Spoon - Transference

Spoon - so under-rated on this side of the pond. Whilst Pitchfork have always been "very fond" of them, the major publications over here (like Q, NME etc.) have been quietly praising them. I don't think I know anyone personally who's heard of them, let alone like them. If you're going to start somewhere, I'd recommend Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga (or Gax5 for the lazy person in me) and Gimme Fiction. Both great albums.

Anyway, back to Transference! I'm not a Spoon fanatic, but I was pretty underwhelmed when I first heard this album - and I still am after many listens. It's not that it's a bad album by any means, I just think that it lacks that something special and at times it's a chore to listen.

'Before Destruction' starts the album off with ghostly backing vocals and a slow-ish beat, before bouncing into 'Is Love Forever?', a much more optimistic track with its jagged-riff and psychedelic vocals. 'The Mystery Zone' is too catchy for its own good, but by the following track you'd probably be sick of the repetition.

The groove is back with the piano-led track 'Written In Reverse', one of the highlights of the album. In fact, the piano is (for me anyway) the real star of this album. I love the piano-led tracks, like the latter half of 'I Saw The Light', 'Goodnight Laura' and the weird piano samples on 'Nobody Gets Me But You'.

If you can handle a bit of repetition every now and again, then this will be a fine listen. It's a good album, but feels very unspectacular, and might leave you wondering "was that it?"

1. Before Destruction
2. Is Love Forever?
3. The Mystery Zone
4. Who Makes Your Money
5. Written In Reverse
6. I Saw the Light
7. Trouble Comes Running
8. Goodnight Laura
9. Out Go the Lights
10. Got Nuffin'
11. Nobody Gets Me But You

Rating: 3/5

Released 18th January

Four Tet - There Is Love In You

'Rounds' is one of those records where I just let the music flow, so when I heard that Four Tet aka Kieran Hebden was releasing another album this year, I was quite interested to hear it.

First impressions were that it was similar magic that can be heard in every Four Tet album, but 'There Is Love In You' just sounds a lot more focused than previous efforts. 'Love Cry' is a 9 minute breeze - the music is so gentle and cold, it's perfect to put on in the background whilst you're having a walkabout, preferably when it's snowing.

At times, it sounds like a more focused Aphex Twin - you can hear it in the sampled vocals that Hebden's put on, and the melody reflects that heard on 'Selected Ambient Works vol.1' . Whilst this isn't exactly a dance record, if I was going to be all technical about it, I'd class it as "minimalistic ambient techno".
It's also a bit of a grower, because I didn't have the patience to listen to the music at first, but if you just let it flow (that sounds so cheesy!) it becomes an enjoyable listen. This is probably my favourite Four Tet record, beating 'Rounds', which is no easy feat. You probably wont get it on first listen; it's one of those albums where you have to really listen to it to uncover its beauty.

It's probably not something I'd listen to everyday, but I think it's a beautiful album. Despite being an electronically-dominated album, it has a very gentle - and human - touch to it.

Give it a listen. Or two...or three...

1	Angel Echoes
2	Love Cry
3	Circling
4	PabloÆS Heart
5	Sing
6	This Unfolds
7	Reversing
8	Plastic People
9	She Just Likes To Fight

Rating: 4/5

Released 25th January

These New Puritans - Hidden

I wasn't really supposed to review this album, but it's had a lot of good reviews (Drowned In Sound and NME each giving it 9/10) so naturally I had to hear it for myself.

For some reason they remind me of The xx, even though the music isn't similar. The production is brilliant - it's very atmospheric at times - and sounds like nothing else out there. The vocals aren't the most unique, but the music is like a mixture of hip-hop, weird percussion, horns and 6ft Japanese drums. Sounds great doesn't it? Because of the Japanese connection, it does sound like it was made in the Far East, and Massive Attack would be proud of 'Three Thousand'.

My favourite has to be "Attack Music", because the swishing-sword samples and the weird bass clarinet really make it unique - and it's so damn catchy! Combining beat-dominating tracks and elegant instrumentals (such as the closer "5", I thought I was listening to Vespertine for a while) this album has a lot to offer.

It's a great album; the album title says a lot about this album, because the special moments on this album are usually hidden.
It's not perfect, and there could be improvements, but it's an impressive album that will take more than a couple of listens to 'get'. That's why I think it's my favourite album so far this year, tied with 'Heartland'. A must-listen.

1	Time Xone
2	We Want War
3	Three Thousand
4	Hologram
5	Attack Music
6	Fire–Power
7	Orion
8	Canticle
9	Drum Courts–Where Corals Lie
10	White Chords
11	5

Rating: 4/5

Released January 18th

Liars - Sisterworld

I thought this was out in January, but it turns out it's not released until March! This has leaked very early then.

Liars are a three-piece group dabbling in experimental rock, sometimes sounding like a no-wave era Sonic Youth. They're not an easy group to get into straight away, but their self-titled album (released in 2007) was one of my favourite albums from that year, so I was quite excited to hear this.

The opener "Scissor" is a stop-start track, starting slowly before launching into a frenzied riff. "No Barrier Fun" continues the creepy-rock effect that the band are quite successful at, but unfortunately the album suffers for being monotonous; "Drip" is probably the worst of the lot, it goes absolutely nowhere and just lingers like a bad itch you can't scratch.

It picks up again with the buzzing-riff of "Scarecrows on a Killer Slant". But that uprising is short lived, as it falls into mediocrity again. The appeal doesn't last too long, and it all sounds the same by the end. It's a shame, because I really like Liars, but this album feels like a half-arsed attempt at times, but with some sparkling moments underneath. It wouldn't be recommended if you wanted to be introduced to Liars.
There's no denying that they're a talented bunch of musicians, and I know that they can do better than this, but it falls short and feels like an uneventful ride.

1	Scissor
2	No Barrier Fun
3	Here Comes All the People
4	Drip
5	Scarecrows on a Killer Slant
6	I Still Can See an Outside World
7	Proud Evolution
8	Drop Dead
9	The Overachievers
10	Goodnight Everything
11	Too Much, Too Much

Rating: 2.5/5

Released March 8th.

Owen Pallett - Heartland

Formally known as Final Fantasy, having taken the name from the popular RPG video game series, this is Pallett's third album, released under his real name as it'll be his first album released in Japan - so he doesn't want to confuse all the gamers out there!

Sounding like Arcade Fire gone solo, this spunky baroque-pop is a concept album about a young farmer named Lewis - who has a bit of a violent streak. Fusing string arrangements and synths, it sounds very much like a soundtrack to (and I don't mean this as criticism) the Final Fantasy games themselves. Sounds typical, and I'm not accusing him of being a rip off at all. In fact it's worthy praise since the games always seem to have great scores.

The album goes through a range of catchy melodies, but on some occasions it sounds too overcomplicated. Pallett's vocals also sound lifeless on some songs, but full of passion on others. To me, a great album must have flow, and this delivers. It feels like a journey into a dreamy musical, full of beautiful melodies and menacing strings.

This is perhaps my favourite album of the year so far. Having worked with Grizzly Bear, Beirut, Death From Above 1979, and even Fucked Up, Pallett is a real virtuoso who is often under-rated. Check him out.

Rating: 4/5

Released January 12th

Delphic - Acolyte

Finally, I can post my review!

I should start off by saying I wasn't very keen on this album on first listen. There's some hype around this album, and I didn't get it. Once I got to know the songs better, it clicked into place.

'Clarion Call' is my favourite song, and as it's the opener, you'd expect me to say that the rest of the album goes downhill. But it doesn't; the title track and 'Counterpoint' are great tracks. Songs like 'Submission' and 'Red Lights' are less inspiring maybe, they sound like they're just going through the motion instead of trying to be a stand-outs, but there aren't any major lows that count as embarrassments.

What they're doing isn't new or fresh, they sound like a less-hyperactive Klaxons on some songs, but Delphic have delivered a solid debut album, something that feels innocently fun. You can't help but love it. They sound like a promising band too, it'll be interesting to hear their next album.

It might not stand the test of time, but for now, I'd say it is a fun listen.

Rating: 4/5

Released January 11, 2010

What's coming up...

Being an A-level student means that the next few weeks will mean endless studying for me, so I'll be reviewing albums much slower. I'll give a run down of what's coming up...

* Acolyte by Delphic will be reviewed (hopefully the review coming tomorrow). It's out today in the UK
* Transference by Spoon
* Sisterworld by Liars
* Heartland by Owen Pallet (previously Final Fantasy)
* There Is Love In You by Four Tet

February:
* Odd Blood by Yeasayer
* One Life Stand by Hot Chip
...and of course Heligoland by Massive Attack, which I'm very much looking forward to.

There's bound to be much more though.

Some news that's interested me: * M.I.A's new album will be released sometime in the summer. Speaking to Rolling Stone magazine, she described her new material as "really odd" and "more musical" than her previous efforts. Arular and Kala were both excellent efforts, so this will be an album to watch out for.

* The Knife are expected to release a "Charles Darwin-influenced opera" album. The new album called 'Tomorrow, In a Year', is said to be very different to the band's usual style of electronic. Album track 'Colouring of Pigeons' is streaming and is available to download at Theknife.net. One thing is for sure; do not expect 'Silent Shout' mark II.

Eels - End Times

Another band of which I'm unknown to, but over at Atease they seem to be very popular, so I thought I should listen to their upcoming new album.

'The Beginning' opens the album with nostalgia; “Everything was beautiful and free/In the beginning”. I'm sure we've all felt like that when we were in a new relationship, but the album concentrates on the aftermath; the marriage breakup and old age. Bleak as that sounds, it's done very well.

It's a mature record, done with wit (“Outside my window there’s a cat in heat / Shut up cat, and leave me alone”) and told through teary eyes. A good balance of ballads and upbeat tracks, it paces the album well without a great deal of drag. The instrumental 'High and Lonesome' is surprisingly effective, even though it only contains samples of thunderstorms. It captures the atmosphere of the album well. 'On My Feet' concludes the album in a typical melancholy fashion; reflecting on his relationship and his life; beautifully done.

Because this is my first Eels experience, I can't compare it to past albums, but I would say it was a solid effort. I'd have no problems listening to this again and again.

Rating: 3.5/5

Release date: January 18, 2010

Vampire Weekend - Contra

I think I better start with an explanation first of all; I haven’t heard their first album, so I’m basically listening through this album like a blind bat. I’ve heard some of their songs, in fact I have a love/hate relationship with A-punk, so I decided I should at least give this album a listen to first before I make my mind up about Vampire Weekend.

I’m pleasantly surprised to be honest. It’s a nice listen throughout. ‘Horchata’ opens the album with enthusiasm., and that youthful sound doesn’t stop. I love how they sampled M.I.A.’s ‘Hussle’ on ‘Diplomat’s Son’, the album’s longest track breaking the 6 minute barrier, it could also be an indicator to their future sound.

Clocking in at 36:40, it’s a short album, and even though it’s a fun album, I can’t see myself listening to this all the time. It’s full of quirky indie pop tracks without too much variation on offer. ‘Taxi Cab’ breaks the run of fast and catchy songs with a more slower and mellow approach, and the piano melody is beautiful in this track. ‘Cousins’ is typically catchy as well, but for me the letdown is the closer; ‘I Think UR a Contra’. A good song maybe, but it’s fairly uninspiring for me. (Plus I misheard it as "I think you're a c*nt now :S)

Overall, I’d say I like Vampire Weekend after this album, but I’m not exactly a fan. There’s so much indie pop I can take. It’s good though, just that once you’ve heard one song; you’ve more or less heard everything on the album.

Rating: 3.5/5

Released January 12, 2010

Woop! New blog!

I'll be using it mainly to post music news, reviews and so on. I've decided to try and listen to almost everything that's released in 2010. I love discovering new music, so with a fresh year ahead of me, I'm looking forward to the year ahead :)