Crowded aboard the New Music Express

This year I seem to be constantly saying 'I need some more new music' despite the fact that I probably listen to, at the very least, 4 or 5 new bands every day... Each week, I'll scan through NME and the Guardian music's latest findings and I'll click around my favourite blogs as well as pitchfork and hype machine daily. And today it finally came to me- there's TOO MUCH bloody new music. Music is so accessible now, I'll often give a recommended track one or two listens before deciding if its worth a download when some of my favourite old albums took a good few listens to work their way into my heart. With scores of bands being lauded the 'hottest new thing' each week it becomes increasingly difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff.

Anyway, enough ranting. Here is a treat for you, the rare treasure that is a track that sticks out instantly, I haven't stopped listening to it all week. Loving the morphiage into an almost entirely different (and equally great) track at around 3:30....

Enjoy!

Young Man- Up So Fast

Aural Pleasure

Here's what's been titillating my ears recently. Titillate. Some old, some new, all ace. I've put the banging beats to start with because it's FRIDAY and some more mellow tracks are at the bottom. Enjoy! x

Conner Youngblood- Monsters. Whomph whomph whomphawhomph. Nice contrast in subdued vocals and geetar and big old bassline. Taps into the whole James Blake ting going on at the minute.
Monsters by Conner Youngblood

Jai Paul- BTSTU. Sweet vocals, you don't notice the menace of the lyrics 'don't fuck with me, don't fuck with me'. Again with the laidback vocals and dub/electro influence. I like this a lottie because there are some retro videogame noises thrown in as well.
BTSTU by j.wilson

Suuns- Arena. Deliciously dark. I think it sounds like people in grave danger running away from peril but the singer/guitarist said this: "Arena is a romantic song that encourages dancing and love-making."
Suuns - Arena by Lunta_sen

Ladytron- Seventeen. I had forgotten about this pretty little ditty. It sounds like something you would find in a gay club in Germany. Which is great.
Ladytron - Seventeen [2002] by nettwerkmusicgroup



Here are some more laidback choons that I can't stop listening to at the minute.

Diamond messages- Liquid Summer. This is nice. Songs with naive belly/xylophoney noises= good.
Diamond Messages - Liquid Summer by Szabom

The Eastern Sea- The Snow. Stumbled across this as one of the acts at SXSW this year, you can't beat a bit of acoustic guitar with a nice boy singing about sad things.

Book of Right On- Joanna Newsom. Yes Joanna. Harps and guitars and that inimitable voice. I prefer 'The Milk-Eyed Mender' to the 'Have One On Me' album.


Banshee Beat- Animal Collective. My shuffle loves this song, I would be annoyed if it wasn't so awesome. Shimmering guitars and vocals that build and build but never quite break, some songs deserve to be over 8mins. A really long, slow aurgasm of a song.


The Beatles- Got to Get You Into My Life. I'm going through a Beatles phase again, seriously how good were the Beatles? Go and listen back to Please, Please Me, Revolver and Abbey Road. Actually all of the albums, absolute quality.


Taper Jean Girl- Kings of Leon. Really enjoying the vintage KOL at the minute, none of that new bollocks. Pulsing drums and guitars and that unmistakable Kings Of Leon drawl. Aha Sha-ake. He says 'cunts' in it, THATS how badass they used to be.
Kings Of Leon - Taper Jean Girl by djh88

The Cure-Close to Me. Do you love the Cure? I love The Cure. Lets all love the Cure.
The Cure - Close to Me by Martijn Prak

Blue Monday

The most depressing day of the year is upon us and about bloody time too. The one day of the year where it is acceptable, nay encouraged, to whine and moan and cry and complain. Great stuff.
I personally intend to skip dinner (to heightens sadness receptors), turn off all the lights, pull up the duvet and cry for hours. I might even crack out old love letters and diaries.
If you would like to join me,  here's a Spotify playlist to soundtrack our delicious despair, feel free to add your own odes to sadness: Blue

Well this is nice

Man and wife sell up 9 to 5 life to meander around the coast on a sailboat and write songs. That's nice. Other people's lives are nice. Should we just all jack it in? I'm pretty adept with a tambourine and I can stay in tune most of the time, who's with me? But I am quite sleepy and warm. Maybe later.

These guys have been floating around the bloggies/onestowatch columns for a while now but didn't seem to take off in a big way despite their first track 'Marathon' being lauded by everyone from Pitchfork to the Guardian. (It's absolutely ace by the way- listen below). Maybe it's because they are annoyingly hard to google search. But NEVER FEAR. After releasing 'Take Me Somewhere' into the blogosphere a few weeks ago they are currently most blogged on hypem.com and have just announced a European tour in January, hooray!

Listen here: 
Marathon - Tennis by arrhythmiamusic

Tennis - Take Me Somewhere by forcefieldpr

Tennis play:

7 Jan– Lexington, London
8 Jan – Paradiso, Amsterdam
10 Jan– Emporium Galorium, Rouen
11 Jan – Les Bouffles du Nord, Paris
13 Jan– ISC Club, Berne
14 Jan– Ampere, Munich
15 Jan– Bang Bang, Berlin
16 Jan– Beatlemania, Hamburg
19 Jan– Cockpit 3, Leeds
20 Jan– Captain’s Rest, Glasgow
21 Jan– The Deaf Institute, Manchester

Top 10 Albums of 2010 so far

It's that time of year where everyone is thinking ahead to end of year lists, frantically rifling through Spotify playlists and itunes purchases to come up with a list of not-too-obvious-ace-albums-cuz-ya-know-i'm-a-bit-left-of-centre-and-shit. AND HERE'S MINE. I've pretty much raved about all of these at some point on here so they need no introduction. I've stuck a few tracks I can find off soundcloud below for your aural pleasure or here's a spotify playlist. Enjoynowbye x

1. Warpaint- The Fool (obvs). Couldn't find Undertow or Shadows but this is a sweet song.

Warpaint - Baby by quietculturemed

 
2. Surfer Blood- Astro Coast. Take it easssy. Just take it easy.

surfer blood by eldiabloyelritmo

3. The Black Keys- Brothers. Dare I say it their best yet? Perfect bluesy rock'n'roll. An all-weather album.

Black Keys - Brothers by cooperativemusicuk

 
4. LCD Soundsystem- This is Happening. Talking like a jerk, except you are an actual jerk...
Dance Yrself Clean by r0cketman22

 
5. Sleigh Bells- Treats. Loud headfuck of an album, likey like.
Sleigh Bells-Rill Rill by HSUGreen

 
6. Foals- Total Life Forever. Pretty darn decent change of direction for Foals. Spanish Sahara makes it.
Foals - Spanish Sahara by subpop

 
7. Caribou- Swim. Sun, sun, sun, sun, sun, sun, sun.
Caribou - Sun by radúz

 
8. Four Tet- There is Love in You. Good man, excellent cover.
Four Tet - Love Cry by pansen

 
9. Bombay Bicycle Club- Flaws. Yes.

10. Arcade Fire- The Suburbs. Still getting into this more nostalgia-based album from the Fire. I think it's going to be a keeper. We Used to Wait, Rococo, Sprawl II all aces. Nice strings with interesting, more mature lyrics.
Arcade Fire - Rococo by Scenedamage

THE TEMPER TRAP REMIX ALBUM STREAM

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Remixed by The Temper
Trap

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