Album of the Day: The National - High Violet

If there is any band I could petition to release a new album TODAY it would be The National. My god, what a sound. What a voice. What amazing arrangements. There isn't another album in my collection with this many 4 and 5 star ratings for songs. In 2011 The National were nominated for a Brit Award for 'International Breakthrough Act' and lost out to Justin Bieber. Justin Fucking Bieber. There is no justice in this world. Console yourself by listening to this.

Album of the Day: Mike Doughty - HOT SUMMER WEATHER SUPER HAPPY BONUS DOUBLE ALBUM FEATURE

Fooking 'ell, it's 30 °C here. I'M MELTING! MEEEEEEELTIIIIIIIING!

Album of the Day: American Analog Set - Know By Heart

Argh, I just lost most of the day to a bad stick of RAM in one of my computers. Took me a while to figure out that it was the RAM that had gone bad. Random crashes, kerneldumps, tons of fun. Eventually I saw the non-pattern pattern (because random stuff just kept crashing left and right especially under load - which was variable), downloaded Memtest86+, and sure enough, bad RAM is bad. Jolly good fun. Thankfully I had another stick somewhere that tested OK. All good now.

So I need to chill out a little. Therefore, AnAmSet. I feel better already.

Album of the Day: Sea Wolf - Leaves In The River

As Sea Wolf are gearing up to release a new album this September, let's revisit their 2007 album Leaves In The River. "Neutral Ground" and "Leaves In The River", the album's two softer songs/ballads are absolutely smashing (or I'm a sucker for melancholy, which is probably true). But there are a couple of currents running through this album, ranging from straight up indie rock through folk to an sea shanty-feeling with hints of haunting. They bear exploring.

Album of the Day: Kaki King - Junior

I'd never heard of Kaki King until she released an EP together with the Mountain Goats which caught my eyes. I'll be honest, I'm not the biggest fan of her voice but she is an amazing guitar player; I'm not the only one who thinks so. Aside from that, there are 5 released albums to explore and one upcoming, and the sound of each is quite different; they are well worth exploring.

Album of the Day: The Wooden Birds - Two Matchsticks

Something nice and easy to start off the week with, I think. Fuck Mondays. Fuck 'em right in the ear.

Playlist of the Day: The Beta Band, We Miss You

These guys by rights should have been as massive as Radiohead, if you ask me. Instead they broke up. I never even got to see them live! Gah. Steve Mason has gone on to a solo career and several of the others are now playing in The Aliens, and in both you can hear echos of the Beta Band; well worth a listen to too if you haven't heard them before. Anyway, enjoy some of my favorites of theirs.