Archive for January, 2008

And two I forgot…

Friday, January 25th, 2008

When making most anticipated lists, you always seem to forget something, that at an earlier stage you thought “hey, this is going to be fantastic”, and since it is so far in the future it has left your consciousness for a while.

Two albums have returned to mine…
The Rosewood Thieves - Rise And Shine
Should be a marvellous album if their Lennon/Dylan-influenced EPs are anything to go by. You can’t really have better influences than those. Plus they’ve got an ex-Whiskeytowner on board.

Destroyer - Trouble in Dreams
Word on the street is that this is utterly fantastic, the street in question is the one I live on. I was the mouth those words came from. This isn’t out properly til March, so til then you’ll have to get our your copy of Rubies and click on this link. Make sure to have a few buddies around.
http://www.harmoniummusic.com/junk/Destroyer.txt

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Most Anticipated Albums of 2008

Wednesday, January 16th, 2008

So by now you should have read BBC’s Sound of 2008 poll, you may even have checked out some of the artists on Youtube. But how about you indulge me for a while. I like being indulged. These are the albums (by both established and new acts) that I’m really looking forward to hearing this year. This list is in alphabetical order, because if I gave them numbered positions my #1 would more than likely end up being pure trite.

The Hold Steady - TBC
Look out for this at the top of TWM’s list. And maybe mine too.

Michael Jackson - TBC
He can do it. You know he can.

Matisyahu - TBC
I loved Youth. Then I listened to his earlier albums. They were great too. Should be good.

Muse - TBC
If this comes out this year, I’ll cream myself.

Postal Service - TBC
I wouldn’t count on this one coming out either. But I like the rumours.

Punch Brothers - Punch
Nickel Creek are now as dead as the Dodo. I think this hiatus is definite. Now Chris Thile has a new band. This is their debut. Sorta.

Ryan Adams - 22:20 Boxset
It’s Ryan Adams. Five or six discs. That’ll place it in all five positions from 1-5 in my Year End list. Possibly.

Seth Lakeman - Poor Man’s Heaven
His past two albums have made my year end lists. His debut probably would have too, but I wasn’t with TWM back then. This is bound to be magnificent. I pledge my street cred on it.

The Standard - TBC
Common and A Tribe Called Quest. It might happen. It probably won’t. One can only hope.

The Raconteurs - TBC
Jack White and Brendan Benson’s debut wasn’t what it should have been. But both acts are capable of brilliance. Can they do it together? Wait and see…

The Verve - TBC
Ashcroft’s last solo record was pretty good. These guys made good records. Bittersweet Symphony may well be the best song of the 90s. Come on disagree with me.

Rachael Yamagata - TBC
Far too many albums without titles on this list. Hopefully I can spell her name right on iTunes this time.

Neil Young - The Archives Vol.01 1963-1972
It’s Neil, what more could you want?

And new acts…

Well, Foals, Vampire Weekend, and well, I’ll know when I hear them, okay.

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BBC Sound of 2008 Announced

Friday, January 4th, 2008

At the start of every year, BBC rounds up a lot of UK critics and gets them to predict who’ll be big that year. Previous winners have been The Bravery (who narrowly beat Bloc Party), Mika, and Corrine Bailey Rae.

This year they have the next Amy Winehouse at #1, and the next Amy Winehouse at #2. I personally prefer the #2 version. Other acts taking my fancy are Foals (who I’ve seen live), Glasvegas (the new Arctic Monkeys), and the wildly eccentric Vampire Party.

You can check out the top 10, and listen to a track by each here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7163404.stm

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