Archive for December, 2006
Dec
31
Posted by jill on
December 31, 2006
2.        Jonquil – Sunny Casinos
In early autumn, this was the album I listened to as I fell asleep. It is perfect as a lullaby album, with the gentle guitars and quiet voices that rise and fall slowly. At times, everything is so gentle that even the vocals fade into the background accompaniment. But what makes this album so special is the way that it sounds so fully formed and timeless, and especially since it was produced as a bedroom project in Oxford.
Dec
30
Posted by jill on
December 30, 2006
No doubt you can’t wait till I announce my favourite two albums of the year, but first I’d like to mention the ones that could have made it onto the top ten round ups, if only I remembered them as releases from this year. First, Breaking Up by The Research. Some quick googling has revealed that the album was released in February (I didn’t have the internet when I was compiling the list) and it really should have made it into the top ten. After their wonderful set at Truck in July, hardly a week has gone by without at least one listen to the album. Honourable mentions to The Life Pursuit by Belle and Sebastian and Amber by Clearlake. Both of them suffered from the same problem being released in the first two months of the year.
On the other hand, the top songs list was slightly skewed, with my self imposed rule that I would only write about music I heard for the first time this year. Mainly, this meant that We are your friends by Justice vs. Simian wasn’t allowed in, since I first became aware of it last summer.
Dec
30
Posted by jill on
December 30, 2006
3.        ¡Forward, Russia! – Give Me A Wall
This is a rare example of an amazing live band being able to capture at least some of that energy onto record. While many energetic bands seem to lack something on record, as they quietly play though their songs, the urgency that spreads throughout a ¡Forward, Russia! show can be felt on this record. It’s easy to forget that, behind all the onstage antics and never-ending tours, the band’s work is based on a fantastic library of songs, and a chance to sit down to listen to this makes me want to see the band live again even more.
Dec
29
Posted by jill on
December 29, 2006
4. Grandaddy – Just Like the Fambly Cat
It’s strange how Grandaddy might have completed their most perfect album as their farewell work. With previous Grandaddy albums, often there has been one amazing song followed by ten or eleven tracks that don’t quite match up with expectations: Under the Western Freeway had AM 180, The Sophtware Slump had The Crystal Lake and Sumday had El Caminos in the West. However with Just Like the Fambly Cat there’s everything you want from a Grandaddy album, and nothing to overshadow anything else. So there are the fuzzy guitars, the twinkly keyboards, and Jason Lytle’s dreamy voice. So farewell to one of the most underappreciated bands of the last decade, and at least there is this great album to say goodbye with.
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