CURRENT ROTATIONS // 9 NEW for FEBRUARY 2013
I have kept music and film journals for the past fifteen years or so - detailing my weekly, monthly, and yearly obsessions as they happen. Sometimes it’s just mixtape ideas, other times it’s essays on something that moved me about a movie that I caught on tv late one night, and other times, it’s just a series of notes to remind myself of what I was doing (and was into) at a particular time in my life. I’m going to be trying to transition some of that material over the blog, in case anyone cares to look in on some of the musical choices that I make outside of the daily song postings.
Here, I’m going to start picking the albums that of note that I’m currently spending time with - both new and old. The first list will be the recent releases and the second list will be older albums that have found their way back into recent rotations for whatever reason. The new list will be comprised of upcoming releases or albums that have been released in recent months. The old list, will just be any and everything that’s not currently on a new release wall in some record store somewhere.
These lists are merely for the curious and the bored. Enjoy.
- CURRENTLY ROTATING -
- “Amok” by Atoms for Peace // I know that it sounds ridiculous to say, considering my outspoken adoration for all things Radiohead, but I was not expecting to find myself this floored by “Amok”. The album has a late night energy that lends it more to a hypnotic dance floor than any of Radiohead’s experiments of the past several years, making it feel like a thoroughly enjoyable separate experience. ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “Ingenue” & “Amok”.
- “Push the Sky Away” by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds // I’m always excited for Nick Cave’s music, but truth be told I was getting a little burnt out on the Grinderman material, so this return to the dark poetry of some of his mid-career albums is an absolute treat on every level. Some really shockingly good material here. ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “Push the Sky Away” & “Higgs Boson Blues”
- “Torres” by Torres // Caught me completely off guard with it’s raw energy and wonderful songwriting. Some dark, haunted beauty pulled off with usually nothing more than a guitar and a voice. ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “Honey” & “Moon and Back”.
- “The New Life” by Girls Names // One of the best albums I’ve heard so far this year. A staggeringly good blast of dark post punk sounds. ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “The Olympia” & “Hypnotic Regression”
- “Eight” by Radar Brothers // A great collection of orchestral, space rock tracks that remind me of how much I miss Grandaddy and ” The Soft Bulletin”-era Flaming Lips. ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “House of Mirrors” & “Horse Down”
- “Early Fragments” by Fear of Men // Just a lovely collection of dream pop beauties compiled from the bands singles and EPs. ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “Mosaic” & “Spirit House”
- “Anxiety” by Autre Ne Veut // Holy shit, i was not expecting this album to be such a solid album. Every track hits the right notes and spins R&B into a strange new direction. A fantastic new sound from a fascinating artist. One of the best of the year so far. ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “Don’t Ever Look Back” & “A Lie”
- “MBV” by My Bloody Valentine // I can’t possibly add anything new to the discussion of this brilliant return. ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “Who Sees You” & “New You”
- “Optica” by Shout Out Louds // This album is so much better than the band’s past couple releases. Honestly, I’d almost grown bored of the band’s output, but here is a collection of 80’s indebted pop songs that sounds like The Cure one minute and New Order the next. It’s a great Spring time album, if only the fucking cold would take the hint. ALBUM HIGHLIGHTS: “Chasing the Sinking Sun” & “Walking In Your Footsteps”.
There you have it. The new albums that I’ve been spinning the most as of late. The list of older favorites still to come. Hope you find something that you like.
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