09012016 - Red Rider "As Far as Siam"

I know next to nothing about this band or their history, save for the fact that they were (and apparently still are) fronted by Tom Cochrane, whom I remember for that one song. This album, released in 1981, opens with "Lunatic Fringe", which is a pretty great tune. But the rest is pretty generic, and although the songs are decent enough - I mean, they're catchy'n'shit - they all sound like a poor man's something or the other. Mostly the other.

08012016 - David Bowie "★"

David Bowie releases his 25th album today, on his 69th birthday. There's 7 songs on this album. 25 + 69 + 7 = 101. In George Orwell's book "1984" Room 101 is a torture chamber where prisoners are faced with their own worst fears. David Bowie himself released the album "Diamond Dogs" with the song "1984" in 1974. 1984 - 1974 = 10. The book "1984" refers to Big Brother as the leader of the government. Bowie's own big (half-)brother, Terry Burns, was 10 years older than David. Burns introduced Bowie to modern jazz and inspired him to take up the saxophone. There's quite a lot of sax on "Blackstar". Are all these facts mere coincidences? CAN THEY BE? Yes, they can. And they make as much sense as all those who have written about this album as some kind of near-unlistenable far-out, experimental neo-jazz extravaganza that doesn't sound like anything Bowie has ever done before. This is a great David Bowie album with great songs, and it's possible to hear similarities between "Blackstar" and "Heathen", "Outside", "Black Tie White Noise", "Low"/"Lodger" and the aforementioned "Diamond Dogs". Plus others, minus all of the above. It's unmistakably Bowie, and he doesn't copy  himself, nor does he alienate his fans. He invented this shit, and he still owns it. Bitches.

07012016 - Peach Kelli Pop "Peach Kelli Pop III"

The stuff you find on other people's best of-lists... This one turned up at #36 on a friend's list, and it looked cute and inviting enough to make me interested. The album is short and sweet, oozing bubblegum fuzz pop with just the slightest hint of garage/surf rock and punk. I hear hints of old faves like The Primitives and The Darling Buds, but also The Ramones, Shonen Knife (although sole member Allie Hanlon is Canadian) and a million girl groups, from The Angels to The Pipettes. It's catchy, bouncy and it makes me smile. I can't wait to play this album again when summer comes!

06012016 - Marulk "Marulk"

Today I'm wearing a t-shirt with the Swedish band Skogen Brinner, and if you're into cool hard rock you should check them out. It's that easy. Since they don't have anything new out at the moment I decided to see what my streaming player considers to be similar bands, and there, next to Kadavar, Horisont and Vidunder, all of whom I already know and dig, was Marulk. It's easy to see why this band would be recommended to fans of the others, as they are very much of the same ilk: 70's inspired and fitting in perfectly alongside the so-called wave of bands that of course also include Graveyard, Witchcraft and several others that have gained a lot of attention the last five years or so. And although there are obvious similarities they don't sound too much like any of the others. If anything, Vidunder and early Horisont sound a bit like Marulk, who released this album back in 2010. There are several cool songs here, but an extra special mention goes to the most excellently titled "Nosferatools"! While listening to the album and writing this thing I'm at first sad to discover that Marulk called it a day in 2014 after releasing one last single, but then I see that two of the members are now in the mighty Monolord, so all is good after all! Fucking Monolord, man...!

05012016 - Robin Trower "Bridge of Sighs"

Another day, another classic album criminally overlooked by yours truly. This was Trower's second solo album, released in 1974, back when I was all of 1 year old. I guess that means I'm excused for not discovering it at the time, but not for waiting all of 42 years before I finally did. But hey, better late than never, right? The opening track, "Day of the Eagle", is a brilliant stomping blues rock tune, but the next two - the title track and "In This Place" - are moody pieces that just give me shivers down my spine, making me want to howl at the moon, alone on a mountain top! Blues rock can be a risky genre, because it's easy to spot those who fake it, even if they don't know themselves that they are faking it. No such worries here though, as this is the real deal. Another highlight is "Too Rolling Stoned", which starts innocently enough, but transforms right after the three minute mark, when handclaps and background voices are added as a backdrop to a most stunning guitar solo that ends too soon after another four and a half minutes. The entire album is brilliant, with the right balance between uptempo and slow tunes, and never a dull moment. Hey, if it's good enough for Mikael Åkerfeldt I'm not one to argue!

04012016 - Daniel Romano "If I've Only One Time Askin'"

One from the best of 2015 lists here, and a durn good 'un too! This is pure and lovely heartfelt old school country music like Hank, Merle and Willie taught us. Romano's voice is more than a little on the Willie Nelson side too, not that there's anything wrong with that. This Canadian couldn't care less about Stetson posers and bro-country dimwits, but he's not in it to renew the genre either. And why should he? If it ain't broke why fix it, is one way of putting it. If the heart's broken you need proper country music to fix it, is another. And there's a whole lotta heartbreak to be found here. Easily the best traditional country album I have heard in ages!

03012016 - Kenny Rogers "The Gambler"

Kenny Rogers is one of many artists more known for his songs than any of his albums. At least that's the case for me, so as far as I'm concerned this is how it is. "The Gambler" is, of course, not only one of his best songs, but his version is one of the best tunes in country music in general. So obviously I'm hoping for pure genius all the way through on this 1978 album. The title track opens the record, so the rest of the album is unchartered territory to me. "I Wish That I Could Hurt That Way Again" (What a title, right?) and "The King of Oak Street" are pretty damn good too, but the next couple of tracks don't do much for me, especially not "The Hoodooin' of Miss Fannie Deberry", an uptempo thing with some misguided funky stuff going on. Kenny "Funk" Rogers? I don't think so! "She Believes in Me", which opens my imaginary side 2 of the album is thankfully another ballad, and just the kind of song I want to hear from Rogers: brilliantly sappy, perfectly schmaltzy and with mucho emotion. "Sleep Tight, Goodnight Man" is nice too, although I have no idea what he's really singing about, but someone who ten years previously just dropped in to see what condition his condition was in is perfectly entitled to have conversations with The Sandman. The rest of the album is pleasant enough, apart from the horrible - wait for it - jazz funk (yeah, he went there!) excursions on closing tune "Morgana Lee", but there's nothing here at all that really lives up to the pure genius of "The Gambler" itself.

02012016 - Hallows Eve "Tales of Terror"

One of my favourite things about doing this blog, where every single day I listen to an album that I have never heard before, is finding old metal albums that I've been aware of for ages, but never got around to checking out the first time around. Especially the times said album turns out to be really good. One such gem is this one, released back in 1985. This was the American band's debut, and we're talking classic speed/thrash metal here. The eight tunes lunge at you like a pack of wild beasts with razor sharp teeth, and although there's not a whole lot here in the way of memorable choruses (with a couple of exceptions), the energy on display more than makes up for that. Apparently two of the original band members are planning to release another album as soon as they have a proper line up, so let's hope for some festival shows as well. A lost classic? Not really, but definitely a whole lot of fun, and an album I'll play again. And what more can you ask for?

01012016 - Raspberry Bulbs "Privacy"

So... Another year and a new attempt to maintain this blog. Let's see how long I last this time around. First out is an album I have no ida at all how ended up on my radar. It's relatively short, clocking in at just over half an hour, and neither album cover, title or band name will give you any clues as to what kind of music one might expect to hear. The first track, "Lionhead", is a raw, noisy and ugly thing, and I do mean that in the best best way possible. I even get some of the same vibes as from early Amphetamine Reptile singles, which obviously is a compliment. As I read about Raspberry Bulbs while listening to this record I see that some people mention both black metal and industrial when describing the band, and both are way off the mark. Another description is "blackened punk", which I get more, although the blackened bit is solely because of the vocals. Apparently this used to be a one man project and that man, Marco del Rio, used to be one half of Californian black metal duo Bone Awl, under the alias He Who Crushes Teeth. Which is cool! And so is "Privacy", which might not be my new favourite album, but which never bores me and ultimately leaves me with a Big Grin.

25092015 - Kurt Vile "B'lieve I'm Goin Down"

Kurt Vile is cool. Way cool! Listen to the first song here, and if you don't like it, we don't have anything else to talk about. If you do, you'll love all of this album and the rest of Vile's output too. He keeps referencing other artists both lyrically and musically, but this still sounds completely non-derivative.

24092015 - Gonga "Concrescence"

These Bristolians (Bristolites? Bristons?) first caught my attention through a pretty cool cover version of Black Sabbath's song "Black Sabbath" with fellow Bristol person Beth Gibbons on vocals. And if you think that name sounds familiar, albeit not the first name that would spring to mind when you think potential Sabbath-coverers, you're probably right. That's indeed the Beth Gibbons of Portishead (and brilliant solo album) fame. I guess Bristol is one of those places where all musicians are buddies 'n shit. And you know what they did? They called it "Black Sabbeth". Clever, eh? Well, I think so anyway. And their cover is (in case you didn't get it the first time) pretty cool, even if they don't really do anything with the song apart from adding a female voice, and one not really associated with the heavy metal at that. Soooo... An album by the band, sans Ms Gibbons and without any vocals whatsoever, how's that gonna sound? Starting off relatively decent, this unfortunately veers off into stoner rock wallpaper after a short while. Imagine Karma To Burn or even Kyuss as elevator music and you're pretty much there. That would obviously be the coolest elevator ever, but apart from the fuzz pedals they use this has more in common with Ozric Tentacles than anything really heavy. And when I want to hear something that sounds likke Ozric Tentacles, I listen to the originals.

23092015 - Vectom "Speed Revolution"

Vectom, man! I never heard this album when it came out, but I remember seeing the album cover in an ad for a music mail order company when it was new. Equal parts cool and kinda scary, the scary part making it even more intriguing. The record itself was nowhere to be seen in the shelves of the record stores I used to visit though, so it took me all of 30 years before I finally heard this 1985 gem today! There's not much information to be found about this German band or their members, but this was their debut album, and in 1986 they released another, "Rules of Mystery", before pretty much disappearing. It would seem that Vectom kept going as a band until 1993, but they never released anything else, and apart from their original bass player (who joined a band that released one demo) none of the members seem to have done anything else since. Too bad, as this is pretty cool stuff! Not original or (sorry, but this pun is compulsory) revolutionary, but hey, it was 1985! The song titles "Loudness and Speed" and "Too Fast for Hell" tells you all you need to know, and highlights like "Open the Coffin", "Black Viper", "Satan's Colours" and the title track still sound great. With the new wave of speed metal/traditional metal revival movement happening these days it's long overdue for a Vectom reunion. Hey, I bet they would get more festival jobs in just one summer now than they ever did in the eighties...

22092015 - The Tower "Hic Abundant Leones"

So I'm really looking forward to the Flight album, and while waiting for that one to drop I'm checking out some other talent from the same label: the wonderful Bad Omen Records. Now, Satan's Satyrs and Amulet I already know, but I hadn't heard The Tower before. These Swedes are an acquaintance I'm happy to make though, as their slow, mystical and bluesy hard rock with hints of groove, droplets of doom and a whole lotta lovely psychedelia is just the kind of acid laced sugar papa likes! Throughout the record they make lyrical references to The Beatles, but musically it's got more of a Black Sabbath vibe, without being derivative. The long and brooding title track is nothing short of addictive, and I do believe I have a new favorite band. Just check them out!

21092015 - Charlie Haden Quartet West "Sophisticated Ladies"

Sometimes all you want is music that you know will soothe your ears, your heart and your brain. Not mindless background noise or mind-numbing elevator music, but proper stuff done by great musicians. When he played the mellow stuff Charlie Haden was happy to be that kind of musician; skilled, but not boasting, content to let the music allow for air. On this album, released in 2010 after a recording hiatus of 11 years, he also invited six wonderful and, well, sophisticated ladies to sing on a standard each, with the remaining half of the tracks left as instrumentals for Haden and his three fellow musicians to play and be playful. And even though the six singers in question are none others than Melody Gardot, Norah Jones, Cassandra Wilson, Ruth Cameron, Renée Fleming and Diana Krall, they never even come close to stealing the spotlight from the band. This is jazz the way you want it to sound late at night in a smoky club, alone in your car driving around the big city streets after midnight or in front of the fire on a cold night with that special someone.

20092015 - The Monster Women "Murmaids From Mars"

How could I resist checking out an album called "Murmaids From Mars"? I couldn't. Is it any good though? Not really. I must admit I thought this was going to be either surf or garage rock, but although this seems to be done with the best intentions and all the right inspiration (The Shangri-Las and The B-52's are both mentioned on their facebook site), the sound is so tinny, the vocals so bland and the songwriting so poor that it all just sounds completely amateurish. This album is 49 minutes long, which is 50 minutes too much, and feels like ten times as long. The only thing I can imagine worse than listening to the record would be knowing these people and seeing them live. You know that feeling when you see a friend's band and they really suck and you have to stay for the entire gig, knowing that they are going to be really pleased afterwards, and then they ask what you thought, and you try to sound convincing as you murmur some half-assed compliment about how they were "really great!"? Yeah, at least I don't have to do that. 

19092015 - Nicolette Larson "All Dressed Up & No Place To Go"

Nicolette Larson will probably remain most famous for not becoming famous, after never being able to follow up her 1978 debut album "Nicolette", which featured her hit single "Lotta Love". Her legacy will always be that song plus a lot of memorable work as a session vocalist for bigger stars. This was her fourth album, released in 1982, and I really like what I hear. Her voice is great, the songs are pure soul massage and the probably least impressive track here is her version of the chestnut "I Only Want to Be With You", which was chosen as the only single from the album - go figure. Her association with Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt and Neil Young should have gotten her further, but apparently it was never meant to be. This ended up as her lowest charting album, and after this she turned country for a couple of albums before effectively disappearing from people's minds as a solo artist even though she released one more mainstream record and - years later - another with children's songs. I must admit that this album lacks slightly in songs that could have been classics, or even big hits at the time, but as an album I really enjoy this, and will definitely come back for seconds!

18092015 - Scorpions "Lonesome Crow"

The Scorpions are celebrating their 50 year anniversary this year, which seems like as good an excuse as any to give their earliest albums a listen. And whether you know them for "Rock You Like a Hurricane" or "Wind of Change", this is something completely different altogether. Released back in 1972, "Lonesome Crow" is more similar to bands like Deep Purple, Uriah Heep and Black Sabbath or even early Fleetwood Mac, Santana (without the latin bits) and other early jammy psych rock bands. There are some good songs here, but there's really nothing on here to indicate what the band would sound like later on. No big riffs or choruses, more moods and experimenting. Not bad, but a novelty compared to the rest of their catalogue.

17092015 - Heatwave "Too Hot to Handle"

Heatwave? Ring a bell? No? I'll save you the trouble. The song you have heard before is "Boogie Nights", and that's the song you've heard. That goes for most of us, anyway. It's their biggest hit, and one of those songs a lot of people recognize without necessarily knowing who's playing. And yes, I'm guilty as charged myself, as I thought for years that the song was by Earth, Wind & Fire. The rest of this 1976 album is not bad at all, and if funk/disco with some sweet'n'soft soul ballads is your thing you could do a lot worse. This was Heatwave's debut album, and they would go on to release five more records, with Keith Wilder - one of the band's two vocalists - the only member still in the group for their final release in 1988. Keyboardist Rod Temperton, who wrote all the music on "Too Hot to Handle", stayed on for the next Heatwave record, and would go on to write for other artists, including three of the songs on Michael Jackson's "Thriller", making him filthy stinking rich today. Meanwhile, bass player Mario Mantese also played on the band's second album, released in 1978, and would later that year get stabbed in the heart by his girlfriend after leaving a party. After being clinically dead for six minutes he was reanimated, operated and spent months in a coma before he woke up, blind, mute and completely paralyzed. Today he sees, walks and talks again, and is still in touch with the woman who stabbed him... With whom he also has a child. Bass players, eh?

16092015 - Slim Twig "Thank You for Stickin' with Twig"

Dangerous Minds just claimed that this is the second best album so far this year, and that certainly got my attention. Now, I like both the name Slim Twig (even though his real name - Max Turnbull - is also cool), the album title, the cover photo and Mr. Twig's hairdo + 'tache. But do I like the album? What kind of question is that? Oh yeah, a perfectly valid one. Well... I'm just not sure. There's a lot to take in here, and it's pretty obvious that judging this beast on the very first listen just won't do. There's a whole lot of stuff crammed together here, and it seems that every review I read has the writer's own take on what's in the pot. David Bowie is one of the obvious ones, as he's eclectic enough to be 5 different artists on his one, and so, I guess, is Frank Zappa. I suppose the verdict is out, and I'm gonna have to get back to you on this album after listening some more. I definitely don't hate it, but I seriously doubt that it will make my top list of 2015.

15092015 - Flo Morrissey "Tomorrow Will Be Beautiful"

Very pretty folk pop that sometimes reminds me of First Aid Kit without the harmonies, but also Mazzy Star, Kate Bush and even Lana Del Rey. I do find myself drifting though, so perhaps it's just a little bit too pretty, while lacking ever so slightly in depth? This is definitely beautiful background music, but I don't see myself actively playing this album again, even though I wouldn't object to hearing these songs on the radio, in a café or in someone else's home. Or, even better, at a summer festival, lying in the grass with the sun shining down on me as I drift off...