Free internet, you know.

Alright, I had promised you and myself that I would keep quiet and enjoy my last days in New Zealand without sniffing about for stuff to mention here, but I've just got a few wees that I need to get out of the system.

First of all, I am massively impressed by new-in-town Danish house-duo Kenton Slash Demon, made up of parts of much heralded band When Saints Go Machine. I think good old Kjeld T. is probably going bonkers for a track like this one. Check it out, it's massive.

Don't bother reading this next part if you're feeling miserable, because upcoming Kitsune-darlings New Door Cinema Club are anything but it. In fact, they're somewhat over-fresh, but hey, aren't we all sometimes? 'I Can Talk' is a likeable little track in any case.

Back when it was released about half a year ago, I didn't really notice I Got You On Tape's 'Spinning For The Cause', but as they just won the P3 Prize (which, by the way, I think Oh No Ono were snubbed for, as was Trentemoller snubbed for the Live Prize for his godlike show at Roskilde), I thought I'd check out their performance from that show, and what charisma, actually. It's been on my mind for days.

In other stuff, I had a quick hear-through of Delphic's debut album Acolyte, which I mentioned in my last post. A promising record, although too early to say anything.

And one more gulp: Arctic Monkeys' Humbug has really grown on me through the past half year, and I regret I have yet to mention it. But it is a brilliant record.

Five in five weeks.

This is probably gonna be my last post until I return home in early February, unless I stumble upon something really awesome of course.

These next five Mondays see the release of exciting new records in my book, which I'm definitely gonna get a hold of when I get back. They include a few exiting and energetic debuts, one of those all-too-anticipated sophomores, and two albums from staples in very different fields.

Tomorrow, the 11th, sees the release of Vampire Weekend's much anticipated 2nd album, Contra, which can be heard in full length on their myspace. I have yet to give it an ear myself, but if you don't like brains, or do like Oasis, or both (which is often the case, sorry Liam, but I just can't get over how nice and quiet the NME.com frontpage has become since Noel threw his guitar at you and left), don't give it a go. They've got a tough task topping their debut though.

The 18th it's time for Delphic and their debut release, Acolyte. I saw these guys warm up for Bloc Party in Copenhagen something like a year ago, and they were quite impressive. As I've stated before, they remind me of few things internationally, but of somewhat of a cross-breed between Marvel Hill and Spleen United, to those of you lucky enough to know Danish music. Acolyte too is available for full streaming on myspace!

On the 25th, Danish upcomers Ginger Ninja are releasing their debut, called Wicked Map (I guess they wanted a record-title that was as poor as their band name, eh?), and this one I'm really excited about. They just received a nomination for Talent of the Year by benchmark Danish radio P3. I had the joy of playing alongside them with my own band Kinetics about a year ago, and since they've just gone skybound. Give the new music video for 'Bone Will Break Metal' a go here (and yes, the video is poor too).

A bit farther into the future, in February, on the 1st (01/02-2010 - nice twang, guys), Kashmir, arguably Denmark's most important rock outfit, are releasing their sixth full length, titled Trespassers. This is gonna be huge in Denmark, and less important everywhere else, but try giving 'Mouthful of Wasps' a listen anyway. You'll love that chorus.

Finally, British electrorock/dancepunk/pseudo-indie-schmindie pioneers Hot Chip are around for their fouth album on the 8th. It's called One Life Stand, and the title track is here.

Oh, and on a final note, I just can't believe I have hitherto not mentioned this track. Just, just in case you didn't hear it, which isn't likely, as this Teignmouth threesome is among the importantmost bands in the world, it's Muse's 'Undisclosed Desires', which is perhaps one of their suavest, bravest and straightforwardly brilliant songs ever.

Six new year kicks (+2).

I'm teeming with stuff to post here, but I rarely have the time to do so. Albums-to-buy lists, decade recaps et al.

I do however have the time to point out a few tracks that are very much on my mind these days. As always, I have a tough time limiting myself, thus six became seven. In other stuff, I got a few new albums these last weeks. I got a hold of Cut Off Your Hands' album You And I, which is really awesome. Very beatle-esque at times, and I just can't get my ears off 'Oh Girl'. I'm really surprised they aren't bigger around here than they are. Not even proper musos down here necessarily know them. I also got Julian Casablancas' solo debut (as a christmas present, thanks Peter!), which I haven't gotten around to hear yet though. I also must mention that I met a fellow Battles-admirer yesterday, what a rare joy.

As for Roskilde, I am not entirely thrilled by Nephew's return to the glitz of Orange. Their gig in '07 was awesome, but then again, I really doubt they'll be able to top it. Expectations will be huge, and I'm not sure which means even this by all standards amazing live act can apply to live up to them.

But let's get to it, the tracks that soundtrack these last few weeks for me. First of all, I'm growing ever more fond of The Kooks, whose amiable lo-fi garage-revival shines through most clearly on 'Seaside'.

On an entirely different front, I've been reviving Trentemoeller's fabulous remix of Royksopp's 'What Else Is There?'. This pan-Scandinavian club basher is indefatigable. So too is the vivid happyness of upcoming Danish outfit Ginger Ninja, whose second single off their January '10 debut, Wicked Map, 'Bone Will Break Metal' is really sweet as, as they say here.

Apart from Cut Off Your Hands, another choice Kiwi outfit is Kora, who played here in Queenstown, NZ, the day before I came here. They're supposed to be among the very best live acts here, so I'm quite bitter I didn't get to see them. I really need to go to a live performance of some kind soon, it's been too long. Check out 'On My Mind', and please disregard the samurai-themed cover.

Across the Tasman, we find the home of Jet. Whenever I hear tambourines, I anticipate one of my favourite dancing tunes, 'Are You Gonna Be My Girl?', which never dies. Speaking of pan-Tasmanian travel, I had 'Someone New' by Eskobar on my mind while crossing a few weeks ago, and it's stuck around since. One of the few proper break-up songs to be neither corny nor whiney.

A band which is pretty much atop my need-to-buy list when I get home is Kings of Convenience, whose recent album release might make them a candidate for reappearing at Roskilde, where they were last in 2008. Their beautiful, bossa nova'ey indie-shoegaze is some of the suavest stuff I've ever come across, such as 'Toxic Girl'. And while we're at shoegazing, what would the indie world be without Bon Iver? Such a genuine and extraordinary display of anguish and agony as displayed on For Emma, Forever Ago is nothing short of masterpiece-like. 'Skinny Love' is a definite highlight.

Six became 8. The aughties become then tens in a day and a bit. Roll on.

It's that time of the year again...

No, not christmas (well, it is, but it isn't to me, even though the Aussies do their best to be christmasy, even playing 'Let It Snow' in the supermarket...), but the time of Roskilde announcements.

So far, I'm thrilled that we're getting Muse and Dizzy Mizz Lizzy, which were two of the names I had been hoping for. Muse played a massive show in '07, which still ranks near the top of my list, while seeing Dizzy Mizz Lizzy live will be a dream come true for me. It's gonna be massive.

The rest of the names don't excite me that much, although for the festival in general, I'm happy to see Pavement and NOFX being announced. They have been among the most yearned for bands the last few years. I, personally, am hoping to see, amongst others, Kashmir, Editors, Hot Chip and Does It Offend You, Yeah? on the list as well soon.

Talking about Kashmir, I've been listening to their new single 'Mouthful of Wasps' quite a few times now (as it has been haunting me whenever I don't), and I must say it is growing quite a lot on me. I love the bassline and especially the chord progression in the chorus. It really seems they're back not to appear as an aging, graying bunch of has-beens, but as a band who are still up for being a staple on the domestic scene.

To be honest, I am still a bit out of touch with goings on, but I try to keep up with who's on the up. One band that I had almost forgotten, but who are releasing their first full length in the beginning of 2010 are Delphic, who got my attention when they warmed up for Bloc Party in Copenhagen almost a year ago. It's like nothing I've ever seen come across the North Sea, but it does remind me vaguely of a crossover between the arpeggios of Marvel Hill and the ambience of Spleen United, both Danish acts. I think they might be up to something good with their first album, try check it out here!

Guess that's all for now. Too many festivals to choose from here in Melbourne this summer, none the wiser I'll leave for NZ tonight.

A quick strike from Victoria.

My frustrations of not being able to follow the goings-on in the music world are growing. New stuff out by old staples Kashmir, Hot Chip, Interpol and Vampire Weekend, interesting collaborations between Bon Iver and St. Vincent, between VETO and The Wong Boys. Everything seems to go on while I'm in backpacker country, perennially listening to Black Eyed Peas and that lousy Guy Sebastian - hope he never goes overseas from here!

Anyhow, I had a go at the new singles from both Kashmir, Hot Chip and Vampire Weekend. Especially Hot Chip's new stuff seems really really interesting. Much more melodical and less porcupine'y than ever before. Beaut. Kashmir is a difficult ordeal. I mean, all their old stuff one has listened to a gazillion of times, it all has a special place in your heart. New stuff needs some devouring. Vampire Weekend's 'Cousins', well, that's just strange. What was wrong with baroque afrobeat then?

My list of records I have to buy when I come home is growing, and now includes The Kooks, Jens Lekman alongside the few I mentioned in my last post, most notably Kings of Convenience.

This is also the time of decade lists. I won't make one of my own, even though I love lists. I might discuss the one's I see though, as I find it very interesting, the whole concept of encompassing an entire decade of garage revival, dance-punk, postrock, post-punk revival, nu rave, indie folk and other hyphenated subgenres into one lens. That'll be later though, maybe not until 2010.

Go listen to the new Hot Chip single though.

A new hemisphere, old staples and new musical horizons.

Oh well, I just can't keep away from this, can I?

Anyway, even though I'm away from my usual stomping grounds, that doesn't stop me from indulging a vast array of different tunes, and I keep on adding stuff to my "got-to-mention-this"-list, thus i feel like emptying it onto here.

A few albums have really blossomed for me this last months. Namely these are Humbug by Arctic Monkeys, The Resistance by Muse, Phoenix' Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix and finally Oh No Ono's Eggs. Humbug is coming together as perhaps the most thorough Monkeys-album yet, especially 'Cornerstone' gives me chills. I never thought Alex Turner would write such a beautiful ballad. The Resistance too, is a strong album. I am pleasantly surprised by the way the three Devonians have actually encompassed Matt's space-apocalypsia, new musical achievements and a refreshing hint of their earlier albums. The Resistance is perhaps even more in touch with their earlier albums than Black Holes and Revelations was. Everyone's raving about the Exogenesis symphony, which I haven't really had the chance to listen to properly yet though, but what's all the fuzz about really?

Naturally, I am also exposed to a lot of my travelmate Peter's music, and I've got a growing list of to-buys when i get home. Namely Bon Iver, Kings of Conveniece and St. Etienne have made an impression. And I am indulging Håkan Hellström more than ever. So bitter I missed his gig at Roskilde this year.

I guess that's it for now. A grey caravanpark in Brisbane just isn't the most inspiring of places.

Resistance day, other stuff, and the imminent future of The Idioteque.

Today could be dubbed 'Resistance Day', i.e. it is the day when Muse's highly anticipated fifth full length effort finally hits the shelves. I don't have time to pick it up today, but I'm counting on finding it on Khao San Rd. sometime this week. I've heard most of it though, and it is very impressive. It is more piano-driven than its predecessors (a Danish review stated that "...Bellamy unfortunately isn't a great pianist" - I wonder if that journalist ever heard 'Butterflies and Hurricanes'...), and many of the songs are really strong. Everyone is raving about the three-movement 'Exogenesis'-symphony, which I haven't really gotten into yet. I only heard it once, and it honestly disappointed me a bit, but everyone is proclaiming it to be the Bohemian Rhapsody of the 21st century, so I guess it just has to grow.

I've just got a few tips that I have encountered these last few weeks:

Those of you all into Radiohead's perhaps most overlooked album, Amnesiac, I found this great cover of 'I Might Be Wrong' by a French jazz-quartet. It's really groovy!

Editors are on their way with their third album, In This Light and On This Evening, due to be released in October. I've really enjoyed their first album, The Back Room from 2005, and they seem to have revved up on the synths on this one. Their lead single 'Papillon' sounds like a crossbreed between Spleen United and Depeche Mode, and depending on how the rest of the album sounds, it could turn out to be a fave.

Finally, I've really gotten into Danish quintet Oh No Ono's sophomore effort Eggs, which they released this spring. I was never a big fan of their debut album Yes, but the second one is really a masterful effort at times. 'Swim' is very good, and here they are playing my favourite, 'The Tea Party' at Beatday Festival in Copenhagen.

These next months this blog is going into a semi-hiatus. I am leaving for Australia and New Zealand, and while I'll still be sniffing up music here and there, I think I'll be plenty busy writing mails and travellogs, uploading pictures and sending postcards, so The Idioteque will probably only be active every now and then. For those of you fluent in the Danish language, head over to my travellog! (Pics will be upped to Facebook now and then). Stay groovy.

Listen to 'The Resistance'! NOW!

Hell, nothing much else to say. Go to DR's website now and listen to the entire new album by Muse!

A bit too much desert rat.

I've really in many ways been anticipating Arctic Monkeys third album Humbug these last few months. In some ways I've been fearing that the inevitable maturing process of these young britons would evolve into an album too oldschool-rock'n'roll'ish for my tastes. The last year or so, most of my musical influences have been more towards the electronic and dance-punk scenes, which is quite a ways from A.M. I was initially sceptical towards the lead single Crying Lightning, which was somehow exactly what I feared - a piece of slow, heavy rock. However it became a turning point for me when it came into rotation on my preferred radio channel P3. It is actually an extraordinarily catchy tune. Together with crooked opener My Propeller it kicks off the album in a promising way. It is recognizable Arctic Monkeys stuff, albeit somewhat slower than we've known them to initiate albums before (just think Brianstorm).

Next up is Dangerous Animals, which to be honest seems to be one of the weaker tracks after the first few listens, eventhough its aggressively rambling bass is somewhat noteworthy. Secret Door kicks off as a ballad very akin to the predecessor's 'Only Ones Who Know', although it quickly evolves into something different. This is one of the tracks in which producer Josh Homme's presence is felt the most. You clearly sense that the four lads have been thrust out of working-class Yorkshire and into the expanses of the Mojave. Theres more of a stoned distance in both the dusty, queaky, organ-heavy instrumentalisation, and in Turner's vocals which are distinctively less Yorkshire. You can still hear that he's a Brit ofcourse, but there seems to be less of a presence of the local Tyke vernacular. Turner has matured as a lyricist as well.

Potion Approaching, while still somewhat slow in comparison to the first two albums, is one of the aggressiver tracks on the record. In a way it is a strong track, but it's a part of the album that's just a bit two stoned for my tastes. Afterwards though, things really kick off with the next four tracks being the strongest portion of the album. Fire and the Thud is still very Josh Homme'y, I mean, you can almost see the dust devils blowing through the Rancho and cowboys drawing six-shooters, but it is a perfectly digestible little thing. Cornerstone is some of the closest Arctic Monkeys have ever come to beautiful, and I wouldn't be surprised to see this as the second single off the album. It's not '505', but it's good. So is Dance Little Liar, which is another of the very desert-dusty tracks. It turns somewhat prog at about 3.20, which is a welcome infusion of musical creativity on an otherwise somewhat unexperimental record.

Even more prog is Pretty Visitors, which has emerged as one of my favourite tracks on this record. The constant changes in tempo and intensity really appeals to me, and this is in many ways the track that draws the most references to the two former albums, even though it too is distinctively Humbug. One thing I've noticed though is that Turners voice seems more apt for a song like this, rather than the more stoned ones. Closing off is The Jeweller's Hands, which honestly haven't really gotten to me yet.

This is not neither Whatever People Say I Am..., nor Favourite Worst Nightmare, and while Humbug definitely has the characteristics of an album that will grow on you slowly, I doubt that it will ever appeal to me in the same way as the youthfulness of the first and the intensity of the second album. There just isn't a 'Still Take You Home' or a 'Do Me A Favour', and I miss the unspoilt uncomplicatedness of the young Arctic Monkeys. To stay in the animal kingdom, there's just a bit too much scummy desert rat, and a bit too little monkey. It's like going from wearing Cheap Mondays to wearing Levi's or Wranglers. But one owes to Turner & co. that they have really proven themselves as capable artists. Matt Helders is still a brilliant drummer, and Alex Turner is still a formidable front man. They've overcome the necessary change of pace that will eventually spare them from becoming an indie Green Day phenomenon of a band going around the same old curve that made them succesful in the first place. I'm sure Arctic Monkeys have lost some, gained some on this album, but more than anything else, they've established themselves as a band able to do more than just taking home sorry groupies.

North American Scum.

... is the title of a song by LCD Soundsystem, one of a bunch of American acts that are roaming my playlist right now. Exactly LCD Soundsystem had a heavy presence on Pitchforks top 500-tracks-of-the-last-decade countdown last week, which revived their (or his, actually), critically acclaimed album Sound of Silver. Try checking out 'Someone Great', 'Get Innocuous!' and 'All My Friends'.

Somewhere in the same dance-punk'ish alley I've discovered !!! (yeah, that's the band name equivalent of Sigur Rós' ()-album) from Sacramento. It's pronounced as 'chk chk chk' by the way. Check out 'Me and Giuliani Down by The Schoolyard (A True Story)' and 'When The Going Gets Tough, The Tough Get Karazzee', both from their 2004 effort Louden Up Now.

I'm still enjoying Vampire Weekend's album very much, and to some extent Passion Pit too, although theirs hasn't really caught fully onto me yet.

Heading back to the superior side of the Atlantic (yes!), I'm right now listening to Dúné's new album, Enter Metropolis, available for streaming from Soundvenue. To be honest, I find it really boring and tiring (so far, I'm only up to track 8 of 14). Quite disappointing, since lead single 'Victim Of The City' vouched for something smashing. I definitely don't feel an urge to buy it.

Finally, I'm gonna get a hold of Arctic Monkeys' new record soon, there'll probably be more on that next week.

A wry, triumphant cacophony.

No More Stories
Are Told Today
I'm Sorry
They Washed Away

No More Stories
The World Is Grey
I'm Tired
Let's Wash Away.

Such is the title of the new album by Mew, which I got a hold of today. Here's a track-by-track run-through after the first few listens.

Opener New Terrain's main claim to fame is the fact that if played backwards, it's an entirely different song, called 'Nervous'. I don't have the software to do so, but someone will probably up it onto Youtube soon enough. The track does sound like something I reverse-looped on my Kaoss Pad, and it's really a peculiar and perhaps quite vulgar way to get off the grid.

Introducing Palace Players has already been in heavy rotation as the lead single, and it is a perfectly decent track. The syncopated drums and guitar make for an interesting hit single, yet one must acknowledge Mew's ability to create something accessible from such crookedness. This track is followed by Beach, a well-crafted indie pop track and Repeaterbeater, clearly two of the most accessible (and shortest) tracks on the record. They both bear clear resemblances to the Frengers-era.

A brief intermezzo follows, before the awkwardly-titled Silas The Magic Car, a bland ballad, which is honestly quite dull and unspectacular. Then follows Cartoons And Macramé Wounds (what the fuck hell is a macramé wound anyway?), a really schizophrenic and disturbing piece of work. It definitely has some sort of aesthetics, and some pretty passages, but I don't really get it. Maybe I will in time.

Hawaii Dream features Jonas chanting the title poem, and segues into Hawaii, which is a really daft caribbeo-polynesian-themed piece. It doesn't really ever lift off. The exotic instrumentation continues in Vaccine, which is one of the strongest tracks on the album. Tricks Of The Trade is an dark, drum machine-driven track which is interesting from a style/genre point of view, but this one too never really lifts off.

Yet another intermezzo follows. I'm not all that into intermezzi, but these ones seem to seperate different moods of the album quite well, both leading up - or perhaps rather down - to quite ballady tracks, such as Sometimes Life Isn't Easy, which kicks off as perhaps the most grandiose and exuberant song Mew have done since 'Comforting Sounds'. This too is definitely one of the instant favourites, and although it's neither CS nor 'She Came Home For Christmas', it is quite beautiful. Finally, Reprise is a typical Mew-closer - another ballad, which starts out as somewhat anonymous and ill-timed epicism, but closes out quite pleasantly.

It is hard to find the right adjectives to describe No More Stories. It's vulgar yet gloriously witty, creative yet anonymous, impressive yet wry, triumphant yet somewhat disappointing. Mew are still heavily reliant on Jonas Bjerre's angelic voice, which have been their strongest asset ever since bursting into everyone's attention with Frengers in 2003. In my opinion, Mew still peaked back then, but there's no denying that beneath the ovoid, evil-clown-like smiley face clad cover lies a world of musical creativity and border-seeking antics from a band which does exactly what it wants to. And having the seniority and critical acclaim to flip the bird at all norms and definitions of kitsch, beauty and cacophony might just be the biggest achievement of this record after all.

Clap on time, you fuckheads!

That was perhaps the only thing to be disgruntled about as Coldplay left the stage in Herning last night. Battling a seriously dull crowd, the London four once again proved themselves as being in the uppermost echelon of live acts on this planet. Headed by an ever-dancing
/jumping/joyous Chris Martin, the band performed a set nearly identical to the one performed at Roskilde. One could perhaps have wished for hidden gems such as 'Amsterdam', ' What If' or 'Don't Panic' to have been excavated, however Coldplay somehow define the saying that 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'. We did get Will Champion singing 'Till Kingdom Come' though, which was quite a treat. The gimmicks, such as yellow balls for 'Yellow' and confetti-extravaganza for 'Lovers In Japan', worked their part, as did an extended (compared to Roskilde) LCD-wall backdrop of the band performing in distorted images. Even so, one got the feeling that compared to Roskilde, Herning was more of another day at the office. Chris didn't converse quite as much with the audience, and of course there wasn't that special Orange Stage-magic. Still however, a massive joyride of a show!

On a side note, White Lies really established themselves as one of the most mediocre live bands I've ever seen. Even if they had to fight poor sound, a crowd that basically just wanted them over with, and a stage and venue clearly too large for them to fill out, they just seem to lack an element of some sort. Maybe another guitar, or maybe they should just start utilizing their existing instruments some more. The rhythm section is too often too naked, and for gods fucking sake, get that supposed-to-be majestic synth in 'Farewell To The Fairground' in sync with the one in the recorded version!

A few side notes:

Those of you who have kept up with especially Pitchfork through the past weekend will probably have noticed quite a lot of buzz surrounding almighty Radiohead. Well, they did release a new song today. It's called 'These Are My Twisted Words', and it can be found here! It's very In Rainbows'ey, and not really all that intriguing.

Going home yesterday, we heard a track on the radio, which Johan and I deemed as being very reminiscent of Jupiter Day and Superheroes. It turned out it was The Raveonettes' new single, 'Last Dance', which is in fact produced by Thomas Troelsen, thus we weren't far away. It sounds promising, and I am - dare i say - slightly anticipating the new Raveonettes album.

Finally, I'm probably going to buy Mew's new album tomorrow. It was released today, and it has garnered rave reviews so far. There'll probably be more about that soon!

Look at us, through the lens of a camera...

... does it remove all of our pain?

Those are the lyrics of hit track of the week for me. It's a late discovery off Editors' album The Back Room, and it's really beautiful! It's called 'Camera', and you can find it here. Once in a while it's really good to have a ballad roam the top of your listening habits. I've finally started to count the days until Coldplay this Sunday, so I'm listening to that quite a lot too, especially beautiful 'Fix You' seems to have had its second coming. I haven't really been that up for it until now, since they delivered so massively at Roskilde, but now I'm beginning to feel the excitement. Believe it or not, it's actually my first real big stadium-kinda gig, and I hope they dwarf their Roskilde-show, although they're up to quite a task there.

I exchanged my surplus copy of White Lies' record to Vampire Weekend's eponymous one the other day, but I have yet to get it into my computer. But I listened to a good part of it (in the car), and it seems OK. A bit too Belle & Sebastian'y maybe, but let's see.

Oh and by the way, I have been pleased to hear Ginger Ninja's 'Sunshine' played so heavily on P3 these last few weeks. In fact, it was the eighth-most played track the past week. Just in case they'll be the next big thing, remember who hyped them first...

I'm going back behind the teachers desk tomorrow, fuck yeah!

And there's only about a month now until I'm leaving for the southern hemisphere - FUCK YEAH!

Sunday bits.

On an eventless hangover'y sunday, I thought I'd recommend a few tunes to pass the time! I always find that sundays I'm in the mood for cheery stuff, whether to remind one of a good time last night, reminisce over girls you did or wanted to make a pass on, or whatever. By the way, I heard Muse's new single 'Uprising' in town yesterday (which surprised me as most places in Aalborg are usually at least a few weeks behind on new tracks...), and god is it a massive tune. The theremin does everything for it, it might sound like a synthesizer, but it has a distinctive, genuine twang that's just unbeatable.

Anyway, I bought Passion Pit's album Manners the other day, and while I haven't totally gotten into the entire album yet, a few tunes like hit single 'The Reeling' and opener 'Make Light' are definitely worth a listen, as I find them very instantly likeable.

I hyped Newzealanders Cut Off Your Hands a bit before Roskilde, and while their show wasn't all that spectacular, a song like 'Oh Girl' you just have to dig. The lyrics are insanely simple, but somehow it works.

When it comes to being 35 years old and still being able to sound like an innocent and heartbroken 15-year-old, no one does it better than Håkan Hellström. He's really grown on me these last few weeks, especially the album Känn Ingen Sorg För Mig Göteborg, from which a song like 'Uppsnärjd i Det Blå' really strikes me as a beautiful tune. Håkan owes a lot to the beautiful and poetic Swedish language.

Finally, I've gotta introduce you all to Vampire Weekend. Their eponymous album is very high on my must-buy list. Try listening to 'A-Punk'.

Just another thing - I got introduced to a cool search engine-kinda thing yesterday, called Grooveshark. It struck me as being very easy to use, with a simple and efficient interface, easily-editable playlists and a big database. Hell, you can even find L:Ron:Harald on there! Try checking it out.

Muse go theremin.

Muse have released yet another song from their forthcoming album The Resistance, called 'Uprising'. This is the first single (as 'United States of Eurasia' was a teaser, not a single), off of the Devon trio's fifth effort. Very much more conventional than USOE, this will probably garner better reactions throughout the band's traditional fanbase. It is much in lieu of stuff from Absolution and Origin Of Symmetry, albeit somewhat slower, and it features the band applying the theremin. I don't know if this tune really catches me, but it's definitely nice to se that The Resistance won't be all mental.

'Uprising' is here.

I also just want to mention that I bought a few albums last week. One of them was Passion Pit's deubt album Manners, which really has some great parts, although the vocals become slightly annoying. Try listening to this.

I'm moving out of my apartment in a few days, which really excites me. These last weeks have just been a waste of time. I'm looking forward to getting my housing situation straight, going back to more interesting work than ice-cream trucking (which is really dull), and ultimately getting off this hemisphere in now only a month and a bit!

When baboons grow up.

Arctic Monkeys just transmitted a teaser of their forthcoming album Humbug at NME.com, and here's what I made of it:

The band, fronted by an uncharacteristically long haired Alex Turner, whose face throughout the transmission is rarely seen, appears in a large room as if were they on stage, lighted by stage-lights, but apparently not surrounded by anything but guitar-racks. They kick off with the first song which the lyrics reveal to be 'Pretty Visitors' (tracklist off of here, I reckon it's credible). A very sombre, gloomy, almost schizophrenic tune, with a haunted but nonetheless gloating feel to it. Next up comes 'Crying Lightning', which has already been played on BBC Radio 1 and leaked here and there (Youtube). A slightly more recognizable Monkeys tune, yet still slower than the pace one connects with most of their songs. The predominant tempo on Humbug seems to be more akin to that of 'Fake Tales of San Francisco' and the like, and both tracks we've heard so far include pretty big shifts in mood within the songs themselves.

Next up is what's later revealed as 'Potion Approaching', which is a real gloomy song again. You really sense that this band, and Turner especially, has grown from the teenish stories of hookers in Sheffield and blockheaded girls that they'd still take home and screw anyway. This one here is very tough-molded with an edgy, heavy guitar-riff carrying it through. It ends abruptly with Turner exclaiming: "would you like me to build us a go-kart?" followed by Helders throwing his stick leading the song to a halt.

Then comes the cover of 'Red Right Hand', which is originally a song by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, that A.M. have played regularly throughout the last year or so, and which will be one of the inevitable bonus tracks on the Japanese edition of Humbug. There's a lot of organ, not only in this one, but in many of the tracks, which bears resemblance mostly to '505' off Favourite Worst Nightmare, which back then was remarkable exactly because of its unusual instrumentation. It appears now that the organ is gonna be a regular Monkeys fixture, and as they rarely do playbacks and samples, it seems they're gonna have to either rearrange some of the songs live, or bring along a fifth man to do the organ bits, as Turner was show without a guitar throughout Red Right Hand, while both organ, bass and guitar were present.

Close-ups of cymbals and pedals indicate a ballad now, but the calm intro gives way to a more energetic albeit much less dark song, that is later through the lyrics revealed to be 'Secret Door'. The organ is still there, as well as the backdrop of a girl's eyes that has been recurring throughout the transmission. A very pretty track this one, definitely my favourite so far, much akin to the likes of 'A Certain Romance' and 'Only Ones Who Know' of the first and second album respectively. Turner keeps singing about "fools on parade" in a very recognizable fashion. The song ends, and frets are played to indicate a new one's coming up, but nothing happens, and that's it.

Put short, it seems the Monkeys have really matured, and you really feel that almost 2½ years have passed since Favourite Worst Nightmare. And that's a lot when you're only 23, already releasing your third album and heralded as the frontmen of indie-garage-revival. Looks like the baboon pups have become real grown-up monkeys, huh?

A year in albums, 4 of 4.

Alright, so here it is. My four most important new musical acquaintances of the last year.

4. Radiohead - Hail To The Thief (The Gloaming)
A black spot in my Radiohead-chronology merely a year ago, Hail To The Thief, which for the records is the sixth full-lengther of the Oxford quintet, now assumes its place among my favourites. More organic than its predecessors Kid A and Amnesiac, yet still more cynical than the following In Rainbows, HTTT in many ways draws the most direct lines back to much heralded masterpiece OK Computer of 1997 in terms of mood, tempo and diversity. A behemoth, 14-track fountain of everything from sizzling loops and noises to simple percussions and trumpets, it has its natural highs and lows, but as everything else graced by Jonny Greenwood's musical mastermind and Thom Yorke's excentricism and awe-inspiring, fulgurous voice, it is altogether a brilliant musical production. In many ways it ties the vastly genre-spanning discography of Radiohead together, most profoundly exemplifyed by opening jewel '2+2=5' which climbs from stinging sub-bridge guitar noises and electronic drums, mulling below Yorke's heavenly voice, through syncopated guitar-tension into a full-blown rock and roll crescendo. Other high points include 'Sit Down. Stand Up.' (yeah, all track-titles contain full stops) with its tension-building drums and wildly relinquishing xylophone-arpeggi, and beautifully Beatle'esque closing ballad 'A Wolf At The Door.'

The top three songs on my last.fm are:
- '2+2=5'
- 'Sit Down. Stand Up.'
- 'Backdrifts.'

3. Spleen United - Neanderthal
It has been tough determining the order of the two next ones, since one of them is most definitely of a higher musical standard, while the other has perhaps been the most musically inspiring album for me this year. I have been a late starter on Danish electrorock outfit Spleen United, surprisingly, as I am a synthesizist, and only this last year have I embraced this outfit from Århus. Sophomore effort Neanderthal was my first exposure, and still dwarfs their debut effort Godspeed Into The Mainstream in my books. While it does have its weak spots, songs such as hit single 'Suburbia', the instrumental 'Dominator', epic 'My Jungle Heart' and the magnificent '66', which rolls along with a heavy yet upbeat pace and uniquely kitsch drum machine sounds, make it all worth while. Above all, I as a synthesizist am very much inspired by Spleen United's choice of timbres and their rhythmic preferences as well. A great live act, as I have discovered this year too, while not as multi-faceted, they have outdone rivals VETO in plays the last six months, and have definitely been an enrichment.

These three have had the most impact:
- '66'
- 'Suburbia'
- 'My Tribe'

2. Foals - Antidotes
Culminating in getting airtime on my request on P3 yesterday (just had to mention it), through the last half year, Foals have rocketed to the upper echelon of bands in my musical universe. Being statistically my most heavily listened album the last six months, Antidotes has proved to be a longevous one. And deservedly so. The songs do not culminate all at once, in fact, Antidotes is a great example of tracks coming along at their own pace. At first, it was ones like Cassius and The French Open that were most exciting, later on it was Two Steps, Twice and Dearth, while now, Olympic Airways, Balloons and Tron are making their presence felt. Two Steps, Twice however is still one of my favourites, and it is very representative of Foals' unique style. Tapping, poly-rhythmic guitars create a wonderland of harmonies almost as were it a choir. Winding in and out through each other, the instruments create a wall of sound from remarkably stripped timbres. Synthesizers are often very unintegral - instead, somewhat gimmicky saxophones and trumpets enter the sound picture, which is topped by an extraordinarily skilled drummer with a refreshing, 'less is more'-approach.

The last.fm top three is:
- 'Two Steps, Twice'
- 'Olympic Airways'
- 'Dearth'

1. Friendly Fires - Friendly Fires
All hail cowbells! Atop my list, as the most intriguing, important and influential new record in my twentieth year (being as the next is actually my twentyfirst even though I'll be 20, go figure), sits St. Albans' Friendly Fires, and their eponymous debut album from September 2008. An extrovert, uptempo synthpop-indie-dance effort produced by the band itself in their garage, from beginning to end, Friendly Fires is a joyride through samba-inspired vivacous percussion bits, sing-along choruses, innovative guitar-effects and yes, cowbells. You cannot anything but smile, dance and hum along to this elysian debut effort from a band which shows no signs of rookie slips. Critics may point out that Friendly Fires is slightly one-sided, but even when Ed McFarlane comes closest to wrenching out his feelings in Strobe, he and the band do so impressively, omitting this as a potential weak spot. While Friendly Fires may have not created an overly deep and pensive piece of art, they sure have made an admirably positive album without resorting to musical idiotism. Quite the opposite actually, as Friendly Fires have managed to create a record which is thoroughly their own, and which is remarkably secure whilst not compromising the youthful wit and energy that makes this the best party album in a long, long time, a deserved Mercury Prize nominee, and my most important album of the last twelve months!

And the top three is:
- 'Jump In The Pool'
- 'Ex-Lover'
- 'Lovesick'

A year in albums, 3 of 4.

... Only eight to go now.

8. Skream - Watch The Ride
So, I decided I'm gonna go on and stick an album at the 8th spot that I actually don't even own (yet, but I'm gonna go buy it soon). And how's that now? Well, Watch The Ride in itself may or may not be worthy of this position, but the fact itself that I have opened my ears to dubstep deserves a mention, because it's probably my most groundbreaking new leap into a genre since I started listening to Kashmir and Jamiroquai in stead of mainstream stuff of the early 00's. I have always admired musicians who try to take their stuff further than anyone else (as long as it satisfies my ears too, that is), and that's exactly what's fascinating about dubstep, whether it be Skream, Benga or lesser known names. Dubstep as a phenomenon is still fairly new and fairly underground, and I think it will continue to be. I don't think it can exist outside of the vividness of the World's absolute cultural metropolises - London, Berlin, New York City. Watch The Ride is all bass, all dub, and some of the most mind-blowing, heavy-throbbing, beats on this planet.

7. Bloc Party - Intimacy
Ofcourse, I can't snub Bloc Party, who quite surprisingly and on a short notice released their third full-length last August. Although I don't believe in such things as a 'favourite band', Bloc Party comes pretty damn close. I think one of Bloc Party's great traits is their ability to be diverse. These days, very often bands find a sound and stick to it. That's perfectly alright, and often makes great records (such as the #1 on my list, wait and see...), but I really do admire bands who are able to do both ballads, great rockouts and more alternative stuff while still being distinctively themselves. Bloc Party have a distinctive sound, which, even though it has changed through their three albums, is visible all throughout Intimacy as well. So with all this praise, why are they stuck at number 7? Well, to be honest, I'd put Intimacy as the least impressive Bloc album. Ofcourse it's hard to follow up their #2, which is probably one of my favourite albums across the boards, but still I feel many of the tracks on this one do not have the same longevity as the two former albums. Still however there are moments of brilliancy, such as the big beat-hinting two opening tracks 'Ares' and 'Mercury', the beautiful yet perhaps slightly cheap 'Signs', Bloc classic 'Talons' and, probably what's turned out to be my favourite track on this album, the gracefully intensifying 'Ion Square', which is really an exquisite tune, constantly building up through layers of synth'ey noises and pads, constant hi-hat motion and elegant lyrics on coming to terms with romantic mishap.

By the way, my last.fm top three is actually:
- 'Better Than Heaven'
- 'Ares'
- 'Mercury'

6. Coldplay - Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends
The ridiculously titled (come on, everyone must've known people would call it simply 'Viva La Vida' anyway...) fourth effort from perhaps one of the worlds biggest bands right now, Coldplay, is ofcourse also sure-fire on this list. It was actually the first album I got this year, I bought it from a street vendor on Nanjing Rd. in Shanghai (but it looks like an original!). Put straight, it's the bravest album they've ever done, but honestly that says more about Coldplay than it does about VLV. But in my ears, it lacks the epic ballads that Coldplay do best, and that have graced both A Rush of Blood to The Head and X&Y. It is still a strong album though, and it seems to be one of those on which the songs do not blossom at the same time. At first, easily accessible ones like 'Viva La Vida' and 'Cemeteries Of London' stood out, then it was '42' and 'Death and All His Friends', and now I find songs like 'Lost!' and 'Strawberry Swing' the most appealing. A genuinely good album, but a bit flat at times.

The top three has been:
- 'Viva La Vida'
- 'Cemeteries Of London'
- 'Life In Technicolor'

5. The Knife - Silent Shout
I still vaguely remember the first time I put on Silent Shout and listened to it. Without the freakazoid that made Deep Cuts a bit undigestible at times (albeit legendary too), SS is just a musical masterpiece, and I immediately knew what all the fuss was about. Heralded throughout the World, Silent Shout is a benchmark album for electronic music. The tracks fly by as a cynical, apocalyptic yet vivid rollercoaster - up through tracks like the massive club-like anthem 'Like A Pen', 'We Share Our Mothers Health' and the eponymous opener, and down through 'Marble House' and the trembling and staggeringly beautiful 'The Captain'. If anyone said electronic music can't be beautiful and pensive, 'The Captain' prooves otherwise.

Most listened are:
- 'Like A Pen'
- 'The Captain'
- 'Silent Shout'

Only four more to go then, and they'll be up in a few days!

A year in albums, 2 of 4.

Continuing my feature on the most important albums I've added throughout the last year. This one includes numbers 13 through 9.

13. Fever Ray - Fever Ray
So, the inscrutable queen of obscurity Mrs. Karin Dreijer might be a wee bit overexposed in this feature, but that just owes to her incredible creativity, doesn't it? Her debut solo effort, released under her alias 'Fever Ray', is one of the murkiest, gloomiest record I've ever encountered. Even though only a few of the tracks really stand out from one another, and none of them may be smash hits, this isn't what Fever Ray is all about. It's about expressing a specific mood and a certain sentiment through a high level of musicality. It's just incredibly opaque and really well produced with curious samples, composite soundbits and the occasional distortion on Dreijers hair-raising vocals combining to paint a picture of a panically longing soul.

My top three most listened according to Last.fm are:
- 'If I Had A Heart'
- 'Keep The Streets Empty For Me'
- 'When I Grow Up'

12. Hadouken! - Music For An Accelerated Culture
Speaking of leaps in musical genres, expressions and emotions, leaping from oblique Scandianvian virtuoseness to Kitsuné's grindie-dancepunking, glowstick-raving, ironically Hoxton-bashing Hadouken! is quite gargantuan. Combining pseudo grime vocals, vintage and sawtooth'y synths and a seemingly unending urge to rave about how immensely the five self-appointed indie-limey's supposedly party, Music For An Accelerated Culture perhaps isn't exactly an example of fine musical composition, but it sure is an example of how a young and fairly unknown bunch of Leodesians are able to rev it up, with lyrics surprisingly accurately describing the wasted youth/future of society. Trailing Klaxons in fame and in terms of being at the right place at the right time (MFAAC was released in May 2008), Hadouken! might actually pose a properer definition of the much disputed term nu-rave, being some sort of a crossbreed between indie snobbery and the rabble's simplicity.

The top three is:
- 'Get Smashed Gate Crash'
- 'That Boy That Girl'
- 'Liquid Lives'

11. The Cure - Boys Don't Cry
I have a tough time sorting these ones at the middle of the chart, and The Cure barely misses out on the top ten. They are however quite hard to compare to any of the other albums in this feature. The sheer age of it, being released in 1980 as an American re-release of their debut effort Three Imaginary Boys, from 1979, makes it an entirely different case than Hadouken! or Fever Ray or anything else. I've always had somewhat of a reluctancy towards older albums or artists, this mostly being a product of me being a synthesizist rather than a guitarist or a drummer, which means old guys doing five-minute soli doesn't exactly float my boat. With The Cure, however, I feel like I've struck gold. Or rather, I've sensed it, because knowing the debut album of a 30-year, 13-album catalogue seems like only encountering the tip of the iceberg. I'm sure I'm gonna discover more of this particular iceberg though, since it really benchmarks my indie history. So many bands I listen to on a regular basis - from Bloc Party, through Interpol, Phoenix and many others - draw influences from The Cure. It's a hell of a lot of work getting to know a band with a vast catalogue, but I think I've got started on The Cure in a good way. Definitely one of the most ground-breaking new acquaintances for me this year.

I've mostly listened to:
- 'Boys Don't Cry'
- 'Grinding Halt'
- 'Jumping Someone Else's Train'

10. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
It might be just a bit too early to put this one as high as this, but I'm doing it anyway. While still a relative newcomer, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is just an instantly likeable piece of extrovert indiepop. It's real major-music (major in this case being the harmonic expression opposed to minor), and it's really well produced as well. Just a pure joy listening to it in proper earphones, and I think it will prove much more longevous than its predecessor. Phoenix prove that music doesn't necessarily need to be super-inventive to have a justified existence, but at the same time, with WAP, they've really gone into the details of the sound picture, making it a treat for the thorough enthusiast as well.

So far, I've mostly listened to:
- 'Lisztomania'
- 'Lasso'
- Love Is Like A Sunset, part 1'

9. Mockin' Bird - Mockin' Bird
Mockin' Bird is yet another alias of the now supposedly alias-less electro-wizard Troels Abrahamsen. He has released two more musing and thoughtful electronic albums, I Know That You Know and WHT, with the latter having been released in the past year as well. But while that one didn't make my shortlist, Mockin' Bird did. And that's even though Abrahamsen released this one more or less just for the sake of it. Here, he throws all precautions and filters overboard and delivers a round of hard house, even omitting his very expressive voice. And it works. More or less all of the ten tracks cater to the electro-loving palate with simple sounds and efficient, head-moving beats. With this in mind, I'm all too excited that BLCK, which will be released this fall, is supposedly quite a bit housier than WHT was. Bring it on!

Top three has been:
- 'Fake Drums'
- 'Exhaust'
- 'Ricochetting'

A side note - new tune from Muse!

I've got to interrupt my albums-feature, 'cause I found something really exciting just a few minutes ago! As some might know, Muse have released bits of a song from their forthcoming release The Resistance, as fans have found USB-sticks in selected locations around the world. On their website, it's still only available to what they call 'registered Humint Resources', whatever that means, but there's bound to be someone posting it on YouTube.

And here it is! - 'United States of Eurasia', from The Resistance. It comes with a hidden track called 'Collateral Damage', which is apparently Chopin's 'Nocturne' accompanied by jet sounds.

Very exciting and a very dramatic track. Definite hints of Queen in there. This album might really be massive.

(I'll continue my running albums-feature later today, by the way...)