Day 5 - 1man goes all tribal

Basement Jaxx - Remedy
Great, more dance music. Here we go. Whats this?! A guitar? Yes, it was too good to last. It doesn't take long to descend into plinky plonky (as a friend of mine put it recently regarding Aphex Twin) electronic gibberish. I suppose if you like your dance music a little more interesting than just "boom boom boom" then its okay, but its not my cup of battery acid. You all should know by now that rock and metal is my thing, where the music is often repetitive in the form of a riff, but where I can listen to that sort of stuff, this kind of music with repetitive dance beats and people going "oh yeah!" every four seconds is just grating on the ears, and once again its "YOU" not "U" ! Sheesh!
Standout Tracks: Jump 'n' Shout (vaguely amusing), Red Alert (although only because its familiar)





Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People say I am, That's what I'm not
Given all the hype that surround this band, this is one I was looking forward to, and its not disappointing! Plenty of cool guitar work to enjoy, and every track so far is just bursting with energy and northern cheekiness. The songs are very well crafted indeed, the arrangements are done well enough to keep you interesting until the end of the song, despite the simplicity of the music. There is nothing complicated here, just straightforward, energetic, guitar pop. Finding it hard to pick out standout tracks though, as I must admit I've rather liked them all so far ("Dance Floor" gets in there as I liked it before I heard this record). Reminds me a lot of the music my roommate at University used to listen to, that I hated at the time, but have mellowed to since - that sort of guitar based indie pop stuff. All in all, an excellent album, and probably one of my favourites so far.
Standout Tracks: I bet you look good on the dance floor, Perhaps Vampires is a bit Strong, From the Ritz to the Rubble





Amadou & Mariam - Dimanche a Bamako
So ... world music I suppose this is. Its quite interesting, lots of things going on percussion wise which results in a foot-tappingly pleasant rhythm. Its all in French, so I hope I am not missing something deep and meaningful in the lyrics. Some super guitar playing too, which as a guitarist I am obviously enjoying (solo in Coulibaly for example). In fact there is some great guitar playing throughout this album, which gives it a good contemporary feel. And you know, the fact that it is all in French is actually just adding to the music - it's like African dance music with some jazz and folk guitar thrown in, plus a couple of pretty much reggae tracks.. Not bad.
Standout Tracks: Coulibaly, La Realite, La Fete Au Village, Politic Amagni






I rather enjoyed two out of three albums today (well actually it was yesterday but with one thing and another, and pesky work getting in the way, I only got around to posting it today before embarking on a new musical meander). The Amadou and Mariam stuff was really good to listen too - tinged with African beats, but with loads of great quality guitar playing throughout. I think the fact it was in French actually added to the enjoyment for some odd reason. Arctic Monkeys were a bit of a revelation for me; I had only ever heard one or two of their tunes before (and the one that the Sugababes ruined), but the whole album I thought was stellar from start to finish. Bright, interesting, cheeky, down to earth guitar fun for the whole family (except the kids!)

And as for Basement Jaxx ... well yeah. File under the b1n along with Aphex Twin.

Day 4: Wild and Wierd

Beastie Boys - Licensed to Ill
This is just great fun to listen to! From the rocking Fight for your Right, to the whimsical Girls, there are great beats and spoonfuls of good humour on this record. You get the impression from the word go that the Beastie Boys are here in your face to have fun and don't care how they go about doing it. Its very 1980s and it sounds dated but its terribly infectious. Bright beats, rock guitars, and gangsta rap by white boys ... shouldn't work but since they don't take themselves seriously, it does. Like the Above the Law album I listened to its hard to not bob your head up and down while the Boys shout and rap their way through 13 excellent tracks. Great fun! (Side note: I was thinking "This guitar solo is scorching!" on Brooklyn, then discovered it was done by Kerry King of Slayer fame. How cool is that!)
Standout Tracks: Fight for your Right (Of course!), Girls, No Sleep til Brooklyn, She's Crafty




Tori Amos - Boys For Pele
This is like listening to Kevin Ayers again, but with a girl singing and better production quality. Some of the points in this album are pretty exquisite high points, and Tori Amos is certainly ambitious enough to pull it off. Most of it is just nuts. Some bits I can listen to and say, "Genius". Other parts, "WTF?". Often both sentiments at different points of the same song ... and anyone who writes a song called "Father Lucifer" must have some childhood religious issues she's not happy with. Lyrically bizarre ("Hello Mr Zebra, can I have your sweater" ... eh?), but musically quite interesting and in places it soars pretty high on the back of good orchestration and piano prowess. Her voice is pretty sexy too, and very easy on the male ear. All in all, a bizarre but actually not bad record that in the end I rather enjoyed.
Standout Tracks: Professional Widow, Hey Jupiter, Little Amsterdam (loved this one), Putting the Damage On





Only time for two today (been one of those days), but I did enjoy them both. Started an album by a band from Senegal, and that was going quite well, so look forward to the resume of that on Monday, but until then - have a pleasant weekend! I know I will .... because I won't be here.

Day 3: Free jazz, nuttiness, and drug use

Aztec Camera - High Land Hard Rain
Soulful, tuneful, and some excellent musicianship and arrangements characterise this record. The music is 80s but it sounds like it predates the synth era of 80s pop (and indeed their own "Somewhere in my Heart" which they are most famous for), with the emphasis on bluesy, sometimes jazz influenced guitar based pop. All that being said, I don't really like it that much, although I can't put my finger on as to why. Perhaps its because so far all the songs have just felt the same with no real musical variation. Post punk, it's refreshing and upbeat, but just a bit ... I dunno! Perhaps as I listen more I'll figure out why I don't like it much. Perhaps its the automatic comparison with Morrissey - whom I have never liked. First track was great (Oblivious), and there are a couple of other standouts, and about three quarters of the way through it lost its pop feel and got very folksy and acoustic, which I liked, but I don't think there is enough about it to make me listen again, however.
Standout Tracks: Oblivious, Release, Back on Board, Down the Dip





ABBA - The Visitors
I have never liked Abba. I am not sure why, as listening to The Visitors I think highlights all that is good about them. Very carefully and expertly crafted songs, and vocally quite stunning in places. It's just vocals that I can't abide listening to! I can sit from a distance and nod my head and say, "yep, that's good music right there" ... just don't bring it anywhere near me! It's not rational, surely everyone in the world likes Abba! On this record they seem to be in a more sombre mood than the cheesy pop I am used to hearing, and surprisingly I haven't recognised a single tune yet. I will grudgingly admit that the standout tracks below I did rather enjoy, but only under duress!! And I finally recognised a song (One of us).
Standout Tracks: Soldiers, I Let the Music Speak, Two for the Price of One (just for the quirkiness)




Kevin Ayers - Joy of a Toy
Um, wierd. Far too much LSD was harmed in the making of this album. The guy reminds me of Syd Barret and the Floyd years before he left. A not-too-unpleasant mix of madcap lyrics and simply bonkers arrangements with penny whistles, oboes, and other instruments you don't normally find on a rock record. Conjures up images of smoking something strong and lying on the grass making shapes out of clouds as they float past. Either that, or strange hallucinogenic flashbacks involving court jesters jumping on one leg playing lutes. It has that warm wackiness of the 1960s all over it, early Pink Floyd style, and is quite fun to listen to. On a humourous note, the CD this was ripped from skipped on several of the tracks ... funny to hear an mp3 skipping ...
Standout Tracks: Song for Insane Times, Eleanors Cake (which ate her), The Lady Rachel, All this Crazy Gift of Time





Albert Ayler Trio - Spiritual Unity
Well, it's jazz. And it occasionally has a tune, but mostly it has the feel of three guys messing around in their mates bedroom. I usually quite like jazz, but this is a little spaced out for me. They just don't seem to be playing the same thing. The saxophone playing is a riot of notes, while the bass player noodles around on his fretboard, and as for the drummer ... he obviously has headphones on and is tapping away to a completely different track. Is this all supposed to sound like this? Are they just tuning up their instruments before they start playing? This is just a plain wierd album. One article I read described it as "alien", and I couldn't possibly agree more. This was composed, played and recorded somewhere other than planet Earth. If this is "free jazz", I'm awfully glad I didn't pay for it. It probably makes me uncool not to like this, but I just .. don't .. understand .. it!
Standout Tracks: Er .. there were tracks on this album?


So, between Albert Ayler and Kevin Ayers today it's been a crazy wide eyed wild ride through psychedelia to the moon and back. And to top it all off, I thought I'd catch a little Tori Amos before the end of the day (not finished with that girl yet, check back tomorrow for the review). I'm looking forward to getting into the car and listening to some Trivium on the way home, just to touch my feet back on planet Earth again after today.

Day 2 - Quirky Ambient Popular Music

Aphex Twin - Selected Ambient Works 85-92
I am already hating this. Its dull, repetitive, monotonous, repetitive, dull, repetitive, monotonous. Etc. Maybe I don't get it, someone described this as "intelligent dance music" and that might be it. I'm not intelligent enough to understand why this is even on this list. Here's to an hour or more of my life that I will never get back. Can't wait for Abba.
EDIT: Still listening to this drivel. One of these bloody songs was nine minutes long!!
Standout Tracks: All of them stand out as incredibly dull.






Arcade Fire - Funeral
Never heard of these before picking up this record. Vocally haunting in places, Arcade Fire sound like they have something to say to someone, but that someone is not listening. Reminiscent of Rogers Waters era Pink Floyd, the vocals have the same air of melancholy and sometimes desperation about them. Musically, they try to pack every inspiration they ever had into this album, resulting in an often busy and packed melody that sometimes causes a song to lose direction. It often works though and they hit the heights they set for themselves, while the vocals continue to shout anxiously for attention. A very accomplished album, with a very melancholic edge to it that I liked a lot.
Standout tracks: Neighbourhood #2 (Laika), Neighbourhood #4 (7 Kettles), Crown of Love




Lily Allen - Alright, Still
Decent pop record this one. Lyrically the themes are a little darker than the light and airy music would suggest. Many of the songs seem ironic in fact, such as "Everything is wonderful", where if you actually listen to the lyrics everything is definitely not wonderful. Lily Allen sounds like someone who got jilted at some point in an Alanis Morrisette fashion (although quirky, she is not in the Morrisette mould of "plain wierd"). She spends a lot of time telling us how tough she is and what she will be doing to exact her revenge on previous boyfriends, which gets just a tad dull after a while, however the range of different styles of pop and the variety of music is more than enough to keep you interested in the record, even if the melodic vocals are not quite in the Aguilera league.
Standout Tracks: Smile, LDN, Shame for You, Take what you Take, Alfie (not sure why!), Naive (Bonus Track, very cool)


So there you go. Three more albums from the offering today, and a mixed bag at best. I like the quirkiness and the variety on the Lily Allen album, enjoyed the ambition and haunting melancholy from Arcade Fire (of whom I had not heard before today) and hated every moment of the Aphex Twin rubbish (a copy of Dance EJay later, I could have produced that myself ... ). Tomorrow I need to download a FLAC player, as the Abba album and some world music from Senegal are both in that format. See you tomorrow!

Day 1 - Aaliyah to Aguilera via AC/DC

Today is the big day! Today is the start of something awesome, something marvellous, something ... utterly pointless. It's my intention to work my through the 1000 The Guardian chaps decided I should listen to before I die. So unless I die within the next two years, that's precisely what I am going to do. Oh, and blog as I go. Yes, I am a nerd. Here goes ... read from the bottom up if you want to get all chronological on me ...


Christina Aguilera - Stripped
Two songs in and I now remember why I never listen to this stuff normally. Give her some due though, she can really sing, and she has some attitude. There are some quite nice sultry moments, reminiscent of Michelle Pfeiffer in that red dress. Smacks of "girl power" and all that rubbish a little too much. There is nothing raw or edgy about this music, it's so highly polished that I can almost see my face in it. Even the guitars sound like they were produce by a synthesiser, along with everything else. Although I must admit that when she gets all latino on me it's much better to listen to, lot of soul in there and she sounds more at home than the soppy pop stuff. When she is upbeat she's okay to listen too, but the ballads make me want to throw myself out of a window.
Standout Tracks: Walk Away, Fighter, Infatuation, Dirty, Make Over, Soar



AC/DC - Powerage
I knew exactly what to expect with this one, having listened to plenty of AC/DC before, and the album did not disappoint. AC/DC are one of those bands that you just know what you are going to get when you put the record on, and what they do, they do very well indeed. Highly infused with a blues feel to it, the vocals are not quite as harsh as they sound in later years and have more of that classic seventies rock feel (although given that the lead singer (Bon Scott) is apparently different to the guy you normally associate with AC/DC (Brian Johnson) that would explain it!). Satisfyingly and unashamedly rock and roll, fun to listen to, excellent album!

Standout tracks: Down Payment Blues, Riff Raff, Sin City, Gone Shootin', Kicked in the Teeth




Above the Law - Livin' Like Hustlers
Ah, gangsta rap. Yep, I know as much about this as I do about RnB (although I have at least listened to an RnB record now). This one is in your face from the word go. Huge beats, and repetitive synth noises start the whole thing off. Kind of a funk feel to it in places, and a soulful feel in others, with the harsh lyrical content laid over the top (although the rappers are not unpleasant to listen to, with a smooth vocal style). Despite the aggressive lyrics, there is a real sense of humour to this record also (check the start of Livin' Like Hustlers for an example) and a real laid back feel to the music that contrasts with the lyrics. It's very difficult to avoid bobbing your head and calling people "homez" while listening to this.
Standout tracks: Untouchable, Freedom of Speech




Aaliyah - Aaliyah
I don't know the first thing about hippety hop or BnR (RnB?), but this is not an altogether painful experience. The bass is pretty kicking and driving each song along pretty well, broken up at times for a bit of variation. Aaliyah herself has one of those honeylike voices that is actually rather easy on the ear. The moaning about relationship problems is starting to annoy, but the music itself is surprisingly pleasant, and vocally interesting, although it all gets a little dull and repetitive after a while. But hey, I'm an old metalhead trying to keep an open mind here! One other minor irritation ... "you" is spelled "you" not "U". Seriously, does it take that much effort to type out three characters...
Standout tracks: More than a woman, I Care 4 U [sic], I Refuse, What If.

On with the A's

So what's up for the first day of the project? Got the following to listen to:

Aaliyah - Aaliyah
Abba - The Visitors
Above the Law - Livin Like Hustlers
ACDC - Powerage
Christina Aguilera - Stripped
Tori Amos - Boys for Pele

I have no idea who picked these things ... there is some cheesy pop, gangsta rap and rock'n'roll in there. I'm lucky I can listen to music all day with my job, so should be able to get through these. Check back later for some thoughts!