First Aid Kit - The Lion`s Roar

Released - January 23rd 2012

Witchita

Album Listing

1. The Lion`s Roar

2. Emmylou

3. In the Hearts of Men

4. Blue

5. This Old Routine

6. To a Poet

7. I Found a Way

8. Dance to Another Tune

9. New Year`s Eve

10. King of the World

First Aid Kit

Review

The second album from Swedish sisters, Johanna and Klara Soderberg, contains beautiful vocal harmonies, lush, slow-rolling melodies and some wonderful production from Mike Mogis. "The Lion`s Roar" sounds timeless recalling Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Mama Cass and Gram Parsons by way of modern alt-folk/alt-country.

First Aid Kit have been championed by Jack White and Patti Smith (who apparently cried when she heard their rendition of "Dancing Barefoot"), and it is not hard to see why. Opener and title track, "The Lion`s Roar" is wintery and sorrowful but lifted into epic territory by ethereal vocals and a stunning Dylan-esque melody. "Emmylou" is full on alt-country by way of Bright Eyes, as the girls compare a relationship to the musical partnerships of Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons, and June Carter and Johnny Cash, that feels natural, fluid and not at all twee.

"Blue" sounds like Mama Cass covering Blonde on Blonde era Dylan with gorgeous vocal harmonies, "To a Poet" is a beautiful, sparse acoustic tune that is as heartbreaking as anything I`ve heard in a long time, "Dance to Another Tune" is a doom laden apocalyptic epic, that soars in the chorus, again thanks to the excellent vocal work by the Soderberg sisters.

Who would have thought that an album steeped in Americana would come from two Swedish sisters who hail from a Stockholm suburb ? In fact, it may well be the best Americana record of the year. Highly recommended.

DOWNLOAD - The Lion`s Roar, Blue, To A Poet

RATING - 8 (out of 10)

Noel Gallagher versus God

                              VERSUS

So, British music magazine, the NME, has decided to give Noel Gallagher (former Oasis guru and now 21st century solo Travelling Wilbury) the "God-Like Genius" Award at this year`s NME Awards. 

Firstly, awards tend to be given either by people who are locked into a certain frame of mind when it come to giving them out or by hoards of screaming fans who think their vote will make all the difference and then said star will whisk them away on a fantastic, romantic holiday. 

Secondly, how pretentious is a "God-Like Genius" Award anyway ?

I like Noel. I think he loves music and has given us plenty of entertainment over the years, either through soundbites or his arguments with his half-man, half-monkey sibling Liam. His debut solo record was surprisingly good, and kind of pissed all over Liam`s "Beady Eye" offering in terms of musicianship. But is he really a God-Like Genius ?

God                                                                                             Noel

Created the Earth in 6 days.                                      Created "Noelrock" in 365 days.

God                                                                                             Noel

Created Man and Woman.                                       Created Oasis, which included Liam.

God                                                                                             Noel

Created everything.                                                  Wrote Digsy`s Dinner.

God                                                                                             Noel

Had a son, Jesus. Absolved                                    Has three children!!!

humanity of their sins by sacrificing

himself.

So, does Noel deserve his God-Like Genius Award ? What do you think ? Well, he did write Magic Pie....

The Maccabees - Given to the Wild

Released - 6 January 2012

Polydor Ltd (UK)

Album Listing

1. Given to the Wild (Intro)

2. Child

3. Feel to Follow

4. Ayla

5. Glimmer

6. Forever I`ve Known

7. Heave

8. Pelican

9. Went Away

10. Go

11. Unknow

12. Slowly One

13. Grew Up At Midnight

The Maccabees

Review

Not being a fan of this band prior to this release, made me approach this release with some trepidation. I was looking for a good, new release of 2012 to start my Blog-reviewing, when I came across some positive reaction toward the new Maccabees record. Really ? The same band who used to sound as if they were a workman-like Futureheads or less experimental Bloc Party ? Yes. That band.

Well, I can honestly say, you can put any worries and fears to one side, and enjoy a beautifully restrained, thoughtful record. The Maccabees have grown up.

By incorporating more electronica and layered elements into their music, without losing their identity, shadows of My Morning Jacket and Arcade Fire loom gently over most of the tracks. Take "Child" which segues beautifully from the instrumental opener and title track. Singer, Orlando Weeks sounds eerily like Jim James (My Morning Jacket), before washes of gently guitar, layered vocals and horns move over a steady yet propelling rhythm. "Feel to Follow" opens in similar vein before the chorus kicks in, the guitar`s arpeggio lift it into the Radiohead universe and turns it into a more emotional tune. Oh and it is HUGE. 

That is a beautiful thing about this record. It feels big in scope and ambition, yet personal and rooted. It is brilliantly structured as songs run into each other with shimmering piano ("Ayla"), rolling drums and dreamy guitars ("Glimmer"), punchy, Futureheads-esque melodrama ("Pelican") or solo 808-style keyboards and Week`s heavily reverbed vocal ("Went Away").

This is the sound of a band, finding it`s sound. It is an exciting, energetic, delicate and heady listening experience. My advice ? Sit back, get comfortable and enjoy the first great record of 2012.

DOWNLOAD - Feel to Follow, Glimmer, Went Away

RATING - 8 (out of 10)

Sounds of Silver

A great, little tune from The Japanese Popstars featuring James Vincent McMorrow.

A beautiful, delicate song from the wonderful Bon Iver.

Albums of the Year 2011 - 1

BON IVER - BON IVER

This choice will probably grate with some people. I sat down and thought about this list, like I always do. It`s become some kind of New Year`s tradition. To purge my mind and soul of all the music I listened to the previous year, and I listen to a lot of music. This year, one album crept into my subconscious and wouldn`t let me go, and when I started thinking about this list, the sophomore effort from Bon Iver seemed to be that record.

Bon Iver is a more expansive, lushly-detailed record that For Emma, which a had a beautiful, isolated, rustic charm. The melodies are equally beautiful but more sophisticated and layered. Justin Vernon`s voice is more wounded, heartbreaking and yearning than on For Emma, and it`s his vocal performances that bind his second album together beautifully.

The opener, "Perth" is an epic-sounding mini-masterpiece with marching drums, horns and electric guitar, that starts softly and builds to a crashing conclusion. The tender "Holocene" is one of the best songs he has recorded with a wonderful vocal performance to match. Lead off single "Calgary" visits us with the elements of an 80`s romantic movie ballad, before rolling drums and guitar lift the song into new territory.

Justin Vernon could have easily gone and made For Emma part 2, and maybe that record will appear someday, but he has made a brave decision to push his sound forward, to create something equally heartfelt but fuller in the sound and scope. I am all for this, as long as musicians don`t loose what makes them unique and on Bon Iver, Justin Vernon has done just that.

DOWNLOAD - PERTH, HOLOCENE, MICHICANT, CALGARY, BETH/REST

Bon Iver

Albums of 2011 - 2

JAMES VINCENT MCMORROW - EARLY IN THE MORNING

McMorrow`s stunningly beautiful debut album was recorded in 5 months in an isolated house by the ocean, which drew comparisons to Justin "Bon Iver" Vernon (who recorded For Emma in a cabin in the Wisconsin woods). McMorrow is arguably the better singer, with a softer falsetto and less processed, more traditional vocal. What he has produced is the debut of the year.

From the beautiful, spectral "If I had a Boat" where McMorrow`s accapella vocal gives way to a ghostly slide guitar and gentle melody to the Joni Mitchell-tinged "This Old Dark Machine" to the heartbreaking "Follow You Down to the Red Oak Tree", McMorrow creates an landscape of hope, despair, love, loss and honesty.

The second half of Early in the Morning is definately darker, as McMorrow draws on the imagery of Roald Dahl, John Steinbeck and F.Scott Fitzgerald that culminates in "Down the Burning Ropes" (a song that conjures the image of the deceased Jeff Buckley, in McMorrow`s delivery and melody) and "From the Woods!!" (that starts out as a beautiful acoustic ballad before morphing into McMorrow pleading and warning us in hushed hysterics "From the Woods! From the Woods! They are Coming from the Woods!").

This album does have a personal element to me, which is another reason why it ranks so highly on this list. It was the soundtrack of those dark, stress-riddled, uncertain days after the Earthquake/Tsunami/Nuclear crisis trioka and kept my internal self from dropping into darkness.

Do yourself a massive favour and discover the beauty of this record.

DOWNLOAD - IF I HAD A BOAT, WE DON`T EAT, THIS OLD DARK MACHINE, FOLLOW YOU DOWN TO THE RED OAK TREE, FROM THE WOODS!!

James Vincent McMorrow

Albums of 2011 - 3

THE ANTLERS - BURST APART

Originally a solo project for lead singer Peter Silberman, The Antlers have produced an electronica-tinged delicacy on their fourth album (their second as a three piece) that has echoes of Radiohead, Air and Boards of Canada. 

Opener, "I Don`t Want Love" is Jeff Buckley doing a Motown ballad whilst fronting Radiohead, where Silberman`s effective falsetto soars over arpeggio guitars and a steady backbeat. "Parentheses" crashes Portishead-style moody electronica into Anthony and the Johnsons vocal theatricality, and single, "Every Night My Teeth are Falling Out" is the best Radiohead song they never wrote. 

There is a real depth of sound to Burst Apart, from the improved vocal work of Silberman to the delicately-layered guitar, shuffling drums and swathes of alternativly sweeping and rolling electronica. The sound of Burst Apart is desolate, fragile and strangley nocturnal. The stunningly beautiful "No Widows" echoes night time, rain-drenched motorways, "Rolled Together" alludes to too much time spent staring at the moon, via silvery guitars and Sigur Ros dramatics, and "Hounds" is a big spacey epic ballad that is a painful as it is tender.

Burst Apart is a step forward from a band who have produced something that is musically challenging, yet rewarding, tender yet never patronizing. 

DOWNLOAD - FRENCH EXIT, NO WIDOWS, EVERY NIGHT MY TEETH ARE FALLING OUT, HOUNDS

The Antlers (Official)

Albums of 2011 - 4

MUTEMATH - ODD SOUL

On this, Mutemath`s 3rd studio album, the band found themselves without guitarist Greg Hill who quit the band on amicable terms. Would this result in a more electronica-tinged sound until they found a replacement, progressing the sound from the excellent "Armistice" ? 

The big answer is NO. On Odd Soul, Mutemath embrace and incorporate blues, rock, soul and funk and produce their most complete album. It may not be as immediate as it`s predecessors, but it is a perfectly balanced, brilliantly played and majestic triumph of a record that reconfirms their status as the most interesting yet accessible band on the planet.

Opener, "Odd Soul" is a blues stomp reminiscent of The Black Keys, "Prytania" echoes their previous work but with a funkier edge, "All or Nothing" is The Postal Service via U2. The first half of the record is as strong as anything they`ve ever done, whereas the second half moves into one long rolling, yet distinct collage of blues-funk culminating in the 7 minute epic " Quarantine". 

Odd Soul is a record that most people will probably never hear. A shame because it is one of the best of the year.

DOWNLOAD - PRYTANIA, ALL OR NOTHING, QUARANTINE, IN NO TIME

Albums of 2011 - 5

THE BLACK KEYS - EL  CAMINO

At a lean 38-ish minutes, the 7th studio album from The Black Keys ( duo Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney) is a Motown-tinged blues rock masterpiece, that has just enough touches from producer DJ Dangermouse to add elements of everything from glam rock keyboards to female backing singers, without making the whole thing collapse under it`s own weight. 

Auberbach and Carney are solid musicians who have peddled their classicist blues rock for for nearly 10 years, and they trust in each others ability and the guiding hand of Dangermouse to drive this record forward. Also "El Camino" sounds like this is a pairing having fun with their sound. Take the glam-stomp of "Gold On The Ceiling" the rattling blues funk of " Money Maker", or "Little Black Submarines" which is a lost acoustic-led number by Led Zep. All are exhuberent in their different sounds. 

This is The Black Keys pushing for the mainstream without betraying their sound. It`s just that their sound has been turned up to 11 on the pop-amp, filtered by Dangermouse.

DOWNLOAD - GOLD ON THE CEILING, SISTER, LONELY BOY, NOVA BABY.

The Black Keys

Albums of 2011 - 6

COLDPLAY - MYLO XYLOTO

Coldplay returned with more "Enoxification" and a lighter, poppier sound than the organic feel of "Viva La Vida". Inspired by 80`s graffiti artists and various liberation movements, "Mylo Xyloto" had a very loose narrative thread running through the record. Themes of hope, love, and freedom dominate the album, making "Mylo Xyloto" one of the more polarizing records of 2011, as the music press ripped into the band and the album. 

However, what "Mylo Xyloto" is, is Coldplay`s most fun record. It surges with uplifting melodies, soaring vocals and that big stadium sound. Martin`s lyrics are still as obtuse as ever, but his eagerness in the delivery adds to the hope that pervades the record. In fact, "Hurts Like Heaven", "Paradise", "Charlie Brown" and "Us Against The World" may be their strongest opening set of songs since "A Rush of Blood". "Hurts Like Heaven" and "Charlie Brown" echo the musical urgency of Bruce Springsteen, "Paradise" is a rush of synth pop perfection, and "Us Against the World" is a classic Coldplay acoustic ballad a la the "Parachutes" era. 

"Mylo Xyloto" is a big, bright, colourful record that is easy to criticize because it is a Coldplay record, but it is also the most playful and aurally rewarding of the year.

DOWNLOAD - PARADISE, CHARLIE BROWN, US AGAINST THE WORLD, DON`T LET IT BREAK YOUR HEART

Coldplay (Official)

Albums of 2011 - 7

WILLIAM FITZSIMMONS - GOLD IN THE SHADOW

With his hushed, yet beautifully poignant voice and sparse, electic folk sound, William Fitzsimmons produced a gem of a record with this, his 4th studio record. Focusing on his own inner demons and personal trevails and his journey to make peace with himself, "Gold in the Shadow" offers up 10 perfectly pitched songs ranging from the hopeful "Beautiful Girl" to the despondant, melancholia of "Fade and then Return". 

Musically, "Gold in the Shadow" sits somewhere between Bon Iver and Iron and Wine with a few flecks of Neil Young and The Postal Service. Acoustic guitars, sparse piano, licks of electric guitar, bubbling keyboards, and midtempo percussion present Fitzsimmons` lyrics and ideas in swathes of gentle sounds. "Gold in the Shadow" is a soothing record, aurally, which makes it all the more beautiful and melodic.

DOWNLOAD - THE TIDE PULLS FROM THE MOON, FADE AND THEN RETURN, PSYCHASTHENIA

William Fitzsimmons (Official Website)

Albums of 2011 - 8

KING CREOSOTE & JOHN HOPKINS - DIAMOND MINE

A collaborative effort between ambient producer, Brian Eno disciple and musician John Hopkins and Scottish singer-songwriter Kenny Anderson (aka King Creosote), Diamond Mine glistens with gentle beauty and tales of Fife, Scotland told in enigmatic style. 

As Anderson sketches out wonderful stories and sparse, melodically rich tunes, Hopkins fills in the colour with gentle piano, synth washes and background noises equalling in something elementally moving. Opening with a conversation of a Scottish family and a gentle rising, but melancholic piano, "First Watch" seems to be yearning for a lost memory. The folky "John Taylor`s Month Away" follows which blends a calm sea shanty and Air-like synths and vocal ahhs follows. One of the standout tracks, "Bats in the Attic" comes next and is a heartbreaking yet hopeful tune that is as simple as it is beautiful.

Diamond Mine echoes in loss, remembrance, the fragility of memory and time and hope. It may be a short album (only 7 tracks) but these are seven gems (and try to track down the "Honest Words" EP).

DOWNLOAD - BATS IN THE ATTIC, BUBBLE, HONEST WORDS

Albums of 2011- 9

RADIOHEAD - THE KING OF LIMBS

Right. I`ll get straight to the point. I have had a love/hate relationship with this record ever since it was released. Initially I found it bold, musically challenging and brilliantly performed. Then disappointment kicked in. It was too short, too fragmented, too angular. However with the recent additions of the Supercollider/The Butcher and The Daily Mail/Staircase singles my love affair with The King of Limbs has blossomed again. 

Upon release it was titled a "newspaper" album, which made little sense, but with the added songs (now making a 12 track album), I understand that Radiohead wanted some kind of fluidity, a kind of reaction against the traditional ways of making a record after the troubles they had with "In Rainbows".

TKOL opens with the jittery, jazz tinged "Bloom" that is held together by Colin Greenwood`s bass and Thom Yorke`s soaring vocal. It is a complete 180 from the sound of "In Rainbows" and lays the groundwork for much of what is too come. "Morning Mr Magpie" has a guitar riff that sounds like it has had too much caffeine giving the song a strange sense of urgency.  In fact the first half of TKOL is very much in this mold, with new song "The Butcher" fitting in well, with a sycopated stomp of rhythm and an etheral melody floating over the top. 

The second half of TKOL is much more accessible, with the single "Lotus Flower", the beautifully haunting piano driven "Codex" and the closing poppy gem "Separator". 

The newer songs all add something special to the album, from "Supercollider", which is seven minutes of minimal beats, soaring, spacey melodies and impassioned vocals to a more classic sound Radiohead on "The Daily Mail". However, "Staircase" is the standout mainly because it pulls off sounding like everything else on the album and at the same time something completely fresh. 

DOWNLOAD - STAIRCASE, CODEX, SEPARATOR, LOTUS FLOWER

Albums of 2011 - 10

FINK - PERFECT DARKNESS

Fin Greenall and friends deliver a beautiful slow burning acoustic record that grooves and shuffles it`s way over 10 wonderful tracks. There is musical depth though on these songs. Opener "Perfect Darkness", has a melancholic ambience similar to "Protection"-era Massive Attack, where "Fear is Like Fire" is a mid-tempo Jeff Buckley-like number that rolls along before crashing into a big chorus.

But what stands out about Perfect Darkness is how cohesive, essential yet unobtrusive it all sounds. These are tunes that flow into each other perfectly without being copycats of each other. They are meaningful without being preachy; "Yesterday Was Hard On All Of Us" is a perfect example, with Greenall`s impassioned delivery floating over a delicate melody.

Yes, Perfect Darkness is introspective, but it is never depressing. In actual fact it is a tightly-played, delicate gem of a record.

DOWNLOAD - PERFECT DARKNESS; YESTERDAY WAS HARD ON ALL OF US; BERLIN SUNRISE.

Fink - Official Website

A little bit rock`n`roll

So, after lacking inspiration, and stop-starting my attempts to get back in the "blogosphere", I`ve finally found a direction after a random conversation at work.

It went a little something like this...ahem, first cast your mind to a smallish staff room, where me and one of my co-workers are busy in between lessons....

Me - "So, co-worker (for the sake of privacy let`s stick to co-worker), how was your weekend?"

Co-Worker (thinks a little) - "I was busy."

Me - "Oh"

Co-Worker - "How about you ? Did you do anything ?"

Me - "Yes, I met my friend, we had lunch, a few beers and went to watch a concert, a gig, in Shin-Kiba.    
         A British indie-rock band called Kasabian."

Co-Worker - "Oh! You like music, you really like music. You should be a critic."

So that is the gist of the conversation that planted small Sunflower seeds in my head that will hopefully come to fruition in this blog. My raison d`etre ? To talk about music. When I like, what I like, what I don`t like.

I listen to a lot of music, and am always on the hunt for more...a bit like a very sad heroin addict with one leg and a small dog called Chas. You know one of those guys you feel sorry for...sorry, I think I am getting carried away by a ridiculous descriptive metaphor. For the record, I have never taken heroin, neither do I intend to....

What music do I like ? Well, I would`t be a liar if I said I liked all genres of music (except the majority of country music...arrrggghhh!), but feel my personal tastes should best be left until another post, where anyone who reads this can uncover some musical delights and maybe aural horrors.

Well, anyway please enjoy this blog. If you have comments, recommendations or general ideas then feel free to send them by email, via this blog or by pigeon.