Desire Avenue

Somehow it's June already, how that happened so quickly I don't know!?!?!

I'm finding that 2008 is a lot more satisfying than last year musically and have been really enjoying:

Portishead - Third
The Hampdens - The Last Party
The Raveonettes - Lust Lust Lust
Ladytron - Velocifero
Camille - Music Hole
The Duke Spirit - Neptune
Hawksley Workman - Los Manlicious

I've also discovered the wayward charms of Marianne Faithfull in a second hand music store, and have been playing Kissin' Time a hell of a lot too!

Next week El Pero Del Mar's second album gets it's release here, so things are looking good!

Hows 2008 been treating you?

As every year passes I seem to becoming less and less interested in music and buying less and less albums as a result. (I'm more into watching films on dvd).

I think so far this year I've obtained about half a dozen albums and most of them are a few years old.

Amongst the ones I can remember are:

Ansty Cowfold - Ansty Cowfold
The Hours OST - Philip Glass
Ravenous OST - Damon Albarn & Michael Nyman
Ecliptic - Virginia Astley ( a self -produced live poretry recital mini album)
a couple of albums by The Delgados
.......and i think thats about it.

this year hasn't had as many new releases as last year but it's been just as good i think

Martina Topley-Bird : The Blue God
Portishead : Third
Goldfrapp : Seventh Tree
Santogold

okay so there's even less albums than i thought.

Good year from the beginning !

Portishead : Third
Bob Mould : District Line (ex Hüsker Dü, Sugar)
Sun Kil Moon : April (ex Red House Painters)
Paramount Styles : Failure american style (Scott McCLoud from Girls against Boys)
Rodolphe Burger : No Sport (ex Kat Onoma)
Evangelista : Hello, voyager (Carla Bozulich (ex Geraldine Fibbers) new project)
...

I think I must be getting tight with my cash ....surely not?
The Portishead & Goldfrapp albums are both definately on my 'albums to get' list but I'm prepared to wait a year or two until I can pick them up cheap for a few quid.

I haven't heard the new Portishead yet, but I'm impressed with the impromptu Yorke/Greenwood cover of The Rip here:

http://www.radiohead.com/deadairspace/

yes, it's great !

on youtube with a better sound

Oh thanks Alex, I just followed a link there to the original Portishead version - I love it! I'm really surprised actually, it's a much more accoustic sound than I would have expected from them. Lovely.

Portishead should do more acoustic songs, as it sounds so great!
I tried to perform it too on my guitar after i watched the Radiohead version; and it's quite simple chords even if it's not very finger friendly for some of them.

As we mention Radiohead, I have a lot free time these days so 2 weeks ago I decided to work hard on my acoustic guitar as I want to be able to play the whole Ok Computer album.
And some of them are very electronic or with a lot of distorsion so I need to adapt them.
And for now I can play almost entirely Airbag, Paranoid Android, Let Down, Climbing up the walls, No Surprises and Lucky. That's a big achievement for me, as usually it's hard for me to be able to play whole songs. That's not very interesting news but I'm proud of my work

alx5962 wrote: And for now I can play almost entirely Airbag, Paranoid Android, Let Down, Climbing up the walls, No Surprises and Lucky. That's a big achievement for me, as usually it's hard for me to be able to play whole songs. That's not very interesting news but I'm proud of my work

It's interesting to me,Alex.I spend half my life transcribing music. It's extremely good ear training,even though guitar-based bands tend to use the same five or six chords ad infinitum. Well done!

An unfortunate thing about being in Australia is the time it takes for certain albums to get released here. Like the fact that the Australian version of An Pierle & White Velvet only hit the shelves here a few weeks ago despite being released in 2006 in Europe.

The same with Scout Niblett's album from last year, This Fool Can Die Now (with a brilliant album cover), has only just turned up too.

Bizarrely the new dEUS album Vantage Point, which I absolutely adore, got released here pretty much the same time as it got released in Europe yet Pocket Universe got no release here at all!!!

But the absolute gem of this year so far is Krista Polvere's debut Here Be Dragons. She's from Adelaide, ended up in New York last year recording her album with Ryan Adams and Mercury Rev. It's a dreamy, bluesy alt country album awash with gorgeous arrangements and her rather divine slightly higher pitched chrissy hynde-esque voice.

http://www.kristapolvere.com/

Well worth checking out, I hope she gets a proper international release, so many decent Australian acts miss out on such an opportunity.

Haven't bought any new albums really except for Jamie Lidell's latest (which is really good, even better than the previous album). This year I started listening to the Kings of Convenience. Bought both their albums and I am totally in love with their sound.

Last but not least: The Gossip is also a favourite of mine. Beth Ditto rocks!

I am okay with 2008 music wise

The Submarines
Death Cab for Cutie
Kathleen Edwards
The Last Shadow Puppets
Band of Horses (probably a 2007 release in America)
Have all released great records

All I need now is for
Joanna Newsom and Stina to release something new this year and it will turn in to a great year

I got Jamie Lidell's new album Jim today, I love it. Also adore the new Sigur Ros album too...

update: this year has been brilliant so far, i'd say it's as good as last year already!

Martina Topley-Bird : The Blue God
Portishead : Third
Goldfrapp : Seventh Tree
Santogold : Santogold
Pram : Prisoner of the Seven Pines
Juana Molina : Un Dia
The Fiery Furnaces : Remember
Leila : Blood, Looms & Blooms
HK119 : Fast, Cheap, and Out Of Control
Camille : Music Hole
Ladytron : Velocifero
Erykah Badu : New Amerykah
High Places : High Places