Recommended albums released 8th January

Recommended albums released 8^th January

Cage the elephant – Tell me I’m pretty

This is another fantastic album but an incredibly under rated band although it does feel a little over produced in places. Something I will be listening to for the rest of the year and easily recommendable. It has some cracking upbeat numbers with memorable riffs and some catchy choruses. I think there was more than one occasion where I was contemplating throwing some talc on the floor and grooving, it has northern soul roots. I also drew comparisons with Miles Kane vocals. Trouble and Punching bag fulfill the singles market I imagine. They are my first ear-worms of the new year. If everything was equal, this would clearly be my favourite album of the week. However…..

David Bowie – Blackstar

The very last Bowie album. Incredibly sad, incredibly poignant, incredibly moving and incredibly good.

It is hauntingly great. This has been left to us as his last piece of art, and wow, its brilliant. There are heart-breaking moments to this album and Bowie meant them all. He was playing with us for the last time. This album went straight to number 1 on Friday and stayed there. I do not think anyone has ever had a number 1 album at the time of their death before. Every time I listen to this album I hear something new. The first track ‘Blackstar’ murmurs into reckoning to set the scene and tempo of the album and I can’t turn it off until the last track ‘I can’t give everything away’ dwindles into nothingness  and I start to mourn again. A massive triumph by Bowie who held his integrity when faced with adversity. Thank you DB xx

Hinds – Leave me alone

Well, hello Indie guitar pop and 3rd millennium new wave punks. Lazy basic chords and easy vocals combine to give us a fantastically put together album which is as enjoyable to listen to as it is easy.  They have been described as ‘garage pop’ and I think that’s fits just fine. I am drawing similarities to Kenickie blended with Vampire Weekend and even sounding like the lighter happier parts of the Libertines. Quite happy and easy to listen to, I like this album a lot.

Villagers – Where have you been all my life?  

This beautiful piece of work nearly passed me by but when I heard the opening track ‘Set the tigers free’ I was hooked. Sometimes a singers voice just sits right with me. This guys voice could comfortably sits over the tracks like a modern Paul Simon.  Lyrically its strong and anyone that can squeeze in the line ‘I hope you feel the same way, when it’s your turn to disappear, I’ll be cheering from the side lines with a sandwich and a beer’ is okay by me.

Yes its melancholy, but then so am I. Give it a go.

2016 Comeback special

I used to be into music in a big way.

I would spend a lot of money on albums and play them over and over until I knew every word in every song.  I still know a lot of lyrics and I often find myself ‘helping’ others when they sing the incorrect lyrics. It’s just something I do. Not everyone is a fan, but never mind.

I would always flick through the inlay card and find out who played on the individual tracks and find out who was credited with writing the songs. Something else that I helpfully bring up in conversation.    

Maybe because I had time on my hands when I was younger, maybe because I had less worries and commitments, maybe because I was just less of a lethargic procrastinator

Whatever the reason, this year I’m actually making time for myself to listen to music again.

I thought that, as it was January, I’d review the new music as it was released.

They release singles & albums now on Fridays, who knew?  

I’m getting back into listening to the entire album and then adding the ones I like to a Spotify playlist.

(I’ll add links later)

I think we have lost the art of listening to an album from start to finish as everybody’s lives exist in shuffle now. Subsequently the bands themselves make punchier individual tracks and have drifted away from albums that have a beginning, middle and end.  I like albums that flow from track 1 through to the end.  I’m sure that albums used to have a ‘kick ass’ opening track then a massive crescendo at the end. I’m immediately thinking of ‘What’s the story, morning glory by Oasis. ‘Hello’ blasts out getting you ready for the rest of the album (the Gary Glitter sample was an odd choice even then) then we arrive finally at ‘Champagne Supernova’ an epic and fitting finale to the experience.

What’s the story also houses those, much missed and now always skipped, linking tracks. Not specifically a song just a flow from one track to the next, not even given a name originally and now both awkwardly coined ‘The Swamp song’ as they play for 44 secs and 40 seconds between ‘Hey now’ & ‘Some might say’ and ‘Morning glory’ & Champagne Supernova respectively.

Radiohead’s ‘The Bends’ is another, slightly different, example of a beginning middle and end album that springs to mind.

I still get annoyed when songs are played incorrectly. By that I mean out of the original album order. I had gotten to a point of starting the next track on the album, in my head, as the previous one finishes.  But then ‘Greatest Hits’ had to come along and spoil everything.  And don’t get me started on bands releasing their new song as part of a deluxe hits album packaged with photos and previous unheard/unreleased tracks. Lazy bastards!

Hopefully you can understand or relate to some of these ‘isms’. Music has always been an important lifeline for me and a massive icebreaker

Music can instantly remind me of another place and time and can inspire and delight.

My Dad has a great taste in music with some oddities thrown in; he tends to hang around in 60’s pop with occasional dips into old show tunes and comedy records.  My mum is much harder to pin down musically; I want to say Abba and Andrew Lloyd Webber but I believe that is only scratching the surface.

With their combined music collections available to me I quickly had an opinion on what I did and didn’t like.

Then I started to discover my only tastes that included current music. My parents probably ceased to have ‘new music knowledge in the early 80’s. My new music knowledge is probably good up to the year 2000, at a push.

So I’d like to change that, I will still be quite selective about the music I listen too but at least I’ll keep up with some new things which can only be a good thing.

The new releases so far in 2016 have set the bar quite high. 

Looking forward to this

Whatever your tastes, turn it up guys! 

Starman

I started writing this on Friday 8^th January after listening to Bowie’s latest and ultimately, final studio album.

Blackstar is beautiful understated piece that resonated perfectly on Friday, Saturday and Sunday but now as his death is announced on Monday it takes on a whole different meaning

Where on earth do you begin?

I have been happy to drift along in this world because of Bowie.

He was an outsider, an outcast, a weirdo, a stranger, a freak and he made it cool.

Not only did he make it cool, he made ‘cool’ accessible to the biggest collection of outsiders, outcasts, weirdos, strangers and freaks. He gave us a voice.

I say ‘us’ because as a kid, I never felt completely accepted by a particular set or group of people. I was never bullied or repressed but I certainly hung around with groups of people that had some first-hand experiences of both.

And now he’s gone.

Of course it doesn’t change my day to day life and the majority of people will go around as normal, unaffected.

And for them that is fine. But for some reason, I feel an incredible loss.

I never knew the man; I never met him, so why am I crying as if it’s a family member

I’ll try to explain a possible connection.

None of my friends are normal. Whatever you think is meant by normal let me give you my definition

Normal: The everyday, the same as everything/everyone else – not different

Normal is absolutely fine and a very comfortable safe place to be, but it’s never been for me.

My friends are a unique bunch of individuals. They dress how they want, live how they choose and delight in being different and enjoy crushing stereotypes; I know gay men that are massive football fans, straight men that wear make-up and all other barrier breaking lifestyles

But beyond all of that tangible difference is the fact that they are all creative and passionate. They find comfort and Zen in their lives when they are being themselves fully and most openly in a creative way.

Actors, directors, writers, dancers, singers, musicians, magicians, comedians, photographers, CEO’s and teachers

I know a huge array of people from all walks of life, all colours, religions, beliefs, genders and persuasions and my life is better because of this. I feel like a more rounded human for having access to all these different ideas on life, death right and wrong. My friends make me see that no one has the monopoly on good ideas or the final answer.

I genuinely believe that Bowie had a hand in this. He gave people the idea that individuality was perfectly acceptable and that difference is the new normal.

He was open and direct all his life.

In my experience and life, he has been some form of middle ground.

He has always been there.

Flicking though my social media sites, today, I come across my friends’ favourite Bowie’s tracks and individual memories, and it as diverse as it is beautiful. From the earliest to current, from biggest hit to obscure B-sides, it’s all there.

He touched these individuals and gave them confidence to be themselves, to try new things, to walk in their own footsteps, to have fun, love, passion and commitment in all you do. And that you can do anything what you want to do and be anything you want to be. There are no rules.

That's the kind of message I was given as a child and Bowie was the originator who showed us it could be done

To David Bowie, Thank you, you made it cool to be different and even more: you made difference cool.  

To my Dad, Thank you, you were integral in the music of my upbringing and adolescents, you gave me Bowie 

To all of my friends who have been online today with alternate Bowie tales; all of them have different favourite moments. I have reviewed each and every one of them. These and the posts by The Who, Boy George and other Bowie advocates have bought me to tears today.

I don’t quite know what to make of the world without Bowie. I, for one, will try to shine brighter, try harder and reach further than I did before.

'We are juvenile delinquent wrecks'

Upwards and onwards

Yeah I’m okay,

 I guess that I am built that way

Yes, ask questions

  Lord knows I’m open to suggestions

We are adult, we are grown

 We will never be alone

To us it’s not the worlds end

 As we are able to stay friends

Being temporally sad and upset

 Is better than a life of regret

Our one and one now doesn’t make two

 Changed from the people we once knew

But how can you be sad

 With all of the good times that we’ve had

16 years our unit was strong

 Some people don’t get that long

From our strength and positivity

Springs a world full of opportunity

Time to learn from mistakes made

Experience roles as yet un-played

We’ve spoken in our honest voices

And made the toughest of all choices

Our mundane lives and alienation

Led to mediocrity and stagnation

That path was unattractive

We took the reins became proactive

We were able to take control

And save our minds and our soul

Never let the past mistakes

Alter the future path you take

No more feeling down and crappy

You got to do what makes you happy

Never forget and always forgive

 Nothing worse than life unlived

Too much just wasn't enough

Too much just wasn't enough

Start again with no direction

Stumble over imperfection

Wished away once too often

Memories made are unforgotten

Trying to make sense of all this stuff

I guess too much just wasn’t enough

Loneliness hurts and sneaks up on you

Dragging the rug of life from under you

Leaving you long looking and loosely staring

Kindness killed the love and caring

It’s made simple what was once tough

I guess too much just wasn’t enough

So you stumble on and thumb through it

Rethink re-imagine and review it

Love lived and lost is love completely

Sounds and tastes remembered sweetly

Treasured tangibles become just stuff

I guess too much just wasn’t enough

As time goes on, pain will heal

Doors are opened and paths revealed

With a little soul searching and evaluation

You’ll find yourself standing at life’s station
You’ve overcome this latest rebuff
It’s okay that too much just wasn’t enough

A welcome return

Hello once again. 
Change is the main theme of 2016 and I'm going to make the most of it. I have travel ideas and adventures in front of me, a healthy budget and the chance to take an actual year off. Lets see how it goes.
This years writing will be mostly made up of entries covering things I'm up to, places I'm travelling to and also various reviews music, films and other such entertainment. I'm going to raise my online profile and content to add it to a portfolio and ultimately head towards a possible career in presenting/journalism or some form of combination of both.
No set time scale, no mapped route, a handful of ideas and a world full of possibilities.
I'd love for you to keep in touch, follow me, comment and share as I try to discover who I am and what I want to be
Here goes, its The Year Off Of The Gav x
#TYOOTG