"If the music don't move yer like it should..."

As I sure most readers will know, music is my first love.
I adore it & I'm always keen to bring in new blood. Recently I've been accumulating loads of new music. So much so I'm actually close to drowning under the weight of it all.
Obviously the whole point of music is to listen to it, not to merely add it to one's collection. Now, I make a lot of time to listen to my tunes; I have my pod on at work (when I beat Crisp Fiend & his amazing world of cheese to it. Honestly, he has some stuff on there that even Lordy B would balk at, such as the pull-your-ears-off-horror of "Total eclipse of the heart"- the cheesy dancy version by some dodgy bird), I usually have at least an hour or two a day at home, I have tunes on in the car & I always go to sleep to the sound of some tunes.

Things are getting silly though, The Duke Of Jokes gave me 4 new (well, new to me) albums at the weekend & I'm bloody struggling, I tell thee.
So far this year I have acquired 31 new albums & 2 very old albums that feel like new. I'll expand on those in a bit.
Now albums do seem to have a habit of arriving like the proverbial buses; you wait a while then they turn up mob handed. Historically this has proven to be of detriment to some of the albums in question. It's a survival of the fittest scenario. For instance, earlier this year I got the following within a couple of weeks of each other;
"Black holes & Revelations"-Muse
"Victory for the comic muse"-The Divine Comedy
"Razorlight"-Razorlight
"The Eraser"-Thom Yorke &
"The Great Western" - James Dean Bradfield.
Now as "Black holes & revelations" is quite simply one of the best albums ever recorded in the history of music* & "Victory for the comic muse" was very instant & quite lovable, I found it very difficult to spurn them in favour of getting my ears round the other ones. I still don't really know the Razorlight album well enough to pass judgment on. Thom Yorke's effort pretty much passes me by (other than "Harrowdown Hill" which is hypnotically excellent) & JDB's album has enough quality on it to know I'll really like it one day if I can ever give it the attention.

Then at the beginning of September I got Kasabian's "Empire" album. I didn't listen to it though as I buggered off to Czech. When I got back it was overlooked & I still haven't given it a proper listen yet.
Then it started, the onslaught that has yet to stop...

• Costello music - The Fratellis - I like it, it's bouncy & raucous & a little bit Arctic Monkeys but I have this feeling that I'll tire of it quickly. I hope I'm wrong.
• Sam's Town - The Killers - It's been strutting around I-tunes like the dominant alpha male of the pack. I mean it's getting regular listens. I think it's a very good album. Perhaps it hasn't quite got the highpoints of "Hot fuss" but it's a much more consistent effort. I'm digging it muchly.
• Shine on - Jet - Hmmm, bought it the same day as the Killers & it subsequently hasn't had much of a look in yet.
• The Bluetones - The Bluetones - Ahem, just the one listen so far. I'm sure it'll be great because the Bluetones make great records. Fact.

Then, courtesy of the DOJ...

• The New Fellas - The Cribs - They're from Wakefield y'know & I know at least one reader has seen them live (Hello Spins!). Sounds ok, so far.
• The best little secrets are kept - Louis XIV - He's a bit mental but he's got something. I think I like it.
• Give me a wall - iForward Russia - Oh I reckon I'm gonna like this a lot
• Progress-Reform - iLikeTrains - Yup, this'll float my boat too. All dark, sombre & noisy.

As if that wasn't enough, the utterly ace Mark Reed dangled this in front of me & could I resist? Why would I?

• Jarvis - Jarvis Cocker - Not played more than a couple of tracks yet but it's Jarvis, It's bound to be quality.

I'm seriously hoping there are no more releases on the horizon for a month or so, just to give me a chance to digest all that lot.

Now I mentioned earlier, 2 old albums. Some things are just so obscure that they've never been re-issued on CD. So these two relics from the early 80's have been lost in vinyl hell for a good 15 years or so. Finally though, due to this magical internet malarkey, I have re-acquired them. And I've been listening to them a lot. What are they? Well, does anyone have any idea who this lot are?



















They may well look like a bunch of gypos, but they are actually an early incarnation of a very successful (in their day) pop group. A group I really, really liked when I was younger.
Over their very up & down career they released 8 albums of varying quality.
At one point in the mid 80's they were so big that Madonna guested with them in their Live Aid slot. They are, of course...














Back in the day, I loved the Thompson Twins. However, before they became the poptastic trio that you may remember, they were actually the seven piece indie guitar band you see above. They released two albums in that guise; 1981's "A product of..." & 1982's "Set". I always liked these albums more than the poppy stuff. They are awash with great, great songs. The proof of the pudding was when I found myself effortlessly singing along, word for word, despite the eons that had passed since the last time I'd heard them.
I know that it probably doesn't mean anything to anyone one else but the reappearance of "A product of..." & "Set" is a source of massive joy to me.
Finally, another thankyou for the DOJ who had actually transferred these albums from vinyl for me even though the internet pipped him to the post.
Here's the thing, the final track on "A product of..." is called "Vendredi saint", it's some sort of Indian chant which has a very infectious melody. Back in the old days though it used to get on our nerves a bit. So we used to play it at 45rpm instead of 33. The DOJ only did me a digital version of it at 45rpm. He's a geezer! And it's like being 13 again.
Anyway, I've got tunes to listen to so I'm off.
Cheerio.





*Yes, it bloody is.