Bumper Issue (185-171)

Well I've missed a few days due to general incompetence and general laziness so it's a bumper issue today of 15 albums instead of 5. I do spoil you. Don't I? (Words to follow but here's some more from the list while you're waiting)

185. Hella-There's No 666 In Outer Space [Ipecac 2007]

184. M83-Saturdays=Youth [Mute 2008]

183. 65daysofstatic-One Time For All Time [Monotreme 2005]

182. Scout Niblett-This Fool Can Die Now [Too Pure 2007]

181. Crystal Castles-Crystal Castles [Different 2008]

180. No Age-Nouns [Sub Pop 2008]

179. Isolee-wearemonster [Playhouse 2005]

178. The Kills-No Wow [Domino 2005]

177. MF Doom-Mm..Food [Rhymesayers 2004]

176. The Decemberists-The Crane Wife [Rough Trade 2006]

175. cLOUDDEAD-Ten [Big Dada 2004]

174. Distance-Repurcussions [Planet Mu 2008]

173. Gang Gang Dance-Saint Dymphana [Warp 2008]

172. Devendra Banhart-Cripple Crow [XL 2005]

171. Ryan Adams-29 [Lost Highway 2005]

Oops Missed A Day (190-186)

Sorry about a lack of update yesterday, I was sleeping (like a baby). So no point fannying around let's crack on with this bitch.

190. The Stills-Logic Will Break Your Heart [sixsevenine 2003]

The essence of post punk reincarnated for the 21st century. The influences are all too familiar, The Smiths, The Cure that whole gang. These songs are about girls and the boys who can't get them. Or boys that get those girls and then inevitably fuck it up. Or those boys who just dream about girls whether they've got them or not. Lyrically & musically this is stuck back in the early 80s, yet what you have to remember is that music is timeless. This album will stick with pretty much anyone who hears it, the reverberating guitars, the catharic lyrics or the general gloomy mood of the album will have you entranced.

189. Deerhunter-Cryptograms [Kranky 2007]

Imagine being trapped in an air raid bunker in World War II for a long period of time in the dark on your own apart from a strange man (probably in your head) spouting nonsense to you. Bleak, desolate and insular, Deerhunter's second album is a very lonely affair. Created for those long walks home in the dark when the sky seems like it's about to cave in. Except it's caving in really really slowly. There is a sense of dread. Whatever instruments being used, be they slow creeping synths, expansive gloomy guitars, loud simplistic drumming, manage to create an album that will keep your tensions high, your pulse beating from slow to fast in a matter of seconds. All manner of bizarre thoughts will enter your mind as you are taken away to a place that resonates fear, loneliness and suicide.

188. Beck-Modern Guilt [XL 2008]

A true chameleon in every sense of the words. This man has had more musical styles than I've had proper meals in the last 8 weeks. It's no different here either. Once again Beck has re-created himself. With Modern Guilt he also seems to have kept his indulgent tendencies refrained. His last two albums had been over inflated with some monster tracks and a hell of a lot of filler. Not here though, the man has kept it simple. An album with his same splendiferous beats and rhythms and his own idiosyncratic lyrics. Yet this is not just a party album, there are also times of reflection see the gorgeous lead single Chemtrails and Volcano. He hasn't forget how to party though with Gamma Ray, Youthless and the title track standing out as some of the funkiest tracks from his catalogue.

187. The Fiery Furnaces-Gallowsbird's Barks [Rough Trade 2003]

Oft compared to The White Stripes when this album was released way back in 2003. The Fiery Furnaces are so much different, much more experimental, way more ideas and the ability to make you wonder quite how they are making the sounds that are coming out of your stereo. Boy/girl vocals splattered along with random electronics, trashy acoustic guitars and grand piano make this album a truly varied one. Many would argue that Gallowsbird's Bark offers too much on the eclectic factor and it's just one big jumble of instruments. They're wrong it's a musical masterpiece that has many directions and something new to be discovered each time you listen to it.

186. Albert Hammond Jr.-Yours To Keep [Rough Trade 2006]

A tremendous solo effort from one of the members of The Strokes. Catchy, perfect indie pop to soundtrack those days in the sun that will disappear if you don't make the most of them. As much as I love the music on this, sweet little guitar licks with the most basic drumming supporting it, it's all about the lyrics for me in particular the brutally honest Scared to the carefree In Transit. Albert's lyrics have a particular resonance for people who don't want to be stuck in the same thing day in and day out yet don't want to cause uproar. For people who just want to be happy.

And On We Go (195-191)

I'm not really someone who is into doing things the long way round, I usually try find shortcuts. So doing these in five albums per blog is certainly not my preferred style but I hope it will add more insight to the records that are being listed. And on we go.

195. Gui Boratto-Chromophobia [Kompakt 2007]

An album to sooth the soul. The midway point between ambient drone and minimal techno. This is music to get lost in, anywhere in the world. Be it walking to university, going on the tube, in the bath, running through an open field. It's transcendent. Most albums have to played in certain environments or when you're in a certain mood. However in no way is this album emotionless, it breathes life into your very soul. The drone like beats looping and looping over each other will wrap your mind into another universe and take you there for a good hour and ten minutes away from whatever it is you're doing.

194. Ponytail-Ice Cream Spiritual [We Are Free 2008]

The only way I can truly describe this band is imagine The Rugrats fronted by Angelica on some kind of intense sugar high. The main talking, and probably divisive point, about this band is lead singer Molly Seigel's vocals and on their own yeah they're a bit horrible. Yet with the chaotic instrumentation around them, they are just another insane tuning of an instrument really. Ponytail are loud & chaotic but hardly violent, this is party music. When I say party music I mean that point when everybody's so drunk that anything sounds good. (Listening to this now sober is certainly interesting).

193. Patrick Wolf-Lycanthropy [Tomlab 2003]

Released when he was twenty and much of it recorded before then, this album is incredibly mature. A young man wrestling with a world with so many questions about himself, about other people and the world around him. Along with the observant view of the world, in particular the track "The Childcatcher", the album is musically diverse. Instruments change from track to track allowing for an album that never suffers from a lack of ideas. From the gorgeous string soaked "Pigeon Song" to the heavy synth infused "Paris" this album has enough musical twists and turns to keep anyone gripped right until the end.

192. Amusement Parks On Fire-Amusement Parks On Fire [Invada 2005]

Shoegaze in the 21st century has never sounded so sad. This album aches and hurts right from the heart-achingly beautiful strings over the opener "23 Jewels" to the sheer fury that rages through the albums centre-piece "Wiper" a song that builds and builds under layers and layers of guitars. Taken to perilous heights at times, this album is certainly a throwback to that late 80s early 90s period but my no means is it a bad one. I can't drive but if I could, I would wait until it was at least 1am, grab this album stick it on in the car and just drive and see where the road took me. An album of true emotional velocity, to take you anywhere when your heart has sunk.

191. Akron/Family-Love Is Simple [Young God 2007]

Imagine if instead of going to India The Beatles had gone back in time to the USA and met the American Indians. That's kind of how this album sounds. Gorgeous melodies over plucked guitars with tribal drums thrown into the mix. An album that evokes that free spirit feel, where anyone can feel comfortable in it's surrounding. There is nothing threatening here just an album to share the good times with your friends through those long summers that you wish would never end. Open, honest and sincere this album greets you with open arms and embraces you with the worlds biggest hug.

It's The Final Countdown (200-196)

The list is in order, the 200 greatest albums of this decade. It's time for the final countdown, albeit this is part one of many (the number one will be revealed sometime near Christmas probably). Anyway on with the show hey.

200. Electrelane-The Power Out [Too Pure 2004]

The first (well technically last) album in this list actually references the blog I wrote the other day. Electrelane's second album sounds spookily like Stereolab. The use of the french language in particular on the opening track Gone Under Sea, echoes the "groop" very well without sounding contrived. The album delves into krautrock as the album progresses, the experimental The Valleys is a highlight in this. Slow manipulative drum machines, give off that closed cold atmosphere and the tension rises with deep choir that enters halfway through. The album is not without accessibility, this is accentuated by the glorious The Bit Between Your Teeth. A simplistic yet repetitive riff with gorgeous intertwining vocals allows for the band to open up and I hate to use this phrase but they rock out. Varied instrumentally, varied lyrically, Electrelane come up with an album that is perfect for opening up this list and the diversity that awaits us.

199. Glass Candy-B/E/A/T/B/O/X [Italians Do It Better 2007]

This is exactly how dance music should sound, not racing fast at the speed of a bullet but more like the speed of say a cheetah. Grooves build and build and the space between them gets wider and wider. Yet also dancier. Spaced out and synthed out Glass Candy created an album designed to infiltrate seedy clubs, underground bars and you walking home after dark after you've been to those bars and clubs. Ida No's vocals drip with social and sexual paranoia and joy. There is something very filthy about this album for everyone. Whether it's the sexual vocals or those long drawn out synth rhythms, you might just feel slightly violated or very pleased by the end of the album.

198. Quasimoto-The Further Adventures Of Lord Quas [PIAS 2005]

The first time I heard this album my first thoughts was "WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT". Of course back then I used the word shit as rubbish. Now I would describe this as the shit, as in you know it's pretty freaking good. Quasimoto is Madlib's insane alter ego who has Madlib's low pitched vocals slowed down mixed with hundreds of samples and Madlib's original voice. The true genius of the album is amazingly the way it seems to make up for a lack of say musical consistency with constant hip shaking beats that are used in the best way to open up Quasimoto's unique vocals. To appreciate this album you may have to listen to it once and come back to it a couple of times before it clicks. But trust me give it the time and this one will stick in your mind be it the hip shaking samples or the inane lyrics that are splattered all across this record.

197. The Moldy Peaches-The Moldy Peaches [Rough Trade 2001]

Childish? Yes. Simplistic? Yes. Badly produced? Probably yes. Doesn't sound too good so far does it? But that's the whole point of this album. You put it on when you feel childlike, simplistic and you're not quite sure how everything is going to fit into place. From the funny yet startilingly honest lyrics of Lucky Number Nine to the overdriven guitars on Little Bunny Foo Foo, this album is about regaining that childlike quality that has disappeared from most adults. Don't worry about what you have said or what you might say, say it and then move on. Like a child would.

196. Cadence Weapon-Afterparty Babies [Big Dada 2008]

Woah that's some big beats that are coming out of the stereo there. Loud both lyrically and musically this album is huge in every way. The beats are completely monstrous for example the riotous House Music pounds and pounds for it's full five and a half minute running time. Intense and personal lyrics with a social awareness that extends further than hip hop heads. Cadence Weapon created an album that spoke to both black and white young people. He understood how people can feel desentisized in this world that we live in, but instead of picking up a guitar and writing some emo-esque lyrics; he raps around huge beats that create a party atmosphere that will resonate with anyone who feels unsatisfied with this instant satisfaction society that we live in.

Inní Mér Syngur Vitleysingur/Inside Me a Lunatic Sings

Á silfur-á / On a silver river
Lýsir allan heiminn og augun blá / You illuminate the whole world and blue eyes
Skera stjörnuhiminn / Cut the starry sky
Ég óska mér og loka nú augunum / I make a wish and close my eyes
Já gerðu það, nú rætist saga / Yes do that, now begins the story
Ó nei / Oh no

Á stjörnuhraða / At lightspeed
Inni í hjarta springur, flugvélarbrak / Inside a heart explodes, an airplane crash
Oní jörðu syngur / Down on the earth sings
Ég óska mér og loka nú augunum / I make a wish and close my eyes
Já gerðu það, lágfara dans / Yes do that, a silly dance
Allt gleymist í smásmá stund og rætist samt / All is forgotten in very little time and yet begins
Opna augun / Open eyes
Ó nei / Oh no

Minn besti vinur hverju sem dynur / My best friend no matter whatever happens
Ég kyngi tári og anda hári / I swallow tears and breathe hair
Illum látum, í faðmi grátum / A bad break, we cry in each other arms
Þegar að við hittumst / When we meet
Þegar að við kyssumst / When we kiss
Varirnar brenndu, höldumst í hendur / The lips burning, we hold hands
Ég sé þig vakinn / I see you wake
Ég sé þig nakinn / I see you naked
Inní mér syngur vitleysingur / Inside me a lunatic sings
Alltaf þið vaða, við hlaupum hraðar / Always rushing, we run quickly
Allt verður smærra / Everything becomes smaller
Ég öskra hærra / I scream louder
Er er við aða, í burtu fara / I'm with a shell, going away

Minn besti vinur hverju sem dynur / My best friend no matter whatever happens
Illum látum, í faðmi grátum / A bad break, we cry in each others arms
Ég kyngi tári og anda hári / I swallow tears and breathe hair
Þegar að við hittumst / When we meet
Þegar að við kyssumst / When we kiss
Varirnar brenndu, höldumst í hendur / The lips burning, we hold hands
Ég sé þig vakinn / I see you wake
Ég sé þig nakinn / I see you naked
Inní mér syngur vitleysingur / Inside me a lunatic sings

Albums Of The Decade - A Couple Of Missing Legends

My wrists hurt (insert wank joke here). This is from finally writing down the 200 albums for my albums of the decade list due to start sometime next week. The list is extensive, beautiful, in fact it also brings a small tear to my eye when I look at it (even though they aren't in order yet). However there are two artists who have released really good albums this past decade however they have been squeezed out of my final list.

These two artists are Stereolab and Belle & Sebastian:

Both of these artists have extensive discographies that reach back into the early nineties. However as much as I love their albums this side of 1999, the reason that say albums as good as The Life Pursuit and Margerine Eclipse they justdon't come near to the sheer class of If You're Feeling Sinister and Dots & Loops. Maybe it is wrong to judge a band on previous exploits I don't know. I feel a certain sense of sadness that I have no room in a list of 200 albums for two of my favourite artists ever.

The absence of these artists annoys me further as neither of these bands were part of particular scenes, they didn't carry any allegiances, they stood on there own amongst the vile of britpop, boy-bands and the dreadful Cool Britannia that enraptured our nation. Yet as we move into the 21st century maybe it's time that both Stereolab (on a hiatus) & Belle & Sebastian (just coming offa hiatus) take a break and just look back at their legacy and those great albums that they created in the mid to late nineties and acknowledge the way they have influenced the artists of the decade just gone. They may not be here today but will certainly NOT be gone tomorrow.

The Mystery Of The Avalanches Second Album

The album pictured above might be the greatest musical composition of the 21st century. Amassed from over 3000 vinyl samples. Since I Left You is a journey, one that will take you to worlds that you never knew existed and then fling you back to worlds that you knew did exist but hadn't trekked through that world's deep undiscovered jungles. From the blissful opening of the title track through to the sheer funk voice sample of Frontier Psychiatrist this album will touch a nerve that you never knew existed.

Now I have listened to this album countless times and as much as I love it. My craving for a follow up may be even stronger. Rumours of a follow-up started as far back as 2005. So yeah you think maybe it'll be a year or so. Come 2006, 2007 still nothing. We are now about to enter the year 2010, a good nine years since this albums release, and still no new tracks, no firm announcement of a new record. Zilch, nada, nothing.

Now Since I Left You suffered delays for a couple of years due to a need for clearing samples which is always going to happen with an album that is created in such a way. Now that album infamously had a Madonna sample on which was cleared. Which is why I do not believe that this album is still being cleared for sampling reasons. Honestly is there actually any new material have The Avalanches just been fucking us over for the last eight years, teasing us every year a little bit more. Yeah well forget it ok, I'm just going to treasure Since I Left You very close to my heart. It's dear to me. Oh and in the mean time and probably before The Avalanches release an ounce of new material I will be releasing an Avalanches tribute album called Since You Left Us. It's going to be very bitter.