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Jan 4, 2012

Fleet Foxes Live Review: Sydney Concert Hall

Fleet Foxes' Robin Pecknold live at Sydney Concert Hall
Fleet Foxes are a band who can make you completely reimagine your own upbringing in the space of a two hour set. Did I spend my youth working farms in America’s dust bowl region, rocking hay-chafed aching muscles to sleep to the sounds of Woodie Guthrie? Neither did they! But through their rustic timbre, allegorical lyrics and pure, dynamic musicianship, Fleet Foxes would have you believe it.

Front man Robin Pecknold’s has a voice that opens and folds like a dusty once-loved anthology, there’s so much history in his tone: listening, I was like a child lost in wonderment in an Autumn-leafed orchid somewhere… Had it not been for the witty banter the band tossed around between each track to bring us all back to earth aka. The Sydney Concert Hall. Namely from drummer/percussionist Joshua Tillman: who often carried the beat in a beautifully loose-limbed style like a weeping willow draped across the kit, often wielding a maraca or tambourine in place of one stick. He appeared for the encore wearing a backpack in an attempt to partake in an “Australian fad” of gym-gear wearing nerds. Who knew we were so cool?

Another thing about quality folk bands like Fleet Foxes is that there always seems to be one unassuming (usually long bearded) member, in this case Morgan Henderson, who seems to change instruments every song; or key change even! He went from dappling the folk flute like morning light over the edges of “Lorelai” to scratching a sax into the third movement of “The Shrine / An Argument”: one of the most expansive and alluring songs; you need to pack a swag just to listen to it. (Do so and watch the video here.)

And it’s not a journey anyone wanted to end… fortunately the three encore tracks “Sun it Rises” (Fleet Foxes, 2008), followed by a relatively new painfully beautiful acoustic Robin sang solo, “I Let You” (MUST SEE below) before rounding up the cattle for a standing ovation to "Helplessness Blues".

At which point I leant over to my friend and said “Let’s crawl into the awe-inspiring musical bearded heads and live forever."

If you're not moved by this you must be dead inside...

Dec 19, 2011

Top 50 Albums and Tracks of 2011


2011 has been epic musically: I actually feel aurally exhausted – in the most fulfilling way possible though – as you do after any good festival, as opposed to sitting through an X-factor ad (Quick. Load. Fire.)
It was harder than last year to pick my top 50 albums (which include a few of my favourite EP’s)… I think because the wealth of quality albums produced has caused me to burn through them rain-man style.
Let’s just say a lot of red wine has been consumed in the process – ok who am I kidding - a lot of red wine has been consumed in general; but it’s true in saying that I like to absorb an album, let it swill on the palette like my little liquid friend. This usually involves taking it walking alone with me, falling asleep to it (rendering your play count an unreliable source mind you), or drinking and writing poetry to it… (yes I know, could I BE anymore try-hard hipster?)
Oh the many nights I’ve woken up spooning my laptop (one leg splayed over)... it's actually quite tragic. Will I ever love anyone as much as I do my itunes library? The question still remains...
In conclusion, I need to get out more, and you, dear friends, need to get into these albums more. 

There are some obvious choices and some that I'm hoping, the little fibres in your inner ears are waving in like air traffic controllers - and you didn't even know it!

So pour yourself a glass/mug/handful/bed-full of red and get yourself aurally exhausted. 



M83, Hurry Up We're Dreaming Album Cover
1. M83Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming
Fave Tracks: New Maps, Wait



Fleet Foxes, Helplessness Blues Album Cover
2. Fleet Foxes  - Helplessness Blues

Fave tracks: The Shrine / An Argument, The Plains / Bitter Dancer



Modeselektor, Monkeytown Album Cover
3. Modeselektor – Monkeytown

Fave tracks: Green light go, This


The Middle East, I Want That You Are Always Happy Album Cover
4. The Middle East – I Want That You Are Always Happy
Fave Tracks: Deep Water, Very Many





Shabazz Palaces, Black Up Album Cover
5. Shabazz Palaces – Black Up
Fave tracks: Are you... Can you... Were you? (felt), Recollections of the Wraith



6. Clams Casino - Instrumental Mixtape

Fave Tracks: Numb, Motivation



7. Washed Out - Within and Without

Fave Tracks: Soft, You and I



Atlas Sound, Parallax Album Cover
8. Atlas Sound  - Parrallax
Fave tracks: Amplifiers, Terra Incognita



Panda Bear, Tomboy Album Cover
9. Panda Bear – Tomboy
Fave Tracks: Last Night at the Jetty, Drone



SBTRKT, self-titled Album Cover
10. Sbtrkt – Sbtrkt
Fave tracks: Trials of the Past, Go Bang



Real Estate, Days, Album Cover
11. Real Estate – Days
Fave tracks: Green Aisles, Out of Tune



12. Youth Lagoon - The Year of Hibernation

Fave Tracks: July, Cannons


White Denim, D Album Cover
13. White Denim – D
Fave Tracks: Street Joy, Drug




Holy Other, With You Album Cover
14. Holy Other – With You EP
Fave tracks: With You, Touch



Elite Gymnastics, Ruin 1 + 2 Album Cover
15. Elite Gymnastics – Ruin 1 + 2
Fave tracks: Onamori, Minneapolis Belongs to You



CANT, Dreams Come True Album Cover
16. CANT – Dreams Come True
Fave tracks: Believe, Rises Silent



Bon Iver, self titled Album cover
17. Bon Iver – Bon Iver
Fave tracks: Michicant, Holocene



Youth Galaxy, Shapshifting Album Cover
18. Young Galaxy – Shapeshifting
Fave tracks: The Angels are surely Weeping, Peripheral Visionaries



The Weeknd, House of Balloons Album Cover
19. The Weeknd – House of Balloons
Fave tracks: House of Balloons / Glass Table Girls, What You Need



Seekae, +Dome Album Cover
20. Seekae - +Dome
Fave tracks: Mingus, Gnor



Snowman, Absence Album Cover
21. Snowman – Absence
Fave tracks: Absence, Hyena



James Blake, self titled Album Cover
22. James Blake – James Blake
Fave tracks: The Wilhelm Scream, To Care (Like You)



Apparat, The Devil's Walk Album Cover
23. Apparat – The Devil’s Walk
Fave tracks: Your House is My World, Song of Los



Sleep Forever Over, Forever Album Cover
24. Sleep Forever Over – Forever
Fave tracks: Romantic Streams



Radiohead, The King of Limbs Album Cover
25. Radiohead – The King of Limbs
Fave Tracks: Codex, Give Up the Ghost



Oscar and Martin, For You Album Cover
26. Oscar + Martin – For You
Chaine Maille, You’re all I think About



Nicolas Jaar, Space is Only Noise Album Cover
27. Nicolas Jaar – Space is Only Noise
Fave tracks: Colomb, Spectors of the Future



Oh Mercy, Great Barrier Grief Album Cover
28. Oh Mercy – Great Barrier Grief
Fave tracks: Let Me Go, Tenderness



Apollo Brown, Clouds Album Cover
29. Apollo Brown – Clouds
Fave tracks: Never in a Million Years, Seed of Memory



Girls, Father Son and Holy Ghost Album Cover
30. Girls – Father Son and Holy Ghost
Fave tracks: Vomit, Forgiveness



Gauntlet Hair, self-titled Album Cover
31. Gauntlet Hair – Gauntlet Hair
Fave tracks: Keep time, Top Bunk



Lykke Li, Wounded Rhymes Album Cover
32. Lykke Li – Wounded Rhymes
Fave tracks: I Know Places, Love Out of Lust



SebastiAn, Total Album Cover
33. SebastiAn – Total
Fave tracks: Arabest, Embody



Husky, Forever So Album Cover
34. HuskyForever So
Fave tracks: Tidal Wave, Forever So



Schlomo, Bad Vibes Album Cover
35. Schlomo – Bad Vibes
Fave tracks: It Was Whatever, Seriously



Active Child, You Are All I See Album Cover
36. Active Child – You are all I See
Fave tracks: High Priestess, Playin’ House (remix)



Architecture in Helsinki, Moment Bends Album Cover
37. Architecture in Helsinki – Moment Bends
Fave tracks: That Beep, Contact High



38. Cass McCombs - Wit's End

Fave Tracks: Hermit's Cave, County Line 


39. The Field - Looping State of Mind

Fave Tracks: Then It's White, Burned Out 


The Drums, Portamento Album Cover
40. The Drums – Portamento
Fave tracks: What You Were, I Need a Doctor



41. Bombay Bicycle Club - A Different Kind of Fix
Fave Tracks: How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep, What You Want



42. Little Dragon - Ritual Union
Fave Tracks: Ritual Union, Crystalfilm



43. We Are Trees  - Girlfriend EP
Fave Tracks: Colorado, Girlfriend



44. Burial - Street Halo EP
Fave Tracks: Stolen Dog, Street Halo



45. Oliver Tank - Dreams EP

Fave Tracks: Last Night I Heard Everything in Slow Motion, The Last Night



46. Yuck - Yuck
Fave Tracks: Get Away, Rubber



47. Peaking Lights - 939
Fave Tracks: Tiger Eyes (Laid Back), All the Sun That Shines



48. Wu Lyf - Go Tell Fire to the Mountain

Fave Tracks: Heavy Pop, Dirt




49. The Antlers - Burst Apart

Fave Tracks: French Exit, Corsicana



50. Jacques Green - Another Girl EP

Fave Tracks: Another Girl, The Look (Mark Flash remix)