Doves - The Last Broadcast

Rising, if I remember rightly, around the same time as Elbow, and hailing from just up the road, Doves have provided 4 of my favourite albums this last ten years, but it's still 'The Last Broadcast' that I return to more than the others.

Having cemented early promise with their debut, I recall waiting impatiently for the follow up. Lead single 'There Goes The Fear' was a top 3 hit for the band and propelled them into a nation's consciousness with 'Words' providing Match Of The Day backing, and 'Pounding' proving another strong single.

The live shows around this time were also something to behold, with the band embracing their earlier days as 'Sub Sub', I remember going crazy at The Forum when they launched into 'Space Face' and this amongst other was documented on the brilliant 'Where We're Calling From' DVD, packaged alongside a host of extras and hidden features.

The album itself is packed with it's own gems - 'Satellites' still being the standout for me, though I feel churlish picking favourites from such a great bunch. In an age of 'shufflers', myself included, this is an album I continue to listen to from start to finish, waiting excitedly for the next gem.

Lisztomania

The time has come where you start to see everyone's "end of year" lists, from the pages of NME, Mojo, Uncut, Rolling Stone et al, to the outer regions of t'internet such us here.

This year also co-inciding with the end of the decade, it's a good time for everyone to go list crazy.

Best songs, best albums, best artists, of the year, of the decade, etc.

All will differ, as they should. Many will draw praise & criticism, some in equal measure.

As is my nature, I'm gonna take a random approach to this list business, posting daily(ish) my thoughts on whatever occupies my mind as I ponder the year(s) gone by.

Tempting as it is, I can't just sit here and say "right, Heartbreaker was the best album of the decade" and list all those that sit behind it. These things take time & thought, so I'm hoping my random approach will lead to some comprehensive and well considered list come year end & the start of the next.

So, without further a-do, I'll start here...

Elbow - Asleep In The Back



The title track, originally left off the brilliant debut album, first appeared as a standalone single (well, a double-A with 'Coming Second' off the same album), and blew me away.

My first experience of Elbow was 'Any Day Now' late night on Xfm, which pricked my ears enough to recall it when 'Red' later surfaced. A further dalliance with the album 'Asleep In The Back' (which deservedly gets the 'deluxe' treatment in time for Xmas) confirmed my thoughts on this special band.

'Scattered Black & Whites' had demonstrated a similar sonic awareness, and to follow the album with this single was a masterstroke. It's lyrical sparseness & simplicity ("all the things I never talk about are spilling with the gin") complementing the delicate sounds that support it, it remains perfect to these ears.

Elbow have of course risen to greater heights since, and have provided more heartstopping moments over the last 7 / 8 years, but this track remains at the top for me.

All You Fascists Bound To Lose

I don't pretend to be an expert in politics, and am rarely one to preach, but I have been raised well enough to know fascism when I see it.

That said, Thursday's Question Time, whilst being quite entertaining at times, was largely a waste of time in my opinion. Or wasted opportunity would perhaps be a better representation. It was too easy to sit and gang up on Nick Griffin, and with the majority of the crowd behind them I thought the panel lost focus trying to score points off eachother, especially on the subject of immigration which is a key subject in the BNP's rise into the mainstream. While Griffin didn't offer anything of particular value to the argument, the petty squabbling between the other politicians, I suspect, will have been what stuck in the minds of his sympathisers.

Griffin squirmed and dropped himself in it a couple of times as we'd hoped / expected (none more so than the darkly comical defence of David Duke as a member of an "almost totally non-violent" faction of the KKK). He was also cut off far too often though and while I doubt he'll have gained support from last night's showing, I don't think enough was made of the opportunity to deprive him of any of his current support, or that of the disillusioned that voted him in as 'the only other option'.

I won't go on, this isn't a political blog, and there's those a lot more knowledgable and eloquent than myself to take care of such matters. Music, protest & politics however have gone hand in hand for years, hence today's playlist...

Protest & Politics - Download


Manu Chao Politik Kills
The Impressions Choice Of Colours
Toots & The Maytals Revolution
Neil Young Southern Man
Ryan Adams Political Scientist
Jackson Browne Lives In The Balance
Tracy Chapman Across The Lines
Bright Eyes When The President Talks To God
Bob Dylan Masters Of War
Woody Guthrie This Land Is Your Land
Arlo Guthrie & Pete Seeger Draft Dodger Rag
Bruce Springsteen The Promised Land
Rory McLeod Stop The Apartheid Fascists
The Clash White Riot
Billy Bragg & Wilco All You Fascists
Ian Brown So Many Soldiers


PS - Re: 'The only other option'...there is an alternative. Spoil your paper, it'll say a lot more about what you think of matters.

Friday's Here

So, having dragged its heals like this second post, Friday has come and gone in the blink of an eye.

Probably not helped by a boring international break in the football, mind. I mean, I hate international breaks at the best of times, but really, this one was one of the most banal...Wales already well & truly out of the reckoning (I still blame this for everything that's happened, or not, in the last 15 years), and all other British fates decided, even the Uruguay - Argentina game that was meant to cure such boredom descended into anti-climax.

Here's to the return of proper football tomorrow!

Another Jools Holland show is upon us shortly and I shall be tuning in reasonably excitedly for the first time in a while. It's certainly been a lot more mainstream this series - you might say it's been headed in that direction for some time but, to my mind at least, it has always maintained credibility. However, this series has been a disappointment on the whole and, really, did we need Mika and Shakira on the same show the other week? Both performing 3 tracks each when The Duke & The King were sat to one side patiently awaiting the opportunity to air just the one?

Still, there should hopefully be less 'make the tea / get the beers in' moments tonight, what with Seasick Steve, Devendra Banhart & Jimmy Ruffin all present.

Anyway, rants over, I leave you with a quick, simple, weekend themed playlist. Clocking in at just under an hour, it's actually quite easy going, so ease your way in or out with this one :)

Easy Weekend - Download

Bonnie "Prince" Billy Big Friday
Doves Friday's Dust
Tom Waits (Looking For) The Heart Of Saturday Night
Built To Spill Saturday
The Cure Friday I'm in Love
Bob Dylan One More Weekend
Sam Cooke Another Saturday Night
Paul Weller Friday Street
The Small Faces Lazy Sunday
Blur Sunday Sunday
Neil Young Out On The Weekend
Gary Louris She Only Calls Me On Sundays
Nick Drake Saturday Sun
The Velvet Underground Sunday Morning
Josh Rouse Saturday
Sunhouse Crazy On The Weekend
J.J. Cale Blue Sunday
John Martyn Sunday's Child

Bon weekend!

So, I setup a blog...

...about 2 years or so ago, it would seem. Not that I knew it at the time.

It was probably because I wanted to enforce my opinion on someone and respond to a post in their own blog.

So, this account has lay dormant since and only came to my attention again the other day.

Everyone has a blog these days don't they?

So, why not do the same myself thought I. If anything, I'm so forgetful, that it'd be nice for my own benefit if noone else's to house some thoughts somewhere.

Music being my saviour (c. Jeff Tweedy), I've decided to do so in the form of playlists.

So, alongside ramblings, you will see mixtapes. If I could present them on a C90 then I would, however it seems today such mixes are presented in the form of a playlist.

Even if you, whoever the illusive 'you' may be, never indulge in this blog or these playlists, then I suspect one day I may return to recount my thoughts.

So, in an attempt to close this opening ramble without self promotion [ and failing, ahem, click to download ;) ], and with all sorts of options to look into legally and aesthetically on how to present such thoughts and playlists, let me point you in the direction of a recent acquaintance.

Benjamin Folke Thomas' songs are streaming legally over here - tie me up next time if I go

A talent to be reckoned with, his live show is something to behold, and with a debut single due in the not too distant future, I'm sure I'll be writing more about Ben in due course.