As a music fan, you know that it's the end of another year when you see the 'tip sheets' of various publications coming in thick or fast. Be it the BBC Sound of... poll, the Blog Sound Of... poll (which for the first time this year I was one of the judging panel), or even my veryown lists, they act as a good indicator of what musicians are worth keeping an eye on over the next 12 months. Because isn't that smug sense of self-satisfaction you get when you hear someone talking about an artist a few months down the line and you think to yourself "I heard of them back in November!" just wonderful?
In any of these lists, you know that an artist is going to do particularly well when you find the same artists cropping up again and again. The Irish Times recently asked some trendy media people which artists that they are tipping for big things next year. Several of the people asked, including Conor O'Brien of Villagers, came up with an artist whom I hadn't heard of up until now, but one that I've really taken to - Limerick based trio Bleeding Heart Pigeons, and their three-part alternate-rock movement* "Soliloquies, Massacres".
The first part of the movement is "Visiting Myself In Hospital", a track which combines the forceful electronic-rock of These New Puritans with a vocal/guitar aesthetic borrowed from Manic Street Preachers. The second part, "Premeditation", takes on board some of the more intimate sounds of Radiohead, before climaxing with some very Warp-esque bleeps.
This is then followed by the final part, "Catharsis", which suddenly and surprisingly hurtles the music into Vampire Weekend territory for three glorious minutes, before pulling the plug entirely for the final two minutes, stripping the song down to just guitar and vocals.
For a band that are still in their teens, "Soliloquies, Massacres" is an incredibly inventive introduction to Bleeding Heart Pigeons. The band have done the impossible by taking the best bits of some of the most inventive artists of the past twenty years, yet made something both strikingly original and very much their own. Where they can possibly go from here is anybody's guess.
"Soliloquies, Massacres" is out now, with parts II & III available to download for free.
For a rock band that only has two members, New York based Aware Wolf sure do make a lot of noise. Taken from their first E.P, "Scummy Scummy Skam Guy" takes its lead from a variety of different sources, be it the loud guitars of Japandroids, the lo-fi charm of The Libertines, or the pop-laden punk of Green Day (elements of the track do bear melodic similarities to their track "Jesus of Suburbia"). It's this sort of fun garage-pop that inspired me to start this blog in the first place nearly two years ago, and it's a song well worth taking 2 1/2 minutes out of your day to listen to.
The track from the band's self-titled debut E.P, which is available on a pay-what-you-like basis.
Are you one of those people that howls angrily at your computer screen whenever you see someone referring to Florence Welch as the new Kate Bush? If so, then I recommend finding a good anger management course. But before that, it might be worth checking out Norwich based quartet Maglia Rose Group, a band who seem to encapsulate the voice and sonic influences of the "Hounds of Love" artist more than any Machine.
Their latest release, "Nighthawks", is a dark, introverted song featuring love, longing and loss, with the encapsulating vocals of lead singer Daisy Lawrence showing off an almost operatic feeling.
The debut E.P by Maglia Rosa Group, "Nighthawks", is out now.
Even though we're very close to the end of the year, there are still some artists determined to win the award for both the "Strangest Artist Name" and "Most Bonkers Song title of 2012." Until now, there have been few contenders vying for both titles simultaneously. Until now. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Welsh group Beard of Wolves!
Ahead of a forthcoming E.P release in March, the Welsh group have made the first track from the release available immediately as a free download, which is rather gloriously called "My Father Drives The Death Star". The track straddles the line between garage rock and harsh electro, ending up with a song not to dissimilar to a more primitive version of Does It Offend You, Yeah.
This morning, both my Facebook and Twitter feeds exploded simultaneously with the news that Belfast's loudest, heaviest and most respected post-rockers, And So I Watch You From Afar, are gearing up to release their third studio album next year.
Much has changed in Afar Land since the release of their last album "Gangs". The band have consolidated to a three piece following the departure of Tony Wright (now plying his trade as VerseChorusVerse), and the band's record label has shifted to Sargent House, following the winding up of much respected Dublin label Richter Collective.
What hasn't changed however, is the group's knack for a killer tune, as evidenced by the first song to be taken from their upcoming album. "Like a Mouse" is a great re-introduction to the band featuring some of their trademark sounds - loud guitars, shifting time signatures and riff, and lyric-less chants tailor made for live audience shenanigans.
The band's 3rd album, "All Hail Bright Futures", will be released on March 19th.
Having released their debut single over the summer, Belfast based piano-rockers Hologram are gearing up to release their first E.P in the new year. In anticipation of that release they have made its first track available to download as a free single. "Fight Or Flight" is a heart-tugger of a tune, one which calls to mind the work of fellow Nordie band Rams' Pocket Radio.
The group have released a music video to coincide with the single's release, which has been shot all across Belfast city:
For the benefit of those who don't like musical embeds, or opinions about the music featured, here are The Metaphorical Boat's top songs and albums in list form. For those who enjoy cold, hard data.
Top Songs of 2012:
The Asteroids Galaxy Tour - Heart Attack
Little Comets - Jennifer
Public Service Broadcasting - Spitfire
Japandroids - The House That Heaven Built
Wonder Villains - Ferrari
Foals - Inhaler
Django Django - Default
Passion Pit - Take a Walk
Eugene McGuinness - Harlequinade
Shonen Knife - Pop Tune
Bruce Springsteen - We Take Care of Our Own
Jake Bugg - Lightning Bolt
B>E>A>K - Kehaar
Various Cruelties - Great Unknown
The Spook of the Thirteenth Lock - The Brutal Here and Now (Part I)
Now it's time for The Metaphorical Boat's Top 5 albums of 2012. Some real beauties in these top 5, with many of them destined to become future classics, or in some cases, future forgotten gems:
5. Jack White - Blunderbuss
(XL Recordings)
After calling the rigid set-up of The White Stripes to a close, and taking breaks from the other 39 bands that he is a member of, Detroit's Jack White graced us this year with his debut solo album, a record that reawakened many people's interest in the guitarist after getting lost somewhere between The Raconteurs' sophomore record and The Dead Weather's debut single.
Just like the albums he made with Meg, "Blunderbuss" is notable for the sheer variety of songs on offer here, albeit one that expands upon the rule of thirds he had stuck to over those 6 records. From balls-up rock on "Sixteen Saltines", to razor-tinted balladry of "Love Interruption", through to blues covers and piano waltzes ("I'm Shaking" and "Take Me With You..." respectively), "Blunderbuss" is kaleidoscopic view into the wonderful mind of Jack White.
4. Bruce Springsteen - Wrecking Ball
(Columbia)
When Bruce Springsteen released "Working On A Dream" in 2009, it was a time of great hope. Barack Obama's election gave the impression of a new generation of politics, various foreign conflicts were coming to an end, and the financial crisis seemed to be nearly over. Perhaps it's because of this that in hindsight, the album was something of a damp squib.
Fast forward three years, and it turns out that things didn't quite go according to plan. The economy is in a worse off state than it was then, the country still found itself caught up in conflicts abroad, and Obama failed to walk on water and feed the five thousand. All of this has contributed to Springsteen's angriest album for some time, and consequently his best.
"We Take Care of Our Own" is his most accessible single in years, yet shows a great anger for the apathy shown by the government. Other tracks see The Boss addressing the bankers whom he blames for the economic downturn (using some colourful language on "Jack on All Trades"), and sees him addressing spiritual and catholic themes ("Rocky Ground" and "Land of Hope and Dreams).
Although I do hope that the economy etc. picks up pretty soon, there's a dark side of me that hopes things still haven't sorted themselves out by the time Bruce Springsteen releases his next album. After all, it's during times of crises that he writes his best work.
3. Eugene McGuinness - The Invitation to the Voyage
(Domino)
Who've thought that the guitarist for Miles Kane would write one of the greatest grown-up pop records of the year? "The Invitation To The Voyage" mixes sophisticated production techniques with literate and occasionally witty lyrics to great effect. "Harlequinade", "Sugarplum" & "Thunderbolt" feature some of the best pop hooks of the year, "Lion", the only indie-rock tune on the record, mixes a hypnotic guitar riff with side-splitting vocals, whilst he manages to sample Tricky on "Shotgun" and get away with it. It's not an album I envisage appearing on many other year-end lists, but it is a wonderful record if you take thetime to absorb it.
2. Japandroids - Celebration Rock
(Polyvinyl)
I feel that I might have been unduly harsh on "Celebration Rock" by Canadian duo Japandroids when I first mentioned it in July. Back then, I complained that it was too short (only 8 songs), and was far too indebted to Bruce Springsteen. However, given that I have declared it to be by 2nd favourite album of the year, it's fair to say my opinion has changed a lot.
Having spent a lot more time with the album, I think that eight tracks is the perfect length for the record, for if it was any longer, it would lose what was so special about it. Plus, as the band's website helpfully points out, "Born To Run" was only 8 tracks long as well. It is unashamedly a rock record, with guitars distorted to the maximum, and vocals set firmly on powerful. These are the songs of long nights spent on the road going from one city to the next. These are the songs spent performing in small-to-medium sized venues as fans chant along to the single's biggest hooks. And most of all, it's the music to soundtrack having the best of times, whilst you still can.
1. Little Comets - Life Is Elsewhere
(Dirty Hit)
If you had said to me two years ago that the Newcastle based group Little Comets would make the album I would consider to be the best of the year, I would have laughed in your face. After all, their debut album was released at the tail end of the so called "landfill indie" landslide, and the prospects of them even making it to album two seemed slim. Yet in losing a member to the real world, something extraordinary happened.
The band got good. Very good in fact.
"Life Is Elsewhere" is the sound of a band maturing and moving into interesting new waters. Conventional rock rhythms are ignored in favour of different rhythms and time signatures (The chorus of "A Little Opus is in 9/4 time, for example). The sound is comparable to a mix of mainstream 80s pop with the Afro-beat sound as popularized by Vampire Weekend. Whilst this new approach to writing has paid off really well, the album's most prominent feature is one that many other writers have failed to pick up on.
Lyrically, the album is a very dark affair.
Some of the reviews have tended to comment more on the upbeat hooks of the record, yet have downplayed the darkness of the lyrics, or in some baffling cases, ignored it all together. The only time I have ever been angry whilst reading an album review was when I read Earmilk's thoughts about "Life Is Elsewhere". According to their woefully misguided review:
"The album is full to the brim with light-hearted tunes. You won't find any dark or melancholic draws here, that's not Little Comets' style."
This conveniently ignores the fact that one of the tracks on the album, "Violence Out Tonight", deals with the brutal subject of rape, whilst another track, "Bayonne", was inspired by familial shootings. It makes me wonder if they really listened to the same album that I did.
"Life Is Elsewhere" is a mature offering which is just as likely to make you think than to move. It it is an album that despite its bleakness, offers something reassuringly human at the centre. And it is an album that deserves to be listened to over and over again.
After all the fun and hijinks of looking at our favourite songs of 2012, it is time to look at the ten albums that most shaped The Metaphorical Boat's listening habits over the past twelve months.
As always, it is usually much harder to decide on an order for best albums than it is for best songs. For single tracks, it goes in order of which songs I'd be happy enough to hear again and again in descending order. For albums on the other hand, there are a lot more variables involved. Should an album with lots of decent tracks receive a better placing than an album with two of the greatest songs of the year and much more filler? Should an album that works well as a complete work be given preference to an album with better songs, but with more variety and a poorer flow?
It's for reasons like this that I have great respect for one music blogger, who decides his best-of list based on a complex mathematical formula. It's a good system, but whilst maths might be useful in some areas of music (e.g. ensuring your drummer can count to four is a necessity for any good rock band), when it comes to choosing favourites, going with your heart and gut is probably the best option.
So here is the first half of The Metaphorical Boat's top albums of 2012:
10. Lucy Rose - Like I Used To
(Columbia)
The release of the debut album by Lucy Rose was the moment when she stopped being defined by her relationship with Bombay Bicycle Club and became a fully fledged artist in her own right. "Like I Used To" is a wonderful album full of acoustic charm and soothing vocals from Ms Rose.
9. Tribes - Baby
(Island)
I think that we can all agree that the best album of 2013 is likely to be Suede's long awaited sixth studio album. But until we await their second coming, there are plenty of bands that have attempted to keep the Britpop sound alive. But whilst many bands failed miserably in their quest (Viva Brother, anyone?), there was one that managed to stand head and shoulder above the rest - London group Tribes.
Their debut album, "Baby" was compared favorably to Suede's "Coming Up", an understandable comparison, even if it isn't entirely true. Their debut album contains such wonderful nuggets as "Corner Of An English Field", the existential angst of "Sappho", and the wonderfully anthemic "We Were Children". The album might not have soared to the heights that their major label backing might have hoped for, but at the very least "Baby" has gifted them a second album, which in today's musical climate is something of an achievement.
8. Django Django - Django Django
(Because Music)
I have found it hard to correctly categorize the self-titled debut album by everybody's favourite band epizeuxis Django Django. The received wisdom is to describe it as art-rock, because the band members went to art school (?), but even that would be too narrow a description. The band even seem to have acknowledged the difficulty of categorizing themselves, seeing as the linear notes to "Django Django" list approximately 1000 different artists and writers who proved influential in making the record.
Once you listen to the album in its entirety, you begin to realise just how wonderfully unpigeonholable the album is, mixing the organic and the artificial superbly, and treading the fine line between accessible and self-indulgent with aplomb. Maybe in the future, Django Django might itself become a genre onto itself?
7. Jake Bugg - Jake Bugg
(Mercury)
Nottingham teenager Jake Bugg surprised many pundits and guitar is dead naysayers by taking his self-titled debut album to number one in October. The only people who weren't surprised of course were those who actually took the time to listen to the album in question.
One of the greatest charms of the album the feeling of being more like a demo tape than a fully fledged album ("Lightning Bolt" has no bassline), its lo-fi feeling helping to separate him from another major number 1 selling singer/songwriter,the over-polished Ed Sheeran.
Much of the album has been co-written and performed by Iain Archer, who's most famous for co-writing "Run" by Snow Patrol, and as such has steered Mr Bugg in the direction of guitar anthemics. Yet some of the album's solo moments reveal a more tender side to the singer. "Someone Told Me" is a wonderful tune, with some exquisite finger-picked guitar work that really strikes a chord.
6. Shonen Knife - Pop Tune
(Damnably)
Thirty years into their career, Japanese pop-punk trio Shonen Knife show no signs of slowing down. “Pop Tune”, their 18th studio effort, is a great album from a band that is very much a one-of-a-kind act. After all, how many other bands can get away with songs about eating lots of food ("All You Can Eat"), a song sung from the perspective of a piece of office stationary ("Paper Clip"), or going to them parks ("Ghost Train")?
While there are a few more mellow moments to the album than one would expect from Shonen Knife, on the whole it is a fantastically bonkers, energetic, and above all, fun album from the trio.
There is something of a sparse crowd in attendance for the gig this evening at the Oh Yeah Centre. A combination of terrible weather and flag related tomfoolery around the city means that the crowd for The 1975 only number about thirtypeople.Yet those that have braved into Belfast city centre are in for a treat in the form of the music on offer.
The support act for this evening is Belfast pop four-piece Go Wolf. The first half of their set consists of some competent, if somewhat pedestrian, tunes. However, at the halfway point the band suddenly come into their own and step things up a gear. The tune which marks this change is "Visions", a song that mixes synthesized vocal keyboard samples with a funky, French touch bassline and a rhythm not too dissimilar to the sound that got people dancing to Franz Ferdinand all those years ago.
They then follow this up with two fantastic songs in a row - "All Good Things", with its soaring guitars and impressive rhythm section, current single "Voices", which shows off the great boy/girl harmonies that the group have to offer. They conclude their set with the thundering sound of "Oceans", and leave the stage to a decent reception. The band still have a good bit to go before they become a must-see band locally, but if the second half of the set is anything to go by, then Go Wolf have absolute heaps of potential.
Go Wolf, doing their thing.
Before they get up on stage, Matt Healey, the lead singer of The 1975 approaches us to advise us to bring seats up to the dance floor during their upcoming performance. It's probably a wise move - throughout Go Wolf's set, the entire audience loitered at the back of the venue in typical Belfast fashion, so having the crowd closer, albeit seated, makes for a better show. After being seated for about five minutes, the band enter the stage and burst into their first song, the soaring sound scape of "The City", much to the excitement of the crowd.
The 1975 (centre). Joe Strummer quote (bottom left)
Whilst the sound for the majority of the set is soaring, with guitars very much in My Bloody Valentine territory, the band display quite a bit of variation in their sound, something that hasn't really come across on their E.Ps. Throughout their set, they display elements of afro-rock (not too dissimilar to their label-mates Little Comets), ambient music, and at one point even U2-esque stadium rock. At one point, Matt plays the song "Woman" on his own and reveals that it was written in Belfast after meeting someone during a stay in the city last year. So if your name is Eileen and you worked at Malmaison Hotel in Belfast city centre last year - congratulations! There is a song about you being played across the UK by a Manchester band.
The group finish the set with their two loudest, most crowd pleasing songs - "Sex", which evokes the loudest reaction from the crowd and leads to some awkward 'chair dancing' among some crowd members, and "You", which concludes with singer Matt jumping off the stage, then destroying the microphone on his way back up. It's a memorable finish to a great set, and the band leave the stage to a great applause from the small, but dedicated crowd.
When a band such as The 1975 receives such massive hype, there is always the chance that it could easily deflate if they are unable to live up to the buzz live. However, in the case of The 1975, the hype is very much deserved. They have a great stage presence, a wonderful energy, and perhaps most importantly, some fantastic songs. Let's just hope that the next time they come back to Belfast, they play to a slightly bigger crowd.
Although it's been fun looking through some of the best songs that 2012 had to offer, it is always great to look at some local songs that might have been overlooked. Here's a few tunes from 'our wee province' that have been floating The Metaphorical Boat recently:
---------------------------------------- Go Wolf - Voices
There's something of a French touch to Belfast based quartet Go Wolf, if their debut single "Voices" is anything to go by. It's a fun tune, aided along by a funky bassline and some effortless synth work. If you want to catch them live, you don't have long to wait - they are supporting The 1975 at the Oh Yeah Centre on Wednesday 12th December.
-------------------------------------- Feet For Wings - Rose Before Bloom
Belfast trio Feet For Wings make honest to goodness earnest folk music, which can be seen on their latest single "Rose Before Bloom". It is a eloquently sung, finely produced song.
---------------------------------------- Lulubelle III - Radiant
Derry duo Lulubelle III will release their second album, "Foyle Delta Blues", on 12th December. Taken from that album is "Radiant", a track that calls to mind the hushed romantic melancholy of Jesus & Mary Chain.
--------------------------------------------- Not Stanley - Fill Me Up
Hailing from the town of Portrush (a place where many a day was wasted on the Tuppenny Nudgers), Not Stanley are the latest group of young upstarts hoping to make an impact with their pop-punk style. For a debut single, "Fill Me Up" is quite impressive, with its buzzsaw riffs and confident, youth-filled energy.
I recently got into a conversation with someone as to whether Mumford & Sons should really be considered a folk band or not. The person I was talking to argued that the sound of the band owes more to American bluegrass music than to the English folk tradition, and therefore should not really be considered to be folk, or 'nu-folk', at all.
This conversation sticks in the mind when it comes to reviewing "Black Bank", the second album by English group Straw Bear. On the surface, "Black Bank" may appear to be a quintessential English folk album. Yet this pigeonholing would be a disservice to their music.
There are some wonderfully folksy tunes on the album, that's for sure. The delicate sound of the album opener, "Kitty" is both wistful and hopeful at the same time, whilst "Quartermaster" is a song that wouldn't seem out of place at Ye Olde Renaissance Faire. However, there are aspects, both musical and lyrical, that give it an edge over other 'folk' artists.
This includes their ability to flesh out characters and situations that you feel empathy for. The titular "Kitty", for example, is described as the "archetypal artist...(who) only creates fantasies of stadium tours and celebrity dates", painting a picture of someone whose critical self-consciousness leaves her unable to reach her full potential.
Sometimes, their lyrical odysseys can be downright bizarre. "Urban Fox", a song that has more than a hint of Blur in it, is a tale about those noisy little critters keeping people awake at night due to their, to use a euphemism, over-activeness. That vocalist Ian Ray can sing about this without corpsing is a testament to his resolve, especially given the "angry Scottish monologue" that occurs halfway through the track. Another track on the record, "Cocker Pug", sees Ray compare himself and others to various breeds of dog over a sunny guitar riff, before settling on a springer spaniel (and definitely not a bulldog).
And then there are the songs that cannot in good conscience be considered folk at all. "Manana" sounds like the song that you would find as the last track on a Britpop compilation CD when the compilers couldn't get the rights to "Smile" by The Supernaturals and needed a less well known track to fill in the space at the end, which would eventually osmosisize into the wider world's psyche. And the closing track, the rocky romp "State of The Nation", sounds like a cross between the garage power of The Hives and the more reflective sound of The Guillemots. It's rare to see a band leave their best song to the very end of an album, but in this case it seems to work rather effectively.
"Black Bank" by Straw Bear is a rather odd beast indeed. It's an album that largely eschews the folk tradition, yet there is something typically British about it. In the end, the best way to describe is probably "Postmodern English folk". It is an album full of quirky gems that seem tailor made for repeat listening.
And by popular demand, this review will end with a pun. If "Black Bank" becomes successful, and artists begin to cite it as influence, does that mean those bands are Straw Bear-y flavoured?
Release Date: 10th December (purchase it from their official website here)
Highlights: "Kitty", "Cocker Pug", "State of The Nation".
And after a week of counting down, we finally reach the one song that shone the brightest for me in 2012. The ace in the pack, the leader of the gang, a rather good egg etc. And I can now reveal that The Metaphorical Boat's top song of 2012 is...
1. The Asteroids Galaxy Tour - Heart Attack
You've got me head over heels on gasoline
You know how it feels, like nicotine
Head over heels you raise your flag
Come on bang, bang, bang, give me heart attack
I've said it before, and I'll say it again - pop is not a dirty word. Which is why I'm glad that the song that I have judged to be the best of 2012 that is absolutely brimming with pop goodness. "Heart Attack" by Danish duo The Asteroids Galaxy Tour is the sort of joyous tune that make you either glad to be young, or pine for your youth. It's smartly produced, with an infectious keyboard riff, a vocalist (Mette Lindberg) who is absolutely brimming with attitude, and an effective dual-chorus that builds to a satisfying conclusion. The Asteroids Galaxy Tour are a group who have discovered the formula to the near-perfect pop song, and "Heart Attack" is the captivating proof. And as we end this epic journey of The Metaphorical Boat's top songs comes to an end, all that's left to do is for the chart topping artist to play us out. Take it away, Asteroids Galaxy Tour:
We're nearing the end of the road now. Before we reach The Metaphorical Boat's favourite song of 2012, here are the four tracks that just fell at the final hurdle.
Canadian rock duo Japandroids had an rock monster on their hands when they unleashed "The House That Heaven Built" to the unsuspecting public. It was one of those songs that crossed so many boundaries for so many people. The hard rock fans loved the loud guitars, the NME/indie crowd loved the hooky "oh oh's", the likes of which hadn't been used so effective since The Futurehead's cover of "Hounds of Love", whilst the classic rock purists were in it for the Springsteen-y overtones to the tune. It's a tune that struck a chord with so many people. It just a shame that after they played this song live in Belfast, half the audience promptly left.
Taking public information films and turning them into electro-rock masterpieces? Only Public Service Broadcasting could have pulled it off with such aplomb. "Spitfire" takes samples from a propaganda film from World War 2, and somewhat ironically adds a krautrock backing to the proceedings. Who said that learning couldn't be fun?
And falling at the final hurdle is Newcastle based group Little Comets, with "Jennifer". The band combined elements of afrobeat and 80s mainstream pop music to create a song brimming with pathos, impassioned pleas, and a chorus that really sticks in your brain.
On a separate note, lead singer Robert Coles never replied to the open letter I wrote him back in May. Perhaps knowing that I thought that only one song this year was better than one of his compositions might spur him into action?
Things are heating up now as we head into the top 10. As these are some of my ultimate highlights of the year, each entry has a few sentences about what is so brilliant about them. 10. Shonen Knife - Pop Tune
30 years into their career, Japanese pop-punk trio Shonen Knife are still able to deliver songs full of the joys of youth. The title track from their 18th studio album, "Pop Tune" exists very much at the pop end of pop-punk, with sumptuous backing vocals and a last minute key change making it a joy to listen to.
9. Eugene McGuinness - Harlequinade
Mr McGuinness appears to be one of the most well-read artists currently operating in the popsphere, if the sound of "Harlequinade" is anything to go by. The lyrics hark back to the time of the commedia dell'Arte, a dramatic form in Italy in the middle ages, where the performers wore masks and improvised the action based on predetermined scenarios with stock characters. Two of these stock characters are mentioned by name in the song, Harlequin and Pantaloon, who are seen as the zany archetypes.
And I think the last paragraph just justified my drama degree. Thanks a lot, Eugene McGuinness.
8. Passion Pit - Take a Walk
It's strange that in a time of economic meltdown, the situations faced by many people hasn't really been reflected in mainstream music. One exception to this however is the wonderful "Take a Walk" by Passion Pit. On the surface, it appears to be a jaunty synth-pop tune with an infectious electronic riff. However, take a closer look at the lyrics and it reveals a dark side, about not being in control of your finances and being unable to admit your faults to the ones you love. If only all pop music would reveal such depth.
7. Django Django - Default
Who'd have thought that the most badass guitar riff of the year would come from a group of architecture graduates? Django Django hit pay dirt in 2012 with their hypnotic alt-rock sound. "Default" was the highlight of the set, with an epic two-chord riff and seemingly nonsense lyrics coming together to make something engaging and suspiciously intellectual. And if that wasn't enough, their lead singer is from Derry.
6. Foals - Inhaler
Is this really the same band that first broke through at the tail end of 'landfill indie' in 2008? "Inhaler" is a tightly produced, confident tune, brushing with intense energy that belies its relatively modest BPM.
Next up, the songs that just missed out on the top 10. We've got rock legends, Irish psych-folk, Jake Bugg's 2nd entry of the year, and some bird-rock.
15. The Spook of the Thirteenth Lock - The Brutal Here and Now (Part I)
We're close to the end now, so here are the tunes from number 20 to number 16, and include indie bands going acapella, songs build around samples of public information films, and Northern Ireland's most promising singer/songwriter: 20. Howler - Back Of Your Neck
19. Public Service Broadcasting - Roygbiv 18. SOAK - Sea Creatures 17. The Futureheads - The No. 1 Song in Heaven 16. Free Swim - The Smell of Pregnancy
We're past the halfway point now, so we're into the even more awesome stuff. The next 5 songs include angry punk-rock, Icelandic folk, and a comeback single from Britpop legends.
25. Ren Harvieu - Open Up Your Arms
24. Blur - Under the Westway
23. Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks
22. Jack White - Sixteen Saltines
21. Future of the Left - Sheena Is a T-Shirt Salesman
The next part of our countdown features indie-rock, blues-rock, one of the brightest young bands from NI, and a cover of one of NI's greatest anthems: 30. The Heartbreaks - Delay, Delay
The next part of the countdown features a band tipped for big things in 2013, a band who were tipped for big things in 2009, the biggest (non-Coldplay) band from England, and a track from one of my favourite Northern Irish bands: 35. The Big Pink - Hit The Ground (Superman)
The next part of our countdown features the quintessential blogger's artist, Northern Ireland's premier shifty-pop group, and a collaboration which on paper sounded ill-advised, but in practice is rather fantastic: 40. Imagine Dragons - It's Time
The next part of our countdown looks at songs from 45-41, and includes American stadium-rockers, young indie guitarists and a song premiered during the Olympic Opening Ceremony.
As we're reaching the end of the year, it's a good time as ever to reflect back on the wonderful music that has came into my life over the past 12 months. As such, like every good music blogger, over the next few days I will be running through the fifty songs that I enjoyed the most this year. Some of these are songs that have featured on the blog at some point or another. Some of the songs might be surprising inclusions, but I feel that they will be the tunes that I will remember the most fondly when I look back at 2012.
And in the words of that immortal philosopher Julie Andrews, let's start at the very beginning. The first 5 tunes in the top 50 include a buzz band, the first Northern Irish artist in the countdown, and a song sung entirely in Japanese:
The Blog Sound Poll was first
published in 2011. The concept of the poll wasn’t to criticise the
established BBC Sound of list, but simply an experiment to see if UK
music bloggers could come up with its own list of emerging artists that
was more representative of their community and give the artists that
were nominated some extra publicity. Indeed the idea was to compliment
the BBC list in many ways by providing an alternative to compare and
contrast.
Last year’s final long list
provided some interesting alternatives to the BBC list; most notably it
included Alt-J, this year’s Mercury Prize winners, who didn’t feature on
the BBC list at all.
The Blog Sound of 2013 poll has expanded with 49 UK blogs nominating their 5 favourite emerging artists. Just over 170 acts received at least 1 vote. The winning act received votes from around 25% of all bloggers.
The long list represents the very
best of new music and draws from major label, indie label and
completely unsigned acts. The likes of Haim may be featuring on a lot of
new music tip lists at the moment, but the Blog Sound poll also
highlights lesser known bands such as Curxes and Randolph’s Leap, bands
that do not have big PR representation, and this is what makes the Blog
Sound list fascinating and exciting.
The poll was organised by Robin
Seamer (Breaking More Waves) and Andy Von Pip (The Von Pip Express).
“Each blog was allowed to vote for five acts and the diversity of the
nominations was staggering. Based on the evidence of the spread of votes
anyone that says that music bloggers are sheep and are all writing
about the same artists has got it wrong. However, the results of the
poll show that certain artists do have a lot of support and love from a
significant portion of UK bloggers and those artists make up the Blog
Sound of 2013 list,” says Robin.
The fifteen nominated artists are:
AlunaGeorge - Infectious R&B influenced pop from London
Curxes - Dark industrial-pop electronic duo from Brighton and Portsmouth
Chvrches – Scottish electro pop trio formed from a variety of other bands
Daughter – Minimal / ambient sounding folk
Haim – Classic rock from LA with pop sensibilities
Laura Mvula – Jazz / soul singer hailing from Birmingham
MØ – Hip soulful female vocal electronic pop from Denmark
Palma Violets – Raw and energetic indie rock band
Pins – Edgily cool and raucous all-female indie band from Manchester
Randolph’s Leap – Glasgow based indie folk pop with a twist of brass
Rhye – Smooth and blissful pop duo
Savages – Intense post-punk with female vocals
Seasfire – Modern rock band from Bristol who mix electronic beats with guitars
The Neighbourhood – Atmospheric Californian 5 piece rock / pop band
Tom Odell – Piano based singer songwriter originally from Chichester
There are some great artists on this year's list, and I'm glad to have been one of the 49 bloggers to have made up this year's voting panel. Although artists we nominated didn't make the longlist, and although no Northern Irish artists made the list, I feel that does offer a great overview of what acts the UK blogosphere will be keeping tabs on over the next 12 months. I will enjoy following the progress of all 15 artists next year, especially Randolph's Leap, who are perhaps the most surprising nominee and greatest gem on the list.
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