Author: Michael

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Favourite Albums of 2023

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5. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – Weathervanes: As a middle aged Caucasian, it’s such a treat to listen to Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit’s Weathervanes. An album where Isbell tries to make sense of the world around him and how to be a positive force in it. “Cast Iron Skillet” made it onto Barack Obama’s playlist this year. The one on my playlist is “Save the World” whose beginning instrumentation already feels dreadful as Isbell sings of a(nother) school shooting. Remarkable stuff.

4. Mitski – The Land Is Inhospitable And So Are We: A late addition to the list was the very well received Mitski album that was released in mid September. A quietly powerful album, Mitski’s lyrics are beautiful as she drops line of wisdom and makes bleak thoughts sound poetic on tracks like “When Memories Snow”.  Third single “My Love Mine All Mine” also made it onto Barack Obama’s year end playlist, one of the better tips of the cap an artist can receive these days. 

3. blur – The Ballad of Darren: One of the best surprises of the year was blur releasing The Ballad of Darren last summer. As the band matures, so do their songs and themes. “Russian Strings” sees Damon Albarn sing, “there’s nothing in the end, only dust” before adding the uplifting line, “so turn the music up”. Songs like “Barbaric” and “The Narcissist” are classic blur tracks. While the album could use a bit more energy, the deluxe version that adds a couple of songs is the one to get

2. Yo La Tengo – This Stupid World: 17 studio albums in and the Yo La Tengo trio continue to release great music.  On this February release they include several songs that hit right away in “Apology Letter” and “Fallout”. They also leave room for the atmospheric closer sung by Georgia Hubley, “Miles Away”. A wonderful album that is still worth exploring in extended listens nearly a year later.

1. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Council Skies: Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Bird’s fourth album returns the chief to areas that he and fans know very well.  While the single “Pretty Boy” had a different sound, songs like “Open the Door, See What You Find” and especially “Easy Now” have the feel of his first band. The fans who are still clamouring for an Oasis reunion are the ones not paying attention the excellent rock and roll music that both Gallagher brothers are putting out on their own.

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10 Favourite Songs of 2023

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10. Slowdive – Alife: A mix of singing between Rachel Goswell and Neil Halstead, “Alife” was the last single released from Slowdive’s album, everything is alive. The ocean of guitar with buried vocals is a pop song from another dimension, one with a constant refrain of “two hard lives are hard lives with you”.  Love is in the air.

9. Lana Del Rey – A&W:  One of the most unique tracks in popular music in 2023 was “A&W” from Lana Del Rey.  Instead of hamburgers, the song instead refers to an “American Whore”.  A song of two halves, the track is an unusual mix of folk and trap music, two styles that have figured in her music throughout Del Rey’s career.

8. Belle and Sebastian – When We Were Very Young: Belle and Sebastian released another great record early in the year. Containing the classic Stuart Murdoch line, “I wish I could be content with the football scores”, “When We Were Very Young” is another B&S track for all the outsiders.

7. Emma Anderson – Clusters: From an album bathed in light and twinkling stars, last track “Clusters” from Emma Anderson is one of the best.  Her voice floats above the air with lines like, “all the pretty boys/all the pretty girls”, then when she sings “dodododo”, it’s impossible not to sing along.

6. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit – Save the World: Jason Isbell released one of the most powerful songs of living in America with “Save the World” about a school shooting.  Grappling with senseless violence is something virtually all of us deal with every week whether a personal story or one read in the paper.  Isbell’s track shows you’re not alone in trying to figure this out.

5. Yo La Tengo – Apology Letter: Not released as a single, one of the most memorable songs on the latest from Yo La Tengo is the song, “Apology Letter”.  Ira Kaplan sings the funny/sad line, “And then I got mad because you got mad/another one of my delightful quirks/what a jerk”.

4. Robert Forster – Tender Years: One of the highlights of the latest album from Robert Forster was his tribute to his wife, “Tender Years”.  The touching song is an easy going track lead by a strumming guitar and features the line, “I’m in a story with her/No, I can’t live without her”. Love is definitely in the air here. (Video released in November 2022)

3. The Beatles – Now and Then: One of the most haunting sounds of 2023 was hearing John Lennon signing the first words “I know it’s true…” in the “Now and Then” song released as an official single by The Beatles. A much better track than what the band released in the 1990s, the song was not without its detractors… but the rest of us loved it.

2. blur – The Narcissist: Like other “nostalgia acts” releasing new music in 2023, blur released a track sure to be one of their finest with “The Narcissist”.  One that will be sung loudly at future concerts, the line “I’ll be shining light in your eyes/you’ll probably shine it back on me” is spine tingling.

1. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Easy Now: One of Noel Gallagher’s best tracks of his solo career, “Easy Now” was released in early 2023 with a memorable video featuring Milly Alcock from House of the Dragon. One of Noel’s best vocals that he uses to great effect. The skyscraper chorus rivals his most lighters up in the air tracks with his former band, Oasis.

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Favourite Distant (Re)Discoveries of 2023

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5. Bob Dylan – Self Portrait (Album): Everything I had ever heard about Bob Dylan’s 1970 album, Self Portrait was how terrible it was.  It was with these ears I went to listen/review for the first time and was pleasantly surprised by the album. Not a lost classic by any means but songs like first track, “All the Tired Horses” and his unique cover of “The Boxer” keeps things interesting.  While his 60s albums need to be front and centre, this one can happily play in the background.

4. Madonna – Oh Father (Song): A song that I’ve liked since the early 90s, “Oh Father” is an odd track in Madonna’s career. Appearing on the Like a Prayer album, it is one of the worst performing singles of her career.  Regardless, the dramatic ballad is a show stopper of emotion that climaxes with the powerful line –  “Maybe someday/When I look back, I’ll be able to say/You didn’t mean to be cruel/Somebody hurt you too”.

3.  Liam Gallagher – Knebworth 22 (Album): It was a significant triumph for Liam Gallagher to headline the historic Knebworth Park over two nights in 2022. The album souvenir released a year later left out a few tracks but hit all the highlights.  The album plays like a greatest hits of Liam’s career with a few surprises like the inclusion of Oasis album track, “Roll It Over”.

2.  Ghost – Mary On A Cross (Song): This track from at 2019 was discovered through a youtube search after listening to the gang at Sea of Tranquility argue about the merits of Ghost. I’m sure it’s a track that metalheads can’t stand but I played this endlessly for months.  The catchy melody and clever lyrics turn the track into an anthem, one that gets amped up by the crowd in the youtube clip.

1. The Damned – Life Goes On (Song):  The end of 2022 was not the best time of my life but coming across this track by The Damned helped through many cold nights in early 2023. The song from 1982 tells the listener that “life’s a con” and the only answer is “to go on and on and on”.  Through the doom and gloom, the line “but always remember/this is the happiest day of your life” is a beacon of light.

Posted in Album Reviews

Mitski – The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We (2023)

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On the song, “The Deal”, New York’s Mitski’s voice swoops and swoons over an acoustic guitar during the first verse before the chorus brings the orchestral noise… drums sound like galloping wild horses towards the end. Like the album, there is a lot going on in that short burst of sound. Northern residents will know what it’s like for “The Frost” to look like dust on the landscape and shoveling the snow off the driveway like memories being swept away on “When Memories Snow”.

“Sometimes a drink feels like family” Mitski sings on first single “Bug Like An Angel”, a track where a choir bursts in to punctuate key points. “My Love Mine All Mine” is a love song to the love she feels inside. Country tinges songs like the aforementioned “The Frost” and on “Heaven” where “something set free is running through the night”. Mitski’s seventh studio album is a quiet album, raw at times, but one that is full of power and emotion. 

8.5/10

Posted in Album Reviews

Van Halen – Women and Children First (1980)

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Van Halen’s third album welcomed the band into the 80s. Once again produced by Ted Templeman, the band introduces a heavier sound. First track “And the Cradle Will Rock…” starts with an electric piano that sounds like a metallic guitar courtesy of Eddie Van Halen. A good rock song about the new metal generation of kids. The jungle drums and David Lee Roth making jungle noises opens “Everybody Wants Some!!”. The straightforward track about getting it on has been a long concert favourite.

The first half of the album is mostly about the kids, rock, and partying.  While the second half is mostly about that as well, a few different musical ideas start to appear. The punk/metal of “Loss of Control” sees Alex Van Halen doing double time on the bass drum. “Take Your Whiskey Home” and “Could This Be Magic” both turn in fine acoustic guitar moments. The former seeing a girl tell Diamond Dave, “well, I think that you’re headed for a whole lot of trouble” and the latter sounding like a good yet throwaway Doors song. 

The album ends with “In a Simple Rhyme” that starts as a 70s rock ballad before the rock comes in.  Nice vocals on the chorus make it a memorable album closer. Women and Children First sees Van Halen continue their party lyrics but the harder sounds is pushing the band forward.

7.5/10