Albums of the year 2019

In another good year for music here are the albums that really hit the spot for me.

1. Kate Tempest - The Book of Traps and Lessons

A haunting and beautiful evocation of despair and hope in Great Britain in 2019. Demands to be listened to as one piece, or for an even more powerful and cathartic effect, watched live.

2. Black Midi - Schlagenheim

In a great year for new guitar bands two stood out, but only one released an album, and that band was Black Midi. Indescribable vocals, an incredible drummer, and songs that evolve each time you hear them, this is a band destined for legendary status. (Black Country, New Road, it’s your turn next year. Don’t disappoint us).

3. Lana Del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell!

On which LDR finally lives up to the hype and really does deliver ‘the next best American record’. Excellent lyrics, beautiful melodies, and a sense that she’s tried slightly less hard and in doing so has achieved a lot more.

4. The National - I Am Easy To Find

The introduction of a number of guest female vocalists has brought a whole new angle to The National’s songs, and in doing so has helped them produce their best album in years. Bonus points for a beautifully packaged vinyl set as well.

5. Floating Points - Crush

An album that feels effortless, as Floating Points creates an electronic landscape for you to immerse yourself into. His work just gets better and better.

6. Dave - Psychodrama

A startlingly intellectual and coherent album from one of the break-out voices in UK rap music. Covering subjects ranging from mental health to domestic abuse, it’s not always an easy listen but it’s a rewarding one.

7. These New Puritans - Inside The Rose

Beautifully constructed, this is a record that displays the true depth and skill of the Barnett brothers, gathering their influences (Talk Talk in particular) and coalescing them in their most accessible album to date.

8. FKA Twigs - Magdalene

Out of nowhere Twigs dropped an astonishing album, laying her heart bare while still pushing musical boundaries. It’s a brave record that deserves repeated listens.

9. Apparat - LP5

Another atmospheric record that owes as much to Talk Talk as Apparat’s usual electronic influences, this is a widescreen approach to electronic music that escapes the boundaries of the genre.

10, Bon Iver - i, i

More immediate than his last record, this is still an album that rewards you every time you listen to it. I miss the risk taking of 22, A Million though.

Track of the Day: 'Catatonic Skinbag' by Blaenavon

It's great to have this band back, especially as they've been through some personal issues since we last heard from them. By the sound of this track those issues are far behind them - sounding very much like 90s indie rock its a rocky, jangly guitar blast of effervescent fun, cut through with some darker-edged lyrics.

The guys are going on their own tour in May and supporting Thw Wombats before that - it sounds like they're ready to have a blast, so do your best to catch them out there.

New band of the day: JOHN

Fresh from a European tour slot supporting IDLES, this noisy two-piece look set to start making waves in the UK. Hailing from Crystal Palace, two guys, both called John, have come together to bring you a sounds that's much larger and rounded than you would imagine from 4 arms and 4 legs. Adding some thoughtful lyrics to the their meaty, bouncy rock ensures that this duo should rise above their peers. Apparently they're awesome live too so get yourself along to one of their shows, and in the meantime have a listen to their debut album 'God Speed in the National Limit' below.

Albums of the Year 2018

By any measure you like I reckon that 2018 has been a pretty vintage year for music. New favourite bands, a spread of good music across loads of genres, Kanye managing to lose his shit but still have a hand in five great releases, and the emergence of one of the most awesome and important bands that the UK has seen since the dawn of punk. so that's where we'll start, with my album of the year.

1. IDLES - JOY AS AN ACT OF RESISTANCE

A juggernaut of a record. with a punk ethos but tackling important lyrical subjects like masculinity, Brexit, social pressure to conform and depression. That might not sound like a recipe for fun, but this is, in most parts, a joyous record, one that celebrates life and differences. IDLES are more than a band, they're an IDEAL, and that's why they've inspired the most friendly and supportive community that you could imagine. So buy the record, join the AF Gang, and I'll see you down the front in 2019.

2. JUSTICE - WOMAN WORLDWIDE

Effectively a studio version of the live set they've been performing for the past couple of years, this is part mash-up, part greatest hits and part tour souvenir, and does a great job of showing off the best bits of the French duo.

3. A.A.L (AGAINST ALL LOGIC) - 2012-2017

A new alias for Nicolas Jaar, this electronic/dance album is pretty hard to describe. Sample-fuelled house sits alongside darker grooves, all of which manage to connect with both your head and your feet.

4. CAR SEAT HEADREST - TWIN FANTASY

For this release Will Toledo completely re-recorded an album that he'd originally released in 2011, giving it the treatment he'd always envisaged. It's a brilliant indie-rock record with Toledo's trademark mix of short songs and really long songs, and some emotional and touching lyrics on the subject of sexuality and love.

5. EVERYTHING IS RECORDED - EVERYTHING IS RECORDED BY RICHARD RUSSELL

This could equally be described as 'curated' as 'recorded' by Richard Russell. Over the course of a couple of years the XL Records boss put together tracks featuring Sampha, Giggs, Damon Albarn and many others to form an album of lo-fi electronic soul that he gently shapes and steers. Rightly nominated for the 2018 Mercury Music Prize.

6. oOoOO + ISLAMIQ GRRLS - FAMININE MYSTIQUE

The trippiest trip-hop record you'll have heard for years, this is a late night smokers paradise of slow beats and love-lorn lyrics. A record that deserves to be on a lot more end of year lists than just mine!

7. RIVAL CONSOLES - PERSONA

My favourite full-on electronic album of the year, and Ryan's finest release to date. It's full of light and shade and is a record that successfully lives up to its name, perfectly conveying a sense of personality and warmth within the music.

8. NILS FRAHM - ALL MELODY

More varied than some of his previous releases, with electronic elements and some vocal touches too, this record sees Frahm continuing to develop and delight. He's like the neo-classical version of Radiohead - always innovating and always excellent.

9. THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE QUEEN - MERRIE LAND

As sooner as Damon Albarn had put a 2-year Gorrilaz world tour to bed he released this rather different beast. Expanding the London themes of the last TGTBTQ album this is essentially a UK / Brexit album. It evokes a brilliant sense of Englishness and melancholy in a way that is almost the comedown after the Parklife party.

10. SHAME - SONGS OF PRAISE

A bit like IDLES naughty younger brothers, Shame stormed the UK this year with their own personal brand of self-belief and self-deprecation. Charlie Steen is a 'proper' rock'n'roll frontman and this band are only going to get bigger and better.

10 that nearly made the list:

• BEAK> - >>>
• Bodega - Endless Scroll
• Jon Hopkins - Singularity
• Ross From Friends - Family Portrait
• Superorganism - Superorganism
• Low - Double Negative
• Christine & The Queens - Chris
• Gabe Gurnsey - Physical
• Young Fathers - Cocoa Sugar
• George Fitzgerald - All That Must Be

Compilation album of the year:

BRAINFEEDER X

The best live performances of 2018

It's the time of year for reminiscing, and as I've been asked to record my favourite live acts for another blog I thought I'd post them on here too...

Live Gigs of the Year

The Good, The Bad & The Queen - EartH, Hackney 6/12/18

1. The Good, The Bad & The Queen - EartH, Hackney
2. Nils Frahm - Apollo, Hammersmith
3. Car Seat Headrest - Forum, Kentish Town
4. Christine & The Queens - Apollo, Hammersmith
5. Bon Iver - Apollo, Hammersmith
6. Nine Inch Nails - Royal Festival, Southbank Centre, London
7. The The - Academy, Brixton
8. Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets - Roundhouse, Camden
9. IDLES - Forum, Kentish Town
10. Shame - Electric Ballroom, Camden

Festival Performances of the Year

IDLES at End of the Road 2018

1. 
   IDLES - End of the Road
2. Justice - All Points East
3. Vampire Weekend - End of the Road
4. St. Vincent - End of the Road
5. LCD Soundsystem - All Points East
6. Beck - All Points East
7. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - All Points East
8. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - All Points East
9. Paul Weller - Victorious
10. Stella Donnelly - End of the Road

Track of the Day: 'Die Dimension' by Perel

New signing to DFA Records Annegret Fiedler, aka Perel, comes to us from the Berlin club scene, where she works both as a DJ and producer. Her first release for the label is this stonking slice of German electronica, which brings to mind Moroder, Metropolis and many more wonderful things. The spoken word vocal is so atmospheric it immediately transports you to mid-80s Berlin before the fall of the wall, with the collar of your long black coat turned up and your eyeliner thick and dark.


There are some great remixes of the track around too so make sure you check them out, and watch out for more great releases from her in the coming months.

New Band of the Day: Sports Team

Having formed while they all studied at Cambridge University, Sports Team are now holed up in Harlesden, North London, where they're honing their particular mix of melody, mixed-tempo tunes and cutting, cynical lyrics (example: "where builders I don't like make flats for twats in Canary Wharf'").

Their debut EP 'Winter Nets' will be out on Nice Swam Records imminently - have a listen to two tracks from it, 'Beverly Rose' and 'Stanton', below.