This might be my favourite album ever. It connects somehow, the frustration of My g-g-g-generation extended to an entire double album, played with the frenetic energy and genius of The Who, and intermingled with a dash of Pete Townshend’s mystical leanings. I am the sea. It is not only the music, the whole package was [...]
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Review: The Bowie Variations by Mike Garson
I am a big David Bowie fan (as I guess will be most purchasers of this CD) and first noticed Garson’s work in the magnificent, edgy accompaniment to Aladdin Sane – specifically, that track, though he makes a great contribution to the entire album. Garson played on many of Bowie’s albums, from Ziggy Stardust through [...]
A classic album you may have missed
Soul is not really my kind of music. Maybe it should be. I discovered this album back in the Eighties when I heard it playing in a shop. The title track, a cover of Sam Cooke’s song, is astonishing. The pace is slower than the original. The song builds from a quiet, haunting opening into [...]
SHM-SACD – super-expensive, but how super is the sound?
The problems facing the music industry are well-known: the CD market is fast disappearing thanks to digital downloads, both legal and illegal, and income gained from downloads does not look likely to match that lost from CD. But what about the niche market for recordings of superior quality? Universal Music Japan has come up with [...]
Review: The Who – Greatest Hits Live
The Who at its best is the equal of any live band ever, so the new double CD Greatest Hits Live has plenty of potential. On the other hand, cherry-picking from concerts over a 42-year period (1965 to 2007) is unlikely to offer the coherence or adrenalin rush of a single concert – get the [...]
Review: Broken bells
I’ve listened to this CD by James Mercer (ex The Shins) and Brian Burton (half of Gnarls Barkley) numerous times and can’t shake off the feeling that this could have been much better. That said, it’s good in lots of ways. The sounds are inventive, the melodies are strong, the talent is obvious. The sound [...]
A few observations on King Crimson: The Court of the Crimson King
DGM has released a magnificent CD/DVD box set reissue of King Crimson’s classic debut, The Court of the Crimson King. Maybe I will write more about this when I have listened to it properly, but in the meantime a few observations. This is completist heaven. There is always argument about whether reissues should feature the [...]
Review: Animal Kingdom – signs and wonders
I reviewed this on Amazon and called it “Quirky, mystical and tuneful”. It’s the debut album from a promising London band, though this was recorded in Seattle. Animal Kingdom has been quietly building a fan base, playing support to the likes of Snow Patrol as well as their own club gigs. The band has already [...]
Review: Here comes the Future by the Honeydrips
The Honeydrips is Mikael Carlsson, formerly in the Swedish band Dorotea. This is a beautiful album – the band’s sole release, as far as I know – combining Carlsson’s haunting, graceful vocals with electro-funk backing that echoes (more than echoes, in places) bands such as New Order and its predecessor Joy Division, though it is [...]