Saturday 31 December 2011

2011 Music Chart - December

So another year comes to an end and here is the final 2011 Music Chart. A very quiet month with a couple of albums hitting the turntables: Pearl Jam Twenty and the new deluxe edition of U2's Achtung Baby (and Q magazine's version of covers - both not added to the chart). Fleet Foxes hold the number one spot and is still the Underwurld Music album of the year.
  1. Helplessness Blues by Fleet Foxes
  2. A Creature I Don't Know by Laura Marling
  3. Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will by Mogwai
  4. Slave Ambient by The War On Drugs 
  5. Ashes Fire by Ryan Adams
  6. Last Night On Earth by Noah And The Whale
  7. Codes and Keys by Death Cab For Cutie
  8. Collapse Into Now by R.E.M.
  9. Belong by The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart
  10. 50 Words For Snow by Kate Bush 
  11. Ceremonials by Florence & The Machine
  12. Passenger by Lisa Hannigan
  13. Twenty by Pearl Jam
  14. Sky Full Of Holes by Fountains Of Wayne
  15. Virtue by Emmy The Great
  16. The Big Roar by The Joy Formidable
  17. Blood Pressures by The Kills
  18. Velociraptor! by Kasabian 
  19. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds by Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
  20. Diamond Mine by King Creosote and Jon Hopkins
  21. Destroyed by Moby
  22. John Wesley Harding by Thea Gilmore
  23. Build A Rocket Boys! by Elbow
  24. Gracious Tide Take Me Home by Lanterns On The Lake 
  25. Close-Up: Volume 3, States Of Being by Suzanne Vega
  26. Bruiser by The Duke Spirit
  27. The King Of Limbs by Radiohead 
  28. Silesia by Jeniferever
  29. Ritual by White Lies
  30. Paradise by Slow Club
  31. Fishin' For Woos by Bowling For Soup
  32. The Fool by Warpaint
  33. Buffalo by The Phoenix Foundation
  34. Metals by Feist
  35. Young Pilgrim by Charlie Simpson
  36. Wasting Light by Foo Fighters

Thea Gilmore - Angels In The Abattoir (December 2011)

The final song from Thea this year for all her lovely Angels is another double: the rather pleasant But Me and a brief take of Auld Lang Syne.

But Me is full of haunting, echoing, spacious vocals set to a simple guitar backing. No write-up or explanation from Thea this time but the message is positive and upbeat in spite of a sedate and measured delivery. A gorgeous love song emerges in the last minute.

Thea's take on Auld Lang Syne is equally beautiful and as expected. A cappella and only one verse but a rare and special performance.

Monday 26 December 2011

Gathering Stories (Video) by Jónsi

The Sigur Rós front man Jónsi has provided music for We Bought A Zoo. The animated video for the wonderful Gathering Stories, co-written with director Cameron Crowe, is here...

The xx - Open Eyes (demo)

A new song (demo) from The xx. Dark spacious minimalism at its best...