As promised, here's the shortlist for the Blog Sound of 2012. While the BBC's poll, which inspired this alternative list, will be announced by a suspense-inducing day-by-day countdown, us humble bloggers are releasing our top five all in one go. In the interests of full disclosure, I should say now that none of these five acts were voted for by me, and I hadn't even heard of Daughter or Theme Park before the longlist announcement. Nevertheless, I have been doing my homework on behalf of the blog - tirelessly and giving no quarter - and shall be reporting back soon with [...]
Geographically speaking, I don't think I could be further from Scotland and still be in the UK. You'd never guess that from reading this blog however, as Scottish acts seem to be dominating my tastes for the last few years. 2011 has been no exception, and four albums on this list have their roots firmly planted north of the borders. As well as being a year for Scots, 2011 appears to be the year of the Return To Form. In itself this is a good thing, as recent years have seen more disappointing highly-hy ped albums than good ones, but it means there's a [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] Well we've finally made it to the end, and it turns out these little single-song showcase posts have been quite popular; I'll have to do it again sometime. Since Christmas is practically upon us now, I thought I'd better post what I consider to be the best Christmas song ever. In fact, this little number from The Very [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] Long and slow, yet haunting and atmospheric, this track is one of Jim White 's best. In fact, No Such Place - the album this song was taken from - is a genuine classic, the overall strength of which means Christmas Day is often pushed into the shadows, and it's only at this time of [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] At this time of rejoicing and all-round general good cheer we ought to remind ourselves of the true meaning of Christmas. Better known for their work at the centre of modern folk mainstays Bellowhead, Spiers & Boden are on hand to set us straight with this tale of a callous, vain and hardhearted Jesus. Spiers & Boden [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] Now we're within sight of the finish line, it's time to bring out the big guns; none of the songs in this festive selection have been anything less than good, but now is the time to take it up a notch. These last four tracks are not only great Christmas songs, but simply great songs, period. Withered Hand [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] This is the penultimate XO for the Holidays entry in this festive collection, and what Piney Gir 's Christmas track lacks in length it more than makes up for in seasonal cheer. Piney Gir - Christmas Time
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] The Casiotone For The Painfully Alone brand has been retired for over a year now, but that's no reason not to enjoy this festive little ditty. A reason not to enjoy it would be the stark bleakness of the lyrics; I'm a big believer in the 'cheer' part of Christmas, but nevertheless there's still a few less-than-cheerful numbers amongst my [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] Another comic juxtaposition of joy (Christmas) and emotional turmoil (yesterday it was alcoholism, today it's infidelity) for your delectation as we enter the final week of our festive countdown, this time courtesy of the ever-excellent They Might Be Giants . They Might Be Giants - Santa's Beard
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] There are few things on this earth worse than John Denver, and while this song of his verges on being an out-and-out comedy number (with a markedly unfunny subject matter) the Decemberists ' usual textural panache lifts their version far above its humble origins. The Decemberists - Please Daddy (Don't Get Drunk This Christmas)
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] Christmas is a time when my rational, atheist mind turns to mush when confronted with all the trappings of the season. Thick dripping candles, vaulted ceilings, and the sheer power of carols that have been hardwired into my brain from an early age all come together to leave me very confused indeed. It's in that spirit that I find the [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] We've got another cover for you today, although this time it could be seen more as a 're-imagining', with Banjo or Freakout messing with the melody, scansion, and time signature of White Christmas to create this ethereal, smoke-like version. Banjo or Freakout - White Christmas
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] Greg Lake's I Believe in Father Christmas is one of the few 'proper' Christmas songs that I can still stand to listen to, but it just sounds too dated (and - like all 'big' Christmas songs - overexposed) to make this list. Thankfully we have this up-to-date cover of it to see us through, performed by Pictures of Then [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] My enjoyment of Sufjan Stevens ' music is directly proportional to the amount of time and effort I put into listening to it. The shifts and dynamics of his work are so subtle that it really doesn't work well as background music; it needs your full attention to prevent it sounding boring. Illinois is a favourite album of [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] I mentioned in the first post of this Christmas series that I am a big fan of the XO for the Holidays compilations, and here's further proof of that. I'm not usually a fan of bands that put a Micro Korg front-and-centre, but despite doing this The Winter Sounds have thoroughly won me over. The second of the [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] Way back in 2007 - before he'd even released his first album, Falling Off The Lavender Bridge - Dev Hynes, a.k.a. Lightspeed Champion , built his reputation by releasing several home-recorded EPs. One of those was the creatively-titled Garageband Xmas EP , the two best tracks of which can be found at the bottom of this post. [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] In order to make this Christmas song list a little more relaxing I present this track from Scotts Godspeed-wannabes Mogwai , taken from their imaginatively titled EP, EP. I'm only a casual fan of the band, but the little I've heard I've liked quite a lot, and this track seems to be fairly representative of their output. [...]
[There's plenty of great Christmas songs out there, but most suffer terribly from over-exposure. To remedy that, EbM presents a selection of alternative Christmas songs .] I stumbled on this little gem quite recently, and although it describes a scene totally alien to the cosy, insular, traditional English Christmas enjoyed at casa EbM, but for some reason it struck a chord. Originally a Robert Earl Keen song, this version feels like it has more heart. I have, at best, a delicate relationship with country music, and the [...]
[Not everyone loves Christmas songs but I, for one, can't get enough of them. Every year it seems we get the same old perennial hits, and I guess that's part of the charm - Christmas is a time for comforting familiarity after all - but most of these aren't as fulfilling as one might hope, musically speaking. Never fear, however, as this Yuletide help is at hand, in the form of Eaten by Monsters' selection of the best alternative Christmas songs out there.] Argyle: Mind if [...]
[Not everyone loves Christmas songs but I, for one, can't get enough of them. Every year it seems we get the same old perennial hits, and I guess that's part of the charm - Christmas is a time for comforting familiarity after all - but most of these aren't as fulfilling as one might hope, musically speaking. Never fear, however, as this Yuletide help is at hand, in the form of Eaten by Monsters' selection of the best alternative Christmas songs out there.] Following on from yesterday's move away [...]
the Eaten by Monsters blog
No Doubt & Beyoncè: "Undone" ed "End Of Time" saranno i nuovi singoli
Just Because
Debut LP From Irish Garage Rockers Cheap Freaks Out Now!
Radar Eyes – Radar Eyes
