22nd November - The Kinks' The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society

Artist – Album: The Kinks – The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society

Released: 22^nd November 1968

Sounds Like: Rose tinted class

This morning’s meeting ranks pretty highly in my all time list of weird places to have a meeting (no, I don't really keep such a list). At first I didn’t believe my Sat Nav and I drove all around outer Preston until my colleague text me and confirmed that it’s true: our client’s offices are based on the same grounds as Camelot Theme Park! …For those of you who are not aware of Camelot (which may well be most of you), Camelot used to be the theme park of choice for discerning 10-year olds that had grown too old for Gulliver’s World Theme Park but whose parents couldn’t afford a trip to Alton Towers Theme Park. Looking at it in the brilliant November sun of this morning, though, its star seems to have plummeted, and it’s somehow somewhat smaller and grubbier than I remember. My colleague just could not be convinced that it was the Camelot, so different did it look now that we’re all grown up.As Ray Davies declares in ‘People Take Pictures of Each Other’, “oh how I love things as they used to be”.

Ray’s glasses in The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society are the rosiest and tintiest ever, and over the course of 15 songs he strives to celebrate Ye Olde England and lament its gradual passing. The near title track stands up for all manner of traditional and sentimental artefacts, from china cups to virginity. ‘Do You Remember Walter?’ reminisces over a lost friend and wonders where he is now. ‘Picture Book’ plays like an old photo album, pouring over dog eared photos of old relatives. And that’s just the first three tracks.

All this nostalgia could get old (excuse the pun) if it wasn’t supported by some of the catchiest, most diverse tunes in the whole Kinks repertoire. From the music hall embarrassment of ‘All of My Friends Were There’ to the Spanish sounding ‘Monica’, each song is a gem. Like that old theme park, no doubt the past wasn’t quite as peachy and wholesome as Ray Davies likes to remember, but when the pictures he paints are so brilliant who am I to complain?

Albumaday... rating: 10/10

1.       The Village Green Preservation Society – 2:45

2.       Do You Remember Walter? – 2:23

3.       Picture Book – 2:34

4.       Johnny Thunder – 2:28

5.       Last of the Steam-powered Trains – 4:03

6.       Big Sky – 2:49

7.       Sitting by the Riverside – 2:21

8.       Animal Farm – 2:57

9.       Village Green – 2:08

10.   Starstruck – 2:18

11.   Phenomenal Cat – 2:34

12.   All of My Friends Were There – 2:23

13.   Wicked Annabella – 2:40

14.   Monica – 2:13

15.   People Take Pictures of Each Other – 2:10

Listen to ‘Do You Remember Walter?’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cA5bcZeGqwE

Also released on the 22^nd November:

1968: The Beatles – The Beatles

Also released on the 22^nd November:

2006: Sally Shapiro – Disco Romance

Also released on the 22^nd November:

2010: Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

1st November - Nick Drake's Bryter Layter

Artist – Album: Nick Drake – Bryter Layter

Released: 1^st November 1970

Sounds Like: A crisp November morning

Whether yesterday evening for you consisted of drunken debauchery at a Hallowe’en party or, like me, watching scary movies with no lights on, the chances are you require some gentle, soothing music this morning. Enter: Nick Drake.

Bryter Layter was Drake’s second album, and it’s also his most unchallenging; one where’d he moved very slightly away from the pastoral folk countryside of debut Five Leaves Left to a poppier setting, and one where he hadn’t yet been possessed by the demons that consumed him on final record Pink Moon.

‘Northern Sky’, though understated, stands amongst the greatest love songs of all time, the Hazey Jane’s (actually the name of a pretty good Scottish group) are brilliantly light folk-pop efforts, ‘Fly’ is as delicate as insect wings and ‘One of These Things First’ is busy and fun, bouncing along on Drake’s gossamer croon. All told, it’s a fantastically assured album and one that softly but confidently blows those Hallowe’en cobwebs away.

Albumaday... rating: 9/10

1.       Introduction – 1:33

2.       Hazey Jane II – 3:46

3.       At the Chime of a City Clock – 4:47

4.       One of These Things First – 4:52

5.       Hazey Jane I – 4:31

6.       Bryter Layter – 3:24

7.       Fly – 3:00

8.       Poor Boy – 6:09

9.       Northern Sky – 3:47

10.   Sunday – 3:42

Listen to ‘Hazey Jane II’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSZ9oX0rLgg

Also released on 1^st November:

1988: My Bloody Valentine – Isn’t Anything

Also released on 1^st November:

1970: Grateful Dead – American Beauty

Also released on 1^st November:

1994: Nirvana – MTV Unplugged in New York

15th October - Broken Social Scene's You Forgot It In People

Artist – Album: Broken Social Scene – You Forgot It In People

Released: 15^th October 2002

Sounds Like: Unforgettable

Over two years in absolute terms – just 11 days in the albumaday… universe – before they released their self-titled third album, You Forgot It In People was unleashed upon the world. To us fans that wait felt like a lifetime, but to the dozen (give or take) group members it must have been a whirlwind period of side projects (or real projects, Broken Social Scene was the side project for most), solo albums and unprecedented critical and commercial attention. Emily Haines’ Metric released their measured, acclaimed debut, Feist’s breakthrough album Let It Die was born, and Stars’ star rose, all thanks to the runaway success of their sophomore effort.

YFIIP was ground shaking, an experimental rock record that contains plenty of pure pop moments, an album built on 5 minute long songs that is both immediately satisfying and infinitely replayable. It sounds like the ultimate indie mixtape, with nods to Finlay Quaye (‘Looks Just Like the Sun’) and The Delgados (‘Anthems for a Seventeen Year-Old Girl’) alongside the more typical Dinosaur Jr. and Sonic Youth. ‘KC Accidental’, ‘Almost Crimes’ and ‘Cause=Time’ are blistering moments of guitar driven rock, ‘Pacific Theme’, ‘Capture the Flag’ and ‘Shampoo Suicide’ are atmospheric mood pieces, whilst ‘Lover’s Spit’ and ‘I’m Still Your Fag’ both contain gorgeous instrumentation that belie their slightly perverse lyrics.

For all the brilliant songs, there could still be the danger that YFIIP could still fall down one of the two major pitfalls for a promising album – it could be just a bit too clever, or its power could wane after repeated listens. The collective gaily bound over both traps with one nimble leap thanks to a simple fact: this is essentially a group of mates – immensely talented mates, but mates nonetheless – that are having a blast jamming together, and its remains great fun to listen to.

Albumaday... rating: 10/10

1.       Capture the Flag – 2:08

2.       KC Accidental – 3:50

3.       Stars and Sons – 5:08

4.       Almost Crimes (Radio Kills Remix) – 4:22

5.       Looks Just Like the Sun – 4:23

6.       Pacific Theme – 5:09

7.       Anthems for a Seventeen Year-Old Girl – 4:35

8.       Cause = Time – 5:30

9.       Late Nineties Bedroom Rock for the Missionaries – 3:46

10.   Shampoo Suicide – 4:05

11.   Lover’s Spit – 6:22

12.   I’m Still Your Fag – 4:23

13.   Pitter Patter Goes My Heart – 2:26

Listen to ‘Anthems for a Seventeen Year-Old Girl’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xl3PyTqsc5c

16th September - Kate Bush's Hounds of Love

Artist – Album: Kate Bush – Hounds of Love

Released:  16^th September 1985

Sounds Like:  Certifiably excellent

It may have been Cyndi Lauper who, back in 1983, released an album entitled She’s So Unusual, but the Eighties’ strangest siren – with an honourable doff of the cap to Laurie Anderson – has to be Kate Bush.

Bush was just a 19 year old waif when she announced herself to the world with the loopy ‘Wuthering Heights’ and she continued her rich form of doolally singles when she reached the UK top 5 with ‘Babooshka’ in 1980. Amongst other topics, her early songs covered subjects such as the death of Houdini, François Truffaut films and Peter Pan. Perhaps feeling that she was somehow constrained by her label (really Kate?!) and their choice of producers, she began producing her own albums in 1984, and then she finally wrested complete control of her art for herself when she built her own recording studio near her home. If I’d have been around at the time of 1985’s Hounds of Love release, I’d have been worried about the inevitable mess of an album.

You mustn’t forget, though, that Bush might be a bit weird but she’s also a certified genius. Hounds of Love turned out to be her most complete album to date, and, what’s more, it’s full of wholly accessible pop hits. ‘Running Up That Hill’, ‘Hounds of Love’ (not quite as good as the Futureheads’ cover, but still awesome), ‘The Big Sky’ and ‘Cloudbusting’ are all top rate rockers and make up the majority of the Hounds of Love half of the record. The Ninth Wave segment follows roughly the same formula and is heady progressive rock.

Since Kate Bush (and Lauper and Anderson) there’s been plenty in the way of headstrong, odd female artists, and each of Tori Amos, Björk and Lady Gaga et al owe a huge debt to the Kentish songstress.

Albumaday... rating:  8/10

1.       Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) – 5:03

2.       Hounds of Love – 3:02

3.       The Big Sky – 4:41

4.       Mother Stands for Comfort – 3:07

5.       Cloudbusting – 5:10

6.       And Dream of Sheep – 2:45

7.       Under Ice – 2:21

8.       Waking the Witch – 4:18

9.       Watching You Without Me – 4:06

10.   Jig of Life – 4:04

11.   Hello Earth – 6:13

12.   The Morning Fog – 2:34

Listen to ‘The Big Sky’:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sV7w5TaYjRA

Also released on 16^th September:

1967: Scott Walker – Scott 

Also released on 16^th September:

1977: Talking Heads – Talking Heads: 77

Also released on 16^th September:

1997: Buena Vista Social Club – Buena Vista Social Club

14th September - Arcade Fire's Funeral

Artist – Album: Arcade Fire – Funeral

Released:  14^th September 2004

Sounds Like: The power’s out, in the heart of man. Take it from your heart, put it in your hand.

Here is a list of things I don’t like about this album:

1.       The flawed logic of a line in ‘Neighborhood #4 (7 Kettles)’ – “they say a watched pot won’t ever boil, well I closed my eyes and nothin’ changed” – has always grated with me. This fallacy is known as denying the antecedent and it makes about as much sense as saying “If Jim reads my blog, then Jim has good taste. Jim does not read my blog, therefore he doesn’t have good taste.” Which is just silly; it’s obvious that there will be some people who do not read my blog that still have good taste (although someone needs to tell them where to find it sharpish).

Anddddd… that’s it! Arcade Fire’s debut album is damn near perfect. In fact, if I were to write a list of things I do like about the album, you’d run out of patience before I run out of things I love.

It’s a modern classic, with genuine emotion and hurt rising from the recent passing of a number of the group’s relatives, set against a backdrop of rousing indie rock. Some songs are political (‘7 Kettles’ and ‘Rebellion (Lies)’), some are pained or alienated (‘Tunnels’ and ‘Power Out’), some have even come from dangerous and exotic sounding places that most of us will never see, but each song is still relatable and accessible. I think at some point or another every song on the album has been my favourite, but the four that round things off currently hold that honour. ‘Wake Up’ is a shifting anthem, with a danceable pay off that surprises following the epic sprawl that preceded it. ‘Haïti’ ropes in peppy xylophones to back Régine Chassagne’s chaotic recounting of her homeland. ‘Rebellion (Lies)’ was the biggest hit, which is no mean feat for a rocking juggernaut led by Will Butler’s howls about death and the “lies, lies” sing songy call and response of the chorus. Things close with ‘In the Backseat’, a ghostly track featuring Chassange’s best Bjork impression and one that undoubtedly means so much more than its face value of watching the world from a back seat window.

Since releasing this album in 2004 Arcade Fire have found success with two other astonishing records (with another due to come out next month). It says everything that, despite the sheer brilliance of every single one of their records, this is still the one that people turn to.

Albumaday... rating: 10/10

1.       Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) – 4:48

2.       Neighborhood #2 (Laïka) – 3:33

3.       Une année sans lumière – 3:40

4.       Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) – 5:12

5.       Neighborhood #4 (7 Kettles) – 4:49

6.       Crown of Love – 4:42

7.       Wake Up – 5:39

8.       Haïti – 4:07

9.       Rebellion (Lies) – 5:10

10.   In the Backseat – 6:21

Listen to ‘Haïti’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwcaDvr8f1o  

Also released on 14^th September:

1993: Counting Crows – August and Everything After

7th September - The Magnetic Fields' 69 Love Songs

Artist – Album: The Magnetic Fields – 69 Love Songs

Released:  7^th September 1999

Sounds Like: The book of Love

69 Love Songs does exactly what it says on the tin: a hugely ambitious project, it sets out to serenade us with 69 brilliant songs about love. This is no Mills & Boon album though; Stephen Merritt examines the condition of love from all angles, dissecting the grisly and painful bits at least as much as the warm and fuzzy bits, always with wit and style.

There, 69 words.

Albumaday... rating: 9/10

1.       Absolutely Cuckoo – 1:34

2.       I Don’t Believe in the Sun – 4:16

3.       All My Little Words – 2:46

4.       A Chicken with Its Head Cut Off – 2:41

5.       Reno Dakota – 1:05

6.       I Don’t Want to Get Over You – 2:22

7.       Come Back from San Francisco – 2:48

8.       The Luckiest Guy of the Lower East Side – 3:43

9.       Let’s Pretend We’re Bunny Rabbits – 2:25

10.   The Cactus Where Your Heart Should Be – 1:11

11.   I Think I Need a New Heart – 2:32

12.   The Book of Love – 2:42

13.   Fido, Your Leash is Too Long – 2:33

14.   How Fucking Romantic – 0:58

15.   The One You Really Love – 2:53

16.   Punk Love – 0:58

17.   Parades Go By – 2:56

18.   Boa Constrictor – 0:58

19.   A Pretty Girl Is Like… - 1:50

20.   My Sentimental Melody – 3:07

21.   Nothing Matters When We’re Dancing – 2:27

22.   Sweet-Lovin’ Man – 4:59

23.   The Things We Did and Didn’t Do – 2:11

24.   Roses – 0:27

25.   Love Is Like Jazz – 2:56

26.   When My Boy Walks Down the Street – 2:38

27.   Time Enough for Rocking When We’re Old – 2:03

28.   Very Funny – 1:26

29.   Grand Canyon – 2:28

30.   No One Will Ever Love You – 3:14

31.   If You Don’t Cry – 3:06

32.   You’re My Only Home – 2:17

33.   (Crazy for You But) Not That Crazy – 2:18

34.   My Only Friend – 2:01

35.   Promises of Eternity – 3:46

36.   World Love – 3:07

37.   Washington D.C. – 1:53

38.   Long-Forgotten Fairytale – 3:37

39.   Kiss Me Like You Mean It – 2:00

40.   Papa Was a Rodeo – 5:01

41.   Epitaph for My Heart – 2:50

42.   Asleep and Dreaming – 1:53

43.   The Sun Goes Down and the World Goes Dancing – 2:46

44.   The Way You Say Good-Night – 2:44

45.   Abigail, Belle of Kilronan – 2:00

46.   I Shatter – 3:09

47.   Underwear – 2:49

48.   It’s a Crime – 3:54

49.   Busby Berkeley Dreams – 3:36

50.   I’m Sorry I Love You – 3:06

51.   Acoustic Guitar – 2:37

52.   The Death of Ferdinand de Saussure – 3:10

53.   Love in the Shadows – 2:54

54.   Bitter Tears – 2:51

55.   Wi’ Nae Wee Bairn Ye’ll Me Beget – 1:55

56.   Yeah! Oh, Yeah! – 2:19

57.   Experimental Music Love – 0:29

58.   Meaningless – 2:08

59.   Love Is Like a Bottle of Gin – 1:46

60.   Queen of the Savages – 2:12

61.   Blue You – 3:03

62.   I Can’t Touch You Anymore – 3:05

63.   Two Kinds of People – 1:10

64.   How to Say Goodbye – 2:48

65.   The Night You Can’t Remember – 2:17

66.   For We Are the King of the Boudoir – 1:14

67.   Strange Eyes – 2:01

68.   Xylophone Track – 2:47

69.   Zebra – 2:15

Listen to ‘Abigail, Belle of Kilronan’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75u4mN1HO0M

Also released on 7^th September:

1998: Belle & Sebastian – The Boy with the Arab Strap

Also released on 7^th September:

2004: The Black Keys – Rubber Factory

Also released on 7^th September:

2011: Girls – Father, Son, Holy Ghost