January Music
Tuesday, January 16th 2007
January is traditionally a slow month for new releases and good music to listen to. The last couple of years I'm sure it's been March/ April before any worthwhile new albums have been released. This year seems to be a bit different however, lots of good new stuff to listen to. Admittedly, some of them are things that have been hanging around since the tail end of 2006 but January seems particularly rich with good new releases this year.
First the hangovers from 2006 that are tickling my ears right now -
Amy Winehouse - Back To Black This album has certainly had good reviews and in this case they are well deserved. I picked it up off the back of the chorus from the single Rehab being stuck in my head for what seems like weeks. 'They tried to make me go to rehab/ I said no, no, no'. So well have they recreated the sound of 60's soul/Motown records that I had initially thought the tracks were made up of samples but no, there are only 2 samples on the whole album. Having said that it never sounds anything other than modern. Were it just a empty soul pastiche (see Joss Stone) it wouldn't work but Winehouse's songs are so strong melodically and her personality really shines through in the lyrics. All in all a triumph and nary a bad track in sight.
Jarvis Cocker - Jarvis For a while now Jarvis has been writing songs for others (Nancy Sinatra, Charlotte Gainsbourg) or releasing records under pseudonym (Relaxed Muscle) but it's nice to see him back with a proper solo record and it's quite fine too. At first it was the more obvious pop songs at the front of the record that caught my attention but as I'm listening to it more the darker songs on the second side are the ones that are hitting home (I Will Kill Again, From A to I, Fat Children). It's well worth having a look at the video for the single 'Don't Let Him Waste Your Time'
Charlotte Hatherley - Behave EP Very happy this turned up on eMusic, a taster from her next album which I think is due out in February. Her album Fade To Grey was one of my surprise faves of a couple of years ago. The 2 extra tracks didn't grab me but the lead track is quite fine and bodes well for the full release.
The Long Blondes - Someone To Drive You Home YouTube isn't just a great place for watching stuff, it's also a good place to sample music without downloading tracks from iTunes or elsewhere. I read the review of this album on Pitchfork, headed to YouTube to check out some vids and liked their style and their songs. Not really what I was expecting, essentially they are a Britpop band 13 years out of time. Given my age and what I was doing from the early to mid-90's this isn't a problem since I tend to like a lot of music from that time (early Suede, Boo Radleys, Elastica, Pulp, Blur etc). Admittedly The LB's aren't as good as any of the aforementioned bands but this isn't a bad record with some fine singles. Check out Once And Never Again and Weekend Without Makeup
As for Jan releases, most aren't out yet. Still waiting for the new Shins record (out 29th) which is getting good reviews, Damon Albarn's new project The Good, The Bad and The Queen (22nd) and my most anticipated due to the strength of their first album, Field Music's 'Tones Of Town' (22nd). One anticipated release is already out:
Gruff Rhys - Candylion I linked to the video for the title track in one of my prolific postings at the tail end of last year and the album was released last week. Solo albums are always a hit and miss affair and indeed Gruff (lead singer of Super Furry Animals) had mostly a miss with his first solo record (judging that on the fact that I barely listened to it). This however is a lovely collection of off kilter pop songs covering topics as diverse as mythical creatures, archaeology and on the 15 minute long last track Skylon, plane hijackings. Recommended.
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