Albums of 2013 // 30-21

And the countdown continues! This next 10 has a distinctly more British feel, with London Grammar, King Krule, and Public Service Broadcasting all releasing stellar débuts in 2013, accompanied by continued brilliance from Neon Neon, These New Puritans, and a quite beautiful collection of new songs from Bill Ryder-Jones.

30. Neon Neon - 'Praxis Makes Perfect'



29. These New Puritans - 'Field of Reeds'



28. Thee Oh Sees - 'Floating Coffin'



27. Bill Ryder-Jones - 'A Bad Wind Blows In My Heart'



26. London Grammar - 'If You Wait'



25. Public Service Broadcasting - 'Inform - Educate - Entertain'



24. King Krule - '6 Feet Beneath The Moon'



23. Julia Holter - 'Loud City Song'



22. Blood Orange - 'You're Not Good Enough'



21. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - 'Push The Sky Away'



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Albums of 2013 // 40-31

Round two. Things are getting serious. From the precise, hypnotic Juliana Barwick through AM's ever-grander, Brylcreemed pomp and down to the unrelenting Tampa post-punk of Merchandise, this is a seriously strong set not to even have made the top 30.

40. Juliana Barwick - 'Nepenthe'



39. Matthew E. White - 'Big Love'



38. Autre Ne Veut - 'Anxiety'



37. Deptford Goth - 'Life After Defo'



36. Wampire - 'Curiosity'



35. Volcano Choir - 'Repave'



34. Arctic Monkeys - 'AM'



33. Bosnian Rainbows - 'Bosnian Rainbows'



32. Moonface - 'Julia With Blue Jeans On'



31. Merchandise - 'Totale Nite'



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Dirty Projectors // Dance For You

"I boogied down gaaaargoyle streets, searching in every face for something I could believe". Just one of the many beautful, vivid, unusual, dramatic and evocative refrains in this new track from Dirty Projectors.

It's simple, compact and just couldn't have come from any other band. Their new record, 'Swing Lo Magellan', is out July 9 / 10 on Domino Records and, if it's anything near as good as Dance For You suggests it will be, it's going to be our record of the year by a length.

 

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Eugene McGuiness // Lion

Wow! Eugene's back and has raided the cosmetic cabinet, got himself down to Bond Street and returned with a suave new rockabilly-cum-advertising executive styling. What with the mesmerising modern dance accompaniment and the fact this track is making a pretty successful late bid for my top 10 tracks of the year, the video for Lion makes for a real good time.



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Blood Orange // Champagne Coast (Krystal Klear remix)

Recalling the 80s has been well and truly done, but perhaps never as well as this track from Blood Orange via Krystal Klear, bowing to Prince's lush pop as much as NYC disco. Taken from the forthcoming remixes 12" and ahead of the release of Blood Orange's debut LP (how may more debut LPs can he have?), Dev has definitely found his groove in his current guise, and long may it continue.

Grab the remix records here.



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Wild Beasts // Smother

Having caught Wild Beasts at Rough Trade East for Record Store Day a few weeks back, anticipation of Smother has been feverish round these parts.

On first listen, there's an experimental, electronic edge which sees the boys branching beyond their art-folk staples, while the lush production only enhances the ever pitch-perfect vocals, particularly on pulsing, Kate Bush-like Bed of Nails; a definite next single contender. Let us know what you think.

Villagers // Becoming a Jackal

Here's a review of the excellent Becoming a Jackal single from Villagers for The Fugitive Motel.

Villagers // Becoming a Jackal
Domino Records // 24th May 2010

Villagers is not a bunch of slightly rotund, red cheeked gentlemen in tweed and dirty fingernails lambasting the local Tesco’s. Neither is Villagers a gaggle of haunted housewives decked in Laura Ashley regaling the pursuits of their darlings in the school hall coffee morning. Villagers is, however, folk. Pure folk. Not alt or nu or anything, but folk in its truest sense.

Becoming a Jackal, the title track from Villagers’ debut album, is Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel in a single, one Irish man package. Yes, the lyrics are a touch yearning at times: “I was a dreamer / staring at windows”, for example, could easily be misconstrued as clumsily airy, but the uneasy delivery and sinister accompaniment make them entirely believable. When he sings despairingly of selling his fears as the track closes, his demons almost visible on his shoulders, it feels like hearing Bright Eyes again for the first time. Not only that, his name’s Conor J O’Brien. Spooky.

Lightspeed Champion - Marlene EP

Here's a review of Lightspeed Champion's Marlene EP for the marvelous The Fugitive Motel.

Lightspeed Champion // Marlene EP
Domino Records // 25th Jan 2010

A restless soul is Devonte. Since Test Icicles' noisily parabolic rise and fall there’s been many a change of musical heart and direction. The brief dalliances with Chicago’s art-scuzz geniuses Whirlwind Heat; the Harold & Maude/Cat Stevens tribute act persona circa 2009; the recent demos from the Blood Orange alter alter ego; writing credits for Diana Vickers (no, really). But it’s Lightspeed Champion that’s stuck, despite the documented troubles of following up the majestic debut Falling off the Lavender Bridge.

Marlene is the fruit of those labours. The wry, melancholic lyrics and delivery that lent …Lavender Bridge its charm remain, along with the expansive yet sombre strings. What is immediately present and sets this single apart from anything Hynes has offered before is a perky indie-pop bounce, reminiscent of the commercially friendly moves made by Mystery Jets’ Two Doors Down or Patrick Wolf. In fact, it’s as if it can’t quite make up its mind what it wants to be. The jangly guitars and “Stop being cool, uh-oh, uh-oh, uh-oh” laments switch intermittently with haunting violins and esoteric, “I’m waiting ‘til the sun has gone down, I’m waiting for a strand of your golden locks to sew my stomach shut” fables, but the seams between the two are all too visible. Where the first record oozed eccentric and restless inspiration, Marlene seems to court convention without fully being convinced by it. There’s no doubting the joy in its playfulness, and Hynes’ voice is as crisp and pleading as ever, but from a man seemingly so full of ideas (as the classical instrumental Concerto .2 “So Long! So Long!” and French language Gainsbourg cover on the B-sides confirms) it leaves one somewhat unfulfilled.

Tracks:
1. Marlene
2. Marlene (Radio edit)
3. Concerto .2 "So Long! So Long!"
4. 69 Annee Erotique
5. He's The Great Imposter
6. Tete Morte