GIL SCOTT-HERON - I'm new here - Buy the rough trade exclusive with with a fantastic bonus 7 track cd - without doubt one of the most important voices in 20th century music, gil scott-heron's landmark albums of the 1970's, and work with long-time collaborator brian jackson have influenced a myriad of musical styles from rap, acid jazz, neo soul and spoken word jazz. this latest album, expertly produced by xl founder richard russell, places scott-heron's keenly observed, biting spoken word narratives alongside sparse, modern musical backdrops which reference touchstones as diverse and relevant as dubstep, electronica and of course, modern hip-hop. politically as relevant as ever, as well as humourous, melancholy, and hopeful, this is the work of a vibrant, subtle poet of protest, still able to manipulate the traditions of a stylistic oeuvre he helped create into something warm, original and full of gravitas.
Runner Up:
SHEARWATER -the golden archipelago - BUY
'the golden archipelago' is the third album in a triptych of mindblowingly beautiful, dense and ambitious excursions about man's impact on the natural world from austin's shearwater. this time singer / songwriter jonathan meiburg turns his attention to life on islands - a world of lushness and austerity, silence and sudden cataclysms. from rising sea levels to displaced populations, meiburg travels from the falklands to madgascar, from the bikini atoll to the tierra del fuego. the music matches the grandeur and melancholy of its subject matter. this is an album album, in the larger sense of the word. meiburg's soaring vocals and complex song structures recall opuses like kate bush's 'hounds of love,' h usker d u's 'zen arcade' and even classic pink floyd. meiburg's grandfather's wwii experiences as a radiooperator in the south pacific help weave these times and places together with feelings of wonder, grief, and defiance.
Other Records worth buy
LOS CAMPESINOS! - Romance is Boring
HOLLY MIRANDA - The Magicians Private Library
JOHNNY CASH - American VI
FIRST AID KIT - The Big Black & The Blue
MIDLAKE - The Courage Of Others
LIGHTSPEED CHAMPION - Life Is Sweet Nice to Meet You
Gig on the Month: Hurts at Wilton's Music Hall, 24th February 2010
Hurts are on tour in MAY, the NME Radar Tour - get involved quick
Runner Up: We Are Scientists at Camden Barfly, 21st February 2010
Recent find of the month: SOAP&SKIN: Lovetune for Vacuum
'Lovetune for Vacuum' is an unwavering line of drama, inner conflict and melancholy - its impact lies in its paradoxicality: remarkably mature on the one hand, yet feeding on unbridled youthful exuberance on the other. Few musical discoveries in recent years have been as staggering as that of Soap&Skin aka Anja Plaschg. The sheer force this eighteen year old artist injects into her compositions almost beggars belief, her songs consuming every last drop of her with no regard for grace or beauty. Then again, the 13 deeply melancholic compositions of piano, sometimes crackling electronica and inimitable vocals, which oscillate between a whisper and a scream on this debut, are so drenched in beauty and gracefulness, one could crumble on hearing them.
See here for a live recording
March is shaping up well: Blood Red Shoes, Laura Marling, Joanna Newsom all await plus plenty more I am sure.
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