August 2012
3 posts
2 tags
Companion - Gold Panda
Dancy, chilled out post dubsetep, glitch-hop release from Gold Panda combines the three EPs. Not totally my thing but, through the superimposed record crackle, there is some definite innovation: especially in Quitters Raga (the best of the album)
4 tags
Bon Iver - Bon Iver
Even though it lacks the catchy hits, like ‘Flume’ and ‘Skinny lover’ of its predecessor, the epicness (is that even a word?) and yet subtle beauty of the eponymous second album from Bon Iver makes it, for me, a far superior work.
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What strikes me, when listening to this album is the way that Bon Iver are able to create an equal depth of sound and emotion with...
3 tags
Undersea EP - The Antlers
An interesting development from the Antlers, their new EP Undersea takes them in a much more atmospheric, ambient direction.
July 2012
3 posts
5 tags
We keep the beat... - Jonathan Boulet
An emotive explosion of sound: We Keep The Beat, Found The Sound, See The Need, Start The Heart is a tasteful mix of beautiful melody and unrestrained passion that will dominate my summer at least.
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Australian musician/singer/visionary and just general bearded musical genius Jonathan Boulet, in the habit of playing every instrument under the sun and mixing it all together himself, has...
6 tags
It's Blitz - Yeah Yeah Yeah's
Electronic indie dance-pop from 2009, a notoriously good year for music, It’s Blitz combines catchy beats and glittery synth with song writing and lyrics that perhaps lacks depth but nonetheless hits the spot.
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Although this album is known mostly for its more upbeat dance floor fillers like ‘Heads Will Roll’ and ‘Zero’ there is so much more to be enjoyed...
6 tags
Live Another Yesterday - The Penelopes
The newest album from French electro-pop dance musicians ‘The Penelopes’ seems to me like a cross between ‘Air’ and ‘Neon Indian’ (with perhaps a little ‘S-Club 7’?)
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To be honest I am a little torn with this one because; while the beats and melodies of the album are in keeping with that breed of elecro-indie, coined by bands like MGMT, sampling all kinds of 8-bit sounds that give songs...
November 2011
1 post
7 tags
Feels - Animal Collective
Is the sixth studio-recorded album from Animal Collective boasting a much more rustic and free sound than their latest having guitarist Deakin and various ‘oh so indie’ sound altering techniques at their disposal.
One feature that you’ll notice straight away is the crazy detuned, yet oddly nice sounding, guitars that create a kind of hypnotic skewed weirdness to the album....
October 2011
1 post
Good news for people who love bad news - Modest...
Post-Punk/Post-Grunge music for people who like that sort of thing. This is the most well known and popular album of their discography mostly down to the mainstream success of Float On and Ocean Breathes Salty.
It’s not for everyone, and I can’t be bothered to go on about it, but give it a listen and see what you think. I might come back to this and write a proper thing later but...
September 2011
7 posts
5 tags
Go tell fire to the Mountain - WU LYF
The debut from WU LYF, one of the latest indie sensations to come out of the Manchester alternative music scene, ‘Go tell fire to the Mountain’ is as raw as they come, not to say that it’s not without its charms.
Famously elusive, WU LYF have been pretty hard to get any information on declining interviews from everyone and acting like they don’t want to get famous. The...
5 tags
Two Dancers - The Wild Beasts
The Wild Beasts’ second studio album really is a triumph of modern indie, mixing power and energy with simple, clean sounding, rhythms means our ears are in for a treat.
One thing that I really liked about the album was the bands endless commitment to an expansive percussion that really brings on the funk factor and, with a few tracks, makes what would otherwise be fairly standard...
7 tags
Get Behind Me Satan - The White Stripes
The 5th album from the spectacular guitar wielding White Stripes, takes on new direction but still has the power and charm of their older and more popular work.
A distinct move away from the heavy guitar riff driven tracks that The White Stripes had produced in earlier albums, Get Behind Me Satan makes a nice change from their usual pace and is much less guitar focused, taking greater advantage...
5 tags
Hot Fuss - The Killers
Despite looking a little old and dusty now that the hype The Killers enjoyed in the mid 2000s has died down; their debut, one of the first albums that I really loved, is still as good today as it was then.
An eyeopening mix of electronic sound and 80s post-punk rock smashed together and put through a mangle with modern pop culture leaving something that still feels fresh and exciting even now;...
6 tags
Friendly Fires - Friendly Fires
Just on the right side on Pop/Indie, friendly fires’ eponymous first album is a crazy mix of dance music conventions spread evenly over some seriously funky indie rock foundations that gives the album a nice post-pop feel.
One thing that i love about friendly fires is the confident use of a wild and varied percussion set which gives their music: notably songs ‘Paris’ and...
4 tags
Return to Cookie Mountain - TV on the Radio
Another album that, like previous ones, flawlessly suceeds in being both unnervingly wierd sounding and yet very enjoyable to listen to…
…Return to Cookie Mountain experiments with sampling, loops, percussion, and vocals to produce something magical.
One undeniably noticeable element of TV on the Radio’s music is Kyp Malone and Tunde Adebimpe’s experimental vocals, as...
5 tags
The Suburbs - Arcade Fire
The third album from the multi-instument switching sensation Arcade Fire is yet another hit achieving acclamation at the Grammy’s and The BRIT awards as well as an 87% average score on Metacritic.
It’s an impressive piece of work that is reminiscent of the instant loveabillity that listeners experienced with their début ‘Funeral’. Lyrically the subject of the album is a...
April 2011
2 posts
Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
The self titled first album from, the fantastically folky, Fleet Foxes really is about as good as it gets when it comes to 21st century popular folk.
Along a similar, although waaaayy more chilled out, vein as Mumford & Sons; the album combines beautiful and often poetic lyrics with super-cool and ultra-refined melodies.
The structure and feel of the songs, after a first listen, might seem...
All Day- Girl Talk
Album number 5 for Mash-up sensation: Gregg Gillis (aka: Girl Talk) is yet another triumph, blending some of the best indie/rock/rap/pop/retro into something magical.
‘All Day’ is sort of like listening to the most bad ass indie DJ ever, squeezing their whole set into one of the most enjoyable hours and ten minutes in Mp3 format. If any album was going to be a definite party pleaser:...
March 2011
3 posts
In the Aeroplane over the Sea - Neutral Milk Hotel
This is the second studio album from Neutral Milk Hotel: it’s a nice mix of experimental psych rock with raw folk music; described by Jason Ankeny as “either the work of a genius or an utter crackpot, with the truth probably falling somewhere in between.”
Not only is the album filled with the powerful simplicity of folk guitar, but also the warm blasts of trumpets, horns,...
Hospice - The Antlers
Critically acclaimed concept album: Hospice, is the third release from The Antlers and details a sombre and emotionally challenging account of an abusive relationship using the conceit of hospice worker and a terminally ill patient.
It’s a slow paced album and definitely one to accompany those sad moments in life. However, song’s like ‘Sylvia’ and ‘Two’ and...
Merriweather Post Pavilion - Animal Collective
Truly one of the greatest albums of this century, this latest from the experimental neo-psychodelic Animal Collective follows along in the same vein as previous albums, combining the truly poetic with raw emotion and musical accompaniment that can’t fail to excite. With Deakin (guitar) taking time out for personal reasons, the band were forced to rely more heavily upon computer generated...
