Albums Of The Year 2004

These are the best albums of 2004.

I’ve tried to put them in some kind of order but really, I love them all. Thank you to all the artists below for making 2004 one of the greatest years for new music that I can remember. I salute you!

(By the way, the links aren’t affiliate pointers to Amazon or anything so feel free to click them, I won’t get any dosh. I suggest you buy all these gems from your friendly neighbourhood independent record shop.)

Number 1

Say Hi
Say Hi To Your Mom – Numbers And Mumbles

Number 2

Shearwater
Shearwater – Winged Life

Number 3

Rodders
Rodney P – The Future

Number 4

helsinki
Architecture In Helsinki – Fingers Crossed

Number 5

Ooo
Ooo – Upon Cycles

Number 6

Xiu Xiu
Xiu Xiu – Fabulous Muscles

Number 7

Arcade Fire
The Arcade Fire – Funeral

Number 8

Chin Up
Chin Up Chin Up – We Should Never Have Lived Like We Were Skyscrapers

Number 9

Athletic Mic League
Athletic Mic League – Jungle Gym Jungle

Number 10

Stars
Stars – Set Yourself On Fire

Number 11

De La
De La Soul – The Grind Date

Number 12

Snakes
These Arms Are Snakes – Oxeneers

Number 13

Mazatlan
The Plastic Constellations – Mazatlan

Number 14

Maritime
Maritime – Glass Floor

Number 15

Pharcyde
The Pharcyde – Humboldt Beginnings

Number 16

The Good Life
The Good Life – Album Of The Year

Number 17

Rogue Wave
Rogue Wave – Out Of The Shadow

Number 18

skinnyman
Skinnyman – Council Estate Of Mind

Number 19

Rilo Kiley
Rilo Kiley – More Adventurous

Number 20

Outerspace
Outerspace – Blood And Ashes

Number 21

Jens Lekman
Jens Lekman – When I Said I Wanted To Be Your Dog

Number 22

7l Esoteric
7L & Esoteric – DC2 Bars Of Death

Number 23

Deerhoof
Deerhoof – Milk Man

Number 24

Pedro The Lion
Pedro The Lion – Achilles Heel

Number 25

Invisible
The Insivible Cities – Watertown

Number 26

Dissoc
The Dissociatives – The Dissociatives

Number 27

Lali Puna
Lali Puna – Faking The Books

Number 28

The Elected
The Elected – Me First

Number 29

EandA
Eyedea & Abilities – E&A

Number 30

Shitmat
Shitmat – Full English Breakfest

Number 31

Deadstring
Deadstring Brothers – Deadstring Brothers

Number 32

Red Animal War
Red Animal War – Polizida

Number 33

Venetian Snares
Venetian Snares – Huge Chrome Cylinder Box Unfolding

Indian Ocean Tsunamis

There’s nothing I can say about this horrible disaster, apart from to provide the following link:

Asia Earthquake and Floods Appeal

The Red Cross has launched an emergency appeal in response to the widespread flooding, caused by Sunday’s massive earthquake off the coast of Sumatra. More than 69,000 people are known to have died, thousands more are injured and a million have been displaced from their homes.

The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is at the forefront of the response to this disaster. A British Red Cross logistics team has flown to Sri Lanka, one of the countries most affected by the tidal waves. The logistics team is coordinating the arrival of all Red Cross relief goods being sent to Sri Lanka, ensuring they reach those who need them most.

Emergency supplies such as tarpaulins, blankets, cooking utensils and water purification tablets are still urgently needed.

What??

Huh?

Huh? 3145 visits in less than a month, and that’s not including robots or search spiders?

I used to get a lot of visits because of the nightclubbing pics I posted. But since I haven’t been posting those recently, I can only assume a lot of people are amused by the rambings of a morbidly obese old ex-commie.

Despite all these visitors, I still haven’t had even one naked lady send me her picture, au buff. You bastards.

Bless Playlist 27/12/2004

Waterloo
Waterloo. Insert Abba joke here…

Tonight’s top new song was ‘All That You Know’ by Waterloo. Although remiss in correctly titling their website, they more than make up for this heinous error with their finely-honed indie guitar pop. Very, very catchy!

The best old song was Supertramp’s ‘Logical Song,’ which sounded particularly sweet right after a Converge golden oldie.

When I was young, it seemed that life was so wonderful:

Skeleton Key – Wide Open
Pink Grease – The Pink G.R.Ease
Kid 606 – Ecstasy Motherfucker
Lamb Of God – Purified
Postal Service – Clark Gable
Knockout Pills – Target H
Ben Kweller – Wasted & Ready
Shesus – In The France
Lodil – Repleat Curtain
Atreyu – Right Side Of The Bed
Skomoni – Le Jeu Du Rap
Coheed And Cambria – Blood Red Summer
Plans And Apologies – Eggbound Mutebone
The GC5 – White Flag
Doormouse – Sinosim
Minus The Bear – Fine + 2 Pts
Fallacy – Big N Bashy
Minor Threat – Straight Edge
The Hope Conspiracy – Bled Across The Wire
The Arcade Fire – Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
Vessel – As She Explodes
Camera Obscura – Keep It Clean
Earth Crisis – Provoke
MF Doom – Uckupon
Crooked Fingers – Call To Love
Maritime – Some One Has To Die
Le Chevre – Worst Day
AFI – He Who Laughs Last…
Kool Keith – Lost In Space
Matthew Rozeik – Oh Lord, Please Give Me Another Brain
I Farm – A Little White Lie
Skinnyman – No Big Ting
The Good Life – Lovers Need Lawyers
Guided By Voices – Gonna Never Have To Die
Original Hamster – Human Replace
Melt-Banana – STICK OUT
The Go! Team – Get It Together
Rodney P – We Don’t Like Coppers
Mercury Rev – Goddess On A Hiway
Waterloo – All That You Know
Le Tigre – Viz
Napalm Death – Scum
Adeem – Broken Right Wing
Converge – Concubine
Supertramp – The Logical Song
Sleater Kinney – Words And Guitar
The Lucksmiths – Camera-Shy
EU – Rilly
Sweatshop Union – Us
The Radio Dept. – 1995
Say Hi To Your Mom – Pop Music Of The Future
Lost Sounds – There’s Nothing
The Roots – Don’t Say Nuthin’
Elliott Smith – A Fond Farewell
Shearwater – The World In 1984

Frosty Boxing Day Dawn

Brrrrr!

I got to bed very early on Christmas Day so I actually managed to get up and out by dawn this morning to get some snaps. Being a knob, I forgot to wrap up properly and thus froze my arse off since it was -4. My fingers are still throbbing and feel a bit weird. But it was worth it cos the light was fantastic and I managed to get some lovely frost shots too!

Click here for the piccies!

It’s Wonderful Live!

Bread Knob

Stagfoot Promotions is the brainchild of Daz and Loz. Their first ever event was this amazing couple of nights at the Bless, on the 22nd and 23rd December. Eight great bands, going from the evil metallll of Dead By Dawn to the Boystown Discotronics of [Heart] Yeah!! The highlight for me was an amazingly ramshackle set from Plans And Apologies where they made the mistake of throwing boiled sweets into the audience. They were returned in a hail of sugary shards. That’ll learn ’em!

Click here for the piccies!

Bless Playlist 20/12/2004

Rodney P
Mr. Riddim Killa himself

Woaah! You can definitely tell it’s Crimbo! The Bless was absolutely packed and consequently I didn’t get to play as much new music as usual. I find it strange when people get aggrieved that I don’t play The Killers / Libertines / Bloc Party / insert chart schmindie band. After all, they’re played to death everywhere else, you won’t get withdrawal. Innit?

Tonight’s top new tune was Rodney P’s ‘We Don’t Like Coppers.’ For those of us who remember the days of Katch 22, Gunshot, Hijack, Derek B and, of course, London Posse, hearing this track brings a tear to our rheumy, knackered eyes. Rodney P’s still fucking got it, as you’ll be able to comfirm for yourself if you buy his excellent debut album. But why trust a mad old bastard like me? Have a listen for yourself here.

The best old track? Hmmm… That’s gotta be Serge Gainsbourg again, with ‘Ballade de Melody Nelson.’ I’ve probably picked him before but what the fuck, the man was a songwriting genius. If I wrote songs solidly for the next thousand years, I might just equal the talent in his left little toenail. Maybe.

Quatorze automnes et quinze etes:

The Thermals – How We Know
A Wilhelm Scream – Mute Print
Skinnyman – No Big Ting
Venetian Snares – Einstein-Rosen Bridge
Glassjaw – Radio Cambodia
Dismemberment Plan – The Ice Of Boston
Pantera – Fucking Hostile
The Bens – Xfire
Mysterymen – Ploink
The Dillinger Escape Plan – Panasonic Youth
Fats Domino – Ain’t That A Shame
Camera Obscura – Keep It Clean
Biffy Clyro – Strung To Your Ribcage
Skomoni – Le Jeu Du Rap
Goudron – Frontline
At The Drive-In – Pattern Against User
Modest Mouse – Satin In A Coffin
Baba Brooks & His Band – Watermelon Man Ska
Postal Service – Nothing Better
Fugazi – Waiting Room
Dilated Peoples – Work The Angles
Hellogoodbye – Call N Return
Slayer – Aggressive Perfector
Le Tigre – Let’s Run
Mclusky – Lightsabre Cocksucking Blues
Vordul Mega – Struggles
Guided By Voices – Gonna Never Have To Die
The Pogues – Sally Maclennane
Ilkae – Exit Theme And Victory March
Karate – Tow Truck
The Mad Capsule Markets – Out-Definition
Rodney P – We Don’t Like Coppers
Joy Division – These Days
Belle And Sebastian – You’re Just A Baby
Beep Beep – Oh No!
De La Soul – Eye Know [The Know It All Mix]
Grandaddy – Now It’s On
Datach’i – Penvag
The Ventures – Secret Agent Man
Taking Back Sunday – One-Eighty By Summer
Fallacy – The Groundbreaker
Yo La Tengo – Little Honda
The Beach Boys – Girl Don’t Tell Me
Chateau Flight – Ongaku Feat. Paris Japanese
Chin Up Chin Up – Why Is My Sleeping Bag A Ghetto Muppet
Say Hi To Your Mom – Let’s Talk About Spaceships
Serge Gainsbourg – Ballade De Melody Nelson
Peedo – Brand New World
Kings Of Convenience – Failure (Kings Of Convenience Arrangement)
Bright Eyes – Take It Easy (Love Nothing)
Paddy Kingsland – The Panel Beaters
RTX – Joint Chief
Stephen Malkmus – The Hook
R.A. The Rugged Man – Lessons…
Eu – Me
The Arcade Fire – Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
House Of Love – Destroy The Heart
Antipop Consortium + Matthew Shipp – A Knot In Your Bop
Iron & Wine – Woman King

Another Internet Wonder

Jeunes

So, here’s how the story goes…

A while ago, I’m downloading music off the net (I’m not going to say where from just in case any nasty RIAA types are reading this). And I see an EP from a band I’ve never heard of called The Jeunes. So I download it, give it a listen and it’s great. Then I play a track on Monday when I’m DJing at The Bless.

Then I get an email from the band. It turns out they’d uploaded the tracks themselves, precisely so they could get them out to a wider audience. Well, it worked!

After a bit more emailing, I hear some of their new stuff, all good, and I offer to remix one track that I find very catchy. After doing the remix, I end up emailing them the final track as an mp3 and they even download the proper un-compressed audio from my webspace. A lot less hassle and time than posting stuff to America!

Then, yesterday, I’m downloading more new tracks when, guess what? Yep! Up pops The Jeunes new EP complete with the new remix I did for them. Brilliant!

I’ve just got an email from Curtis Jeune and a DJ from a New Jersey college radio station heard my remix, also via downloading, and now they’ve posted him a CDR to play. Which is exactly what I was hoping for when I did the remix.

You see – the internet isn’t just for hate mail from Tory nutters!