So yesterday was the 1oth October 2010. Those numbers 10/10/10 will only happen once in your lifetime…..unless you live to be over a hundred and see the year 2110. A scary thought.
My original plan was to do the usual and browse through my music library to find 10 songs that are some how related to the subject. The subject this time being the number ten. Yes i realise that’s a lot of tens right there. A list of ten songs with ten either in the artists name or song title. However after a quick ten minutes of perusing i could only find a few so i gave up as such.
Instead i’ve decided to do a countdown in reverse order through the numbers ten to one. Songs with numbers in the title. I suppose the countdown idea will have to do. If anyone else knows songs involving “10” then let me know!
I’ve added the other few songs (the 1o’s) i had intended to use in the list as extra bonus tracks.
ps. i was at the O.Children gig in Nice N Sleazys last night. It was one of the gigs of the year so far, very intimate. Very epic. I’ll do a review of it either tomorrow or wednesday (depending on how much time i have to myself tomorrow).
Ok so a week into 2010 is a bit late for a “best of 2009” post but any regular readers (are there any?) will know i’ve had problems with hard-drives, my internet connection, my laptop in general and more recently some other stuff has came up that has prevented regular posting recently.
But back to the post..
Deciding on the songs and the order of them for this Top 30 was a hard decision (the Top 30 albums was even harder, post that at the weekend) to make. Basically there were only one rule when picking the list. The rule was that a band can not feature more than once in the list. If that rule wasn’t made then i’d have had the full APTBS album in there, shit, i’ve just gave away the identity of my album of the year haven’t i?
Apart from that it was pretty simple. 30 slots and hundreds of songs. Pick the best.
Remember though, having a song in the Top 30 songs doesn’t automatically mean that the artists will be in the Top 30 album countdown as well. Take for example Yes Giantess, Ou Est Le Swimming Pool and Stuck In The Sound. In the case of YG and OELSP they won’t make the Top albums cos they don’t have one out yet and in the case of Stuck In The Sound its because their album just wasn’t good enough (imo) to be in the Top 30. The song i included here however “Zapruder” is pure shoegaze genius. There’s also the other side of the coin. Bands like The Prodigy, MSTRKRFT and many more brought up absolute brilliant albums in 2009 but even though their albums as a collective were amazing, none of the individual tracks managed to make it into the Top 30 songs.
Sorry i’m not very good at trying to get my point across. I think i might just be trying to justify the fact that i had to leave some amazing songs out of the Top 30. I would have made a Top 500 if i had the time!
So away from the mumbled jibberish that i just wrote, here is the list in countdown style 30 to Number 1
SOMEONE’S IN THE WOLF TOP 30 SONGS OF 2009
30. Erol Alkan & Boys Noize – Death Suite (Bobermann Remix)
29. Paper Planes – Permanent Marker
28. Ou Est Le Swimming Pool – Dance The Way I Feel
27. Freeland – Borderline
26. Nathan Fake – Basic Mountain
25. Stuck In The Sound – Zapruder
24. Mew – Introducing Palace Players
23. Tigers That Talked – Artificial Clouds
22. The XX – Night Time
21. Yes Giantess – Tuff N Stuff
20. Bat For Lashes – Daniel
19. Miike Snow – Animal
18. Russian Circles – Malko
17. IAMX – I Am Terrified
16. Maybeshewill – Co-Conspirators
15. Them Crooked Vultures – New Fang
14. The Temper Trap – Sweet Disposition (re-release)
13. Japandroids – Wet Hair
12. Tape Deck Mountain – Ghost Colony
11. Crocodiles – I Wanna Kill
10. A Place To Bury Strangers – In Your Heart
9. The Tupolev Ghost – Diagrams
8. Moderat – A New Error
7. Ex Lovers – You Forget So Easily
6. The Big Pink – Velvet
5. Cougar – Florida Logic
4. Zaza – Sooner Or Later
3. Lymbyc Systym – Ghost Clock
2. Passion Pit – Moths Wings
And the winner of Track of 2009 goes to
1. Ex Libras – Radar
Instead of making all these tracks available individually i’ve put them all in a ZipFile for anybody who wishes to download the list. The songs have been numbered so they should play in the correct order.
First off, as a few of my close friends and family will know, October is an annually difficult month for me, a lot of shit has happened in this particular month over recent years, say maybe from 2003 onwards. None more so than last October (2008) which was probably the hardest yet. I’m not going to go into details as this isn’t a therapy session afterall but those in the know will understand what i mean. It just seems to be a difficult 31 days in general.
I’m only half way through this October and i’ve already had a pretty shit few weeks. In the last fortnight i’ve succeeded in thinking too much about things from the past, present and future which has led to me embarassing/making a fool of myself, arguing with friends, taking frustrations out on friends and family and pretty much just moping around the house. I can’t seem to communicate properly even with my closest friends. Everything i say or try to say seems to get lost in translation (hence the title) so to speak, even now i can’t seem to spit out the right words of what i want to say about everything in general.
So here’s a few songs currently on Ipod rotation that i can relate to lyrically and musically at the moment..
“all the stupid lies i hide behind..”
VIDEO: Rilo Kiley – The Good That Won’t Come Out
PART 2
BUT i’ve decided that i’m not gonna spend the rest of October just sitting about feeling sorry for myself. I’m going to start being positive about things…anyway there’s only another 16 days left till November comes! Then things will be back to normal….
The first positive came last night, i had a great time at The Big Pink, helped by the fact that my friends Gus, Luisa (http://littlenihilist.wordpress.com/) and Gordon were there. I know that they haven’t exactly been feeling amazing or having the best of times either recently so it was good for us all to go to the gig, have fun, have a wee talk about various things and drink too many White Russians (again). It was a really great night, Gus and myself had bought our tickets months ago but it was almost a spur of the moment thing for Luisa, Gordon and Paul to join us, they were hoping to head to King Tuts and just pay at the door….guess what? It had sold out! We were looking at another repeat of Temper Trap, they were gonna have to tout and beg their hearts out for a ticket. An hour or so passed, no joy, still no tickets, looked like Gus and i were going in alone and gonna have to just meet up with the other 3 in the bar afterwards. …no wait..”there’s the drummer from The Big Pink” i said as Akiko lit up her cigarette. Gordon, fuelled by a bottle of “wine” and a few milky vodka treats, then had the courage to go up to the tiny drummer and explain his love of Robbie Furze’s old band Panic DHH. Gordon was even wearing his 9 years old Panic DHH t-shirt as proof of his love! Anyways, the kind Akiko then disappeared inside for a few minutes and came back out with the best surprise possible. She had got Gordon plus 3 onto the guest list. With me and Gustav already having our tickets that meant that Gordon, Luisa and Paul could use the guestlist passes and still have a free space left over…you should’ve came afterall Chris! The gig itself was littered with quiet/loud moments reminiscent of feedback pioneers Jesus and Mary Chain (just as i had expected) and My Bloody Valentine. And afterwards i had the pleasure of meeting the Big Pink , i grabbed a 5 minute conversation with Robbie Furze (singer and guitarist) about our love for Sonic Youth, DFA and certain guitars. Then i managed to squeeze in a good chin wag with Milo Cordell (synths and general noise) about his fucking brilliant record label, Merok Records (http://www.myspace.com/merok) . Cordell is the man who found the Klaxons and Crystal Castles among many more and gave them their first big break. I managed to surprise him with my knowledge of a band called Salem. I asked him for a few tips on good bands from Merok that i might not know and he looked genuinely shocked (in a good way!) when i told him that i fucking love Salem, especially their dark and altogether slightly disturbing take on Bruce Springsteens “Streets of Philadelphia” which they’ve named “Brustreet” (get it checked out). Then after another 5 minute conversation with Robbie Furze about lyrics and chords it was off into the night to get some food then back to my bed to try and sleep off the oncoming hangover. All in all, a really good, if not very sweaty (King Tuts is a sweat-hole!) and warm evening for all involved.
Gustav, me, Gordon and Paul (pre-gig, no signs of dancing indused sweatiness yet!)
luisa, someone who is smaller than Luisa, me (during the gig, getting sweatier!)
myself and Robbie Furze (post gig, sweatified and very drunk)
VIDEO: The Big Pink – Velvet
And just a little extra video as a nod to friends…
“..our little group has always been and always will until the end…”
Ok after much delay (been busy at work recently) i’ve finally gotten round to my feelings on the 5 best new-ish artist/bands at T in the Park 2009.
1. THE TEMPER TRAP
First band up are the Temper Trap, i first heard them back in December 2008 and have been going on about them ever since (i mentioned them in my Tips for 2009 blog back in February too). Sweet Disposition was the song that caught my attention originally and then i looked up a few other tracks. Namely Peter Parker and Science of Fear. But it wasn’t until i managed to get a hold of the album that i could really appreciate them….. or so i thought. The experience of seeing them live was easily one of the highlights of this years festival. And the song “Fader” easily wins title of Feel Good Hit of The Summer.
2. THE BIG PINK
Next up is The Big Pink, a noisy duo who have been compared sound wise to The Jesus and Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine and countless other “shoegaze” bands. And although the walls of noise they create are a fair comparison, the Big Pink still manage to create a different structure by using beats that will remind the listener more of an industrial sound rather than dreamy noise pop. This may have something to do with the fact that Robin Furze was a founder member of noise merchants Panic DHH and also done time as a guitarist with punk-electronic legend Alec Empire. Meanwhile the other member of Big Pink, Milo Cordell, just happens to be the son of a 60’s pop producer. Milo also runs the Merok record label which has released a load of material from disco-punk orientated bands including the Klaxons. Mix these two guys together and you get the ethereal sounds of The Big Pink. Loud and straight to the point but strangely quiet and distant at the same time.
3. UNICORN KID
Olly Sabin, otherwise known as Unicorn Kid made his first appearnce at T in the Park this year. Hiding behind his trademark Lion Hat (they’ll be the next big fasion accessory soon, even i have one!) he manages to somehow throw out bleeps and blips through his speakers and meld them into the catchiest melodies of the year so far. He has rode a wave of publicity this summer following numerous appearances on Radio 1 and Xfm and also his own headling tour which culminated at Balado. The demand for this 17 year old from Edinburgh is huge at the moment. What started out as hype has evolved into absolutely massive stadium sized songs. Unicorn Kid is definitely one for the future. Listen and justify the hype for yourself.
4. DANANANANAKROYD
Possibly the weirdest name, no wait, DEFINITELY the weirdest name to appear on this blog (so far) is Dananananakroyd. Trying saying that whilst under the influence. They are a six piece (formerly 9 piece!) from Glasgow. Their music is just as strange as their name. Due to the nature of the screamed vocals they have often been put in the “Post Hardcore” genre. I hate labelling bands into genres. To me Dananananakroyd are more pop music but just in an unconventional sense. There are a more few songs on their debut album “Hey Everyone!” that could be deemed “radio friendly” though. But not in the sense of being radio friendly like “Nickel-fucking shite-back”. The band have gained notoriety and a cult following through touring constantly and they were certainly a sight to see and hear at T in the Park. Random Fact: Ex-drummer Laura is married to Futureheads frontman Barry Hyde!
5. WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS
Lastly we come to a band who are tipped for big things in the very near future. We Were Promised Jetpacks are 4 Edinburgh school friends who formed a few years after the turn of the milennium in 2003. They sing songs of lost love and despair in their own accents. Remind you of anybody? Glasvegas maybe? Well, this 4 piece sound nothing like Glasvegas, there’s no ungodly distortion, no smokey stages, no sunglasses indoors. Just raw emotion and menacingly plucked guitars. Everybody wants a piece of this band at the moment. And this has been solidified by the fact that the boys will be spending the rest of their summer and most of September playing Germany followed by a massive US tour with fellow Scottish bands Frightened Rabbit and The Twilight Sad.
Honourable mentions for new bands that i heard at T in the Park also go to Broken Records, The Phantom Band, Delphic, Pulled Apart By Horses and finally a band who more than match Dananananakroyd on the name front….The Seal Cub Clubbing Club.
Top 10 Performances of the Weekend
————————————————
1. The Temper Trap @ the T Break Stage on the Friday
2. Mogwai @ King Tuts Wah Wah Tent on the Sunday
3. The Big Pink @ the T Break Stage on the Sunday
4. M83 @ King Tuts Wah Wah Tent on the Saturday
5. Nine Inch Nails @ the Radio 1/NME stage on the Saturday
6. TV On The Radio @ King Tuts Wah Wah Tent on the Sunday
7. Unicorn Kid @ The BBC Introducing Stage on the Saturday
8. Foals @ King Tuts Wah Wah Tent on the Saturday
9. We Were Promised Jetpacks @ the T Break Stage on the Sunday
10. Dananananakroyd @ The BBC Introducing Stage on the Sunday
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My original plan was to do the usual and browse through my music library to find 10 songs that are some how related to the subject. The subject this time being the number ten. Yes i realise that’s a lot of tens right there. A list of ten songs with ten either in the artists name or song title. However after a quick ten minutes of perusing i could only find a few so i gave up as such.
Someones In The Wolf 