New Years....

First of all, an apology for those of you kind enough to read this mess of music- I'm sorry for my recent lack of existence. Exams, working over the Christmas period (ugh retail) and then a lack of internet has made blogging pretty dam impossible. That, combined with the theft of my precious little iPod, has kind of stopped the flow of musical discovery and ideas...

That being said, it is the New Year, the sales are on and you all have Crimbo money to spend, right?? So here's a list of five records from 2010 you should buy! All of you! It's purposely quite general. A kinda 'best of the year without offending anyone', so you have no excuse not to like it all....

Warpaint, The Fool.

I've harped on about this one enough, it’s brilliant, it’s beautiful, it’s worth a tenner in HMV. One of the most exciting bands, live and on tape, that really made the break last year.
Tokyo Police Club, Champ.

For me, one of the real 'feel good' records of last year. Personally because I loved the fact that TPC had come back so strong, but also generally because it is just such a joy filled beast of an album. Again, I preached about it when it was released, so this should be no surprise to you that it's on the list.

A Day To Remember, What Seperated You From Me.

The heaviest this list gets, sorry guys I said this was 'general'. The cross of pop-punk and metal is, on paper, a match made in heaven yet is, in my opinion, rarely carried off well. Yet ADTR have never failed in my eyes. Sure they're not going to win prizes for socially aware, angsty records that make the hippster kids swoon but they do make records filled of big choruses, breakdowns you could beat down a bear too and the perfect blend of the two aforementioned genres. So there, purists.

Elliot Smith, An Introduction To...

In a year that the music press fawned over it being x many years since John Lennon died and how much of a genius he was, this was the closest anyone got to remembering a real genius who is also sadly no longer with us all on this mortal coil. Elliot Smith was/is an indie Dylan type. His music is possibly the most beautiful solo acoustic work I've ever heard (maybe Bright Eyes challenges this). All truth and no compromise, but never sounding painfully so. Get it, love it, and then buy all his other albums.

Arcade Fire, The Suburbs.

It’s an Arcade Fire album. That should be enough. It is amazing. Almost, I would say, as good as their debut, certainly better than 'Neon Bible', easily beating the life out of most of this year’s indie releases.


And with that I say goodbye, for now...