john carpenter - 'the end (j anthony scratch mix)'

Tweet

A piece of classic 80s electronica here. Beautiful.

new order - 'thieves like us'

Tweet

It's called love and belongs to us.

harry axt - 'irrational mix'

Tweet

Daniel Steinberg always delivers with soulful techno and here's another DJ set from his alter ego, Harry Axt, that proves my point very well. Lovely stuff.

camera obscura - 'houseboat'

Tweet

Let's keep this chilled atmosphere this afternoon with some jangly Scottish indie music.

the velvet underground - 'pale blue eyes'

Tweet

This is the Valentin Mix of my favourite track that they recorded.

bakerman - 'laid back'

Tweet

What a tune this is. Superb Sunday morning listening.

jenny lewis and the watson twins - 'rabbit fur coat'

Tweet

Haven't heard this tune in a long, long while. 

benjamin booker - 'violent shiver'

Tweet

Soul music with a very dark punk twist.

alvvays - 'archie marry me'

Tweet

A very strong contender for my tune of the year, this is quite glorious. Seriously great pop.

frankie cosmos - 'art school'

Tweet

You'd need a heart of stone not to like her 'Zentropy' album. It's quite lovely.

jack white - 'entitlement'

Tweet

That Lazaretto album gets better with every listen. There's no fillers at all on it, check this one out, languishing at number 8 on the album. Does this sound like a track 8 sort of song to you? No way, that's how good this album is.

panda bear - 'mr noah'

Tweet

One part of Animal Collective, Panda Bear has branched out and produced a solo album all by himself. If experimental music isn't your bag then fast forward this song by a minute and there's a great tune lurking underneath.

frank turner - 'sweet albion blues'

Tweet

This could have been written about Brighton and Hove Albion. Great tune.

decemberists - 'make you better'

Tweet

Love the video to this.

a tribe called quest - 'electric relaxation'

Tweet

Something to make you mellow. 

julia marcell - 'halflife'

Tweet

Great tune from Polish-born, German-based singer Julia Marcell. I must check her album out.

tricky - 'i had a dream (feat. francesca belmonte)'

Tweet

Such a cool track. He's still got the knack for making a great tune.

music video of the year?

Tweet

It's got to be a candidate. Here's Acollective with 'BreakApart'.

dr heinz funkenpumpe mixtape number one

Tweet

Just over an hour of soul, funk, reggae. Bloody marvellous!

hundreds - 'aftermath 9robag wruhme remix)'

Tweet

Ah, now this is just incredible. Nearly 10 minutes of unadulterated techno loveliness from master remixer Robag Wruhme doing a lovely number with the Hundreds tune. It's quite something, this tune. Like a big friendly monster.

serengeti - 'no beginner'

Tweet

This is how I like my hip-hop. Chicago underground rapper Serengeti telling it like it is.

goldfrapp - 'human'

Tweet

It's a classic.

ex cops - 'black soap'

Tweet

I came across this quite randomly on Soundcloud and I'm already hooked. From Carolina and Denmark they sound great; superb riffs, fresh voices, catchy tunes - all you need in a great band.

nils bech - 'jealousy'

Tweet

Now this is rather special. Norwegian Bech soars with this dark synth-pop.

model 500 - 'neptune'

Tweet

Great news for all techno fans, Juan Atkins is releasing his first Model 500 album for 16 years and his record label are re-releasing 'Sonic Sunset' the iconic 1994 album. 

soft fangs ep

Tweet

Self-titled EP from LA-based Soft Fangs and as DIY mag say there are echoes of Sparklehorse and Elliott Smith here. Well worth a listen.

beverly - 'madora'

Tweet

From Brooklyn and touring currently with the Drums and there is a close similarity with the musical styles of both bands and not too far away from the Pixies too. The video is hand-drawn, by the way. It must have taken ages to do. Quite brilliant.

submotion orchestra - 'city lights (radio edit)'

Tweet

A rather good soul/funk/electronic collective from Leeds for yuou on a Monday morning.

leonard cohen - 'slow'

Tweet

Tune! Track one from his 2014 album. The man's a genius.

temples - 'colours to life'

Tweet

I'm playing the Temples loud this morning. What a tune!

st. vincent - 'digital witness'

Tweet This'll wake you up.

hurray for the riff raff - 'blue ridge mountain'

Tweet

There's always time for some beautiful music.

mac demarco - 'brother'

Tweet

I see in recent news that he was arrested at his own gig for climbing on rigging and over-exuberant crowd-surfing! Way to go - Mac. Glad to see that there are still musicians out there really giving their all in live performances.

goat - 'hide from the sun'

Tweet

You normally associate Gothenburg bands with dream pop but Goat are smashing a few preconceptions with their experimental album 'Commune'. Have a listen to this beauty.

flying lotus - 'ready err not'

Tweet

Another great track from another great 2014 album. There's an awful lot of depth to this album, it feels at times like it's jazz but then it becomes hip-hop and then more mainstream. Very imaginative!

lewis - 'cool night in paris'

Tweet

I think this album is a definite contender for one of my albums of the year. Superb.

mus.hiba - 'moonlight'

Tweet

My brother got me onto this track. It's downtempo electronica cut so fine that it feels extremely fragile.

gus gus - 'another life'

Tweet

Taken from the 2014 album 'Mexico' and featuring Hafdis Huld on vocals. Yes, I like it a lot.

young fathers - 'i heard'

Tweet

Mercury Prize winners have lots of attitude but also tons of talent. Check this out.

haley bonar - 'eat for free'

Tweet

Another album I was recommended was 'Last War' by Canadian/American singer Haley Bonar. It's a lot more indie than her usual lo-fi Americana but she is very at home with both genres. Saying that, I much preferred the slower numbers on here especially the last track 'Eat For Free', at times it sounds eerily similar to a strictly acoustic 'Wild Horses' which will give you an idea of where she normally pitches herself musically. 

todd terje - 'alfonso muskedunder'

Tweet

He's brought his usual playful sense of humour to play with this track from his best-selling 2014 album 'It's Album Time'. Great drumming too.

temples - 'sun structures'

Tweet

I had never heard of this band before the Rough Trade album of the year list and so I felt compelled to listen to their number one choice for 2014 and I'm glad to say I'm hooked. I'm a complete sucker for retro-psychedelic rock and there's a fair few bands doing this sound: Amorphous Androgynous, Phosphorescent, Allah-Las... and this is as good as any I've heard for a long, long time. They have a direct channel to the likes of 13th Floor Elevators, I really think they are that good. 

Saying that though, they do have a 'sound' and it does get a bit samey towards the end, tracks 10 and 11 are interchangeable and psychedelia by numbers, they could cut those 2 out and still have a fantastic album. But the album starts magnificently - as grand an opening to an album as you'll get. I always thought the Charlatans should have had 'Only One I Know' as track 1 on Some Friendly because it's so in your face and sets the tone for the rest of the album. Structures by Temples does precisely that, 'Shelter Song' is a wonderful start. 

I've listened 3 times straight through with the Temples and it moves up and down beautifully. Tracks 1 and 2 set the scene but then track 3 'The Golden Throne' could be from one of those cult soundtrack albums to Italian Vampire films of the seventies, it's very cinematic and quite gothic sounding. Keep In The Dark is just pure sixties with acoustic guitar and plenty of high hat. The likes of Amen Corner would be proud of that track, it's extremely pop-friendly. I'm told that their live act is a wall of noise, in which case it's clear that they don't play the last track from the album. It's an authentic touch with a big nod to how a lot of rock albums from the sixties used to end - with a short mock-baroque tune. 

I don't know if it will be my number one but it's definitely one of the finest albums I've heard this year.

real estate - 'the bend'

Tweet

Their 2014 album 'Atlas' came out early this year but I've only just got around to buying it, I saw it listed on a top albums of 2014 list somewhere and thought I'd take a risk and get it on spec and I'm glad I did. They're an East Coast indie guitar band that do surf rock/dream pop/jangly retro and with some aplomb. They are extremely good musicians. It's not often that I have an overwhelming urge to play an album in its entirety straight after listening to it but this has been on repeat all this morning.

peaking lights - 'telephone call'

Tweet

This is from their album 'Cosmic Logic' which was released early last month and is a great return for the husband and wife duo. I love the 80s bassline running through this track, almost as if it has a Miami sound to it.

morcheeba and bradley burgess - 'run honey run'

Tweet

Taken from 'Johnny Boy Would Love This' the John Martyn tribute album curated by Robert Smith and featuring a whole host of A-lister Martyn fans. I had a very hard time trying to pick a tune from the album for the blog: Phil Collins, Beth Orton, Beck, Lisa Hannigan all have very good claims but this suits a Sunday mood best I think.

morrissey - 'kick the bride down the aisle'

Tweet

My little brother is off to see Morrissey tonight in Helsinki and I'm very jealous. He may be a pompous old thing now but Morrissey's latest album shows that he's still got it - the acerbic wit, the indignant outrage and the instrumentation on this particular album is quite something indeed. A magnificent return to form.

ennio morricone - 'theme from the sicilian clan'

Tweet

Great use of the Jewish Harp in this very under-rated classic from Morricone no less.

lucinda williams - 'something wicked this way comes'

Tweet

Sunday mornings are made for that slide guitar, languid sounding blues.

sparklehorse - 'it's a wonderful life'

Tweet

A lovely tune to sign off tonight's mix.

stanton warriors feat comet 67p - 'comet rock'

Tweet

I think you'll like this a lot. Stanton Warriors have used that mysterious sound coming from the Rosetta comet and put a beat over the top of it. Is it just me or does it sound a bit like the Clangers?

allo darlin' - 'santa maria novella'

Tweet

I've only just got around to listening to their 2014 album and boy, it's an absolute belter. It's not just very good, it's quite brilliant. I know for a fact it's going to be one of my nominations for album of the year. Why didn't I listen to this sooner?

sohn - 'bloodflows'

Tweet

So good. Beautifully crafted electronica never sounded so good.

adam f - 'circles'

Tweet

Old school drum and bass. Lovely.

sinead o'connor - '8 good reasons'

Tweet

I'm finally getting my head around this album, it sounded angry but a bit too MOR for my tastes but this morning I had another listen and it's got real depth that I didn't catch last time I listened to it. This is a great example. I'd love to know the story behind this song. 

the flaming lips, tegan and sara, stardeath & the white dwarves - 'lovely rita'

Tweet

This is by far the best track on the Sgt Pepper tribute album by the Flaming Lips and Friends. The album is not their finest work, it reeks of no imagination - most of the tunes merge into one giant psychedelic jam with no real inventive re-imagining outside of crunching guitars and swirling synths. The production on it though is quite remarkable and lifts it into an okay album but nothing more. As I say, this is as good as it gets if you want to give the rest a listen.

deerhunter - 'he would have laughed (for jimmy lee lindsey jr)'

Tweet

And last one of the night from me. And fittingly it's the last track from what is a quite subliminal album.

chemical brothers - 'three little birdies down beats'

Tweet Let's up the tempo. Full on dance music from yesteryear.

epic45 - 'england fall over (fd acoustic session)'

Tweet

It really doesn't get much more English indie than this. 

the lazy kids - 'she thinks she's a kite'

Tweet

Some winding down music for a Friday evening after a long, long week. Hope you like it.

anderson.paak - 'right there'

Tweet

This is a Ta-ku production and therefore you know straight away that it has that warm, fuzzy, soulful feel to it. It makes me wish for summer.

grimes - 'skin'

Tweet

I was so pleased when this came up on my commute home the other night, like finding a fiver in the back pocket of an old pair of jeans.

billie holiday - 'it's like reaching for the moon'

Tweet I've been listening this morning to a Ms Holiday compilation and this gem popped up. Stunning.

mojo essentials mixtape 12: renegades of jazz

Tweet

I haven't posted a mixtape for some time so here's a nice hour's worth of the very best in soul and funk.

neil young - 'after the goldrush'

Tweet

Happy birthday Neil Young, 69 today. Here's the title track from my favourite Neil Young album.

austra - 'beat and the pulse'

Tweet

A blast from the past, here. 

alex g - 'harvey'

Tweet

Homemade music at its absolute best. Alex Giannascoli is only 21 and still at university yet he's already got 5 albums under his belt, all made in his bedroom. Superb quality and great ethos too. I see he's touring here soon at Rough Trade East, I need to get to that gig. 

låpsley - 'falling short'

Tweet

Wow! So much talent for one so young. The Liverpool lass is going to go very, very far.

steelism - 'landlocked surfer'

Tweet

An Anglo-American duo who do a great line in steel guitar playing. Very cool, check this out for starters.

oh my o - 'give me your word'

Tweet

Yep, they're from Sweden. Of course they are, this pop music is too damned good to come from anywhere but there. I love their quirky sound, very crisp but with a unique twist.

bonnie prince billy - 'ain't you wealthy, ain't you wise'

Tweet

From the 'Master and Everyone' album of a few years back.

silver mt zion - 'sisters! brothers! small boats of fire are falling from the sky!'

Tweet

If you've never heard this quite beautiful track before then you're in for a treat. It's almost classical music and when the piano starts at the 3 minute mark - wow!

lay low - 'one of those nights'

Tweet

I don't think anybody does lo-fi folk quite as good as Iceland. It must be something in the water.

owiny sigoma band - 'magret aloor'

Tweet

I've blogged this before but it's so damn good it deserves another play. Play it loud!

andy stott - 'faith in strangers'

Tweet

In a similar vein to Bonobo is Mancunian Andy Stott's 'Faith In Strangers' album. Very warm and sexy techno. Here's the title track from it and a very good barometer for the quality of the entire album. 

bonobo - 'flashlight'

Tweet

He's back with his Flashlight EP. It's growing on me a lot already.

ben watt - 'nathaniel'

Tweet

This popped up on my commute this morning. It gets better with every listen.

iamamiwhoami - 'hunting for pearls'

Tweet

From their brand new album. Top tune.

antony and the johnsons - 'cripple and the starfish'

Tweet

It's a shame that Antony Hegarty boxed himself into a musical corner and has done very little new material of late. This is him at his finest.

freaksound - 'seppise ine (zeppo thammer)'

Tweet

This is a rather lovely deep house track that will leave you feeling all warm and fuzzy. It's quite beautiful.

smith and mighty - 'walk on by'

Tweet

Oh yes, yes! Smith and Mighty, the original Trip Hop duo. Got this on 12 inch (well...it's my brother's copy and I haven't given it back to him yet. Don't tell him, eh?)

mighty diamonds - 'gates of zion'

Tweet

You like roots reggae, right? Of course you do. Here's one of the best.

james brown - 'payback'

Tweet

I don't know karate...but I know ka-razy!

the eels - 'that look you give that guy'

Tweet I love this tune, it's perhaps my favourite all time Eels song and it suits my mood perfectly this morning.

kirsty maccoll - walking down madison (6am ambient mix)'

Tweet

I'd quite forgotten that the video to the original tune was quite so hip-hop. Check it out for yourself. This is a rather lovely laidback version that suits my mood perfectly right now. Kirsty MacColl, gone but never forgotten.

botswana metalheads

Tweet

In Southern Africa, music isn't just an afterthought, it's a part of living itself and so understandably there's a very rich history of indigenous music. However, as this video shows, that as with white Europeans borrowing from African musical heritage the opposite can also crop up from time to time. Who'd have thought that there would be such a big heavy metal scene in Botswana, eh?

getting high on music

Tweet

This is a completely new one on me. We're not talking about drugs as an accompaniment to making or listening to music but the actual music being the drug itself. Apparently it's called 'binaural beats' and works by playing two perfect tones from an MP3 via headphones to produce a 3rd phantom tone that induces a high.

Those claims sound (sic) very dubious to me but it's got authorities in Saudi Arabia and Lebanon worried enough for them to start legislating against it. An article by FactMag here has leading academics quoting a lot of scepticism too. I guess the proof is in the pudding and for those interested, here's a sample. I think I'll pass on this as I'm at work!

beth orton covers joni mitchell's 'river'

Tweet

Oh boy, that's just beautiful. Have I mentioned before my never-ending love affair with Beth Orton? 

You can listen to the tune here.

wu-tang clan - 'ruckus in b minor'

Tweet

Number three track from their album 'A Better Tomorrow'. Still number one indeed.

dday one - 'aquarius'

Tweet

Unkle and DJ Shadow fans in need of a fix? Then get over to Bandcamp where you really need to listen to DDay One. A hip-hop/samples/beats producer from LA. This music is quite sublime.

josé gonzález - 'every age'

Tweet

Here's a cool video from Argentine/Swedish singer José González. It's a camera attached to a balloon and sent into space.Very cool perspective! The tune is pretty cool too, very laid back and quite sanguine too.

the growlers - chinese fountain'

Tweet

The title track from their 2014 album and quite an album it is too. I must confess they were fairly new to me up until I heard this long player and I've been impressed with the rock/pop/surf/garage crossover.

die antwoord - 'ugly boy'

Tweet

NSFW(ish). Thought I'd better make that clear, as if a Die Antwoord video is ever SFW...

charlotte qvale - 'the beginning of the end'

Tweet

Norwegian singer Charlotte Qvale does a really nice line in indie pop. I know I bang on about it a lot but it seems that the Scandinavians really are the ones keeping the indie pop light burning at the moment. They're doing a great job in keeping it safe too with superb tracks like this one.

stray - 'since you've been gone'

Tweet

Sadly, I can't find out an awful lot about this band as there's another 60s prog-rock band of the same name that Google, Wiki et al insist is the one I'm looking for. Let's focus on the tune then - it feels British. Very Massive Attack, Bomb The Bass and it samples the 70s classic 'I've Never Been To Me' by Charlene. It's bloody brilliant, that's what it is.

yogi feat pusha t - 'burial (crookers remix)'

Tweet

Here's a great remix to get you in the party mood. Unfortunately I can only lay my hands on a sample to stream from here but i you want it in full you can get it here.

ariel pink - 'picture me gone'

Tweet

The video to a tune that was cut from his new album 'Pom Pom' is a little freaky to say the least. I've heard excerpts from the new album and it's  certainly more pop-oriented than his last album. I keep hearing 'They Might Be Giants' being channelled throughout the whole album but this track in particular is a bit more Howard Jones. It's pretty good especially the whistling chorus interlude. You don't see that much any more.