Day 48

CD#205 John Watts - Ether Beep Start

"The essence of 'Ether', my voice, guitar and basic grooves, was recorded at home on a laptop. The plan was to go out with a Mac, an audio interface, microphones and other minimal equipment, to a number of international locations where I had some contacts to just let things happen. In the beginning I planned to record songs in specific places. It soon became clear that the best approach was to meet people, most of them for the first time, play them a few of the tracks and gauge which ones they could best contribute to. We ended up working with some 30 people in the UK, New York and Europe."

It's remarkable that without reading the above I'd have said that it was recorded conventionally in a studio. Either way it's good stuff.


CD#206 Catherine Maclellan - Dark Dream Midnight/Water In The Ground

A Canadian singer-songwriter, she lives on Prince Edward Island, and having had a quick look around it on Google street view, who can blame her, it looks as peaceful and lovely as these songs.

CD#207 Liam Dullaghan - Making History

A local lad, a brilliant debut solo album.

CD#208 Marillion - Script For Jester's Tear

The most varied and interesting of their albums for me, and my favourite.

CD#209 Nickel Creek - A Dotted Line

Their most recent album and currently the only one I've bought, I should buy some more.

Day 47

CD#200 Elvis Costello - This Year's Model

Probably my favourite, a superb album from start to finish.

CD#201 XTC - The Big Express

Andy Partridge obviously had fun with the Linn LM-1 on this, though I'd have dialed it back a touch if it had been up to me. Despite that this one of my top 5 XTC albums.

CD#202 Jonatha Brooke - Plumb

Though it says Jonatha Brooke + The Story on the case, this is the first solo album, and everything that makes Jonatha's music special begins here, great stuff.

 CD#203 Jennifer Kimball - Oh Hear Us

The other half of The Story with Jonatha Brooke, this is her second solo album (which came in the post this morning). It's perfectly fine but not begging me to buy the other one.

CD#204 Fela Kuti - Music Is The Weapon

A 2 CD Best Of with a DVD documentary that I still haven't got round to watching yet, I really must rectify that. 

Day 46

CD#193 Eva Cassidy - Songbird

A Christmas present from the year when she was posthumously popular in the UK. A sad story but a lovely voice.

CD#194 Julia Nunes - Settle Down

I first heard Julia on YouTube, playing a cover of a Counting Crows song. She got quite a following on the back of quirky videos, mostly of covers, shot alone or with friends. Sadly, due to her career getting serious, a lot of them have been removed from YouTube. This was her first crowd-funded CD and the enclosed booklet has my name on it somewhere.

CD#195 Marcella Detroit - Jewel

Hopefully this was one of my Britannia freebies, because while I like "I Believe" there's not much else going for it.

CD#196 Meshell Ndegeocello - The World Has Made Me The Man Of My Dreams

There have been four albums released since I bought this, none of which I have heard. I shall have to do something about that.

CD#197 Invocal - Uneven Keel

Oestrogen-laden left-field acoustic music (their words, not mine), Invocal were (until 2010) "an all female acoustic act that performed with cello, guitar and four harmonious voices". Lots of fun . . . and local. 

CD#198 Muse - Origin Of Symmetry

This has my two favourite Muse songs on it, New Born and Plug In Baby, though if I'm listening via YouTube I always pick live versions as they seem to have just a bit more excitement to them even though the CD versions are pretty damn perfect.

CD#199 R.E.M. - Monster

There's more to this than I remembered, though they could have eased up on the use of tremolo a bit.

Day 45

CD#188 Beth Rowley - Little Dreamer

I can't remember how I came to buy this, as it's not something I'd usually look out for. Having said that the songs are good and well played, and she has a lovely voice. So despite it not being "my sort of thing" I like it a lot.

CD#189 Split Enz - True Colours

As far as I can recall, my first encounter with Split Enz was I Got You, which made my reaction to their earlier work more pronounced. It's more conventional than the glorious wackiness of something like Stranger Than Fiction, but still good to hear again.

CD#190 The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots

My favourite of the albums I have (three or four), I'm wondering if I should buy some more.

CD#191 Moses - The Swimming Zoo

Their first album, full of good songs and lovely harmonies.

CD#192 The Monkees - The Definitive Monkees

I was heartbroken when told that they didn't play their own music (even though by that time they had been doing so for years). Regardless of who wrote what and who played what, The Monkees are/were/always will be great.

Day 44

CD#183 Thunderclap Newman - Hollywood Dream

Their only album, it has Pete Townshend on bass. The single is good but there's not much else to get excited about.

CD#184 The Congos - Heart Of The Congos

This pops up on Top Album charts a lot, which is what encouraged me to buy it recently. Released in 1977, when I was listening to Elvis Costello, Sex Pistols and The Ramones, it feels like something from a generation before, though that's not necessarily a bad thing.

CD#185 Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble - In Step

He's a fantastic player, and I like his voice which is great for his style of music, but I'm not enough of a fan to be able to sit through two albums in a row (sometimes even the whole of one) without getting bored. This is true of a number of the CDs I own but SRV is noticeably consistent in his ability to satisfy my cravings for his music in a short space of time :O)

CD#186 The Incisors - Demos/We All Have Stories

The Incisors describe themselves as "turbo melodic pop rock" and sound like a lot of post punk/new wave stuff I listened to in the 80s. I bought these two CDs after seeing them play at The Cavern Pub in Liverpool (IIRC they were on just before the band I was playing in - Rogue State Circus) and really enjoying their set, particularly the song "Indonesia" which is possibly one of the best songs ever written.

 CD#187 Counting Crows - This Desert Life

Second to August And Everything After in my personal CC chart, Mrs Potter's Lullaby is one of my favourites of their songs.

Day 43

CD#178 The Jayhawks - Music From The North Country

This compilation has been described as "tracing their story from their beginnings as a struggling local act to their final chapter as a struggling national act." despite that there some great tunes to be enjoyed.

CD#179 Rogue State Circus - Songs From The Sea Of Serenity

Since this album's release I have gigged with the Rogues, on drums once or twice, on guitar for a while and most recently on bass, so I know these songs very well indeed - still fun to listen to this nevertheless as the songs are great, and well played.

CD#180 Echo And The Bunnymen - Evergreen

I bought their first album (vinyl) and saw them live back in the early 80s. They were pretty good back then, much better than this. It isn't awful but it's no Crocodiles.

CD#181 Chyco Siméon - Finally

Funky, jazzy, Marcus Miller-style bass led tunes. Groovy.

CD#182 The Story - Grace In Gravity

Jonatha Brooke (previously mentioned on Day 1 and Day 37) and Jennifer Kimball (I don't have any of her solo work), this their first album (of two) before Jonatha went solo. 

Day 42

CD#175 Gail Ann Dorsey - I Used To Be

Bass player to the stars, this is Gail being a star in her own right, nice and chilled for a Sunday morning.

CD#176 Bellowhead - Matachin

I'm not a traditionalist when it comes to any genre of music, so enjoying Bellowhead's take on classic folk tunes has never been a problem for me, though as one who dips in and out of things as the fancy takes I haven't got round to hearing their most recent work as what I have has been sufficient.

A quick look at their Wiki page tells me that they're currently playing a farewell tour which ends next month and then Bellowhead will, for the time being at least, be no more. Which is a shame.

CD#177 No Doubt - Tragic Kingdom

I've not listened to this for ages, there's more good stuff on here than I'd remembered. 

Day 41

CD#171 Radiohead - The Bends

It's pretty close, but this is probably my favourite.

CD#172 Taj Mahal - Mo' Roots

Roots reggae mixed with some James Brown mixed with some blues, it's possibly all things to all men.

CD#173 The Zutons - Tired Of Hanging Around

Valerie's great but the rest is a bit forgettable, I'm afraid.

CD#174 Pink Floyd - Piper At The Gates Of Dawn

I like the weird Floyd, the silly Floyd, the shouty Waters period and the mellower post-Waters period. So I like this. 

Day 40

CD#166 P.I.L. - Metal Box

I've got one of the original vinyl copies of this, and was amused to get the CD in a smaller tin, but I'm not a huge fan of either ;O)

CD#167 Juliet Turner - Burn The Black Suit

I definitely prefer the backing and arrangements on her live album but the songs are still great.

CD#168 Roger Waters - The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking

Written at the same time as The Wall, there is inevitably a Floyd feel to it even without Roger's familiar vocals. It's more of a complete piece but there aren't any stand out individual moments as a consequence. I haven't heard it for a while and it's much better than I'd remembered.

CD#169 The Decemberists - The King Is Dead

This band have been a source of great joy for me in the last few months, and this is another cracking album.

CD#170 Therapy? - Troublegum

Three songs are huge fun, the rest are less so - that's better than The La's !

Day 39

CD#161 Bob Marley and the Wailers - Exodus

As far as I can recall I only have Uprising on vinyl, but a splurge in recent years has filled in all the gaps from Catch A Fire onwards, great stuff.

CD#162 The Modern Lovers - The Modern Lovers

Recorded in 1972 - released in 1976, two years after the band had split up.

CD#163 Bruce Springsteen - Darkness On The Edge Of Town

Although this was written and recorded after Born To Run it's always felt more the other way round to me.
Some classic songs on here though it's not as complete as some of the others for me.

CD#164 Emily Barker & The Red Clay Halo - Almanac

Bought on a whim in Exmouth, wiki says Emily's an Australian based in the UK and The Red Clay Halo are a trio of multi-instrumentalists, together they've made four albums and this is the third. It's very nice indeed.

CD#165 Bob Dylan - Blonde On Blonde

In equal second place with a couple of others behind Highway 61 Revisited for me, but still a great record.

Day 38

CD#157 Blur - Modern Life Is Rubbish

I can remember hearing There's No Other Way on the radio but Blur mostly passed me by until Parklife came out. I bought this fairly recently but didn't really take much notice of it, though their performances of For Tomorrow and Chemical World at the Hyde Park gigs in 2009 are two of my favourites. 

CD#158 Hootie and the Blowfish - Cracked Rear View

Bought as part of the four free CDs from Britannia Music. While it's not chock full of hits, it's a lot better than I remember.It

CD#159 Ocean Colour Scene - Moseley Shoals

20 years old now, still fun.

CD#160 Gin Blossoms - New Miserable Experience 

I used to listen to this a lot but haven't heard it for quite a while, so it's nice to catch up.

Day 37

CD#152 The Ruts - Something That I Said

This is a Best Of album and I love half of it - they were, for me, a little hit and miss.

CD#153 The Finn Brothers - Everyone Is Here

Tim (and for a while, Neil) Finn from Split Enz and Neil (and for a while, Tim) Finn from Crowded House.

CD#154 Be Bop Deluxe - Live! In The Air Age

A live album, featuring song from their first three albums plus a couple of older songs.

CD#155 The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead

What a band, ridiculously earnest lyrics yet sometimes gloriously silly, sublime guitar playing and cool hair. Four albums in four years . . . and done.

CD#156 Jonatha Brooke - Live In New York

Like the Juliet Turner Live CD this is far more than a live Best Of - my copy included a DVD of the songs on the CD - this is a recording that can hold its head up high in comparison with any of her studio albums and in some ways it far exceeds them. I was lucky to see Jonatha live at The Stables (with another musician I love to hear, Gail Ann Dorsey on bass) but even that night pales in comparison to this.

Day 36

CD#148 Elliott Smith - Elliott Smith

In the last 12 years I've been to a lot of acoustic nights, if Elliott had been the feature act at any of them I would have considered him better than many I've heard, but I doubt I'd remember much about his set the next day.

CD#149 Chris Thile - How To Grow A Woman From The Ground

A side project from Nickel Creek's Chris Thile, mixing originals and covers from a range of acts, from The White Stripes to Willie Dixon.

CD#150 Badly Drawn Boy - Have You Fed The Fish ?

Another "they're/he's supposed to be good, I suppose I could buy something and see", I bought The Hour Of Bewilderbeast at the same time. It's better than I remember it being.

CD#151 Ruth Theodore - Wormfood

Bought because I liked the sleeve design, I'm a particular fan of CDs not in the usual hard plastic case.
I'd rather listen to this than Elliott Smith any day.

Day 35

CD#143 Elvis Costello and the Attractions - Blood and Chocolate

For me this is the last great album recorded with the Attractions. There are two more but I've only heard one, so it's possible I might be wrong.

CD#144 Richard Thompson - Front Parlour Ballads

This is why listening to all my CDs was a good idea - I'd forgotten all about this and it's really good.

CD#145 Jeff Beck - Jeff Beck's Guitar Shop

 I'm not a huge Jeff Beck fan, but I bought this to see if I'd change my mind. There might be something he's done that I'd like but this isn't it. It's well played, just not my thing.

CD#146 Radiohead - Pablo Honey

Even people who like Radiohead don't all rate this album highly, but I like it a lot.

CD#147 Counting Crows - Underwater Sunshine (or What We Did on Our Summer Vacation)

Another Counting Crows album I've hesitated about buying, even though I've listened to (and enjoyed) two of the songs recorded here (performed live) on YouTube a number of times.
It's an album of cover versions, some by artists I've heard of (Big Star, Travis, Fairport Convention) and some I know nothing about (Pure Prairie League, Dawes, Coby Brown).

Day 34

CD#141 Talking Heads - Fear Of Music

I've had the first and sixth Talking Heads albums on vinyl for years, so it was about time I bought something else, I may well buy some more before the year's out.

CD#142 Juliet Turner - Live

Some live albums are just to eke out a little more cash from fans, some are pretty ropey and others are something special.

This is something special, not just because it's not far off a greatest hits album, not just because there's enough background sound between songs to make you feel you're part of an intimate night of live music, but because the musicians are fantastic and the arrangements are different enough from the originals for it to feel like something new, and that's before you get to the superb songs and the glorious individuality of Juliet's singing.

Day 33

CD#138 Etienne Mbappe - Misaya

Another bass player discovered via Steve Lawson and Myspace, another album where not understanding the words doesn't spoil the experience whatsoever.

CD#139 Queen - A Day At The Races

I've got a few albums bought because I didn't really have much by a particular band or singer and thought I ought to buy some, and in this instance I picked up this and News Of The World.
There are some Queen songs that I love (Somebody To Love is most definitely one) and a lot that I'm fairly indifferent to, but while they don't really grab me they're worth another listen.

CD#140 Counting Crows - Somewhere Under Wonderland

For some reason I didn't rush to buy this despite loving the first song I heard from it (Palisades Park, great video too) but finally here I am. There are a couple of other songs that jump out on first listen but it might take a few more listens before I decide where it sits. It's ok, but it's no August And Everything After.

Day 32

CD#135 Talk Talk - Laughing Stock

Their last studio album, apparently "the recording process has long been described as one of the most arduous and prone to control freakitude ever." though you wouldn't know it to listen to the resulting music.

CD#136 Cocteau Twins - Milk And Kisses

Another last studio album. It was never going to usurp Treasure as my favourite Cocteau Twins album, but it's still pretty good.

CD#137 Public Image Ltd. - Public Image: First Issue

This is certainly ground-breaking in terms of the post-punk landscape but I bought it (the original vinyl rather than this CD) having heard the single Public Image, and as far as I can recall I was mostly disappointed. My favourite track is probably Fodderstompf which the drummer described as “Not even a song just a wank, ripping off our fans. It still turns my stomach thinking about it.”

Day 31

CD#130 Sam Brown - Stop!

Sadly no longer singing due to voice problems, this where her solo career began. It sounds very 80s but none the worse for that. 

CD#131 Rilo Kiley - More Adventurous

This is where I started with Rilo Kiley and it's still my favourite, though I do skip past one or two songs towards the end when listening in the car.

CD#132 Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle

Picked up today with the thought that I could have bought this 39 years ago, but chose not to. I loved Tubeway Army but while I bought Cars and then Complex I've never bought any other Gary Numan stuff, mostly due to the increase in synth sounds instead of synths and guitars mixed.

Was I right ?

For me, yes. It feels like the whole future world/lonely android thing has been taken to its limit and lost all emotion as a consequence, and what resonated with me listening to Replicas was a feeling of isolation but with some small connection to humanity (perfect for a teenager!), whereas this has gone beyond that into complete disconnection. I don't like it much now and probably wouldn't have liked it then.

CD#133 The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Electric Ladyland

I do like Hendrix, but I'm not a die hard fan. There were times that I was listening more to the skill of the drummer than anything else, but there is some cool stuff on here. And great drumming.

CD#134 Hanne Hukkelberg - Blood From A Stone

Apparently this is more guitar-heavy and less jazzy-pop than her previous work, but it's all I have so I don't know if that's good or bad. The next one goes back to being more experimental, apparently. 

Day 30

CD#124 Curtis E Johnson - The Compleat Unknown

It was in the genial company of Curtis that I first tasted sweetcorn . . . and LSD, though probably not at the same time.

CD#125 Paul Simpson - Noise With A Purpose

A solo guitar-and-pedal-based explosion before he went and found jazz. Nice.

CD#126 Sharon Van Etten - Are We There

 An earlier album is titled "epic" which would appear to have been premature after a couple of listens to this.

CD#127 My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges

I  bought this after watching a live performance of I'm Amazed on Letterman that I stumbled upon on YouTube, the majority of the tracks don't quite reach the same height, but it's not bad. 

CD#128 Grandaddy - Below The Radio

This is not as I had thought, an album by Grandaddy. It's a mixtape put together by Jason Lytle of Grandaddy, which includes tracks by people I've heard of, including Giant Sand, The Handsome Family, Pavement and unexpectedly, Snow Patrol - plus a lot I'm hearing for the first time.

CD#129 Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions - Through The Devil Softly

Described as dream-pop, this is another Exmouth Market purchase, the two main members are the singer who is from a band called Mazzy Star and the drummer from My Bloody Valentine, who writes, sings and plays various instruments. Very relaxing. 

Day 29

CD#120 Rilo Kiley - Under The Blacklight

Their first major label release and their last album together. Not my favourite but despite the high polish there's enough Rilo Kiley in there to make it listenable.

CD#121 Elvis Costello - Spike

For a long time this was the last EC I bought, possibly because while it has some good moments it's a bit all over the place, in part because it was recorded in four different locations with four different groups of musicians, none of whom were Bruce Thomas.

CD#122 Moses - Django

I first heard Moses supporting Sam Brown at The Stables in Wavendon. This is only six songs so more of an EP than an album.

CD#123 Primus - Sailing The Seas Of Cheese

The world would be a poorer place without Primus. 

Day 28

CD#118 Steve Lawson - Grace and Gratitude

Looped bass that's perfect for a relaxed Sunday morning, lovely.

CD#119 XTC - White Noise 

Some good, some weird and a magnificent cover of All Along The Watchtower which sounds like no other.

Day 27

A day off !

Day 26

CD#116 Mo Foster - Time To Think

This is a beautifully relaxing album to ease your way into the day - bass, acoustic guitar, piano, sax and vibraphone all recorded in an Oxford church.

CD#117  Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited

This used to be a regular Sunday morning album, particularly side 2, and is far and away my favourite Bob Dylan album. There are others that I like a lot but this contains most of what I like about him in one perfect package.

- - - - -
When side 2 starts I'll have listened to 1/4 of my CDs which feels like being told I've done 1/4 of a marathon, though to be fair I've suffered far less wear and tear on feet, knees and hips.
- - - - -

Day 25

Day#111 Ry Cooder - My Name Is Buddy

This is "the story of Buddy Red Cat, Lefty Mouse and Reverend Tom Toad in the days of labor, big bosses, farm failures, strikes, company cops, sundown towns, hobos and trains . . . the America of yesteryear".

CD#112 Various - Northampton Under Glass

This is a compilation of various Northampton post-punk bands first released on cassette in 1981 as part of Northampton's Music Collective once featured on The Old Grey Whistle Test with a fledgling Housemartins playing an exchange gig in town. It has two tracks on it which weren't on the original cassette, one of which was part-written by and featured the tortured vocals of . . . me. Not recommended ;O)  I have never received a penny in royalties, but such is life.

CD#113 The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan

I like The White Stripes, though sometimes I like the idea of The White Stripes more than I like The White Stripes. My Doorbell is ok though.

CD#114 Counting Crows - August And Everything After

Apart from the upbeat Mr Jones it's quite a melancholy album, which suited my mood at the time quite well.

CD#115 Tubeway Army - Replicas

I have this on vinyl which has a small scratch on it that makes a small squeak at the beginning of Down In The Park, a consequence of lending it to a girl I liked.
She told me she'd accidentally scratched it and I assured her that it was fine despite my horror at the damage, and never let on about the squeak.
Because I listened to it a lot I can still hear that squeak even when I listen to the CD . . .

Day 24

CD#105 Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus

This came in a fancy box with a booklet of photos and lyrics, which is probably why it caught my eye as I'm not a huge Nick Cave fan. Despite that I'm enjoying it so it might get played a bit more often from now on.

CD#106 The Levellers - Levelling The Land

The anti-Mumford and Sons of the 90s, and still going it seems.

CD#107 Clive Murray - Earthman

I have to confess I'm not really into instrumental rock guitar, and I bought this because he's a friend. Despite that I really like it, there's more to it than just one guitar sound playing vaguely similar tunes and the backing to the lead instrument is always interesting too.

CD#108 Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Another band that's been on my list because I generally "like a lot of that kind of stuff".

CD#109 Split Enz - Second Thoughts

I love this album, it has everything that made early Split Enz so magical.  Dizrythmia is a pretty close second for songs, but it doesn't have all the mad stops and starts. . . or spoon solos.

CD#110 Mull Historical Society - Us

According to Wikipedia this received generally positive reviews and after it was released the record label dropped him. Which seems harsh.

Day 23

CD#99 Paul Simon - Surprise

Perhaps not as coherent as some of his albums, this still has some interesting music and a definite Paul Simon feel to it.
Wiki says there's a new album out this month and the last album is supposed to be pretty good too.

CD#100 OP8 - Slush

Another random purchase, this time it was a Quietus piece listing Stewart Lee's 13 favourite albums - I'm yet to try to understand The Fall and I own one or two of the others, so I picked this one and bought it s/h from Amazon.

CD#101 Fun Lovin' Criminals - Come Find Yourself

It's groovy, but it does feel a little empty in places - Scooby Snacks is fun, the cover of We Have All The Time In The World is criminal.

CD#102 The Fratellis - Costello Music

I once played a gig in Camden that took three hours to get to because of roadworks, the audience comprised of four drunk American ladies who weren't there to listen to music and the bloke running the P.A. was covering for the usual guy and only had one CD to play between acts. . .
As a consequence it was a long time before I listened to Costello Music again, but I have done once or twice and there's quite a bit that I like, as long as I suppress the memories of that endless night.

CD#103 The Cranberries - Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?

There's more to this than just the two singles, but they're probably the best bits.

CD#104 Barenaked Ladies - Gordon

I don't own as much of their stuff as I should, only this and a Greatest Hits 1991 - 2001.
I used to have great fun singing If I had $1,000,000 in the car with my daughter, I won't embarrass her by letting on that it took a while to explain the "but not a real green dress, that's cruel" line.

Day 22

CD#95 Gang Of Four - Entertainment!

Funny how some bands pass you by, around the time of this album I was buying Parallel Lines, Replicas and Regatta De Blanc but I'm not sure if I heard any Gang Of Four at all, possibly because I only listened to John Peel now and again.

CD#96 Del Amitri - Waking Hours

I haven't listened to this in years, it might have been another of the four Britannia Music freebies.

It's book-ended by the two best known songs Kiss This Thing Goodbye and Nothing Ever Happens, but it's more than just those two songs and more interesting musically than I'd remembered.

CD#97 Green Day - American Idiot

I like Green Day and despite this being cheesy and more pop than punk with riffs nicked from all over the place, it's great fun. It does go on a bit though, they could have dropped two or three songs easily.

CD#98 Red House Painters - Red House Painters (Bridge)

A recent purchase, in this case because I had them down as worth checking out. I won't write them off after this, but I probably won't be rushing to buy their back catalogue.

Day 21

CD#88 Joni Mitchell - The Hissing of Summer Lawns

I've got quite a few Joni Mitchell albums, without ever being a huge fan. Having said that they're always interesting lyrically and always have some nice playing on them, so while they rarely make my heart leap they're definitely worth spending time with.

CD#89 The Strokes - Is This It

It needs a question mark, but otherwise the title sums it up nicely.


CD#90 McAlmont & Butler - The Sound of . . .

A little overblown in places perhaps, but nevertheless huge fun.

CD#91 Voice of the Beehive - Honey Lingers

I saw them at a local venue around the time of the first album and despite seeing many punk gigs in the past this was the only gig where I encountered any violence - for reasons I still can't explain some random bloke punched me in the back of the head - twice - during one of the songs - I retreated to the back of the room and my unknown assailant left me alone from then on - weird.

CD#92 Julie Fowlis - Cuilidh

This is a collection of songs from Julie's home of North Uist, sung in Gaelic - no idea what the songs are about but the singing is wonderful and the accompaniment superb, so who cares?

CD#93 Devo - Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!

Possibly the first example of me buying random music because of the packaging, I bought the vinyl version of this on picture disc from a shop somewhere in London because it looked a bit mad. It is, wonderfully mad.

CD#94 Mercury Rev - The Secret Migration

Another recent purchase, I knew nothing about the band other than I'd heard the name before. Wiki suggests the earlier stuff might be more fun - it's ok, but it's not saying "buy all the stuff we ever made in case it's as good as this".

Day 20

CD#84 Feist - Metals

One of my top 10 YouTube videos is a live performance of a Ron Sixsmith song, which she sings beautifully, with characteristic vocal mannerisms that are all over this album, great singing and some cool tunes.

CD#85 Grandaddy - The Broken Down Comforter Collection

This has a Neil Young/Flaming Lips feel to it. It's got some great song titles if nothing else, like "Sikh in a Baja VW Bug", "Kim You Bore Me to Death" and "For the Dishwasher".

CD#86 Big Star - # 1 Record

Critically acclaimed and poorly served by the record company this was never a hit, and I find it a bit hit and miss. There are some strong tunes on here though, my favourite being Ballad Of El Goodo, which Counting Crows do a great cover of.

CD#87 Homespun - Homespun

Written/played by Dave Rotheray from The Beautiful South and sung by the wonderful Sam Brown, lovely.

Day 19

First up today is a new one, brought back from Exmouth yesterday.

CD#77 Husky Rescue - Ghost Is Not Real

Wiki says they're a Finnish ambient pop band. They're not bad, nothing earth-shattering but nice enough to chill out with.

CD#78 Iggy Pop - The Idiot

There are lots of people out there that love this album, I prefer Lust For Life.

CD#79 Pink Floyd - Endless River

Another new one, bought as part of a 3 for £10 deal, which is probably about right - it's not rubbish and good for a relaxing Sunday morning, but lacks a little something compared to the better bits of Pink Floyd.

CD#80 Blondie - Plastic Letters

I like this period Blondie as much as I like the later, more slick version, Clem Burke's drumming is magnificently mad in places and the lyrics are definitely more random.

CD#81 Sam Phillips - Fan Dance

Not easy to characterize, Sam writes and performs some wonderfully quirky songs, I first discovered her around the time of the album Don't Do Anything, this is a couple of albums earlier but very much cut from the same cloth.

CD#82 Crowded House - Crowded House

I've got their second album on vinyl and this one on CD, and that's all, which is a surprise because I like a lot of their work (though I like Split Enz a lot more, especially the crazier stuff).

CD#83 of Montreal - Skeletal Lamping

An intriguing mix of material wrapped in the most complicated CD packaging I've ever seen, which unfolds to create a multi-coloured cardboard sculpture.