like R.E.M, and a little like another band I've become really fond of, Mazzy Star. Good stuff this.

Favourite track: Strangers



#46 Major Kong - Doom for the Black Sun
Oh baby! This thing is baaaaad. This is like Earthless jamming on some Sleep type shit. The Polish trio are certainly well versed in all things stoner rock & doom metal. Absolute dinosaur-sized riffage and brain bludgeoning grooves. This is tasty!

Favourite track: The Swamp Altar



#45 The Cactus Channel - Haptics
I was flat-out impressed upon learning the ten fellas who make up this Melbourne group were doing this at 15 and 16 years of age. This is straight-up funk & soul from the golden gods. Equal parts Fela, James Brown, Shaft, Booker T as well as modern contemporaries The Budos Band. Glorious car-chase music.

Favourite track: Emanuel Ciccolini



#44 Graveyard - Lights Out
I had no idea this was even in the works so you can imagine my surprise in learning of an imminent release from one of my favourite hard-rock bands. More of the same from the Swedes but in this particular case I don't mind at all. Though for what it's worth, probably my least favourite of their three.

Favourite track: Goliath



#43 Sigur Rós - Valtari
Sigur Rós have always been a pleasant listen for me but they never really went above and beyond that. Of course, that all changed after I had a chance to see them live and in all their glory last year. A powerful, jaw-dropping performance. Particularly the set-closer, "Popplagith". It was one of the greatest things I've seen. Suddenly their music clicks for me, I get it now? Beautiful!

Favourite track: Varúð



#42 Dinosaur Jr. - I Bet on Sky
The surprise of a new Dino Jr. album has lost it's appeal now three albums deep into their ever-unlikely comeback. Man, they never lost a step. A tried and true formula if there ever was one. I detect traces of J's solo material throughout this, which is nice because I was quite fond of that record. Some of his greatest guitar work yet!

Favourite track: Watch the Corners



#41 King Tuff - King Tuff
Kyle Thomas continues to confuse the shit out of me. His work with Dino Jr.'s J. Mascis (Witch) is fucking incredible. The lone song on his debut King Tuff album, 'Sun Medallion" is one of my all-time favourites, and yet nothing else on that record sounded like it. Now he's gone for a hardcore T. Rex/Bowie glam rock sound and you know what, I can't blame him. This is just too fucking fun! This guy has serious potential, and I'll always be curious to hear what he does next.

Favourite track: Bad Thing



#40 GOAT - World Music
This album exists in it's own fucked up world. Equal parts psychedelic and kraut-rock, equal parts funk and afrobeat. Party music to welcome the anti-christ. Pagan ritual jams. Music to raise the dead!

Favourite track(s): Let It Bleed Disco Fever



#39 The Men - Open Your Heart
These dudes aren't the saviors of rock music or anything but they damn sure pack a punch. It's as if the boiling sun melted your Sonic Youth records all over your Thin Lizzy stuff and created some fucked up hybrid. It's like a coked out Chuck Berry. It's like acid-country-punk. It's like.

Favourite track(s): Country Song Open Your Heart



#38 John Talabot - ƒin
In the same regard as the latest Matthew Dear, these sounds are new to my ears. I've never really been into "house" music as such but this sounds like something I can really get behind. All the synths have this beautiful organic sound. It sounds like it has been painstakingly crafted with so many gorgeous layers. Serious Donkey Kong Country nostalgia while listening to this haha.

Favourite track: El Oeste



#37 Moon Duo - Circles
If I was ranking album artwork this would definitely be up there somewhere! It's kind of a Brian Jonestown Massacring you off into another dimension. My Bloody Valentine covering early Floyd, or some shit. Strangely enough early Porcupine Tree also comes to mind, namely "Jupiter Island" from their 1991 debut. Perhaps it could be the absence of a proper drum kit on both records? Good sounds anyway. A Phil Spector phuzzzz affair!

Favourite track: Sleepwalker



#36 Sleepy Sun - Spine Hits
I love this band dearly but now that I've had a while to digest it I gotta admit that it's just not up to par with their previous work. It definitely has it's moments, and when it hits they're as good as ever but suffice to say those moments are few and far between. They lost a key part of their magic in Rachel leaving and it's not quite the same. I will say in it's favour that the softer tunes here are quite probably some of their best. "Still Breathing" is so freaking beautiful man. When the fog clears and Bret starts singing and that harmonica bursts into frame I'm reminded why I adore them so. I can't wait to see where they go next because these guys are seriously up there for me.

Favourite track(s): V.O.G Still Breathing



#35 Black Moth Super Rainbow - Cobra Juicy
Unlike anything and everything else. Weird as fuck. Beautiful and innocent. Scary as shit. Drugs are bad.

Favourite track(s): We Burn Psychic Love Damage



#34 Father John Misty - Fear Fun
Whether true or false, I love the back story of how this album came about after a drug fueled trip out west after leaving Fleet Foxes. Everything about this record just oozes Los Angeles to me. Heavily reminded of Buffalo Springfield and ol' Neil himself constantly. Keep clear of that ditch Josh, unless you can give us another "On the Beach" of course.

Favourite track: Writing A Novel



#33 Beak> - > >
Big Portishead fan, big Can fan. How could I not be into this? Paranoid robotic locked grooves. A little Joy Division for good measure. Certainly not for everyone.

Favourite track: Deserters



#32 Dirty Projectors - Swing Lo Magellan
I'm new to this band and I gotta say I'm certainly intrigued after listening to this album. I could definitely see how someone would feel indifferent to it, but all I'm hearing is something fresh, creative and original. Serious McCartney & Talking Heads vibes. Potential climber for sure, this could easily be in my top 5 in a couple of weeks the more I grow accustomed to it.

Favourite track(s): Impregnable Question Maybe That Was It



#31 Ancestors - In Dreams and Time
Floyd + Sabbath = Ancestors. I've been a pretty big fan of these dudes since their first LP and it's been enjoyable to watch them grow since. Can't name many bands who combine classic 70's prog with doomy stoner-rock better than these guys.

Favourite track(s): The Last Return First Light



#30 Ty Segall & White Fence - Hair
Shit Ty, where you been all my life? This dude is like my age and the buzz on him is crazy. I just love everything he's doing, the whole aesthetic. Hard to keep tags on the motherfucker though, he's so damn prolific. Curious to check out some more White Fence material too. The raw energy man, jesus christ! "Time" is a beautiful change of pace, I'd love to hear him play around in that laid back country vibe a little more. Sounds like a little George Harrison ditty until it fiercely explodes into a crunchy Sabbath thing. Yes!

Favourite track(s): Tongues Time



#29 The Cinematic Orchestra - In Motion #1
More a various artists thing overseen by The Cinematic Orchestra. The seven songs here were commissioned as alternate scores to seven short avant-garde films and in that sense, are very minimalist/classical inspired. The artists involved add a little of their own electronic jazz ambience to the fold. Nice for that rare late night you feel like listening to something of the sort.

Favourite track: Entr'acte



#28 Melody's Echo Chamber - Melody's Echo Chamber
Psychedelic dream pop? Yessir! This is magical stuff. Recorded in Perth and produced by none other than Tame Impala's Kevin Parker, Melody's Echo Chamber brings to mind those lovely Birmingham bands Pram & Broadcast. Oh yeah, Mr. Parker plays guitar all over this and it is fucking glorious by the way. Fans of Beach House should check this out.

Favourite track: I Follow You



#27 Calibro 35 - Ogni riferimento a persone esistenti o a fatti realmente accaduti è puramente casuale
Some kind of funk-rock/psychedelic Morricone/Claypool/Budos Band hybrid set in the future.. or something. Hot damn, I gotta check out some more Italian soundtracks if this is what they sound like!

Favourite track(s): Massacro all'alba Ogni riferimento..



#26 Portico Quartet - Portico Quartet
This was a pleasant discovery. Beautiful electronic elements intertwined with jazz and trip-hop. Sounds like Tortoise or Bonobo at their least busy perhaps? More like Hidden Orchestra and The Cinematic Orchestra. There's an underlying surge of rhythm and pace moving through these tracks that I'm crazy about. Seductive tunes!

Favourite track: Ruins



#25 Ty Segall Band - Slaughterhouse
Get the fuck out of here! This kid is crazy. Never has an assault on my eardrums been this good. Recorded together with his touring band, Ty had this to say in describing the album: "I want to do a total glam Stooges meets Hawkwind or Sabbath, something like that. I think that would be super fun. I want to throw people off. I want to make a really heavy record: evil, evil space rock. Put a little Satan in space and you got the sound." Usually something this rough and noisy is difficult to enjoy but something just clicks here. It's more of an aesthetic, and as such the vocals can afford to be inaudible at times. The production, while obviously lo-fi, has this crispy feel to it. Some seriously sinister guitar tones, the main riff in "Wave Goodbye" in particular is like a punch to the mid-section. Now that's power!

Favourite track: Wave Goodbye



#24 Dr. John - Locked Down
What a match! Dr. John in all his 71 years of age, and Dan from The Black Keys. The night tripper has returned to bring the funk, soul, voodoo rhythm & blues and everything else in between. I can hear Auerbach and his wicked guitar all over this thing as well and that's definitely a good thing. His hip-hop work with Danger Mouse as well as that Blakroc project also seep through in tight interlocking rhythms to great avail. I'm loving this gumbo!

Favourite track(s): Big Shot My Children, My Angels



#23 Death Grips - The Money Store
This is insanity. Why does this work so good? Feel like a bad motherfucker driving around listening to this haha. It's the most aggressive shit ever and naturally people are going to hate it but fuck, don't take it so seriously. It's hardly hip-hop, I don't know what the fuck it is but I love it.

Favourite track(s): The Fever Hustle Bones



#22 Titus Andronicus - Local Business
I wasn't feeling their grand ambitious previous work but I never really gave it a fair chance. This however is fantastic. Never really been into this kind of punk stuff but these guys really mix it up with different styles and an odd sense of humour. One of the better album closers of the year, this dude's voice will rip your heart out.

Favourite track: Tried To Quit Smoking



#21 Kid Koala - 12 bit Blues
Hip-Hop and the blues? Get outta here! Try to sit still listening to this shit, I dare you. Straight nasty!

Favourite track: 3 bit Blues



#20 Animal Collective - Centipede Hz
For whatever reason I have kind of avoided listening to Animal Collective until now. Eastern European folk, Latin American psychedelic pop rock, electronic afrobeat?? To the uninitiated it's completely out of this solar system. I can understand someone hating this but much like Dirty Projectors' latest, I'm just glad to hear these fresh new sounds. "Wide Eyed" reminds me of "Tomorrow Never Knows" or even "Within You Without You" and that i love! Give this one some time and it will catch up on you. There are so many off the wall ideas and complex rhythms bouncing around and they will most definitely infect your brain, if you let them. I've gotta find time to delve into their back catalogue.

Favourite track: Wide Eyed



#19 Ty Segall - Twins
And he's back again, opening with an anthem for the ages, "Thank God for Sinners". What this guy is doing is seriously great. I've never been into that late 1970's proto-punk sound but hearing it combined with the glam sounds of Bolan & Bowie, as well as the menacing Sabbath & Hawkwind influences.. Just holy shit! Raw to the bone, a hell of a lot like The Stooges but with a greater sense of pop and melody all the while crusty as fuck! Love it.

Favourite track(s): Thank God For Sinners Gold On the Shore



#18 Lilacs & Champagne - Lilacs & Champagne
Lilacs & Champagne are the Portland-based duo of Alex Hall and Emil Amos, better known as one of my favourite bands Grails. The two collect and flip the strangest samples into coherent songs which take cues from the sounds of instrumental hip-hop. Imagine a darker, creepy version of The Avalanches. The reciple is delicious! otherwordly sound effects, middle eastern and oriental influences, smooth old-school hip-hop beats and actual guitar and keyboards from the duo themselves. It’s too damn psychedelic to be linked to instrumental hip-hop and yet too groovy for experimental music. Whatever it is I sure love it. Fans of Flying Lotus might find something in this.

Favourite track(s): Everywhere, Everyone King of Kings




#17 Galactic - Carnivale Electricos
Galactic are arguably one of the greatest funk bands of the last 20 years. I'm a massive Treme fan and lets just say this album came along at just the right time! The fellas here take cues from New Orleans' rich musical tradition and Mardi Gras history. Rootsy soul, funk, R&B, hip-hop. The party album of 2012 right here! I want to be there.

Favourite track(s): Voyage Ton Flag Ash Wednesday Sunrise



#16 The Flaming Lips - Heady Fwends
There's not much more I can say about The Flaming Lips. They're unquestionably my favourite band of all-time. I eat up everything they put out and probably will until the day I die. They're playing around here. I don't think this record is to be taken seriously, it's merely documenting the whirlwind of a year it was for the band and all their collaborations and experiments. Ideas occasionally work, they occasionally fall flat, but they are never deterred and they continue to march forward knowing they have crazy love and support from the millions of people like myself. 2013 is going to be a big year and I eagerly await the proper follow-up to "Embryonic".

Favourite track(s): Children of the Moon Helping the Retarded to Find God



#15 Alt-J - An Awesome Wave
First time I heard this I got big Radiohead vibes, and that is by all means a good thing. Electronic pop, trip-hop, folk, alternative rock. Their sound is pretty unique and lead singer Joe Newman's voice is completely mesmerizing and lends itself as more of an instrument itself rather than coherent lyricism. The whole triangle thing is pretty tacky but the songs are money. "Breezeblocks" is one of the greatest of the year and deserves everything it gets. Their next one is going to be interesting. If you like this I highly recommend you check out another fantastic debut album from 2009, Sholi's self-titled record.

Favourite track: Breezeblocks



#14 Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do
Kinda the same deal as PJ Harvey was for me at the end of last year, a late discovery and an overdue intro to one of the greatest female singer-songwriters of our time. I just love the instrumentation, the emotion and the stark simplicity on this record. It sounds like there were never more than two people involved in playing these songs, and that intimacy shines through in bunches. "Anything We Want" is adorable.

Favourite track: Anything We Want



#13 Wild Nothing - Nocturne
This is what summer sounded like in 1982. Jack Tatum is back with the follow-up to his highly acclaimed "Gemini", and this time with the help of a full band. The jangly guitar on this thing is enough to make you smile. Kinda sounds like Robert Smith and The Cure's more heartfelt moments, but ultimately less confrontational and more relaxed. Even some Stone Roses' type sounds. Fans of Beach House and Lotus Plaza check it.

Favourite track: Shadow



#12 BadBadNotGood - BBNG2
Horrible band name, horrible album cover, fantastic group! What an age we live in. Here you have a young jazz trio from Toronto re-interpreting classic hip-hop tunes (as well as many originals) which in turn were originally created and sampled from old dusty out of print jazz records themselves. Thus the circle of life, or something! I mean, I find this process of deconstructing and reconstructing truly fascinating myself. It's equal parts Charlie Parker & J Dilla. To top it off these young motherfuckers can really play. It's a brave new world out there.

Favourite track(s): Earl Flashing Lights



#11 Beach House - Bloom
Man oh man was I looking forward to this album. I must have had "Myth" on repeat for about a month before I got to listen to this damn thing. That song is one of their greatest, I mean that outro is sublime. All the ingredients are there, the formula is tried and true. Why I prefer Teen Dream I'm still not sure, I guess that album was just on another level for me. This one holds it's strength on two flat-out killer tracks for me, two of their absolute best. The aforementioned "Myth" and my personal favourite "On the Sea", which is so sweet it's actually disgusting! Those reverbed out of this world curdling guitar lines over the happy go lucky piano is just aaaaaaaah! I love it.

Favourite track(s): Myth On the Sea



#10 Tame Impala - Lonerism
These dudes are really blowing up and well deservedly so. Just as it is with every modern psychedelic rock band, influences are a dime a dozen and easy to hear. Tame Impala go a step further then the rest, and it's all in the production. Never has something so dusty, fuzzy and hazed sounded so futuristic and modern. Not only an incredible guitar player, this dude is really etching out his own sound in the studio. His keen pop sensibility is unrivaled. Multi-dimensional sounds become increasingly fascinating with every subsequent listen to the record. Equal parts Todd Rundgren, Hawkwind, Sgt. Peppers & Ziggy Stardust.

Favourite track(s): Mind Mischief Feels Like We Only Go Backwards



#9 Blockhead - Interludes After Midnight
Known primarily for his production work with Aesop Rock, Blockhead's own records are what do it for me. This sounds like a tribute to late night cheesy 90's television and infomercials, videogames and the like. He is one of the best in the business. Classic Ninja Tune material. Like a more hip-hop orientated Bonobo. Get on this!

Favourite track: Midnight Blue



#8 Pond - Beard, Wives, Denim
Tame Impala's younger brother. It's not quite as out there, at least in our own solar system. While not quite as polished as "Lonerism", the songs are simply more diverse in nature and are not to be taken so seriously. It's loose and organic, playful even. Humungo riffage dwarfs over Tame Impala in parts, but it's the absolute gem of a song in the middle "You Broke My Cool" which to me sounds like a lost Ziggy Stardust b-side. The boys show us their stripped bare blues with closer "Moreno's Blend" before it drifts off into a tasty jam not unlike something from "Atom Heart Mother". Effortlessly cool.

Favourite track(s): You Broke My Cool Moreno's Blend



#7 The Heavy - The Glorious Dead
These dudes' swagger is off the charts for a rock band. I don't know if I'm the only one who hears it, but these songs really remind me of "Sticky Fingers" era Stones albeit with a little more funk. Classic R&B/Soul sounds are drenched over gigantic funky hooks. You can take any and every song off this album and use it in a film trailer to great avail, that's no mean feat. Also hearing that big Danger Mouse/Black Keys hip-hop sound which I absolutely love. Can't stress the fact that in a better world nearly every one of these songs has the potential to be a hit. They really know how to write 'em. "Curse Me Good", perhaps the most subdued song of all is by far and above my favourite. The sing-along from the middle onwards is completely infectious like some of the Stones' greats.

Favourite track(s): Curse Me Good What Makes A Good Man?



#6 The Tallest Man on Earth - There's No Leaving Now
Kristian Matsson is back and sounding better than ever. This dude's back catalogue is dud-less, everything he does is golden. Now for the first time his compositions are fully realized and brought to life with an amazing sound production. Making use of multi-tracking for the first time, Matsson employs woodwinds, drums, and additional fingerpicked guitars to the mix, giving his songs a fuller sound. The rough and raw sounds of his previous records nearly put me off, but the incredible songwriting and impeccable guitar work won me over. It was the same kind of deal with Dylan for me. Hard, almost painful to listen to in the beginning but then suddenly something clicks and that grading, razor sharp timbre they both sing with deeply ingrains your senses.

Favourite track(s): There's No Leaving Now Wind and Walls



#5 Flying Lotus - Until the Quiet Comes
Steven Ellison is an absolute freak and his royal Coltrane blood shines through in spades throughout his works. Never has something so rhythmically complex and challenging sounded so lush, spacious and completely mind numbingly blissful. Just the right amount of jazz permeates through these spacious electronic airs. I loved "Cosmogramma" but this is a completely different, warmer and tamer kind of beast. Dark and smooth. Slower and sexier but it will infiltrate your very being! It's an exciting time in the world of electronic music and this dude is right there at the forefront of it all.

Favourite track(s): See Thru To U me Yesterday//Corded



#4 Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound - Manzanita
One of my favourite groups return and pick up right where they left off. Fuck change. In this case I couldn't be more happy to be assembling heads the same old way. It's jangly, it's fuzzy and it's spacey. Crazy Horse meets Hawkwind via the shoegazing ways of Ride. I love the way people describe this band: "Space-traveling fuzzbox boogie", "A one-two punch of psychedelic power choogle and lunar outpost chillout". "A fascinating blend of post-apocalyptic dread and blissed-out reverie". "Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound is the combination of 1920s science fiction books, hallucinogens, and the west coast. If there were a soundtrack for Pranksters who went on a voyage in outer space, the Assemble Head would be first request." Get it on!

Favourite track(s): Slithery Thing (Gone) 'Round the Corner



#3 Spiritualized - Sweet Heart Sweet Light
Never has complete and utter heartbreak and despair sounded so tragically beautiful. That's pretty much the deal with Spiritualized. Heavenly harmonies and enveloping choir orchestras sing the saddest shit you ever heard, and it works time and time again. Two songs here have these singalong sections repeated over and over almost like a mantra, which would make sense with some of the middle eastern influences present. But it's the grand finale which is truly something to behold. Whether the rumors about this song being his farewell to the industry are true or not, the power of those lines remain intact. "So long you pretty thing, god save your little soul. The music that you played so hard ain't on your radio. And all your dreams of diamond rings and all that rock and roll can bring you.. Sail on, so long." I never want this to end. Glorious.

Favourite track(s): So Long You Pretty Thing Too Late



#2 Andrew Bird - Break It Yourself
An unexpected winner for me. This was my long overdue introduction to Andrew Bird. Firstly let me say that this dude is the best at using his own whistling as an instrument I have ever heard. Combined with his lovely guitar playing, his layered violin, glockenspiel, and these beautifully sparse arrangements, they make for something truly special. The song with St. Vincent is just breathtaking. The album closer is completely unexpected and one of the greatest things I've ever heard. I feel two or three tracks could have been culled from this and it would have been my favourite this year. What remains is nothing short of spectacular, unlike anything else.

Favourite track(s): Lusitania Hole In The Ocean Floor



#1 Grizzly Bear - Shields
Grizzly Bear are masters of their craft and doing it with such great confidence and creative finesse. I love how this band works together, every member has an input to great effect. Waiting eagerly, the first time I heard "Sleeping Ute" it reminded me of another incredible transform in sound, "Help" through "Rubber Soul". But at the same time other songs display a keen jazz sensibility unheard so far. It's like something fucking incredible happened in that down period. Here's hoping Grizzly can continue down a path like that! It was surreal seeing them perform these wonderful songs from the front row while they were still fresh in my head. To me it sounds like the perfect amalgam of the two records that preceded it. Boy oh boy, that album closer is one of the greatest things they have ever done. They can seemingly do no wrong at this point.

Favourite track(s): Sleeping Ute Sun In Your Eyes



Honourable Mentions:
Various Artists - Project: Mooncircle 10th Anniversary Box Compilation
Karriem Riggins - Alone Together
Earth - Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light II
Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra - Antibalas
Hidden Orchestra - Archipelago
Robert Glasper Experiment - Black Radio
Jack White - Blunderbuss
The Gaslamp Killer - Breakthrough
Angus Stone - Broken Brights
Captain Murphy - Duality
Mono - For My Parents
Kaki King - Glow
The Walkmen - Heaven
Chromatics - Kill For Love
Shigeto - Lineage
Can - The Lost Tapes
David Byrne & St. Vincent - Love This Giant
Band of Skulls - Sweet Sour]]> http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2012/05/26/5hb16w_my_cd_collection Sat, 26 May 2012 03:14:29 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2012/05/26/5hb16w_my_cd_collection Amassed over the last 3 years or so:

A.A. Bondy - Believers
A.A. Bondy - When The Devil's Loose
A Tribe Called Quest - People's Instinctive Travels And The Paths of Rhythm
A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory
Air - Moon Safari
Akron/Family - S/T II: The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT
Alexander - Alexander
Alice In Chains - Facelift
Alice in Chains - Dirt
Ancestors - Neptune With Fire
Ancestors - Of Sound Mind
Ane Brun - A Temporary Dive
Arts The Beatdoctor - Transitions
Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound - Ekranoplan
Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound - When Sweet Sleep Returned
Atomic Rooster - In Hearing Of
Beach House - Teen Dream
Beastie Boys - Paul's Boutique
Beck - Sea Change
Big L - Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous
Billy Cobham - Spectrum
Black Moth Super Rainbow - Eating Us
Black Mountain - Black Mountain
Black Mountain - In the Future
Black Mountain - Wilderness Heart
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Howl
Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath (Deluxe 2CD)
Black Sabbath - Master of Reality (Deluxe 2CD)
Black Sabbath - Paranoid (Deluxe 2CD)
Black Sabbath - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (Deluxe 2CD)
Black Sabbath - Sabotage (Deluxe 2CD)
Black Sabbath - Vol. 4 (Deluxe 2CD)
Blakroc - Blakroc
Blockhead - Music By Cavelight
Blockhead - The Music Scene
Bo Hansson - Lord of the Rings
Bob Dylan - Another Side of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan - Blonde on Blonde
Bob Dylan - Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home
Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited
Bob Dylan - John Wesley Harding
Bob Dylan - The Bootleg Series Vol. 4: Live 1966
Bob Dylan - The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan - The Times They Are A Changin'
Bob Marley & the Wailers - Exodus
Bob Marley & the Wailers - Kaya
Bohren & Der Club of Gore - Dolores
Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
Bonobo - Black Sands
Bonobo - Dial 'M' For Monkey
Bonobo - One Offs... Remixes & B Sides
Brightblack Morning Light - Motion To Rejoin
Buffalo Springfield - The Best Of: A Retrospective
Camel - Mirage
Camel - Moonmadness
Camel - The Snow Goose
Can - Future Days
Can - Tago Mago
Captain Beyond - Captain Beyond
Charles Mingus - Mingus Ah Um
Chicago Odense Ensemble - Chicago Odense Ensemble
Clint Mansell - Requiem For A Dream (Soundtrack)
Comets On Fire - Avatar
Comets On Fire - Blue Cathedral
Crazy Horse - Crazy Horse
Creedence Clearwater Revival - Cosmo's Factory
Crippled Black Phoenix - I, Vigilante
Crosby, Stills & Nash - Crosby, Stills & Nash
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Deja Vu
Curtis Mayfield - Superfly: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
DJ Krush - Stepping Stones: The Self-Remixed Best
DJ Krush - Zen
DJ Shadow - Endtroducing
Dangerdoom - The Mouse And The Mask
Darker My Love - Alive As You Are
David Bowie - Low
David Bowie - The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust
David Gilmour - David Gilmour
Dead Meadow - Feathers
Dead Meadow - Old Growth
Dead Meadow - Three Kings
Dinosaur Jr. - You're Living All Over Me
Dr. John - Gumbo
Duke Ellington - Ellington At Newport 1956
Dungen - 4
Dungen - Ta Det Lugnt
Dungen - Tio Bitar
Earth - The Bees Made Honey In The Lion's Skull
Earthless - Rhythms From A Cosmic Sky
Easy Star All-Stars - Dub Side of the Moon
Edan - Beauty & The Beat
Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros - Up From Below
Eloy - Dawn
Emancipator - Safe In The Steep Cliffs
Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Tarkus
Fela Kuti - Fear Not For Man
Fela Kuti - Na Poi
Fela Kuti - Stale Mate
Fela Kuti - Yellow Fever
Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma
Flying Lotus - Los Angeles
Flying Lotus - Pattern + Grid World (EP)
Foals - Total Life Forever
Frank Zappa - Apostrophe (')
Frank Zappa - Hot Rats
Frank Zappa/The Mothers - The Grand Wazoo
Frank Zappa/The Mothers of Invention - We're Only In It For the Money
Fu Manchu - In Search Of
Funkadelic - America Eats It's Young
Funkadelic - Cosmic Slop
Funkadelic - Funkadelic
Funkadelic - Let's Take It To The Stage
Funkadelic - Standing On the Verge Of Getting It On
Galactic - From The Corner To The Block
Galactic - Ya-Ka-May
Galaxie 500 - On Fire
Gang Starr - Hard To Earn
Gang Starr - Moment of Truth
Gang Starr - Step In the Arena
Genius/GZA - Liquid Swords
Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost
Grails - Doomsdayer's Holiday
Grandaddy - The Sophtware Slump
Grant Green - Am I Blue
Grateful Dead - American Beauty
Grateful Dead - Anthem of the Sun
Grateful Dead - Aoxomoxoa
Grateful Dead - From the Mars Hotel
Grateful Dead - Live/Dead
Graveyard - Graveyard
Graveyard - Hisingen Blues
Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
Grizzly Bear - Yellow House
Guru - Jazzmatazz Vol. 1
Guru - Jazzmatazz Volume II - The New Reality
Herbie Hancock - Head Hunters
Herbie Hancock - Maiden's Voyage
Herbie Hancock - Sextant
Herbie Hancock - Thrust
Hidden Orchestra - Night Walks
Hopewell - Good Good Desperation
Imaad Wasif - The Voidist
Iron & Wine - Our Endless Numbered Days
Iron & Wine - The Creek Drank The Cradle
Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog
Iron & Wine - Woman King (EP)
Iron Butterfly - In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida
J Dilla - Donuts
J Mascis - Several Shades Of Why
Jane's Addiction - Ritual De Lo Habitual
Jethro Tull - Aqualung (40th Anniversary 2CD)
Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick
Jimi Hendrix - Band of Gypsys
John Abercrombie - Timeless
John Coltrane - A Love Supreme
John Coltrane - Giant Steps
John Lennon - Plastic Ono Band
Jon Redfern - May Be Some Time
Jose Gonzalez - Veneer
Junip - Fields
Jurassic 5 - Power In Numbers
King Crimson - Discipline (40th Anniversary 2CD)
King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King (40th Anniversary 2CD)
King Crimson - In the Wake of Poseidon (40th Anniversary 2CD)
King Crimson - Islands (40th Anniversary 2CD)
King Crimson - Lizard (40th Anniversary 2CD)
King Crimson - Red (40th Anniversary 2CD)
King Crimson - Starless And Bible Black (40th Anniversary 2CD)
Kings of Convenience - Declaration Of Dependence
Kings of Convenience - Riot On An Empty Street
Kruder & Dorfmeister - The K&D Sessions
Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo
Kyuss - ..And The Circus Leaves Town
Kyuss - Blues For the Red Sun
Kyuss - Welcome To Sky Valley
Kyuss - Wretch
Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II
Leonard Cohen - Songs of Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen - Songs of Love & Hate
M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
MF DOOM - Born Like This
MGMT - Congratulations
MGMT - Congratulations
Mad Season - Above
Madlib - Madlib Medicine Show No. 3: Beat Konducta in Africa
Madlib - Madlib Medicine Show No. 7: High Jazz
Madlib - Shades of Blue: Madlib Invades Blue Note
Madvillain - Madvillainy
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Birds of Fire
Mahavishnu Orchestra - The Inner Mounting Flame
Main Source - Breaking Atoms
Marvin Gaye - What's Going On
Massive Attack - Blue Lines
Massive Attack - Mezzanine
Mazzy Star - She Hangs Brightly
Mercury Rev - Deserter's Songs
Midlake - The Courage of Others
Midlake - The Trials of Van Occupanther
Miles Davis - A Tribute To Jack Johnson
Miles Davis - Big Fun
Miles Davis - Bitches Brew
Miles Davis - Bitches Brew (Live)
Miles Davis - In A Silent Way
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue
Miles Davis - Live-Evil
Miles Davis - On the Corner
Mobb Deep - The Infamous
Mos Def - The Ecstatic
My Bloody Valentine - Loveless
My Morning Jacket - Z
Nas - Illmatic
Negative Zone - Negative Zone
Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Live At The Fillmore East, 1970
Neil Young - After the Gold Rush
Neil Young - Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
Neil Young - Harvest
Neil Young - Live At Massey Hall, 1971
Neil Young - Neil Young
Neil Young - On the Beach
Nick Drake - Bryter Layter
Nick Drake - Five Leaves Left
Nick Drake - Pink Moon
Nightmares on Wax - Carboot Soul
Nightmares on Wax - Smokers Delight
Odawas - The Blue Depths
One Day As A Lion - One Day As A Lion
Opeth - Blackwater Park
Orange Goblin - Thieving From The House of God
Organized Konfusion - Stress: The Extinction Agenda
Otis Redding - Otis Blue: Otis Redding Sings Soul
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Parliament - Mothership Connection
Parliament - Up For the Down Stroke
Pearl Jam - No Code
Pearl Jam - VS
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon (Immersion Box 5CD/DVD)
Pink Floyd - Discovery Boxset (14CD)
Pink Floyd - The Wall (Immersion Box 6CD/DVD)
Pink Floyd - The Wall Live 1980-1981
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here (Immersion Box 4CD/DVD)
Porcupine Tree - The Sky Moves Sideways
Portishead - Dummy
Portishead - Portishead
Portishead - Third
Priestess - Hello Master
Public Enemy - Fear Of A Black Planet
Public Enemy - It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back
Quantic - The 5th Exotic
Quantic - The Best Of
Queens of the Stone Age - R
Quest For Fire - Quest For Fire
Radiohead - Amnesiac
Radiohead - Hail to the Thief
Radiohead - In Rainbows
Radiohead - Kid A
Radiohead - Ok Computer
Radiohead - The Bends
Radiohead - The King Of Limbs
Real Estate - Days
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Mother's Milk
Ride - Nowhere
Rory Gallagher - Rory Gallagher
Rory Gallagher - Tattoo
Rory Gallagher - The Essential Rory Gallagher
Rush - 2112
Rush - A Farewell To Kings
Rush - Caress Of Steel
Rush - Fly By Night
Santana - Abraxas
Santana - Caravanserai
Santana - Santana
Sholi - Sholi
Sleepy Sun - Embrace
Sleepy Sun - Fever
Smith Westerns - Dye It Blonde
Soft Machine - Out-Bloody-Rageous: An Anthology 1967 - 1973
Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger
Soundgarden - Louder Than Love
Spiritualized - Ladies & Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space
Spiritualized - Lazer Guided Melodies
Steely Dan - Aja
Sufjan Stevens - Seven Swans
Tame Impala - Innerspeaker
Teebs - Ardour
Television - Marquee Moon
Temple of the Dog - Temple of the Dog
Ten Years After - A Space In Time
The Alan Parsons Project - Eye In the Sky
The Alan Parsons Project - I Robot
The Avalanches - Since I Left You
The Band - Music From Big Pink
The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds
The Beatles - 1962-1966/1967-1970 Anthology (4CD)
The Beautiful Girls - Learn Yourself
The Beautiful Girls - We're Already Gone
The Black Angels - Directions To See A Ghost
The Black Angels - Phosphene Dream
The Black Keys - Attack & Release
The Black Keys - Brothers
The Black Keys - Magic Potion
The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Bringing It All Back Home Again EP
The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Give It Back!
The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Singles Collection 1992-2011
The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Strung Out In Heaven
The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Take It From the Man!
The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Tepid Peppermint Wonderland: A Retrospective
The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Their Satanic Majesties' Second Request
The Budos Band - The Budos Band
The Budos Band - The Budos Band II
The Cave Singers - No Witch
The Cinematic Orchestra - Ma Fleur
The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love
The Decemberists - The King Is Dead
The Flaming Lips - Christmas On Mars
The Flaming Lips - Clouds Taste Metallic
The Flaming Lips - Ego Tripping At The Gates of Hell (EP)
The Flaming Lips - Embryonic
The Flaming Lips - Finally The Punk Rockers Are Taking Acid: 1983-1988
The Flaming Lips - Hit To Death in the Future Head
The Flaming Lips - The Day They Shot A Hole In the Jesus Egg (The Priest Driven Ambulance Album, Demos & Outtakes)
The Flaming Lips - The Soft Bulletin
The Flaming Lips - Transmissions From The Satellite Heart
The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
The Flaming Lips - Zaireeka
The Flaming Lips/Stardeath & White Dwarfs - Dark Side of the Moon
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Electric Ladyland
The Jimi Hendrix Experienced - Are You Experienced?
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Extra Width!
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Orange
The Morning Benders - Big Echo
The National - Boxer
The National - High Violet
The Q1 - Sound Surroundings
The Roots - Do You Want More?!!!??!
The Tallest Man On Earth - Sometimes The Blues Is Just A Passing Bird (EP)
The Tallest Man on Earth - The Wild Hunt
The Zombies - Odessey & Oracle
Thievery Corporation - Culture Of Fear
Thundercat - The Golden Age Of Apocalypse
Tom Waits - Blue Valentine
Tom Waits - Closing Time
Tom Waits - Foreign Affairs
Tom Waits - Heartattack & Vine
Tom Waits - Nighthawks At the Diner
Tom Waits - Rain Dogs
Tom Waits - Small Change
Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones
Tom Waits - The Heart Of Saturday Night
Tool - Lateralus
Toro Y Moi - Underneath The Pine
Tortoise - Standards
Tortoise - Tortoise
Truckfighters - Mania
Van Morrison - Astral Weeks
Van Morrison - Moondance
Various Artists - Zen: Ninjatune Recordings Retrospective
War - The World Is A Ghetto
Wishbone Ash - Argus
Wishbone Ash - Wishbone Ash
Witch - Witch
Wu-Tang Clan - Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers
Yawning Man - Vista Point
Yes - Close To The Edge
Yes - Fragile]]> http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2012/03/21/5drolm_my_top_10_hip-hop_albums:_%2310_-_%236 Wed, 21 Mar 2012 06:29:55 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2012/03/21/5drolm_my_top_10_hip-hop_albums:_%2310_-_%236 Still just brainstorming for a bigger thing.

#10 Main Source - Breaking Atoms
I fought with myself to slide "Madvillainy" or "Black On Both Sides" into this number 10 spot. But as much as I love the both of those I guess I'm just a sucker for the classic 90's sound found on this album and the nine that follow it. Kicking the list off is this classic from one of my personal favourite beat-makers, Large Professor. He just has a way with what he does that is just classic. The highlight for me being "Vamos A Rapair", with it's funky ass beat. Whenever I pull this one out I have vivid memories of watching through The Wire for the first time. Must have been a couple of nights there where I was marathoning through Season 4, listening to this each night beforehand and getting in the mood to watch that bad motherfucker Marlo and those poor kids' struggles haha. Having said that, the album isn't faultless by any stretch. While Extra P himself certainly is no slouch as a DJ/MC, he does leave a lot to be desired on the mic at times. Don't get it crossed though, from time to time he will pull out an absolute pearler of a rhyme. However, I love his voice and delivery so I don't really care what he's saying half the time. Bonus points for introducing us to the kid from the bridge named the rapper Nas. "The person you least expect to slit your neck nine times out of every ten crimes is the prime suspect."



#09 Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth - Mecca & The Soul Brother
Might as well get it outta the way, T.R.O.Y.G.O.A.T. Nothing more need be said, everything comes together on this track. The perfect example of arguably my favourite MC and one of the best beatmakers there ever was. Then you got hot shit like "Straighten It Out" & "Can't Front on Me". The problem here is that while this is all unquestionably dope, it's just a little too long and repetitive, running over 70 minutes long. It's taxing to listen to as a whole, with almost every track pushing 4 or 5 minutes. And while every single fucking beat Pete Rock did here is gloriously packed fill with delicious drums and lovely jazzy samples, they kinda play out the entire length without changing all that much. Don't get me wrong, C.L. is insane. Not many can touch him lyrically. I love him, but his momentum and delivery is pretty much the same on every track he ever got his hands on. I don't intend to sound so negative here. I guess what I'm trying to say is that taken in small shufflin' doses, it might just be the greatest shit ever. Even at number nine I still can't help but wonder what could have been. "Took me from a boy to a man so I always had a father when my biological didn't bother."



#08 GZA/Genius - Liquid Swords
Sick wicked nasty. the GZA had fucking attitude. the RZA was on top of his game here. Each Wu member that happens to drops by flat out kills it. Particularly on the track "4th Chamber". Ghostface Killah & Killah Priest warm it up for RZA, who goes fucking off the wall insane. My favourite RZA versue ever. The Genius then proceeds to bring it on home as he does oh so well. All that and it's not even the highlight of the album for me. That'd be the emotionally uplifting album closer "B.I.B.L.E. (Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth)" in which a game Killah Priest steps out on his own and absolutely crushes it with some seriously thought provoking words. I can't help but think Nujabes was heavily inspired by this one. Too much knowledge might break up the rhyme, he did it anyway just to wake up the mind! "I'm on some tax free shit by any means whether bound to hit scheme or some counterfeit cream."



#07 A Tribe Called Quest - People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm
In the early 90s between De La & Tribe in particular, the art form was just plain fun. Humour and Positivity were critical, they just knew how to have a good time and it pours out through these amazing records. I'm of the opinion that this one is quite underrated. Obviously it's not going to top the following two but it really ain't that far off. I will say this is the most diverse, even experimental of the first three. It bursts with confidence and good times. I absolutely adore that one sample used throughout the album to segue in and out of a couple of the tracks. Also loved how Monch & 'Po used it (and in turn tracked down and loved the sampled original by Eugene McDaniels). The boys are honing their craft here. They would of course go onto greater things. "Afrocentric livin', Africans be givin' a lot to the cause 'cause the cause has been risen."



#06 Wu-Tang Clan - Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers
Tell ya what, not much gets me more pumped up than blasting "Bring Da Ruckus" & "..Aint Nuthing Ta F' Wit" does. Man, they just get so fucking into it. Ridiculous energy. It would have been crazy to hear this shit when it was first dropping. The ultimate posse cuts reside with the mighty Wu. I place this higher than "Liquid Swords" purely on what my ears drank first. The beginning of all the madness. C.R.E.A.M. deserves all it's fucking props and then some. This is seriously one of the greatest of all time. I often find myself impromptu busting out Inspectah Deck's insane versue (when nobody is around, obviously.) His delivery and word play is just fucking perfect. The entire posse brang it, this album rules. "And the survey said... ya dead. Fatal flying guillotine chops off your fuckin head!"

]]> http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2012/03/15/5dgj47_my_top_30_albums:_1990-1995 Thu, 15 Mar 2012 09:06:33 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2012/03/15/5dgj47_my_top_30_albums:_1990-1995 Just picking my brain with a few lists. Throwing some ideas around for bigger things (stay tuned). Brainstormin'.

#30: Gang Starr - Daily Operation
#29: Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger
#28: A Tribe Called Quest - Midnight Marauders
#27: Ride - Nowhere
#26: Main Source - Breaking Atoms
#25: Mazzy Star - She Hangs Brightly
#24: Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth - Mecca & The Soul Brother
#23: Alice in Chains - Facelift
#22: GZA/Genius - Liquid Swords
#21: Sleep - Sleep's Holy Mountain
#20: The Flaming Lips - In a Priest Driven Ambulance
#19: A Tribe Called Quest - People's Instinctive Travels & The Paths of Rhythm
#18: Rage Against the Machine - Rage Against the Machine
#17: The Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness
#16: Wu-Tang Clan - Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers
#15: Radiohead - The Bends
#14: Kyuss - Welcome to Sky Valley
#13: De La Soul - Buhloone Mindstate
#12: Mad Season - Above
#11: Gang Starr - Step In The Arena
#10: The Flaming Lips - Hit to Death in the Future Head
#09: Portishead - Dummy
#08: Alice in Chains - Dirt
#07: A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory
#06: The Flaming Lips - Transmissions From the Satellite Heart
#05: Pearl Jam - Ten
#04: Organized Konfusion - Stress: The Extinction Agenda
#03: Kyuss - Blues for the Red Sun
#02: Nas - Illmatic
#01: The Flaming Lips - Clouds Taste Metallic

Honourable Mentions:

DJ Krush - Meiso
Jane's Addiction - Ritual De Lo Habitual
De La Soul - De La Soul Is Dead
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Big L - Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous
Temple of the Dog - Temple of the Dog
Spiritualized - Lazer Guided Melodies
Pearl Jam - Vs.
The Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth - The Main Ingredient]]> http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2012/01/06/59y3gl_2011:_my_top_%2325 Fri, 6 Jan 2012 15:27:16 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2012/01/06/59y3gl_2011:_my_top_%2325 #25 The Black Keys - El Camino
First four tracks here are fantastic. The rest of the album is way too samey for my liking. Was excited for this one, maybe they needed a little longer break to further develop their songs (?) Brothers (while a little repetitive in itself) is much better than this.



#24 Thundercat - The Golden Age of Apocalypse
Produced by Flying Lotus, a good way to start. Hit and miss, but when it hits it's deliciously funky. Dude plays a mean bass.



#23 Graveyard - Hisingen Blues
Straight up ~balls to the wall~ hard rock. No sense in trying to change it up too much with these swedes. If "Ain't Fit To Live Here" doesn't make you want to ape-shit drum on your desk like a spastic and smash shit around I don't know what will. Here's your retro 70's rock album of the year folks, courtesy of the wonderful Tee Pee Records (I'm looking at you Assemble Head in 2012!!)



#22 Toro y Moi - Underneath the Pine
Not unlike Thundercat's release posted above. A little more consistent and not quite as out of this world. In this particular case i mean that in a good way. "Go With You" is the highlight here, great track.



#21 Earth - Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light I
Badassery in it's slowest, menacing grooves. Cowboy elevator music. Would make for a sweet modern western soundtrack. That's just it though, a little too slow and repetitive (I realize that is kind of the point) to digest with your full and complete attention. Made for one hell of a soundtrack to my Battlefield 3 adventures earlier in the year. Looking forward to Part II, even if it's more of the same.



#20 Vetiver - The Errant Charm
Always a pleasant band to listen to. A little more inventive with their choice of instrumentation this time around, even some exotic downtempo moments. Summery. Mellow. Lush.



#19 40 Winks - It's the trip
If this album was a little more concise or had more of a direction I can only imagine how much higher I'd place it. While it might not even be there best work, there are moments here which are just incredible. "Subtle Piece" for example build and builds from silence until the tempo changes and the beat drops under a fantastic soul sample, and man does it drop. One of those "total ecstasy" moments I'd imagine. Lots of ideas, way too many even. Some hit big time, some fail. All kinds of stuff here, great production. Trip-Hop/Downtempo/Instrumental Hip-Hop fans owe it to themselves to check these lads out. They definitely don't play it safe like some of their contemporaries. Project Mooncircle have made a great home for these kind of artists and tunes (see Long Arm - The Branches).



#18 Chicago Odense Ensemble - Chicago Odense Ensemble
While it's sad to see the lack of stoner/psychedelic rock this year, it's exciting to see one of the finest bands in that vein mixing it up and keeping it fresh. Causa Sui members here lay down some wicked jams (check out the glorious 11 minute "Deliver") while members from other experimental outfits Tortoise & Isotope 217 paint some colourful jazz & ambient electronics all over it. If you love Miles' ventures into electronic jazz/rock/funk/fusion than this one is for you.



#17 Real Estate - Days
I missed this band on their first go around. It's lovely chilled out music. Surf rock/Beach Boys vibes. Quite alike one of my modern favourites who we hear very little about, Greater California. "It's Real" was one of the best singles of the year for me.



#16 The Roots - Undun
Still quite unfamiliar with The Roots. I know the time will come, might even be my next discovery, followed by obsession.. who knows. I do know though that Black Thought is insane though. Any time i hear him guest he kills it ("Zen Approach" by DJ Krush comes to mind). No different here. This one surprised me for a modern day hip-hop release.



#15 Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring for My Halo
Disorientating psychedelic folk-rock. Like an intoxicated Springsteen knocking out songs effortlessly and only half coherently. That's not a jab either. I love this kind of music. Highlights: "Baby's Arms", "Puppet to the Man" & "Society Is My Friend".




#14 The Decemberists - The King Is Dead
Much respect to these guys doing this after the incredible "Hazards". The sound suits them perfectly. Who knows what direction they take from here, I look forward to it. The two "Hymn" songs are my favourites here. Harvestin'.



#13 M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
An oddity for me at least. Not usually into this kind of thing. The album is pretty solid but the weight is gained by three incredible songs. Obviously "Midnight City" is one of the best songs of the year. An anthem, even. That sax solo at the end is to die for man. "Wait" is just heart-achingly beautiful. And finally "Splendor" is just straight fucking magical. It's like the greatest christmas tune never invented. Wouldn't have thought it possible to top "Midnight City" but in the context of the album it does just that.



#12 Smith Westerns - Dye It Blonde
Mr. Stardust, eat yer heart out. A lot of T. Rex & George Harrison for my money too. This is just fun. fun. fun. The melodies, the hooks, that fucking awesome fuzzy guitar. Love it! Not hugely original but hugely enjoyable none the less. Everybody wants to be a star on a Saturday night!



#11 Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Solid follow up. Just enough change to keep it fresh without straying too far from the nest. Can hear the creative production of bands like Grizzly Bear rubbing off on them I think. The first 3 songs are some of the best of the year. "Perth" in particular. One of the best songs of the year. All those drums, horns and sounds man. I love it. It's such an exciting and creating time for music.



#10 A.A. Bondy - Believers
A.A. Bondy is great. This is his greatest album. Go check out this great album. Seriously though, I love how The A.V. Club put it: "Break down an A.A. Bondy song, and the parts seem unremarkable: some simple guitar chords, an occasional harmonica break, a few carefully chosen words that don’t fully cohere into literal meanings, and stark vocals that sound emotionally overpowered into numbness. But put those parts back together, and another, less-tangible element emerges—a mix of intensity and weariness that makes Bondy’s music feel like 3 a.m. in a dark room illuminated by a single light bulb swinging softly at its center." I remember when i heard this for the first time, the tempo change in the middle of Rte. 28/Believers absolutely flawed me, just knocked me out. Breathtaking stuff.



#9 Akron/Family - S/T II: The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT
I can't quite figure out if these guys want us to think they're weird as fuck or they are just weird as fuck. Either way it doesn't matter, their music rules. Try slap a single label or a genre on this fantastic album, it can't be done. This might even climb higher over time, a real grower. "So It Goes", one of the greatest rock songs of the year, tightly balances messy fuzz guitar with sunny Beach Boys “Aaaah” harmonies. Elsewhere "Island" is just pure bliss. Trust me, this is awesome. First class engineering and production.



#8 The War on Drugs - Slave Ambient
Like Dylan or Springsteen meets Sonic Youth or My Bloody Valentine. Yes, this fucking rocks! "Baby Missiles" is just the best!



#7 Grails - Deep Politics
Love that this band exists. You gotta be in the right mood for them but when that time comes nothing beats it. Sounds like a soundtrack to some fucked up Lynch movie. This was and will continue to be my Battlefield 3 soundtrack. I know I overuse the word all the time but this ladies and gentleman, is badass. Cinematic and grand. I don't know if this qualifies for the mess of a genre known as "post-rock" but i do know this beats any of the bands operating in said genre. Eagerly await more music from these Portlandians.



#6 Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean
Boy oh boy has this fella come a long way. My second most anticipated album behind Helplessness Blues didn't disappoint. I loved the direction change with "The Shepherd's Dog" and I love that he went even farther out with this one. Impossible not to mention "Your Fake Name Is Not Good Enough For Me", definitely one of the years best. But a personal favourite for me is the peaceful "Glad Man Singing". The instrumentation on this album is first class, very creative.



#5 Radiohead - The King of Limbs
Naturally I didn't know what to think at first. Then I heard "Codex" and I was left speechless. After several listens I fell in love with it. Everything here is amazing, except for "Feral". Not sure what it is. Sticks out and annoys me in the center of a modern day classic, separating the trippy beats of the first half and my favourites on the second. "Codex" is one of their very best slow tunes for me. "Give up the Ghost" is beautiful. "Magpie", "Little By Little" & "Lotus Flower" are worthy additions the band's overwhelming cannon of awesome tunes.



#4 PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Late to the party on this one. At the time of writing I've only heard it 4 maybe 5 times. "The Words That Maketh Murder" hooked me instantly, one of my favourite songs of the year. The concept slowly ate away at me and the relevance of each track started to fit. This could be my favourite album of 2011 in 6 months. "In the Dark Places", "Written On The Forehead" and the best album closer of the year round out a great album.



#3 Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost
I was torn between my top 3. This one is probably the best group of songs (in the true sense of the word) of the year. In fact every track has something amazing to offer. Except of course for "Alex", which I maintain is the one and only weak spot on an otherwise flawless record. The keys and guitar work is just classic. You can play name the influences all you want but they've pieced it together with the best stuff of the last 40 years of music. Even that's not giving them enough credit. Great job on the production, everything sounds right. This is how it's done.



#2 Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
The fact that this lived up to my totally wild expectations is credit enough. Every song has been a personal favourite at one point or another. Overplayed the shit out of this band so I'm taking a much needed break from them. Classic. One for the ages.



#1 Long Arm - The Branches
I've spent the better part of the last 12 months treating my rather new-found addiction to the sounds of jazzy downtempo/trip-hop. At the height of my addiction I was hitting daily dosages of Bonobo, Emancipator, Arts the Beatdoctor, Quantic and the like. Around this time I discovered this fantastic producer from Russia on the Project Mooncircle Label. His technique and use of samples is like nothing I've ever heard. The Louie Armstrong-like sections are absolutely stunning. Never looked back. Excited to see where he goes from here.



Honourable Mentions:
Weird Owl - Build Your Beast A Fire
Thievery Corporation - Culture of Fear
Thee Oh Sees - Castlemania
Alexander - Alexander
The Psychic Paramount - II
Portugal. The Man - In the Mountain in the Cloud
Nostalgia 77 - The Sleepwalking Society
Anna Ternheim - The Night Visitor
The Natural Yogurt Band - Tuck In With...
Mogwai - Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will
J Mascis - Several Shades of Why
The Horrors - Skying
Crystal Antlers - Two-Way Mirror]]> http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2011/08/07/4iyfxp_2010:_my_top_%2320 Sun, 7 Aug 2011 06:55:19 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2011/08/07/4iyfxp_2010:_my_top_%2320 20. The Morning Benders - Big Echo
19. Jason Simon - Jason Simon
18. Citay - Dream Get Together
17. Teebs - Ardour
16. The Soundcarriers - Celeste
‎15. Berry Weight - Music For Imaginary Movies
14. Junip - Fields
13. The Q4 - Sound Surroundings
12. Midlake - The Courage of Others
11. The Budos Band - The Budos Band III
10. MGMT - Congratulations
09. Emancipator - Safe in the Steep Cliffs
08. The National - High Violet
07. Black Mountain - Wilderness Heart
06. Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma
‎05. Sleepy Sun - Fever
04. The Tallest Man on Earth - The Wild Hunt
03. Beach House - Teen Dream
02. The Black Keys - Brothers
01. Bonobo - Black Sands

Honorable Mentions:

Madlib's Medicine Show series
Dungen - Skit I Allt
Tipper - Broken Soul Jamboree
Quest for Fire - Lights From Paradise
The Walkmen - Lisbon
Portugal. The Man - American Ghetto
Tame Impala - Innerspeaker
Crookram - Through Windows
Tweak Bird - Tweak Bird
Serpent Throne - White Summer/Black Winter
The Black Angels - Phosphene Dream
Asteroid - II]]> http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2010/06/29/3qpeus_the_soft_bulletin:_personally_preferred_track-listing Tue, 29 Jun 2010 04:27:21 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2010/06/29/3qpeus_the_soft_bulletin:_personally_preferred_track-listing

~ The Flaming Lips
~ The Soft Bulletin

So i figure there might have been a few others at one stage in the bind i currently find myself in. For years now the original US version is all I have known. I did however have "Slow Motion" (originally only from the UK version).. i just never really listened to it with the rest of the album.. obviously as it felt a little funny (like i said, only knowing the US version).

I recently came across the "Demastered" version and fell in love with the album, all over again. However messing with the album flow that I always knew and loved was (and still is) hard to familiarize with. I love and greatly prefer the original Lips' mix of "Race for the Prize" to the mokran mix. Naturally "Sleeping on the Roof" feels like the album's end.. but I've quickly come to love the original Lips' "Buggin'" mix with it's contrast to the former track. I think it works really well as the album closer. My main problem though is with "The Spiderbite Song". Sure it is a lovely song.. but i much preferred it at track 4. Sliding it in between the last few tracks seems to prolong the ending in my opinion.. if that makes any sense. For now i've just stuck it at No. 4, in between "The Spark that Bled" & "Slow Motion".

While i do prefer the originals, the Mokran mixes are still nice alternatives on the odd occasion. I like to keep them close for when I'm skimming through individual songs. I've just taken them from the US mix and added them to the end of my preferred track-list.

So i end up with:

01. Race for the Prize (sacrifice of the new scientists)
02. A Spoonful Weighs a Ton
03. The Spark That Bled (The Softest Bullet Ever Shot)
04. The Spiderbite Song
05. Slow Motion
06. What Is The Light? (An untested hypothesis suggesting that the chemical (in our brains) by which we are able to experience the sensation of being in love is the same chemical that caused the "Big Bang" that was the birth of the accelerating universe)
07. The Observer
08. Waitin' for a Superman (Is it gettin' heavy?)
09. Suddenly Everything Has Changed (Death anxiety caused by moments of boredom)
10. The Gash (Battle hymn for the wounded mathematician)
11. Feeling Yourself Disintegrate
12. Sleeping on the Roof (excerpt from "Should We Keep The Severed Head Awake??")
13. Buggin' (The Buzz of Love Is Busy Buggin' You)

Bonus Tracks:

14. Race for the Prize (Mokran mix)
15. Waitin' for a Superman (Mokran mix)
16. Buggin' (Mokran mix)

-

I know it probably seems like I'm wasting my time over-doing this, who cares right? I don't know, It just annoys me how and when things are released in many different ways like this. At least we get the choice i suppose. It kinda sucks to muck around with the band's desired track-list.. but this way just feels better to me. Surely I'm not the only person to ever rack their brain out wondering about all this..

tldr: Which version do you prefer? Have you edited the track-list to suit your own preference? ]]> http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2010/03/02/3ggfb0_horrible_attempt_@_beat-making Tue, 2 Mar 2010 03:28:42 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2010/03/02/3ggfb0_horrible_attempt_@_beat-making Download: http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?kwzmzgdoojf (1.4MB)
Stream: http://www.zshare.net/audio/732000648f052f57/

I was listening to "Atom Heart Mother" the other night and remembered how much i love the big brassy orchestra parts (Rick Wright's "Summer '68" in particular). I've recently discovered Madlib and have been very impressed. The "Shades of Blue" & "Madvillainy" albums impressed me the most so far. I guess it kinda inspired me to fuck around with the Floyd song mentioned above, as well as a few other tracks. Obviously I had no real idea or knowledge on how to go about it, nor am i even taking it seriously at all.. just having some fun, even if it might sound like absolute trollop..

So it took like 4 hours or so all up, using the following:

Goldwave (to cut up the samples)
FXpansion Amber (create the laughably default-sounding, out of tune base)
Soundbooth CS4 (layer it all together)

Very dodgy, but you get the idea... I enjoyed making it at least.

What do you think?

Samples:

Archie Shepp - You're What This Day Is All About
Ardo Dombec - Spectaculum
Atlantis Philharmonic - Death Man
Can - Halleluhwah
Eloy - The Bells Of Notre Dame
The Flaming Lips - A Spoonful Weighs a Ton
The Flaming Lips - Watching the Planets
Herbie Hancock - Chameleon
King Crimson - Indoor Games
Led Zeppelin - Ramble On
Pink Floyd - Summer '68
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - Shredder Evil Laugh (S1E1 1987)]]> http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2009/12/17/394gcx_2009:_my_top_%2325 Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:54:22 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/SometimeWorld/journal/2009/12/17/394gcx_2009:_my_top_%2325 #1 Sleepy Sun - Embrace
Guess I gotta thank The Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound for putting me onto this marvelous group. When I found out vocalists Rachael Williams and Bret Constantino were to record with Assemble Head on their own latest outing I thought I'd better check them out to keep me busy while i patiently waited for "When Sweet Sleep Returned". As it turned out "Embrace" caught me totally off guard, and blew me the fuck away. Better than anything i could have expected. I've been keeping tabs on them all year, checking out videos of all their performances and i gotta admit I'm a total sucker for everything they do. Ridiculously awesome riffs, lovely spacey jams. They've another new album just around the corner, and from what I've heard so far it's going to slaughter!



#2 Sholi - Sholi
If it weren't for the now-defunct indiepassion blog i'd have never discovered this wonderful and totally unique gem. It was the first album to blow me away this year, way back in early February. Some would carelessly tag this as indie garbage but that simply isn't the case. The musicianship and songwriting is very unique, with each song comes a lovely melody as well as an excellent aggressive drive. Their style is balanced, emotive, hypnotic, intelligently composed and all the while incredibly technical. Oh, and i didn't even mention the drumming on this record. Good lord, just get it and listen to the dude tear it up! - P.S. "Spy In The House of Memories" totally sounds like some modern indie/King Crimson hybrid, really fucking cool.



#3 The Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound - When Sweet Sleep Returned
I've mentioned it a dozen times prior, but god damn it do love Tee Pee Records. Everything they put out is golden, and this was no exception. I was completely obsessed with Assemble Head last year when i discovered their previous record "Ekranoplan". There's just something about their sound that i can come back to again and again. Not to harp on the meaningless, but i'd unkowingly rack up 50+ spins of their albums and have them jump up into my most played here on last.fm without even knowing it (and certainly without getting sick of them). While they might not have changed it up much from album to album, it's certainly no less enjoyable. Can't wait to see what they do next. If it's more of the same i won't mind at all.



#4 Ancestors - Of Sound Mind
Ancestors' 2008 debut was one of my favourites so naturally i was keeping tabs on this baby! What we have here is essentially 4 fucking huge pieces, each clocking in at around 15 minutes - and a series of short and contrasting interludes. They've added so much to their already-scorching sound here and almost sound like a completely different band. The production is truly something to behold. I absolutely love the keys spread all over this album, the bluesy guitar solo's are very tasty as well. Running in at just over an hour usually pushes it for me, but i still didn't want this one to end. It smacked me right from the get-go. Keep an ear out for these heavy motherfuckers!



#5 The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love
The Decemberists' earlier work never really clicked with me, but to be fair i don't think i ever really gave them a chance. It was because of this i was completely blown away with "Hazards", a beautiful collection of songs and recurring themes all arranged to perfection. That break down in "A Bower Scene" is one of the coolest things i've heard in a long time! Gotta give their earlier stuff a second chance asap.



#6 Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - Up From Below
The buzz on this crazy bunch has been steadily picking up momentum ever since the Letterman performance earlier in the year. It seems as if everyone who caught them that night instantly fell in love with them. I managed to pick a copy up from Amazon for pocket change and now it's become one of my favourites of the year. It's big and wild, easy to sing along with, completely over the top and most importantly, it's just a really entertaining listening experience.



#7 Alice in Chains - Black Gives Way to Blue
I really didn't know what to expect with this. It's good enough to hold up to the band's legacy, and at this point in time i guess that's all we can ask of it. I still don't really like "Lessons Learned" and "Take Her Out", they both seem like filler in my opinion, but everything else holds up. "When The Sun Rose Again" is excellent. The highlight has to be the haunting "Private Hell", which one could guess narrates Layne's final days, as well as the closing title track which ends too quickly, further serving it's purpose. A fitting tribute to Layne, and a fitting swan song for the band should they choose not to continue.



#8 Greater California - All the Colors
This here's another gem i stumbled upon while browsing the aforementioned indiepassion blog. They're from Long Beach, L.A. Road trips, cookouts, sunny days and beaches, Pet Sounds and nostalgia. All that good cheesy stuff comes to mind. Produced by Ikey Owens of TMV but don't let that give you the wrong impression. This is totally melancholic and chilled. My favourite "midnight album" of the year.



#9 Imaad Wasif - The Voidist
Given Tee Pee Records' reputation as one helluva heavy label i gotta admit i was a little hesitant while reading about this Canadian fella, who is primarily known as the touring guitarist for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. I decided to check out all three of his solo albums, including this, his latest. The debut was very dark and mellow which brang to mind Elliott Smith at first. In contrast, his second album "Strange Hexes" with his current backing band Two Part Beast (a modern Crazy Horse in the making) is fucking loud, and it fucking rocks! His latest "The Voidist" mixes the two elements into one great and unique record. Clearly his best so far.



#10 Balmorhea - All Is Wild, All Is Silent
Gotta be honest, I didn't think much of this after my first few listens. A few months after release i returned to it and it slowly infected my psyche. Every time i listen i imagine some wonderful film in which this would comfortably suit as a score. The landscapes of No Country & There Will Be Blood come to mind. Hell I've never even visited the US, but i sure do love Balmorhea's latest Americana-tinged release.



#11 Stardeath and White Dwarfs - The Birth
Hot damn, this caught me by suprise! Absolutely love the Floyd influence. But there is really so much more going on here, hell i was half expecting Coyne No. 2 to rap along with that wicked digi-happy beat from "I Can't Get Away". The best Coyne-family release of the year! Bring on that family gathering-dsotm cover already.



#12 A.A. Bondy - When The Devil's Loose
A.A. Bondy has been one of my favourite folk discoveries of the last few years. He obviously takes his cue from the greats, and it shows. However it's this sophomore release of his where he's really fleshed out his own familiar sound. "A Slow Parade" & "Oh The Vampyre" are two of my favourite songs of the year.



#13 Truckfighters - Mania
These guys have been steadily chugging along as the new Kyuss over in their native Sweden for a few years now. From release to release they have tightened up a little but this here, their latest, is the real deal. They really stretched out here and it's payed off as one of the best rock albums of the year, for me anyway. It's straight up classic desert rock with a little 90's grunge thrown in for good measure. Tell me the vocal harmonies on the closer "Blackness" don't sound a hell of a lot like Cantrell and Staley! Awesome.



#14 Kings of Convenience - Declaration Of Dependence
This is wonderful late night listening. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure it's just as excellent at all times of the day and night. I probably won't listen to it a whole lot but when those nights come this is what I'll be reaching for. I'm liking it better than their previous so far.



#15 Hopewell - Good Good Desperation
Leave science behind and imagine for a moment if you will, a mass orgy the likes nobody has ever seen before, in which Perry Farrell and his original band of addicts somehow, someway, impregnate Jason Simon and his band, Dead Meadow. Stay with me.. ok so these four or five little messed up children grow up and form a band of their own, yeah you know it, Hopewell. The science works!



#16 Mouse on the Keys - An Anxious Object
Discovered this fantastic Japanese jazz band from TheSirensSound blog last year. The drumming especially is excellent. The second half of the album in particular is mind blowing. The funky 'Double Bind' has one of my favourite beats in a long long time. The next track 'Soil' cruises along at a nice pace before unleashing an absolutely incredible extended sax solo, the definitive highlight of the album for me. Good funky jazz fusion/post-rock with nice beats, a fun listen.



#17 Black Math Horseman - Wyllt
Progsychedoomic-Metal? Nah, fuck tags. But this is a welcomed fresh breath among those genres mentioned. The whole album is solid but i have to mention the closing track. Boy oh boy is it heavy. One of my favourites of the year. Lead singer Sera Timms has one hell of a possessed, demonic-like howl to her. Yes, her.



#18 Blakroc - Blakroc
I didn't even see this one coming. I'm not the biggest fan of The Black Keys but i like what they did here and in turn i guess I gotta check out more of their work. A few of the MC's annoy me but for the most part i enjoy it all. I love the first Mos Def track, as well as the RZA & Pharoahe track the most. I enjoyed the studio videos, seeing how everyone interacted and how the project came about through it's stages. I read they are compiling all that into some kind of documentary soon, should be cool.



#19 Quest for Fire - Quest For Fire
Why is it that when i first seen this creepy artwork of a seemingly drug-fucked human being slobbering all over his/her/it's own breasts (???) I was instantly set on obtaining the album? What does that say about me? At any rate, i did notice this was on the wonderful Tee Pee Records label and knew right away of the quality waiting to be discovered. Fortunately for me, this was but one of the many awesome psych releases of '09.



#20 Shrinebuilder - Shrinebuilder
How could this ever possibly live up to the huge expectations of most fans? I mean let's face it, to have these four influential giantlemen of all things heavy in the same room is fucking big. Having said that, if you can put all that bullshit to the side and just let this one slowly burn through, you WILL see the light! If you dig this, check out the latest Ancestors' record posted up top. Trust me on that.



#21 The Flaming Lips - Embryonic
Strange, strange, strange. I gotta give 'em credit for changing it up, but good lord! All i know is after 5-10 listens of the latest Lips album i still can't quite get my head around it. Like i said, strange. One can only wonder what other kinds of strange Uncle Coyne & co will unearth to us come decade number four! I can't wait to find out.



#22 Mastodon - Crack the Skye
For one reason or another this was my introduction to the mighty Mastodon. Gotta admit this is pretty kick-ass, i don't much care for the vocals though. I see this moving up the list in time. It's been a pretty fucking heavy year though...



#23 Black Bonzo - Guillotine Drama
This was probably my most anticipated album of the year and while it certainly isn't bad, i figure i might have hyped it up too much. Nothing was going to live up to what i was expecting. Hell, i don't even know what i was expecting. I can't really fault the album.. the songs are great and the band is continually adding new and interesting dimensions to their already awesome brand of "retro" prog-rock. Gotta admit that's one god-awful cover design though. I'm just glad this band exists, to be honest.



#24 Serpent Throne - The Battle Of Old Crow
Sabbath worship at it's finest. You could probably con someone into thinking this is a lost Iommi, Geezer & Billy Ward jam record. It really is spot on.. although completely instrumental. Bottom line is while I'm listening to this album it fucking rocks. But when i'm not i tend to completely forget about it. In a way that kind of sums it up. It'd be interesting to hear these guys lay down some vocals on top, but i guess that's not what it's about.



#25 Arctic Monkeys - Humbug
Sure i knew of them and a few of their earlier hits, but until "Humbug" i had never given a shit about the Arctic Monkeys. Decided to check this out after learning of Homme's involvement. Yep, "his" sound is definitely present. This is pretty cool.




Honourable Mentions:
Radio Moscow - Brain Cycles
Mono - Hymn To The Immortal Wind
Pearl Jam - Backspacer
Gösta Berlings Saga - Detta har hänt
Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
Astra - The Weirding
Bowerbirds - Upper Air
Grizzly Bear - Vecktamist
Latitudes - Agonist
John Zorn - O'o
Whitetree - cloudland
Long Distance Calling - Avoid The Light
Hanne Hukkelberg - Blood From a Stone
Dinosaur Jr. - Farm
Zu - Carboniferous
Crystal Antlers - Tentacles
Vetiver - Tight Knit
Foreign Born - Person to Person
Isis - Wavering Radiant
Lisa O Piu - When this was the future


Feedback/Comments:
So what do ya think folks? Feel free to comment on any shared tastes or anything else. Come on, let me have it for not ranking "Merriweather Post Pavilion" - you know you want to.

Anyway, that will do for now. Cheers.

Marcus :]]]>