The King of Limbs

In Rainbows was always going to be a tough act to follow and having heard 2009's 'These Are My Twisted Words' I suppose I was worried that Radiohead's new offering was going to be a cluster of airy songs that rumbled along with no distinct melody or chorus. Click on Read More to see what I think of 'King of Limbs.'

Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse - Dark Night of The Soul

Right so I dug up the ol' unfinished review, had a glance through it and it kinda says what I want it to say so what the heck without me tweaking it and making it all nice, so click on Read More to see the whole thang.

Having co-helmed Gorillaz' 'Demon Days' album; produced 'The Good the Bad and the Queen' as well as taking a bigger-than-producer role in his new outfit 'Broken Bells,' the well-developed 'Dark Night of The Soul' project seems only a natural progression from these previous creative outlets.

Caribou - Swim

Having reviewed 'Odessa' - the groovy opening track from Caribou's 'Swim' LP and now hearing that they're going to be playing this year's Bestival, I thought I'd go the whole hog and listen to the album in its entirety.


Click 'Read More' below to peruse the full review.

The Samps!

Like some bizarre compilation of jolly interludes these six short and punchy segments from the aptly named 'The Samps' employ funk, jazz and plenty of synth-based boogie to produce a highly listenable EP that isn't altogether dissimilar to the work of 'The Avalanches.' There is an unpolished charm to the EP and I cant decide whether the songs need more work or not. Either way it's a taster of great things to come from The Samps. Check out 'Peppergood' on their myspace player and for a pair of their utterly nutty mixes, see below. 

The Samps' MySpace

LONRG MIX SIDE A by The Samps

LONRG MIX SIDE B by The Samps

In-depth album reviews to come including: Holy Fuck, Caribou and the Chemical Brothers!

Miami Horror

Since hearing the awesome 'Don't Be On With Her' from Miami Horror's 2008 Bravado EP I've been keeping a watchful eye on the progress of their as yet untitled new album. Their latest offerings 'Sometimes' and 'Moon Theory' are very much in the same vein as Calvin Harris in that they're electronic, catchy and summery; but in my eyes Miami Horror have lost that initial 80's synthesized energy that drew me to them in the first place. The new singles are by no means bad songs and they're definitely worth a listen, but it is as though they sit too uncomfortably on the fence - not quite full blown dance tunes, not quite chilled out head-nodders.

Watch Miami Horror - 'Sometimes' Video

New Single - Moon Theory


Don't Be On With Her

Kula Shaker - Peter Pan RIP

The dissertation is now over and with revision in progress - the blog goes on. 

With a new album due out in June, Kula Shaker have given us the first taster of what's to come and I must say I like the flavour. Peter Pan R.I.P is a step in a more folky direction for Kula Shaker but the signature sound of Alonza's plodding bass and Crispian's soothing melodies are still very much prevalent. The thickset Eleanor Rigby-esque strings are the perfect accompaniment for the song's mournful lyrics, all in all a very memorable little ditty and a fine single to kick off the album.  

Download Kula Shaker - Peter Pan R.I.P

Kula Shaker Official Website

Kula Shaker MySpace

Late Night Tales - The Cinematic Orchestra

The idea behind Late Night Tales is that an artist rummages through their record collection and puts together a mixed compilation of their favourite late night tunes. As part of the process they also have to produce a cover song, perhaps as a homage to a particular artist or an opportunity to put their own twist on one of their favourites. To top off this mixture the artist has to come up with a spoken word story for the climax of the cd. Much like the Fabric Live releases this is a real gateway into the musical mind of an artist and having listened to Lindstrom's and the Flaming Lips' offerings I've been very impressed.

Anyhow, click 'Read More' to brood over my review of the latest in the Late Night Tales series by The Cinematic Orchestra.