allah-las - 'no voodoo'

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I did a quick check and can't believe I haven't added anything by this band to the blog yet. I am a big fan of their 2012 eponymous, debut album with its trippy retro feel. The guitars twang, the singer drawls and the songs cruise along effortlessly. Definitely one to watch.

joy division - 'warsaw (dan le sac remix)'

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To misquote Adam West's mayor in Family Guy: "I love a good remix more than I love taffy, and I'm a man who loves his taffy". 

To me this now sounds like a mid-80s Fall track. Brilliant!

saint etienne - 'only love can break your heart'

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Some songs become so important to you that you get very protective and live in constant fear that a car commercial doesn't come along and steal its soul. The Foxbase Alpha album and in particular this track are so dear to me that I will probably have a copy of this with me when I depart this earth - in much the same way as the Egyptians took their most prized possessions. I know it's not the done thing but I prefer this cover to the original. I like to think of it as Neil Young writing the words and waiting for someone to nurture it and take it to places impossible to anticipate. You can add Bob Dylan to that list too.

I could...and have waxed lyrical about this song, that album many times and I will again but now I'm going to sit back and put it on loop a few times and sing along. There's worse ways to spend a Tuesday night by yourself.

althea and donna - 'make a truce'

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I bought their 'Uptown Ranking' album recently, expecting a lover's rock meets radio-friendly reggae type of sound. In fairness, all I'd heard was the title track and as lovely as it is, it could never be described as "deep". I was very pleasantly surprised to discover a very spiritual album, much heavier in dub and with a positive message. I didn't have them down as Rastafarians either so that was a double surprise. The third being that they wrote all the songs themselves (although carrying on the tradition of the time of borrowing riffs and hooks from other contemporary tunes). If there is a criticism it's that their youthful female voices sometimes lack the gravitas to give it the full whack. I would love hear them to take a crack at a few of the heavier tunes now they are older. All in all, it's a lovely album. 

calexico - 'sinner in the sea'

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The jury is still out on their new album 'Algiers' for me. It reminds me of later Crowded House and veers too often towards the middle of the road for my liking. I'm not accusing Crowded House of being middle of the road, mind. I just would prefer Calexico to sound a bit more Tex-Mex. I am doing them an injustice though as I have only given it a couple of listens so far and really need to get to grips with it properly. Here's a track from the aforementioned long player.

i am kloot - 'even the stars'

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I'm off to see I Am Kloot perform an acoustic set at St. Bartholomews' Church in Brighton tonight and I'm guessing that the new album will feature quite heavily. I hope this one gets played, it could be my favourite from the album. It's a slow-burner that builds into an anthemic singalong with plenty of orchestral input too.

cowboy junkies - 'blue moon'

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This is a beautiful version of the old classic and is dedicated to the ones I love. 

john mayall - 'somebody's acting like a child'

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It's difficult to believe that he's British, he's so totally part of the blues fabric and his name is, with a lot of justification, up there with the very best. I picked up his 'Blues From Laurel Canyon' album today and I am so glad I did. It's jaw-droppingly good and I'm going to make sure both my children listen to it too. I've made it my mission to introduce them to as much great music from as many genres as possible and the blues features very highly. We've done Johnson, Leadbelly, Howling Wolf, Big Mama Thornton, Peter Green and I can't wait until they get to hear this.  

s'express - 'hey music lover (spatial expansion mix)'

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Hey music lover. What a beautiful morning.

sonny and cher - 'and the beat goes on'

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I'm carrying on the funky 60s beat with this super cool classic.

dionne warwick - 'don't make over'

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I think I could listen to Ms Warwick's voice all day.

slade - 'everyday'

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I think people forget just how great this band were. This is magnificent by any measure.

what were the skies like, mr perry, when you were young?

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They were golden. This is a wonderful re-imagining of the Orb classic from the Orb/Lee Scratch Perry collaborative album recently.  It's just perfect for a Saturday, don't you think?

balmorhea - 'pilgrim'

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Balmorhea are an instrumentals-only guitar band from Austin, Texas. They can't be described as post-rock as they are far too minimal to have the crunching 15 minute guitar solos but then again too intricate to be described as ambient. Their influences draw heavily from classical as well as pop and experimental and if pushed I would bracket them alongside Sigur Ros or perhaps Godspeed You Black Emperor. This is the last track from their 2012 album, Stranger and is a sublime piece of musicianship.

blu - 'lucky'

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Ordinarily, underground hip-hop tends to pass me by without me even noticing it's there. I have a suspicious nature and when someone refers to themselves as 'underground' I wonder what that is a euphemism for. More often than not it's an excuse to be misogynistic or glamourising crime but in this instance nothing could be farther from the truth. The album 'Jesus' by Blu is an extraordinarily subtle album and far more cerebral than most commercial rap. I've been listening to this album all morning and will continue this afternoon, I think it's that good.

elkie brooks - 'sunshine after the rain'

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I don't need to tell you that I'm a self-confessed music geek but I am not (I hope) a music snob. I just love great music, whether it's the songs that makes the hairs on your arms and neck stand up or if it's just 3-minute pop that buries itself deep into your subconscious with an infuriatingly catchy chorus. It's not just an obsession however but also a life-support system. I need music in my life as much as I need air to breathe or water to drink. It rescues me from going insane, it levels me when I need to relax and lifts me when I am feeling low. I won't go into details but I have need of music tonight and I have no idea why but Miss Elkie Brooks is my saviour. 

I've always been big fan, she's had some cracking tunes that have stood the test of time and you can't help but love her voice. This song is perfect, I'm deliberately trying to avoid her more melancholy songs and the sentiment of this particular classic is exactly where I want to be. 

richard hawley - 'she rings the sunlight'

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I had a pretty horrendous commute this morning with a total of 6 train journeys before I got to work. Just about the only thing that saved my sanity was my iPod and my first proper listen of Richard Hawley's 2012 album 'Standing at the Sky's Edge'. I am mightily impressed and kicking myself that I didn't listen to this earlier. Just take a listen to track 1 for instance. How good is this?

i am kloot - 'hold back the night'

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I had a first listen of their new album this morning on the way to work and I think they've proved that they are still on top of their game. I'm looking forward to seeing them play live soon too and am expecting this song to play a big part.

hollie cook - 'and the beat goes on dub'

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This was another of today's CD buys, a Prince Fatty dub remix of Hollie Cook's recent album. Here they are with the Whispers classic. And the beat goes on and on and on. 

nara leáo - 'berimbau (ritmo de capoeira)'

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I couldn't resist it, I went on yet another CD buying spree today. Regular readers of this blog will know of the pact I have with my children - I'm not allowed any more than 7 separate CDs in any one purchase. I went for the maximum allowed and one of them was double CD compilation titled 'Bossa Nova and the Rise of Brazilian Music in the 60s'. It kind of does what it says on the tin but I'd also add that it was compiled by Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker so it comes with quality guaranteed. There's no fillers here with those two acting as curators. I've just started listening to it and am mightily impressed so far. This is one of the more subtle tracks, certainly more minimal (please excuse the oxymoron) than most but still as beautiful and uplifting. Let's lift these gloomy Sunday blues.

hafdis huld - 'tomoko'

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This was the very first track of hers that I ever heard and inspired me to go out the next day and buy her first album. I'm so glad I did, of all the Icelandic musicians she has to be just about my all time favourite.

ub40 - 'the earth dies screaming c-g's scars across the land extended edit'

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Inspired by a friend of mine who was trying to think of songs with the word "Earth" in the title I thought of this UB40 classic - back when they were good. And Soundcloud has been my friend because I've found an extended 12 minute edit. Heaven on Earth! (See what I did there?)

saint etienne - 'she's the one (richard x remix)'

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I'm on a bit of a monster session of listening to old stuff today it seems. The latest album on the CD player is the seriously good Richard X remix of Saint Etienne's 'Foxbase Alpha'. It's as good as the original, it really is.

This Grooveshark plug-in is a bit pants, isn't it? It's like something from Napster circa 1999.

808 beats (mixx)

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Great bit of old school hip-hop/breakbeat/electro and a bloody brilliant video to go with it.

holy other - 'touch'

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Or just lie back and think of England. This is the perfect music to make out to.

massive attack - 'one love (biscope boot)'

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Kapow. Straight between the eyes.

debbie harry and the muppets - 'one way another'

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This takes levels of coolness to somewhere scientist don't yet have words for.

ticklah - 'porkeater'

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I must put this up before I go to bed. It popped into my head at work today, no idea why but it's a brilliant tune and that's reason enough.

joan armatrading - 'love and affection'

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I never tire of this song. I just run out of superlatives to describe it. 'Night all.

new order - 'bizarre love triangle (razormaid remix)'

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I'm not bitter about missing out on Kraftwerk tickets...much. Ah well, here's a great band influence by that great band and this is from the uber-rare 1994 remix album 'Substance Abuse'.

brothers in arms

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I'm not a huge fan of the Everly Brothers, for me their music was just a pale shadow of what Buddy Holly wrote and performed. It never moved me, I found it passe and it doesn't date well.  I am however, a big fan of Bonnie Prince Billy and he likes the Everly's a lot. I read recently an article in Mojo magazine where he practically gushed with praise for them. I discovered a great little video about the making of a tribute album where Billy works with Dawn McCarthy. I think it's a nice treat to see how these albums are worked out in the recording studios and musicians' homes and you get to see another more candid side to the artists. 

As an aside, I have long maintained that Bonnie Prince Billy could make a career out of playing frontier town doctors in edgy Hollywood westerns. He's got the right shape head and beard. Someone should tell him.

gang starr - 'who's gonna take the weight?'

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Is this really over 20 years old? Great to see Guru in full flow too.

dj koze and caribou

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I'd love to give you the track name but I don't know it, the record company don't either it seems! He's been away for some time but legendary turntablist and producer, DJ Koze's has collaborated with Canada's Caribou for this extremely lovely tune. It sounds quite Robag Wruhme or Michael Mayer in its construction - the layering, reversing and fades in and out with subtle drum patterns. I do wish I knew what it was called though. 

temples - 'shelter song'

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Ooh - I have a very early candidate for song of the year. I'm really pleased that psychedelic guitar bands are back in vogue and here's a brilliant new band from Kettering called Temples. It's seriously good. Do yourself a favour and check it out.

herbie hancock jamming with quincy jones

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Definitely one for the music geeks, this is a 1984 recording of Herbie showing off his skills on a Fairlight CMI synthesizer and then chatting about his art with Quincy Jones. I see that Youtube also have a similar video of Peter Gabriel doing similar. Oh yes!

northpilot - 'good people (original motion picture score'

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I meant to share this a couple of weeks back, it's a free download from Northpilot although I now nothing of the film it relates to. I'll try to find out and get back to you. It's a beautiful composition that stands rather well as an ambient piece by itself also so if you want to drift away to tranquility then this is the best medicine. 

the everywheres - 'frightened face'

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How about some jangly guitars and an indie sound that wouldn't be out of place in a student uni bar in England circa 1989? I've not name-checked too many bands from Halifax, Nova Scotia before so I'm delighted to be plugging The Everywheres who have a great sound.

andrew ashong & theo parrish - 'flowers'

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Why has no-one brought this to my attention before now? It's a lovely late summer track from last year (yeah right - like we had anything approaching a summer, last year!) and was definitely one that could have been blasted out of the bars and cafes in Brighton when the sun deigned to make one of its rare appearances. It's a 'going nowhere' kind of track that just works because it's fun, it's cool and it doesn't try too hard. I like the little twist at the end too. Wa-wa-wa!

morrissey announces two early re-releases

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He's announced that 1991's 'Kill Uncle' and 1989's 'Last of the Famous International Playboys' will be re-issued later this year but with new accompanying tracks. Great stuff, indeed. Love him or hate him there's no denying that he can write a killer song. 

I remember (although not too well apparently) the first time I heard LotFIP. I was at Uni at the time and had stayed up to watch Night Network (I think). It was one of the first all-night programmes and was a mix of music, comedy and a perennially pissed Rowland Rivron. They had a part of the show where guest musicians would rate the new releases. I seem to recall that the 2 musicians in question reviewing Morrissey's classic were Michelle Shocked or perhaps Marcella Detroit - definitely American and definitely 'alternative' and I think one of those two. The other guest was a poodle rocker and may even have been Slash. The poodle rocker hated it and the alternative Yank loved it. I'm definitely with the lady on this one. It's a brilliant tune.

Edit - It seems that I was kind of right and yet nowhere near. I've actually found the clip on Youtube and it was Julia Fordham in one corner and WASP's Blackie in the other. Fordham grows more despairing at Blackie's bigotry as the programme rolls on. It's worth watching both parts of the video but here's a link to the part 2 with the debate about the Morrissey video, 2 minutes and 30 seconds in. Link here.

adam green and binki shapiro - 'casanova'

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I think they missed a trick here. Adam Green and Binki Shapiro have collaborated in this 60s-inspired love ballad but sadly Adam Green's talents seem restricted to the music rather than singing. It would have been lovely to hear them revive the male/female duet that worked so well up until the 80s.

dj yoda ft. scroobius pip - 'sega rip'

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Anyone of a certain age will certainly appreciate the sentiment. It comes from the heart too.

usha uthup - 'chhupke kaun aya'

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The world is a better place for this Hindi version of Michael Jackson's 'Can't Stop...' by Indian disco queen Usha Uthup. Turn this one all the way up to eleven and dance round that living room. That's an order.

jan driver - 'l-xtra (harry axt remix)'

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Do I play enough techno on here? I'm not sure I do, you know. Of late, this blog's definitely taken a folky turn. It's no bad thing, don't get me wrong, I just don't seem to listen to techno as much as I used to. Let's make amends with this monster of a tune. It's not minimal, it's not deep, it's pure 100% techno and incredibly infectious. Who's Harry Axt? I hear you ask. Why, it's none other than all round good guy Daniel Steinberg. This tune is just the business. Sock it to 'em Harry.

the killers - 'hotel california'

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Yes, it's that 'Hotel California'. I love singing along to this in the shower. The Killers sound like they had a lot of fun recording this too.