The festive flu has meant that I’ve not been up to a great deal recently, though I did finally manage to catch up with adding some commentary to the last five or six instalments of the 2008 advent countdown. I hope you enjoyed it. It occurs to me that perhaps I should have allowed the last weeks of 2007 into my timescale of permissible tracks. If I do the same thing in 2009, I’ll be certain to include the last half of December 08. There are already some fine contenders:
The demos of Phil Wilson and his new band. I’m confident that Phil will find someone to release some of these numbers in 2009. The songs, and the new band, sound superb, especially on ‘I Own It’. I swear to God, if this makes it out as a single it will be single of the year. No question. It’s almost enough to make me want to start a record label again.
‘Another Version Of Pop Song’. Or, the triumphant return of Rose Elinor Dougall. Former Pipettes chanteuse in magical Pop moment shocker. Except it’s no shock. As expected, it’s sublime.
‘In Praise Of Ski Jumpers’. Or, the triumphant return of The Metric Mile… As already hinted at here. My 7” arrived in the mail the other day. As expected, it’s sublime.
Multiverse by Say. I think this is officially due for release early in 2009, but you can get copies from their website already. It’s well worth checking out too; full of soft pop tinged with sixties west coast harmonies, infected with a mild dose of Brian Wilson psychedelia and a smidgeon of Boo Radleys melodic noise.
And finally, Casador’s self-released The Puritans EP. A solo work that recalls some of the desolate majesty of his friends A Classic Education, it’s apparently a modern view on the story of the sword of Damocles. And very fine it is too. His blog links to a video of The National, and it’s easy to see a shared aesthetic here, though I admit that I have always struggled with The National, and Casador is immeasurably preferable for me if only because his songs seem much less rooted in rock orthodoxy. And with two songs for free download, what have you got to lose?
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