Comments for revolution34

Comment on Albums of 2011 by L

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 20:43:12 +0000

While we’re making late additions, a tip for single of the year would be The Sorrow of Two Blooms by Tropic of Cancer. Three tracks of gothic loveliness, sounding half-way between the Holy Other EP mentioned above and Joy Division. I’ve had this on almost constant repeat for the past week.

Comment on Albums of 2011 by Rob

Rob — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 18:48:49 +0000

I must investigate the Peej & Pearson LPs, seeing as they seem to be cropping up a lot. L was spot on about the Kuedo LP, picked it up and thought it was fantastic.

I also didn’t add my “honourable mentions” which fell outside my final list:
Cults – S/T
(pretty much the same thoughts as Tismey had, and I loved “Go Outside” to bits);

John Maus’ – We Must Be The Pitiless Censors Of Ourselves
(warning – took a couple of listens before it really bit me, it’s very VERY 80′s and Ian-Curtis-vocal-pastiche heavy at first);

Tune-Yards – W H O K I L L
(which I just can’t make up my mind on. I love some of it – eg “Bizness” – and can’t stand others.. but I’ve listened to it a fair bit even so).

Comment on Albums of 2011 by Ben

Ben — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 13:35:06 +0000

Josh T Pearson – Last of the Country Gentlemen
7 slow acoustic songs at just under an hour, what’s not to like… probably my album of the year – that or Low.

tUnE-yArDs – WHOKILL
Ever so very mental erm, mentalness. He adds helpfully.

Low – C’Mon
Not so much a return to form as just another really very good album from the best 3 piece slow core mormon rockers ever.

Bill Callahan – Apocalypse / Bonnie Prince Billy – Wolfroy Goes to Town
Whilst we’re on the subject of yet more good albums by established miserabalists these two are up there with their best work.

Raphael Saadiq – Stone Rollin’
Funky. Ta to L for this one.

James Blake – James Blake
Definitely the oddest supposed crossover album this year. Even ‘Limit to your love’ has some fearsome bass whumps.

PJ Harvey – Let England Shake
Nothing more to add really.

Lykke Li – Wounded Rhymes
Thanks to Jon S for the tip off on this one.

Nicolas Jaar – Space is Only Noise
iTunes has got this as 2010 but if L can include it I will too.

Plus definite honourable mentions for EMA, Kurt Vile, and Yuck.

Comment on Albums of 2011 by Tim D

Tim D — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 12:49:16 +0000

I have sucked at listening to new music this year, so I can provide only a few, nearly all of which have been mentioned by others. Most of my music listening these days is done while working, which means I’m drawn to relatively unobtrusiveness music. I’ve discovered that I prefer spoken word while running, although with lots of training coming up I expect I’ll run out of podcasts.

PJ Harvey – Let England Shake
Took me a while to get into but I got there eventually. I disagree with the prevailing opinion that this is some kind of return to form: White Chalk is still brilliant.

Forest Swords – Dagger Paths
Pleasingly clonky.

King Creosote and Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine
I can’t really be doing with King Creosote on his own but with all the atmospherics on this album he makes much more sense.

Austra – Feel It Break
Bleepy and poppy songs sung by a woman with an interesting voice.

Bjork – Biophilia
Her first (mostly) listenable album for a decade. Not as good as her best stuff but decent.

Walls – Coracle
Shoegazey-bleepy, discovered randomly in a record shop in Brighton. Ticks my boxes without being spectacular and probably wouldn’t make it on the list if I’d listened to more stuff this year.

Comment on Albums of 2011 by tismey

tismey — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 03:23:50 +0000

I absolutely forgot about Lykke Li’s ‘Wounded Rhymes’, which I had on rotation with Cults for most of January. The opening bars of the first track ‘Youth Knows No Pain’ always make me think of Gallon Drunk.

Comment on Albums of 2011 by L

Fri, 23 Dec 2011 20:52:50 +0000

Brilliant year for music – and that’s before I’ve even listened to some of the albums above. Here’s my top ten – in no particular order, although any of the top 3 could have been my album of the year.

PJ Harvey – Let England Shake
Lyrically great, and I’m a sucker for albums with a rolling groove throughout. I’m not saying it’s groovy, you understand, just that…oh, you know what I mean.

Ivan Mairesse – Lovers Lane
Gentle, lo-fi guitar ballads but quietly experimental too, and consistently great.

Kuedo – Severant
Nostalgic yet modern album from Blade Runner-inspired ex-dubstep producer. If you like the sound of that you’ll absolutely love this. If not…er…you won’t. Ho hum.

Raphael Saadiq – Stone Rollin’
Nostalgic yet modern album from Motown-inspired R&B producer. Heavily influenced by classic albums from the 60s but ends up being every bit as good.

Holy Other – With U
Okay, it’s an EP (on the great Tri Angle records – also check out OoOOo’s EP from last year). I believe they call this stuff witch house, or drag. When I told Sarah that I had gotten into drag she gave me a funny look. Touch is probably the best track….quite Burial-like with the vocal sample, but that’s no bad thing. Burial’s Street Halo EP was predictably brilliant for that matter.

Nicolas Jaar – Space is Only Noise
Exceptionally talented producer. His November EP as Darkside is just as good.

James Blake – James Blake
Ubiquitous for a while there, but with good reason. Even my girls love this one.

tUnE-YarDs – w h o k i l l
Thanks to Ben for this one. Like Tricky or Dizzee Rascal’s first albums, this is wonderfully inventive and sounds like it’s defining its own musical vocabulary.

I’ve run out at 8, so let’s break the rules…

Earl Sweatshirt – Earl
The only hip hop album I got into this year was one from last year. Musically great, but lyrically very wrong indeed (although that didn’t stop me listening). A bit like American Psycho without the satire.

Can – Ege Bamyasi
A long time fan of Future Days, I’m not sure why it took me so long to buy another Can album, but Ege Bamyasi is truly magnificent. My not-of-this-year album of the year.

Naturally, I reserve my right to change my mind on this list at least ten times before year end.

Comment on Albums of 2011 by Rob

Rob — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 17:40:47 +0000

As usual, most of the records I bought this year were 45s, 12s or old stuff, none of which are eligible – but out of the new new albums I picked up this year, these were my picks..
Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi – Rome (EMI)
Lydia Loveless – Indestructible Machine (Bloodshot)
Peggy Sue – Acrobats (Wichita)
Zomby – Dedication (4AD)
200 Years – 200 Years (Drag City)
The Kills – Blood Pressures (Domino)
Jessica Lea Mayfield – Tell Me (Nonesuch)
Hyetal – Broadcast (Black Acre)
Kuedo – Severant (Planet Mu)
Kate Bush – 50 Words For Snow (Fish People)
Dan Haywood’s New Hawks – S/T (Timbreland)

Comment on Albums of 2011 by BenP

BenP — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:57:03 +0000

Just a few things I enjoyed:

* Gang Gang Dance – Eye Contact
* Forest Swords – Dagger Paths
* PJ Harvey – Let England Shake
* Tom Vek – Leisure Seizure
* New Look – New Look

Also liked Low, Nicholas Jaar, Tim Hecker, Wild Beasts, Kate Bush, SBTRKT, Bjork, Metronomy.

Comment on Albums of 2011 by Dave

Dave — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 11:44:58 +0000

I have but one album to recommend: Diamond Mine, by King Creosote & Jon Hopkins. Full credit for the original recommendation goes to Aly, who also takes credit for me ending up at Homegame in Anstruther, and at Union Chapel in London, to see the album performed in two very different guises. This album lives somewhere perfectly between the two venues – a church hall in a Fife fishing village, perhaps – and both gigs will stay with me well beyond 2011.

KC’s voice makes a perfect foil to Hopkins’ found sound electronica. In fact, I don’t think that haunting voice has made more sense than on this album, where the sparse instrumentation and simple arrangements turn his vocals into an instrument as much as a lyric, as the looping refrain of Your Young Voice demonstrates to perfection. My only complaint is that it’s all over far too soon.

Actually, I’ll add a second album, to make this a list: Hotel Shampoo, by Gruff Rhys. I’ve woken up with these songs going round in my head more times than I can remember. Give it a listen, but be warned: it’s an earworm.

Comment on Albums of 2011 by Aly

Aly — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 11:41:57 +0000

This has been a fantastic year for music. I’ve been lucky to get to some wonderful small festivals and see some great bands. My commute is no longer a half-hour walk through a park, but there’s been enough travelling across England, Scotland and Wales on trains to compensate. This list could easily be a souvenir of a year looking out of train windows.

It’s been very difficult to choose ten albums. Any of these could have been included too: Emmy The Great, Huw M, Virgin Of The Birds, I Break Horses, Lanterns On The Lake, Mary Hamilton, Los Campesinos!, Eagleowl, Conquering Animal Sounds, Girls Names, Mogwai.

Album of the year:
* King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine
A scrapbook of sounds of East Fife coast: bicycles, teacups, seagulls, chatter. Incidentally, these two are responsible for my favourite gig this year at Union Chapel, London – a pared-down, quietly heartbreaking set. I wasn’t the only one in the audience having a wee sob.

Album of the year if it hadn’t been for Creosote & Hopkins:
* Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – Belong
Pure pop.

Then in no particular order:

* Josh T Pearson – Last Of The Country Gentlemen
Caught the last half of his set at this year’s Homegame Festival. One of the most beautiful things I’ve heard.

* Dum Dum Girls – Only In Dreams
The serious one.

* Gruff Rhys – Hotel Shampoo
Awesome, funny, wonderful set at End Of The Road this year. He’s just getting better with each album.

* David Thomas Broughton – Outbreeding
Also responsible for my other favourite gig of the year, in a small church down a side road somewhere in Oxford.

* The Antlers – Burst Apart
The album that’s been on repeat.

* Rob St John – Weald
Gorgeous, quiet gem. This man is also responsible for the wonderful David Thomas Broughton gig in Oxford.

* Low – C’mon
Another heartbreaker.

* Daughter – His Young Heart / The Wild Youth EPs
A regret? I missed them at Swn.