A year in albums, summer 2011 - 15-11.

#15: Søren Huss - Troen & Ingen
A lot of people were skeptical when Søren Huss reappeared on the big stage. After his original outfit Saybia slowly disappearing onto the happy hunting grounds of stranded whine rock outfits, and his wife tragically deceasing in a traffic accident, I guess most expected an unbearably whimpering album. In stead, Huss managed to pretty successfully channel his heavy emotions into a beautiful record. Not an album to hear time and time again, but a fine piece of earnest grief. For the first time in his recording career singing in his native tongue, Huss' voice and lyrics are the absolute centerpieces of this downright beautiful album, culminating in the cathartic and very powerful 'Et Hav Af Udstrakte Hænder' and the absolutely tear-jerking closer, 'Tak For Dansen'.

#14: Wild Nothing - Gemini
Gemini is truly one of the most uplifting albums I've familiarized myself with this past year. It's one of those albums you put on, and then your just drift away to somewhere really blissful - one of the albums where the tunes just seem to segue into each other, and you don't really spend all your time identifying them and analyzing them and attributing certain qualities or characteristics to them. Gemini is the sound of summer, of frolicsome and carefree youths chilling in the park. It's decidedly chillwave, but with a distinct dream-pop tinge, and a production very distant from lo-fi imperfection. Highlights are hard to point out, but the opening pair of 'Live In Dreams' and 'Summer Holiday' are very enjoyable, along with 'Our Composition Book' further down the tracklist.

#13: Radiohead - The King of Limbs
If you wanted to, you could easily focus on all the things The King of Limbs isn't. It isn't a parade of exorbitant flowers like In Rainbows, it isn't a fist in the face of dystopia and gloom like OK Computer and Amnesiac, and it isn't a daring left turn like Kid A was. In the Radiohead discography, this might end up as the quiet, mellow kid in the back, being none the less talented than its more outwardly siblings. However, after you've realized this album never explodes, never bursts with energy, never concludes anything, you begin to recognize what a bloody fine piece of musicianship this is. Tied together by Colin Greenwood's amazing work on his bass, The King of Limbs nervously skips along, constantly threatening to trip and fall in its intricate and complex structures, especially through the first half with 'Bloom', 'Morning Mr Magpie' and 'Feral' being madly polyrhythmic. Thom Yorke comes more to the fore on the album's key tracks, 'Lotus Flower' and the Pyramid Song-like 'Codex'. A very different, but awkwardly beautiful album.

#12: Feist - Let It Die/The Reminder
I still very clearly remember when I first became acquainted with Leslie Feist. It was driving our camper along the Great Ocean Road in Victoria, Australia, on a very rainy day a few years ago. It took me some time to finally get a hold of her music, but after having been enchanted by The Reminder early this winter, I was completely blown over by Let It Die this spring (that's why both are listed). I can hardly picture an album more suitable for an evening with candlelights and sweet lovemaking than Let It Die. I mean, just listen to tunes like 'One Evening' and 'Leisure Suite'! On this album, Feist is also at times deliciously funky on 'When I Was A Young Girl', openly in love on 'Inside And Out' and obviously brokenhearted on 'Let It Die'. The Reminder is less highlightful, except for obvious standout '1234', but still a thoroughly decent crossbreed of jazz, folk and indie, shrouded in Leslie Feist's beautiful voice.

#11: Arctic Monkeys - Suck It And See
I feel so sorry for all the fucktards who fell off the cart with Humbug, and who still think Alex Turner's lyrics are primarily about going out in Sheffield. They're not. While still being a hopeless romantic, Turner has at 25 become a guy whose quotes you want hanging on your wall, or featuring in your Facebook status. That's especially true for the back end of Suck It And See, with the three utterly exquisite tracks 'Love Is A Laserquest', 'Suck It And See' and 'That's Where You're Wrong'. These three tunes are instrumental in elevating Suck It And See to somewhere near the quality of Arctic Monkeys' three previous studio albums, because admittedly, there are dips in quality here. There usually are on a 12-track album, and boy don't I understand what the need for tunes like 'Reckless Serenade' and 'Piledriver Waltz' on this album was. Balancing between sixties swag and occasional garage and even heavy-inspired rock-outs, Suck It And See is nonetheless an absolutely acceptable fourth album by a band rapidly carving out their very own spot in UK indie history.

A year in albums, summer 2011 - 20-16.

#20: Sigur Rós - Med Suð i Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust
This album has got a few years on its tires, but just this year did I get around to actually buying it. The grandiose Icelandic outfit's fifth full-length is somewhat of a halfway house for front man Jónsi en course to his debut solo album, Go, which was released last year. Some of the tunes, including catchy lead single and opening track 'Gobbledigook', along with bubbly and strongly life-affirming tunes such as 'Inní Mér Syngur Vitleysingur' and 'Við Spilum Endalaust', very much pave the way for Go, whereas most of the other tunes on this album are more in touch with Sigur Rós' former material. Highlights from that pedigree include the heart-clenching 'Goðan Daginn' and the epic 'Festival', while the back part of the album does make quite a dip, and isn't on par with masterpieces such as () and Takk...

#19: Efterklang - Magic Chairs
One of quite a few albums from 2010 that I have dug up this year. You can't do everything at the same time and, Efterklang being an outfit I had previously never had much of a relationship with, other than live, they flew a bit under the radar initially with Magic Chairs, but what a vivid and blossoming record it really is! It's like a butterfly that you keep trying to catch with your hands, but it keeps eluding you, determined not to be caught and confined. The album cleverly kicks off with a few well-crafted pop tunes, 'Modern Drift' and 'Alike', before turning left at crucial track #4, the blazingly and intriguingly syncopated 'Raincoats'. After that, Efterklang move through baroqueness, navel-gazing melancholy and quirkiness, before ending with beauteous cuts 'Mirror Mirror' and 'Natural Tune', mastering each twist and turn with the same masterfully pictorial aesthetic.

#18: Agnes Obel - Philharmonics
I've been complaining a bit now and then, that I've had a hard time keeping up with Danish music recently. Well screw that! When all is said and done, a full fourth of the albums on this list are domestic, and proves that the Danish music scene is still very much alive! I was harsh on Agnes Obel this winter, snubbing her of a spot on my 2010 end-of-year list, which was obviously an injustice. Philharmonics is an incredibly secure, sincere and, most of all, quiveringly beautiful debut album from a gritty songstress. Back when I got the album, I was rough on the predictable harmonics, but they just hadn't crept underneath my skin yet. Obvious highlights are singles 'Riverside' and 'Just So', along with 'Avenue', but I actually think the best example of the albums beauty is two-minute interlude 'Louretta', which just dollies along graciously yet determinedly - just like its creator.

#17: Elbow - Build A Rocket Boys!
Curiously, the only Mercury Prize-nominated album in this list, Elbow's Build A Rocket Boys!, slots all the way down at #17, accentuating yet another hideous year for British music (there are a few more British albums coming up though...) - compare it to the fifth of the albums being Canadian, and you really get a picture of where indie music is happening at the point. Anyway, that isn't Elbow's fault, and their fine, blue-collar fifth full-length, Build A Rocket Boys!, has the sound of an album that couldn't have been crafted anywhere but Manchester. There are obvious dips, otherwise the album would've been further up the chart, but there are also major peaks running all through the album, from the epic opening couple of 'The Birds' and 'Lippy Kids' all the way to sincere and gut-wrenching tunes on the latter half of the album such as 'High Ideals', 'Open Arms' and 'Dear Friends'. There are a lot of grand gestures, all-embracing Guy Garvey-size hugs and delicate pathos on this album, but the absolute crown jewel is nevertheless the bare and exquisite 'Jesus Is A Rochdale Girl', perhaps one of the best tunes released this year.

#16: Sufjan Stevens - The Age of Adz
Perhaps it has ended up being too busy a year for Sufjan Stevens. Too busy to get a hold of indie's chief chameleon and his latest work of intriguing art, The Age of Adz. I am absolutely in love with 'Futile Devices' and 'I Walked', which surround more ornate highlights 'Too Much' and 'Age of Adz' in the first part of the album. Elsewhere, there's beautiful 'Vesuvius', flaunting in the weird landscape that is the albums middle part, together with the intense 'All For Myself', one of the most personal tunes on a very personal album by the otherwise story-telling Stevens. And then there's of course the much talked about 25-minute closer, 'Impossible Soul', which is indeed impossible to get a hold of - but impressive nonetheless. That basically goes for all of The Age of Adz, which I must admit I have unjustly bailed on quite a bit the past few months. One can't however help but be amazed by Stevens' blue-eyed musical genius, and this album is a true roller coaster ride!

A year in albums, summer 2011 - notable mentions!

The Streets.

Oi! As a few of you may remember, I usually use the relative quietness of July in music to sum up the year that has passed. I do that not only because July is a bit boring, but also because it seems a logical time to sum up things. After all, we in the Northern Hemisphere tend to divide years down the middle anyway.


So, what's gonna go down the next days here is I'm gonna sweep you through 20 of the albums that have made a lasting impression on me since last August. I know I stated this last year too, but this year has been really strong musically. Such an abundance of interesting albums have been released, it's been hard to fit them all in. I regretfully still have the jury out on albums such as Toro Y Moi's Underneath The Pine, Lykke Li's Wounded Rhymes, Gang Gang Dance's Eye Contact, Ford & Lopatin's Channel Pressure, Hooray For Earth's True Loves, Thurston Moore's Demolished Thoughts, and Washed Out's Within And Without.


Also, as customary, this list - to separate it from my end-of-year list - isn't reserved for albums released the past year. It's a deeply personal list of the music I've gathered through the last year. This time I've had to make an exception though, and that's regarding A Grand Don't Come For Free by The Streets. Technically, I got the album just this year, but having known and loved the album for a long time beforehand, I've decided it doesn't count. I've also taken the liberty of listing artists instead of albums in a few cases - I'll explain that to you when they occur in the list.


Another thing I'm working on is a massive 2011.5 mixtape with a truckload of sweet stuff from the last six months!


... And, just to finish off this introductory post, here's the list of albums that made the shortlist, but didn't make it into the final top 20!


The Streets - Computers & Blues
Ólöf Arnalds - Innundir Skinni
I Got You On Tape - Spinning For The Cause
The Walkmen - Lisbon
Fuck Buttons - Tarot Sport
Hot Chip - One Life Stand
M83 - Saturdays = Youth
The Amplifetes - The Amplifetes
VETO - Everything is Amplified
Klaxons - Surfing The Void
Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More
Shout Wellington Air Force - Clean Sunset
Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest

Fresh tunes and fresh times!

Iron and Wine.

On such a raiiiiiny day like today, it's best to just tuck in, do nothing and listen to sweet tunes! I haven't done exactly that, checking in on my new job for the first time instead, but I've still got some sweet tunes for y'all, and it all starts with Sam Beam of Iron and Wine, who did this sweet live set for 4AD - it includes 'Upward Over The Mountain', and a handful of tunes from his newer albums. Cozy indeed!


Robert Smith was in love on Fridays, but for Chaz Bundick of Toro Y Moi fame, it's all about Saturday, which is why he's made this sweet, summery cut - it's called 'Saturday Love', and is off his forthcoming EP, Freaking Out, which follows in the footsteps of his highly acclaimed sophomore album, Underneath The Pine.


Further in the summery direction, we've got Beat Connection with 'Balearic Trunk Rhythm', a b-side off their recent single. It's exactly as chill as it sounds, so those of you who dig Delorean and the like, go check it out!


Finally, let's touch in on a couple of legendary tracks given new life! Stereolab has gotten down and dirty with The Avalanches' 'Since I Left You', in celebration of this iconic album's tenth anniversary! There's gonna be more Avalanches-anniversary stuff coming our way this fall, so stay tuned! The other legendary track to get some serious new-decade swag is Daft Punk's unbeatable party anthem 'Around The World', which has gotten a remake dah funky way by Benoit & Sergio!


Happy Thursday!

Bon Iver's beautiful kaleidoscope.

The story of Justin Vernon and the cabin and For Emma, Forever Ago is by now as worn thin as anything else in indie lore - somewhat substantiated by the fact that, bar the 2009 EP Blood Bank, which was pretty much more of the same as the much heralded debut, it has taken Vernon a full four years to craft ...Emma's successor (that's counting from its initial small-scale release in 2007).


So let's just make it clear from the start: Bon Iver will be forever in ...Emma's shadow. As with The Strokes and Is This It, or with Radiohead and OK Computer. And Bon Iver, the new, eponymous album, isn't as good. There you've got it. Now, lets concentrate on this album on its own, and flush all the For Emma, Forever Ago comparisons down the drain!


The fact of the matter is, that Bon Iver is a magnificent album in its own right. What has happened since last time around? Well, a few sharp writers have put it more or less in lieu of Vernon, the bearded man in the cabin (and so on...), who steps outside into bright sunlight, and embraces all the euphonies of music, acoustic and electronic. There is certainly a vitality here, and the entire album is just bursting with health and verve - not unlike what happened to Sigur Rós on their last album. There is still a huge load of melancholy and graceful reflection, but it's not the frigid and lonely air of For Emma, Forever Ago. In stead, Vernon has been surrounded by good friends again, and lets all his found-again musical inspiration closely envelope his godlike voice, which is of course the album's centerpiece. For as much as Bon Iver is now described as a band, a man with a vocal timbre like Vernon's will never be just one of a bunch.


Critics have pointed out, that Vernon has sacrificed some melody on this album, compared to ...Emma, in favor of ornateness and multi-faceted orchestrations. There could be a point to this, however delicious the fuse of acoustic and electronic instruments is on Bon Iver. I see the album as somewhat of a kaleidoscope. You know, like the binocular-shaped toy ones with little plastic doodles. A kaleidoscope is a thing with a lot of light, and a lot of different and different-colored elements, that, in a certain frequency, become very, very beautiful together.


To the good fortune of Bon Iver, everything comes together the right way pretty many times throughout the album. From the very opening riff of 'Perth', which is just startlingly beautiful, through the vocal parts surrounding "never gonna break" on 'Minnesota, WI' and "I could see for miles, miles, miles" on 'Holocene', This is one of the key tracks on the album, along with 'Towers'. These two songs together are so beautiful, each in their own way - 'Holocene' is dreamily reflective and powered by insisting drum rolls, whereas 'Towers' is just tremendously uplifting and inspiring. I love how everything just kicks off and blazes forward at 1:48, with the band, the choir and the horn section entering, inducing a mood of "let's go bloody conquering!"


The little kaleidoscopic faits accompli that recur through the album occur once again with the bicycle bell on 'Michicant'. Who doesn't connect the sound of a bicycle bell with childhood memories? Such strong and emotional pictures painted through this song as well.


The latter half of the album careens slightly, but only slightly. 'Hinnom, TX' is a beautiful ethereal piece, and 'Wash.' tags along as one of the most humble and simple tunes on the album. Lead single 'Calgary' is voluptuous, and perhaps tries a little hard, but is beautiful nonetheless. But that can be said about each and every tune on this album, right through to the much discussed closer, 'Beth/Rest'. People have labeled Vernon corny and inappropriately sardonic for including this cut, but I don't agree. As I see it, Bon Iver already juggles with so many different instruments, sounds, moods, effects and timbres on this album, so why not Bruce Hornsby-like electric pianos? 


In my opinion, 'Beth/Rest' seems a logical way to conclude this album, and doesn't dip below the general standard on the latter half of the album, which, to be perfectly honest, isn't quite as good as the first half. But that's because the first half is as bloody brilliant as anything released this year, and it's a humongous feather in the cap for Bon Iver to manage the follow-up to such a highly acclaimed and, dare I say, legendary album as For Emma, Forever Ago with such a steady hand. I guess no one has done that in indie since Arcade Fire released Neon Bible.


Such a beautiful album - massive props!

Suck It And See - please...

It's no secret that Arctic Monkeys have lost a lot of their early admirers on their last two albums, 2009's Humbug and this year's fourth full-length effort, Suck It And See. In fact, I'd reckon I'm part of a minority that has followed the band's radical left turn without falling off the back of the truck. OK, it took me some time to learn to love Humbug, but these days, I put on that record as much as, or even more than, the two early ones. Perhaps that's why the band urges fans and critics alike to "suck it and see" - British lingo for giving it a try.


Back in the days, the appeal of Arctic Monkeys was their witty and observant, pretty forthright tunes about going out and about in Sheffield, downing Carling's, smoking weed and picking up girls. But even then, at age 19, Alex Turner in glimpses ('Riot Van', 'When The Sun Goes Down', 'A Certain Romance') showcased his skills as a lyricist in between all the 'Still Take You Home'-like yakety-yak (which was good too!).


These days, with all four monkeys having turned 25, and having released four studio albums, it's still Alex Turner who's the absolute centre of attention (although he does lend it to Matt Helders on 'Brick By Brick'), but the how-to-pick-up-hot-chicks 101 has been replaced by poignant poetry about love, loss and life. We've seen glimpses of it all throughout, but Suck It And See is where Turner really trumps as a master of the English language, and that's what ultimately makes this album worthwhile, and almost on par with its three predecessors. The music is at times a bit boring, and at times tries too hard, but the lyrics are absolutely masterly, peaking with the absolutely dazzling pair that is 'Love Is A Laserquest' and 'Suck It And See', with passages such as these:

"Do you still think love is a laserquest,

or do you take it all more seriously?

I've tried to ask you this in some daydreams that I had,

but you're always busy being make believe."

"Your love is like a studded leather headlock,

your kiss it could put creases in the rain.

You're rarer than a can of Dandelion and Burdock, 

and those other girls are just post-mix lemonade."

and the absolute winner:

"That's not a skirt girl,

that's a sawn-off shotgun,

and I can only hope you've got it aimed at me."

To dissect the album a bit more, I would say it could be divided into four parts. The first are the very delicious and promising openers, 'She's Thunderstorms' and 'Black Treacle', both of which are just very well-crafted indie rock tunes with a sixties twang. Then comes the sort of schizoid and cacophonous middle part running from the hard-to-hate 'Brick By Brick', through the weirdly-slotted 'The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala' to try-hard energy outbursts 'Don't Sit Down, 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair' and 'Library Pictures'. I like 'Don't Sit Down...', but I really find a few of these tunes a bit misplaced, the same way 'Pretty Visitors' was slightly misplaced on Humbug.


After this comes the part where the album really takes a dip. 'All My Own Stunts', 'Reckless Serenade' and 'Piledriver Waltz' are all pretty forgettable tunes in the general tempo and feeling that seems to carry on through the majority of the album - pretty laid back, and focusing on the melody and Turner's lyrics, both of which don't really hit home on these tunes. On a 12-track album, were all of these really necessary?


Anyway, all good things come to those who wait, and that's especially true with Suck It And See, whose three arguably best tunes are the three last; 'Love Is A Laserquest', 'Suck It And See' and closer 'That's Where You're Wrong'. '...Laserquest' is absolutely on par with Turner's finest ballads such as 'Only One's Who Know' and 'Fire And The Thud', and 'Suck It And See' is, as I mentioned above, lyrically in a league of its own.


It's often the case that fans of a band's early stuff become more and more reluctant as time passes, which is really a shame. There's no reason why talented musicians and songwriters shouldn't be able to take a left turn and keep themselves relevant, instead of meandering along in the same old territory. Yeah, there's no 'I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor' or 'Brianstorm' here, but Suck It And See is a more than adequate - but admittedly less than brilliant - collection of songs from a band, that continues to be one of the most foolproof around. This is the new incarnation of Arctic Monkeys, for better or worse, and I really think people should throw their prejudices over board and just suck it and see - you never know...

Radiohead treats and exciting indie-electronics!

Elite Gymnastics.

July isn't the busiest of months music-wise, but the guys over at Gorilla vs. Bear don't seem to be lounging in their beach chairs just yet, and a few cool tunes showed up at theirs the past few days. Most interesting is 'Hanging On', by Active Child, taken off his forthcoming debut album, You Are All I See. It's pretty epic, and has got more muscle than a lot of the Balearic-inspired stuff that's around these days.


Minneapolis (yuck) outfit Elite Gymnastics have just put their entire new EP, Ruin, up for free download - in two versions, just to make it a bit more extraordinaire. 'Omamori' was the tune that caught me onto it, and I'm downloading the lot now. Sounds pretty promising! 80's-inspired electronic rock seems to be on the catch-up both sides of the Atlantic right now, with this tune sounding more than anything else like NME hype outfit The Naked And Famous.

Radiohead.

I have neglected good old Radiohead, who've premiered some brand new tunes as of late, including 'Staircase', which has got lengths more zest and raunch than anything on The King of Limbs. Speaking of that weirdly beautiful 8th full-length of theirs, a pair of cool remixes have surfaced - that's Caribou doing 'Little by Little' (reeeally sweet!!) and Jacques Greene doing 'Lotus Flower'. These are apparently the first of a series of remixes of The King of Limbs tunes. I wonder if anyone will do 'Feral'?


Bombay Bicycle Club is an interesting wee outfit, that have flown under my radar for quite some time, but 'Shuffle', which is their new single off their forthcoming release, A Different Kind of Fix, which will be their third full length in as many years, all on Island Records, sounds like something that might edge them closer to my listening habits. It's decidedly cheerful, and deliciously British.


Finally, Björk is back, and will release her much-discussed iPad-album Biophilia this fall. This will be the seventh album from this ever-young amazon, following the intriguing and belligerent Volta from 2007. I'm not so sure how I like the drum'n'bass finish on lead single 'Crystalline', but it sure is nice to have this provocateur back in the mix!

Reviewing Roskilde 2011!

M.I.A.
(c) Paw Ager/Gaffa.

So, another Roskilde Festival's come and gone, and a cerise and lime green wristband is now in my drawer with my four others. Probably the ugliest wristband of them all, and fittingly, to many, Roskilde 2011 won't be historical in its musical prowess. Still, I do think many of the critics have fundamentally misunderstood the dynamics of Roskilde. The field of headliners has been heavily criticized, but the two of the potentially weaker ones - Mastodon and M.I.A. - each delivered massively on Orange Stage, and proved they are indeed some of the major artists of today. Coupled with bunch of artists burning down the smaller stages with highly acclaimed albums in their bags, Lykke Li, James Blake, Janelle Monaé among them, I really don't see the issue.

Anyway, what I really wanted to do was to talk you through what I saw and experienced at Roskilde this year. For all the general discussion on Roskilde - on track or a slippery slope, I'd like to refer to this article, which I largely agree with.

Back to the point: This year I saw 12 full concerts, the lowest since 2008, which probably fits very well with the fact that both were years of a less-than-astonishing line-up (ooooh, here we go again...). I do however think the general level of the shows I saw was very high - especially on Orange Stage, where I had quite a few lackluster experiences last year.

Kirsten & Marie.
(c) Gaffa/Steffen Jørgensen.

THE WARM UP DAYS are tricky to get a hold of, since hanging around with my posse is of a higher priority. This year, I saw two acts on Pavilion Junior: Kirsten & Marie played Monday afternoon, and they were pretty decent. It did however become a bit boring as the show dragged on, and it struck me, that these two girls need to somewhat broaden their musical expression in order to ever escape the "talented" category and being able to undertake the 45 minute plus shows that are required of artists past the hype-stage. Battlekat played Wednesday night, and I must admit I was too much heading towards an epic night of being drunk to really review it properly. It was pretty good, but the The Knife-references were in places much too obvious.

THURSDAY, I started up in the back pit for VETO, after being seriously in doubt on whether or not to skip them for Tame Impala. I think I made a wise choice; as a seriously long-time VETO follower, I nearly shed a tear when they went on stage - oh, what a journey I've been on with that band, and how some of their tunes have soundtracked parts of my youth; I would have hated myself massively for missing this show for Australian psych-kids. Objectively, VETO turned out to be the most well chosen opening band since Volbeat in '07, and their show was fine. However, over the past few years they've moved towards dangerously straddling the mainstream - not that that's a bad thing, but it complicates their show when hits like 'Built To Fail' and 'You Say Yes, I Say Yes' are pretty far in style from a lot of their newer stuff - and older, for that matter. As an old aficionado, I did miss tunes such as 'Can You See Anything?' and 'It's A Test' in a show that sleepwalked a bit through the less well-known material.

Foals.

We made a massive scramble for Foals at Arena, and ended up with good spots in the pit. It turned out Foals had no issue filling the stage, and there was a huge party in the pits. As in Vega in December, I have a bit of an issue with Foals being chill-music for me, and obviously partying music for the majority. I do slightly regret the emphasis on drums and bass, both of which pretty efficiently throttle the tinkly guitars and twinkling synths that I enjoy so much. Set-wise, I would have been delighted had they played one of the more delicate and ethereal tunes from the latter part of Total Life Forever, but other than that, the set was pretty sweet - both the new and old material worked very well, and more than anything, Foals really showcased why they are heralded as one of the most interesting and talented young bands in England - and truly gifted musicians they are!

I finished off Thursday with Chase & Status at Cosmopol. This was one bloody fiery pogoing, fist-pumping rave! But in retrospect, also a bit dumb. The push was pretty heavy, and the concert had to be stopped for around 10 minutes, the band demanding people to step back. But when people are drunk, and with a brought-along bawler consistently shouting "Jump! Jump! Jump! Jump!", it doesn't require musical wit to start a party. But a party, nonetheless...

FRIDAY started off with Nicolas Jaar at Cosmopol. I had had my doubts about slotting Jaar in the early afternoon, but it proved to be just the perfect way to start the day! A bit of sound difficulties made the show stagger a bit mid way through, as they rendered Jaar's lazy voice inaudible, and the transitions and bridges throughout the set were sometimes a bit gawky, but all in all a very pleasant set by a talented young DJ.

Portishead.
(c) Kristoffer Amlani Ulbak.

I had a bit of a void Friday, but I do regret not spending some time with Charles Bradley, whose show at Cosmopol has been wildly acclaimed. I did however spend time with Beth Gibbons and Portishead, and what a beautiful show that was! I really didn't know what to expect, but those of us who were able to concentrate on the music, which was a bit low in volume at times, were rewarded with an exquisite performance, masterfully executed.

There have been varying reviews and opinions on M.I.A.'s show at Orange Friday night, but I think it was a fucking blast! First of all, M.I.A. is one of the most unique and groundbreaking musicians of the 21st century, even if her last album was a bit disappointing, and her mezcla of hip-hop, dancehall, electronic pop and indigenous sounds from Africa and the Subcontinent were a perfect fit for Orange Stage, which seemed pretty full. I might be biased, as we had perfect spots just behind the pit, but this show was an explosion of sound and light that I would definitely put "up there" with shows such as Björk in '07 and The Chemical Brothers in '08! After that, we went and caught the last part of WhoMadeWho at Arena. It was a wild party too!

The Tallest Man On
Earth.
(c) Kristoffer Amlani Ulbak.

SATURDAY was my big day this year, with four of my most anticipated acts on the program, kicking off with The Tallest Man On Earth in the afternoon at Odeon. This was exactly as beautiful and heartfelt concert as I had expected - nothing more, nothing less. Kristian Matsson was visibly affected by his fall off a horse the other day, but luckily it didn't bear upon his musical performance, which was just stunning! Half way through, a few buddies on bass and drums joined him, which wasn't necessary. I know how everyone talk about how hard it is to keep the impetus going when playing acoustically for larger crowds, but if anyone could surely pull it off, it would be The Tallest Man On Earth, with his mesmerizing voice, masterful guitar playing and virile compositions!


After that, I went all in on getting up front for Arctic Monkeys, and got spots in the middle of the first pit. It was a massive party, especially when the band dropped tunes from their first two albums, but I must admit, although I myself like the new stuff as much as the old, it doesn't work as well live - although that might have to do with the audience's general reluctance to accept that Arctic Monkeys have evolved. If you ask me, the band could have easily stuffed another 4-5 songs into the set - being as they only played for around an hour and 20, and their tunes are generally not the longest. We could have used 'Fake Tales of San Francisco', 'Dancing Shoes' or 'From The Ritz To The Rubble' from the debut album, but also newer tunes such as 'Cornerstone', 'Potion Approaching' and 'Love Is A Laserquest' were strangely absent. Couple that with a less-than-inspired performance on stage, and I think - despite the party I had - this could be described as a good, but not perfect, show.

The Strokes.
(c) Paw Ager/Gaffa.

In between Arctic Monkeys and The Strokes we got a fucking torrential downpour, but luckily the rain stopped just in time to jam pack Orange for the NY posse to make their return to Roskilde. And what a comeback! Fronted by a cheerful and Danish-chattering Julian Casablancas, The Strokes played a set perfectly balanced between the genuine new album Angles, legendary debut Is This It, and the albums in between. Mayhem predictably occurred during hits such as 'Reptilia', 'Under Cover Of Darkness' and 'Last Nite', all of which were boldly played in the beginning of the set. But even though they might have fired off some of their most powerful weapons, The Strokes kept the audience firmly in their grasp throughout the concert, before finishing with Is This It-double 'Someday' and 'Take It Or Leave It'. I could have wished more people had bothered to give the new album a spin, as the tunes off it were among the sharpest and best sounding - but the sound was crisp overall, and The Strokes definitely proved to be still highly relevant ten years on!


Saturday closed with Deadmau5 at Orange. I had been very anxious to see, just how the Canadian DJ would pull this massive stage off, having played Cosmopol just two years ago. It went slightly as I had expected - people were unquestionably raving, but the music had its definite shortcomings. Once you got beyond gazing at the massive light show, the music was pretty monotonous, repetitive and predictable. I know that's how techno sounds, but I just can't help thinking that the material didn't have the depth and quality for Orange Stage. Deadmau5 veered only very rarely from the foolproof pattern of four-on-the-floor beats, building climaxes and steady raves, and honestly, you need a few more tricks up your sleeve to really pull off Orange - especially when you decide to play for almost two hours. A bit more musical diversion, and maybe even a few proper hits. I understand how many people were fascinated by the light and the bass and all, but c'mon - is that really all it takes?

The Walkmen.
(c) Kristoffer Amlani Ulbak.

SUNDAY was pretty much of a chill day for me, and I jumped around to see half of a few shows during the afternoon. Started out with The Walkmen at Odeon, which turned out to be very disappointing. A well-playing but utterly uninspiring band fronted by a singer whose voice I don't think I will ever learn to love. Then we went down and saw a bit of Aníbal Velasquez y Los Locos del Swing, on the spur of the moment. We didn't stay for more than 20 minutes, but it was a very gratifying experience, watching this old fellow still thoroughly enjoying being on stage, and people were dancing away in the tent. Then we went to Gold Panda at Gloria, which was very nice, but also unpleasantly hot, and it took us fifteen minutes to get in, because the tent was chock full. I really like the idea of Gloria as an intimate stage, but it so demands that only the smallest of artists are placed there. Gold Panda was too big, and I can only imagine how it was when How To Dress Well played the day before.


This year, Battles had been promoted to Arena, after tearing down Odeon with a massive show in 2008. That proved to be a wrong choice. I haven't seen Arena as empty since Tivoli's Symfoniorkester played there a few years ago, and that was really a shame, because Battles is a truly nonpareil outfit, almost unrivaled in musical wit. For whichever reason, the band chose to fully omit their highly acclaimed debut album Mirrored, playing only material from this year's Gloss Drop. The new stuff, which I had heard only bits of, was far better than expected, but they should really have dropped 'Atlas' or 'Tonto' at the end - that would have sent the minuscule crowd raving. A well played concert, but I can only imagine how intense it would have been at Odeon or Cosmopol...

Kings of Leon.
Håkan Moberg/Gaffa

As everyone else, I finished the year with Kings of Leon at Orange. I am not a big fan, but I had hoped to be won over. I wasn't. I just don't like their overhyped stadium rock with Caleb Followill's nauseating voice atop it. Me and my mate Jacob left early to get a feed and watch the remainder of the show from the area to the left of the stage, and it was admittedly very beautiful to watch 60000+ people screaming along to 'Use Somebody' and 'Sex On Fire' at the end, but my clear impression was, that outside the pit, many were slightly bored... I did however dig that they chose to enter the stage with Austra's 'Beat and The Pulse', and leave with LCD Soundsystem's 'All My Friends'.


All in all, I'd say my top 5 shows were, in order:


The Strokes
M.I.A.
The Tallest Man On Earth
Foals
Arctic Monkeys


And the 5 I'm most bitter I missed:


Chris Cunningham
Charles Bradley
James Blake
Janelle Monáe
Magnetic Man