I thought I’d offer something of a musical interlude, to break up all my pretentious waffling. So, here’s the platters that matter folks – a few tracks from some much-anticipated albums. Well, much-anticipated by me anyway. Read the rest of this entry »
I really don’t like End of Year lists. Well, I like reading other people’s, but I really don’t like composing my own. So, don’t worry, I’m not going to veer into some “Art is subjective, lists are objective, so lists of books/albums/cross-stitching are bad”-type argument. Organising stuff into lists can be fun, and for any sort of year-end retrospective seems entirely sensible. Over the years many End of Year lists have pointed me in the direction of a lot of fun and worthwhile stuff. Read the rest of this entry »
I know we now have huge-memoried mp3 players and Spotify and iTunes and downloads and pretty-much-immediate access to vast catalogues of music and that it is wonderful and all, but sometimes I like to hear something new, or different, or something I wouldn’t chance upon naturally through those aforementioned technical innovations that offer so much choice that I end up just a little bit overwhelmed and so curate myself into a cosy, familiar, safe corner. Sometimes I need someone else to choose what I’m listening to, to point my ears in an interesting direction. In short, I still love (and need) radio. Read the rest of this entry »
This is the first in what is likely to be a (very) occasional series of posts on bands I really should have loved before now. I like to think I have pretty Catholic tastes, but yet there a number of bands that have fallen through the cracks. Here is the first instalment in me trying to rectify that. Read the rest of this entry »
While I really enjoy other people’s end of year lists, I have always been hopeless at putting mine together. I’m not one of those “You can’t rank art!” people, but I am pretty indecisive, and prone to moments of insecurity, where I worry that if I haven’t listened to every single major music release in a year, then how can I be in a position to judge an album of the year? So, these kind of minor histrionics have delayed me posting any sort of Best of 2010 list. Until now that is. You lucky things. Read the rest of this entry »
Wait until next year 