#Mildlife Chorus

[thejoyofviolentmovement]

New Audio: Mildlife Shares Shimmering and Uplifting "Yourself"

New Audio: Mildlife Shares Shimmering and Uplifting "Yourself" @heavenlyrecs

Slated for a March 1, 2024 release through Heavenly Recordings, Mildlife‘s highly-anticipated third album Chorus is reportedly their most optimistic effort, serving as a sonic testament to their unwavering adoration for 70s psychedelic and comic sounds. But delve deeper, and you will hear references to Polish jazz, Italo disco and a sprinkling of contemporary electronic sounds. The album is the…

[lukesalbumawheneverhefeelslikeit]

3562: "Chorus" by - Mildlife

[thisaintascenereviews]

Mildlife - Chorus

In my review of the new Augustana album, Something Beautiful, I talked about how I’ve come to just enjoy music for what it is, and I don’t really care if something is unique or generic. As long as it’s good, that’s all I care about. That’s not to say that I won’t give brownie points to bands and albums that are unique in some way, but that’s not something that’s high on my list anymore. That doesn’t make or break my enjoyment of something, but when something does show up that makes my eyebrow raise, I’ll give it a shot. That’s how I felt with Aussie band Mildlife, and their third album, Chorus. I randomly found these guys a few weeks back, and I was curious about Chorus, especially from its artwork. What I ended up getting was something very fascinating — a mixture of jazz, funk, disco, indie, and rock.

Yeah, this band is kind of hard to categorize, and I always love when that happens. That’s why I hesitated to review this first, because I didn’t know if I could say enough about it, but that’s the thing — this album is hard to talk about, and not because there’s nothing to say, but because it does a lot of things at once. Chorus is only 45 minutes, but it’s an enchanting 45 minutes, and it’s got a great balance between being accessible and a bit experimental. Really, this is partly a catchy and fun jazz-funk album and part instrumental groove fest. There are seven songs here, and they run a bit longer than your average song, especially with the title track being ten minutes on its own, but they’re never boring. Just when you think the song is going nowhere or getting stale, it switches up, and something different and interesting happens.

The whole band seems on top of their game, too, as each member is really given their time to shine. You don’t see that often, and it just feels like everything came together in the best way. If you enjoy jazz, funk, disco, indie, and stuff like that, you’ll have a blast with this album. This album takes a lot of different sounds and combines them together to make for an engaging experience that I can’t say I’ve had before. This is easily one of my favorite albums of the year, and it’s one of those records that you can find something new to appreciate with every listen. It’s not a dense album, per se, but there are a lot of layers to it, and those are the best kinds of albums. Every song here is a ton of fun, and there are grooves galore, but I’d easily recommend this record. It was an unexpected discovery, but those are usually the best ones. It’ll be interesting to see where this ends up on my yearend list come December, but I have a feeling it’ll land quite high.

[kraftwerk113]

Life´s too short for weird music Tagesempfehlung 12.05.2024

Sunday Album Club : Mildlife / Chorus

Track: Forever

Die Fusion aus Dance, Funk Jazz und Psychadelica macht es. Nachdem mir Mildlife aus Australien erstmals 2018 mit dem hervorzüglichen The Magnificent Moon (Tagestipp 03.09.2018) aufgefallen sind, war es der Song Yourself (Tagstipp 19.02.2024), der mir den verregneten Frühling 2024 versüsste. Jetzt liegt das neue Mildlife Album Chorus vor, welches in besten Stellen klingt als würden die Parcels auf frühe Level 42 (ja auch die waren mal hörenswert) und Emerson Lake and Palmer treffen. Am besten kommt dies im epochalen Opener Forever zum tragen. Ein Song, der in 2024 völlig aus dem Rahmen fällt und gerade deshalb zu den außergewöhnlichste Veröffentlichungen des Jahres zählen dürfte. 

[charlott2n]

Charlotte Genre Guide

My top 5 favorite/recommended albums from each of my favorite genres!

Stoner/Doom Metal

Master of Brutality by Church of Misery (2001)

Variations on a Theme by OM (2005)

Blood Lust by Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats (2011)

Soma by Windhand (2013)

Book of Rituals by Saturniidae (2023)

Dream Pop/Shoegaze

Love Songs for the Chemical Generation by Daniel Land and the Modern Painters (2009)

The Glow by Gold Celeste (2015)

Lucid Express s/t (2021)

Daydream Twins s/t (2022)

A Fusion of Two Hemispheres by Sphere (2022)

Vaporwave

无限渴望 by Virtual Dream Plaza (2016)

一人で by desert sand feels warm at night (2019)

Soul Visioning by MindSpring Memories (2021)

Dream Desert by desert sand feels warm at night (2022)

Desert Memories by desert sand feels warm at night & MindSpring Memories (2023)

Psychedelic Pop

The Satanic Satanist by Portugal. the Man (2009)

Multi-Love by Unknown Mortal Orchestra (2015)

Skiptracing by Mild High Club (2016)

Jinx by Crumb (2019)

Raw Honey by Drugdealer (2019)

Psychedelic Rock

Parachute by The Pretty Things (1970)

In the Mountain in the Cloud by Portugal. the Man (2011)

Nonagon Infinity by King Gizzard (2016)

High Visceral Pt 1 by Psychedelic Porn Crumpets (2016)

Face Stabber by Thee Oh Sees (2019)

Progressive Rock

Shine on Brightly by Procol Harum (1968)

Lizard by King Crimson (1970)

Crime of the Century by Supertramp (1974)

Hope by Klaatu (1977)

blomljud by Moon Safari (2008)

Hard Rock

Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath (1970)

The Man Who Sold the World by David Bowie (1970)

Restrictions by Cactus (1971)

Satori by Flower Travellin' Band (1971)

Pieces of Eight by Styx (1979)

Rap

Licensed to Ill by Beastie Boys (1986)

3 Feet High and Rising by De La Soul (1989)

The Low End Theory by A Tribe Called Quest (1991)

6 Feet Deep by Gravediggaz (1994)

Shade of Blue by Madlib (2003)

Funk

Hot Pants by James Brown (1971)

Fantastic Planet Soundtrack (1973)

Standing on the Verge of Getting it On by Funkadelic (1974)

Hustle With Speed by The J.B.'s (1975)

Directstep by Herbie Hancock (1979)

Jazz Rock

Chicago Transit Authority by Chicago (1969)

Aja by Steely Dan (1977)

Junta by Phish (1989)

A Thoughtful Collapse by Vathaken (2020)

Middle Hand by Tytus & The Left-Handers (2024)

Jam Band

Rhythms From a Cosmic Sky by Earthless (2007)

Summer Sessions Vol. 2 by Causa Sui (2009)

Solar Corona by The Machine (2009)

The Doomsday Machine by Electric Moon (2011)

299 by Bull of Heaven (2013)

Disco

I Remember Yesterday by Donna Summer (1977)

Dazzle by Dazzle (1979)

Hills of Katmandu by Tantra (1979)

Tako Tsubo by L' Impératrice (2021)

Chorus by Mildlife (2024)

[burlveneer-music]

My WVUD playlist and stream, 8/19/2024

Pat Metheny - We Can't See It, But It's There Bill Frisell, Umbria Jazz Orchestra - Strange Meeting Al Di Meola - Ava's Dance in the Moonlight Milton Nascimento & Esperanza Spalding - Cais Sholto - Lucid State Thee Marloes - Over Júníus Meyvant - Undravera Misha Panfilov - Journey to the Lemon Moon Soft Location - Let The Moon Get Into It Mildlife - Chorus Ramzi - Égrégores Mas Aya - Tú y Yo (feat. Lido Pimienta) Becker & Mukai - Deja Vu Neumayer Station - Bassrutscher Quartabê - Eu cheguei lá Jordan Tarento - Skeleton Key Utrum - Idus 3 d'Eon - Heat Wave Daniel O'Sullivan - The Oscillating Love Mari Kvien Brunvoll, Stein Urheim & Moskus - Limits The Soundcarriers - The Return Phil Manzanera & Andy Mackay - Lady Of The Lake

[lezarde]

TOP ALBUMS 2024 (2/6)

[Oriental Disco, Funk, Pop] DAR DISKU - Dar Disku (Soundway Records) [UK] https://dardisku.bandcamp.com/album/dar-disku

[Psych Jazz-Rock] GLASS BEAMS - Mahal (Ninja Tunes) [UK]https://glassbeams.bandcamp.com/album/mahal [Psych, Funk, Disco] COUSIN KULA - Vitamin D (Rhythm Section International) [UK] https://cousinkula.bandcamp.com/album/vitamin-d [Psych, Funk, Electronic] MILDLIFE - Chorus (Heavenly) [AUS] https://mildlife.bandcamp.com/album/chorus [Psych-rock, Funk, Disco] YĪN YĪN - Mount Matsu (Modulor Records) [NL] https://yinyin.bandcamp.com/album/mount-matsu [Afro-funk] V.A - Africamore : The Afro​-​funk side of Italy (1973​-​1978) - [Four Flies Records] (IT) https://fourfliesrecords.bandcamp.com/album/africamore-the-afro-funk-side-of-italy-1973-1978

[psychterminal]

2024 Yell’s bests:

- Judas Priest - Invincible Shield

- Saxon - Hell, Fire and Damnation

- Mildlife - Chorus

- Bellboy - Opera Partie II

- Cosmic Dead, The - Infinite Peaks

- Dead Daisies, The - Light ‘ Em Up

- Sendelica - Requiem for Mankind

- Heavy Moon - Astral Shadows in Phisical Light

- Weltraum - theSpaceJamSessions part 1 & 2

- theAdelaidean - Distant Objects in Soft Focus

[paxdron]

AAOTY 2024: Antonio’s Albums Of the Year 2024

Como cada año les comparto la lista de los 30 álbumes que mas me gustaron este año:

30. Cartoon Darkness - Amyl and The Sniffers

29. Funeral for Justice - Mdou Moctar

28. Rong Weicknes - Fievel Is Glauque

27. Diamond Jubilee - Cindy lee

26. Someday, Now - Katy J Pearson

25. What Now - Brittany Howard

24. Evergreen - Soccer Mommy

23. To the Ghosts - Cults

22. EELS - Being Dead

21. Hyperdrama - Justice

20. WOOF. - Fat Dog

19. Where’s My Utopia? - Yard Act

18. SORCS 80 - Osees

17. Submarine - The Marías

16. 4ever - Axolotes Mexicanos

15. Faith Crisis Pt 1 - Middle Kids

14. TANGK - IDLES

13. Underdressed at the Symphony - Faye Webster

12. Look to the East, Look to the West - Camera Obscura

11. Dream Talk - Still Corners

10. Chorus - Mildlife

9. I Got Heaven - Mannequin Pussy

8. Charm - Clairo

7. Here in the Pitch - Jessica Pratt

6. This Could Be Texas - English Teacher

5. In Waves - Jamie xx

4. Only God Was Above Us - Vampire Weekend

3. New Internationale - Kit Sebastian

2. Letter to Self - SPRINTS

1. AMAMA - Crumb

[shortmusicreviews]

Mildlife - Chorus

Spacey funk jazz with synths. Far out.

[thejoyofviolentmovement]

New Video: JOVM Mainstays Mildlife Shares Mind-Bending and Glittery "Musica"

New Video: JOVM Mainstays Mildlife Shares Mind-Bending and Glittery "Musica" @heavenlyrecs @curlytt

Melbourne-based psych jazz/jazz funk/jazz fusion outfit Mildlife — multi-instrumentalists Jim Rindfleish, Adam Halliwell, Kevin McDowell and Tom Shanahan — exploded into the national and international scenes with the release of their critically applauded 2017 full-length debut Phase, a mind-bending mesh of jazz, jazz fusion, krautrock and 70s psychedelia rooted in their now long-held penchant for…

[musikblog]

https://www.musikblog.de/2024/02/mildlife-chorus/ Virtuose Space-Jazz Magie nennt der britische Guardian, was die australischen Mildlife seit 2017 auffahren. Tatsächlich existiert die Band bereits seit 2013 und ist mehr als zehn Jahre später bei ihrem dritten Album “Chorus” angelangt. Eines, das ohne Frage fantastisch klingt, und wer möchte, kann darin bereits eine gehörige Portion Magie ausmachen. Die Transparenz, mit der […]

[stillspinninguk]

Music Video: Mildlife - Musica

Taken from forthcoming album ‘Chorus’. Pre-order here: https://mildlife.bandcamp.com/album/c…

[charlott2n]

what are ur favorite albums from this year mine are empty by bongripper, vestiges by gnome, chorus by mildlife, lovegaze by nailah hunter, and middle hand by tytus and the left handers. smile

[thesunlounge]

Reviews 153: Mildlife

Though Mildlife and Research Records seemed to emerge out of nowhere at the end of 2017 with The Magnificent Moon single, James Donald, Adam Halliwell, Kevin McDowell, and Tomas Shanahan had actually been working the Melbourne scene for years, steadily refining their cosmic jam outs. Their debut LP Phase arrived fully formed and featured six stunning tracks of pastoral 70’s prog, blazing fusion, and disco-inflected jazz funk. The instrumental prowess of all involved was something to behold and the recording itself exuded a soothing vintage warmth with incredibly crisp production that allowed the analog synths, e-pianos, guitars, bass, and drums plenty of space to sparkle and shine. And though the spellbinding grooves would have made for a fascinating instrumental album all their own, Mildlife pushed things further into realms of classical pop psychedelia with the gorgeous vocal work of Kevin McDowell. Following the release of Phase, the group then invited three exciting remixers to take on select tracks from the album for the Mildlife Remixed 12″. Here, Tornado Wallace offered up some ravey breakbeat dreaminess, Sleep D headed into a world of kaleidoscopic dub, and Mount Liberation Unlimited stretched Phase closer “The Gloves Don’t Bite” into a romantic disco journey of pure transcendence. And most recently, Mildlife released the Phase II 7”, which saw the group reworking and rerecording the title track from their debut LP into a storming psych riff monster, complete with thrilling passages of improvisation reflecting the song’s evolution during the band’s 2017 live performances.

Mildlife - Phase (Research Records, 2018) Phase opens with “The Magnificent Moon” and its introduction of kosmische sequences, synthetic wind, and brass pads. The main groove is led by a jaw-dropping bass guitar performance from Tomas Shanahan and the drums lock into an effervescent glide while synths soar and swirling noise clouds obscure funk guitar riffs. Berlin school sequences accompany colorful vocals that bring a swooning romance and these prog-pop passages alternate with dueling synth and guitar fireworks. Sometimes the filters open up on the synths, causing them to explode like fireworks in a starry sky and after a jazzy anticlimax with sunshine six-string journeys working in contrast to the preceding bombosity, anthemic pitch bending synth solos rain down as everything comes together for a spectacular climax. “Zwango Zop” follows with an air of exotic disco perfection as a tropical four-four is danced around by congas and slithering basslines. There are sections dominated by beautifully multi-tracked and hazily filtered vocals evoking the heyday of Abbey Road and we also get a freaked out solo section where fried synth leads explode into dueling fuzz brilliance. The track is awash in Latin prog virtuosity and the harmonizing fuzz solos keep ascending to impossible heights as the bass and drums stomp underneath with an almost evil sense of groove. And after breaking down into drifting deep space liquids, we smash back into the jam and its prog funk balladry, burning passages of swelling synth vapor, blasting tom fills, and climax of double-tracked wah-wah guitars bursting like solar flares.

“Im Blau” has slow and low Magmoid basslines underlying double-tracked guitar mirages. Shakers and güiro accent the muscular prog drums while lovesick vocoders are surrounded by cinematic orchestrations and smooth arps and there are unsettling transitions that interrupt the mix, with the rhythms being replaced by searing industrial noises. Elsewhere, cyborgs sing over breathy flutes while the bass and drums hold down a subdued groove and then, storm siren synths lead back into the lanky funk flow, with horror film leads and organ drones evoking the soundtrack work of Goblin. As we head towards the end, blues guitar exotics are bathed in aquatic vibrato alongside phasing synths pulsating like the breath of some cosmic being. It’s pure sonic radiance and after the lovelorn robots return to pull at the heartstrings, it all fades into a colorful interstellar gas. Psych rock riffs and wobbling bass textures anchor the intro of “Phase” until a stoned jam develops, with slow motion basslines and barely there drums pulsing like Miles’ “He Loved Him Madly.” Fusion leads and oscillating noise spirals grow ever more freaked out and dazzling jazz guitar cascades gently ascend towards a majestic climax, with solar vibrations ringing out from the peak of a magical mountain…the guitars and synths locked into breathtaking harmonies, the bass snaking around with melodic funk solos, and blankets of feedback working their way into the layers of ecstatic prog ritualism. And as the jam winds down, morphing alien sonics fly around the deconstruction of a classical stretch of guitar psychedelia.

We awaken in a Tangerine Dream wonderland for “Two Horizons,” as Berlin school sequences swim through a cosmic sea. Winds of static overlay bubbling bass currents until mellotron saxophones transition us into some transportive prog-psychedelia led by swinging drum hypnotics and moaning, almost desperate synthesizer drones. The bass guitar work is as jaw-dropping as ever and the blissed out vocal harmonies remind me of Aerosmith’s “Sweet Emotion,” as if backed by masterful cosmic fusion. Acid textures follow the drums and bass with a sense of pure joy while distorted Rhodes melodies evoke fantasy forests in the clouds, only as seen through LSD electronics distorting the view with neon tracers and rainbow emanations. Closer “The Gloves Don’t Bite” initiates with minimal percussion drifting aside enchanting synth leads. We then segue into riffing disco narcotics as bass guitar power chords dance with six-string blues leads. Video game electronics fly around while hazy vocals glide above the pure jam mastery, followed in round by smooth guitar magic flowing towards a sunset horizon. Galactic layers of synthesis wash over instrumental choruses and thrilling fills and dancey double-time cymbals work their way into the vibrant drumming. Freaky solo passages see synths and guitars seeking out an alien sun and then the track heads towards a seaside fusion paradise, as wah wah guitars mix with overdriven psych-funk riffs and wondrous bass guitar leads move up and down the fretboard exuding vibrations of beachside romance.

Mildlife - Mildlife Remixed (Research Records, 2018) For Tornado Wallace’s take on “The Magnificent Moon,” we smash cut into jammed out breakbeat hypnotics…the gliding kick and snare magic colored by jangling tambourines and throbbing bass cushions that push so much air. The beats ride for an extended introduction as wisps of synth wind blow and hints of the original version’s flowing kosmische sequences waver through the mix. Everything moves with a sort of dream logic and the entrancing vocals of Kevin McDowell are here completely modified, with the lyrics remaining the same but now spoken by feminine androids. The ascendent synth solos of the original track are removed from their cosmic fusion context and are turned into ravey melodies stoking hands in the air euphoria. And during a midtro of cruising kick-less breaks, plucked guitars scatter and hallucinatory cosmic pads soar in the background until we flash into an expanse of crushing rhythmic sorcery with nothing but the loved up breakbeats and machine woman voices evoking ecstasy soaked 90′s nostalgia. The back half of the track is given over completely to city leveling wobble basslines that ooze over the mix like cosmic molasses while housey dream pianos bang away softly. Eventually the drums are chopped up and sent through low pass filters while repeating pads glow with hues of dark and deep blue until it all fades into silence.

Sleep D loop congas and other unidentifiable percussive tones while resonant bass drums knock against the fabric of the universe. Their remix of “Im Blau” sees dense layers of deep space synthesis introduce a marauding bassline that tears through the cosmos alongside haunted voices. Organs bubble and broil with sun-soaked key changes and once the beat reaches full strength, we find ourselves in a world of propulsive dub perfection. Everything is smothered in delay fx...a barely contained chaos that Sleep D occasionally obliterate by letting various instruments self oscillate into a cloud of psychedelic madness. So much energy pulses through the mix as we head on a mystical odyssey into the shadowy corners of the universe, with Adam Halliwell’s flutes transmuted into a jungle ceremony accompanied by wild layers of resonant feedback. Horrifying noise streaks, rattling drones, and crazed sirens are filtered beyond recognition but eventually the disorienting layers back off, giving way to a minimal expanse of ambient spectral magic, wherein riffing space guitars sit under oceanic fx and swim above thudding kicks and breathing industrial sound layers. Everything appears refracted through kaleidoscopic tape delay rainbows and as the drums build back, the vibe is even more soaring and immersive than before. The enchanting psychedelic sorcery has a way of pulling you deep within its spell...filtering echo guitars morphing into black smoke, ever present and incredibly layered hand percussion panoramas subsuming all thought, the body and soul merging totally with exotic dub esoterica.

Cut-up disco rhythms and low slung bass guitars invite you to Mount Liberation Unlimited’s dancefloor paradise re-edit of “The Gloves Don’t Bite, wherein flowing pads support space guitar theatrics...like classic blues leads orbiting a distant star. The vocals are deliriously double tracked and move with sexual energy over the greasy bass guitar movements and there are detours into deep instrumental jam territory as amorphous synth clouds whirl around the disco heat. After a head spinning pause, the chorus hits, backed by blustery brass and orgasmic builds leading into soulful synth chord expanses. Then the track blasts into gorgeous Santana guitar solos, all bluesy fusion riding on a shooting star. Sometimes the guitar pyrotechnics are joined by harmonizing synths, resulting in blazing passages of interstellar boogie and at other times, it all breaks down into a dreamland orgy of Michael Shrieve tom fills flashing ear-to-ear above the grooving bass liquids, searing organs, and solar tremolo heat. The whole jam continues to grow more and more spaced out as the organs are replaced by brain-piercing neon feedback rays and the vocals re-enter briefly but are soon subsumed by radiant disco ascendency and the constant presence of funked out brass riffs. There are too many layers of freaked out cosmic electronics to even describe and the maximalism gives way to a vocal heavy ending replete with bass guitar incantations, tropical organ adventures, hazy synth liquids, and Mount Liberation Orchestra’s own syrupy sweet vocal harmonies intermingling with Kevin’s golden pipes.

Mildlife - Phase II (Research Records, 2018) In the first part of “Phase II,” keyboards swim in a black hole ocean alongside wiggling cosmic leads and expressive flute trills. Ceremonial drum crashes and martial fills usher us into a fantasy world of progressive rock beauty, until swinging 60s power trio drum and bass magic enters to drive me wild, like doing the swim or the batusi on the surface of the sun. It’s a superb psychedelic groove out with clicking spring reverb fx leading into the original “Phase” riff, here repurposed into some heady outerspace blues. The skipping drum flow and vibed out guitar hooks almost reach hues of stoner surf rock, the jangling and loose six-strings played so confidently, all sliding chords and hot riffs coalescing with ping ponging bass guitars and drums swinging towards the stratosphere. The soaring synths from the original cut, which there flew over a funereal plod, are here transformed into sunshine krautrock magic that eventually fades out on squiggling synths, melodic bass guitar abstractions, and foggy pads. 

The second part swirls with submarine pings, ritualistic bells, and the same synth fog that concluded the first part.  Cymbals gleam as fluid bass drones and washed out guitars are subsumed within gentle feedback oscillations while tick-tock space metronomes sit under time morphing echoes that cause the sounds to move in and out of phase. Shimmering and wondrous cymbal flutters pan back and forth and there is a sense that we are building towards something, but it takes its time until finally, a low down stoner funk beat emerges with the most overt and thrilling flute fireworks yet in the Mildlife catalog. Adam Halliwell really shines here, with beautiful runs and woodwind spells conversing with heavenly birds above Jannick Top bass guitars thumping away under watery phase fx. Wavering guitar riffs lie under dense blankets of spring reverb and 16th note cymbals flash ear-to-ear...hard to tell if electronic or acoustic, but supremely delirious all the same. The spiritual flutes continue to dance and dash through the mix with exotic vibrato movements and sultry noir atmospheres and for a beatless stretch, sumptuous cosmic synths wash through the soul. And just when you think it might all fade away, Mildlife slam once more into the narcotic 60’s space age bachelor pad psychedelia.

(images from my personal copies)

[newmusicmonthly]

2020

Hello. I hope you and yours are well. As is tradition, below are my selections for albums and songs of the year. As I have yet to receive a reply from you, dear reader, sincerely asking to unsubscribe, you are therefore the proud recipient of the list once more! I’ve altered the format from 5 tracks each month because, as I suspect many of you did, I went into a nostalgic hole for large chunks of this year (for me this consisted of at least two months of nothing but Funkadelic, which does mean my personalised algorithm is now ace), but also when I looked back at when many of these tracks were released it was front heavy for the first half of the year – another body blow to the supposed “monthly” mailer. I even considered not writing my one-liners, but where is the fun in that? Furthermore, trying to keep the long list to 60 tracks in total (equivalent to 5 per month) proved overly frustrating, so I’ve included some extras, especially as this year felt 13 month long. Notwithstanding said excuses, enough preamble, on with the list! Let me know what you think and do send me your own selections. Lots of love xx TOP 10s TOP 10 ALBUMS Baxter Dury – The Night Chancers Mildlife – Automatic SAULT – Untitled (Black Is) Alice Boman – Dream On Kanaan – Odense Sessions Lightning Orchestra – Source And Deliver Yves Tumor – Heaven To A Tortured Mind The Strokes – The New Abnormal Woods – Strange to Explain Erland Cooper – Hether Blether TOP 10 TRACKS Malena Zavala – En la Noche Caribou – You & I Yves Tumor – Kerosene! Puscifer – Apocalyptical Mildlife – Automatic King Hannah – Meal Deal SAULT – Wildfires // Bow [yes, there are two tracks there] Kanaan – Urgent Excursions To the Tundrasphere Frazey Ford – Golden Jessie Ware – What’s Your Pleasure? NEW MUSIC ‘MONTHLY’ MAILER Spotify Link Here Holy Fuck – Near Mint What better way to kick off a retrospective look at 2020 than with ‘Holy Fuck’ Alice Boman – It’s OK, It’s Alright Really love this album and this pick is a real downer, spectral and haunting but also touching Smoke Fairies – Out Of The Woods Jessica and Katherine still delivering a decade on, the chorus guitar riff is tops Nicolas Godin – The Border Air’s Nicolas Godin doing his best detached friendly robot, mais bien sur Moses Boyd – BTB Vibrant, propulsive, energetic, gotta move! The Men – Wading In Dirty Water Avid readers will know I’m a fan of these guys and this one rides a familiar Crazy Horse choogle Tame Impala – Breathe Deeper Funky bass, piano flourishes, solid synths, all groove Kanaan – Urgent Excursions To the Tundrasphere Ok, here it is, there’s always going to be at least one – this is the 14 min space rock jam – skip/enjoy! Frazey Ford – Golden This production is right up my street, soulful vocals swoop around tight rhythm section and hammond keys, an analogue dream Caribou – You and I From the analogue to a digital master, man this beat is catchy Pulled By Magnets – Cold Regime People Die File this under terrifying experimental jazz Jonathan Wilson – Riding The Blinds JW doing that 6/8 minor ballad thang Baxter Dury – Say Nothing Another album I loved this year and could have picked any number of tracks, so here’s a quote from Baxter: “My craft and in a sense a certain style has been perfected and it’s easy… I don’t have to do it again basically. I don’t want to hear another man talking over an orchestral background.” Ha! U.S. Girls – 4 American Dollars Slick funky, soulful, classic strings, building into a brilliant outro with great lyrics Deeper – Lake Song Detached vibe ala Joy Division / The Cure done through a Pavement lens with serious downer lyrics Pretty Lightning – Voo Doo Boo Swampy dirge guitar grooves Tamikrest – Anha Achal Wad Namda Another mailer favourite, Touareg guitar wizards Tony Allen, Hugh Masekela – Never (Lagos Never Gonna Be the Same) Master drummer who sadly passed away earlier this year just after this release, and two years after master trumpeter Masekela’s own passing, this track is a buzzing tribute to Fela Myrkur – House Carpenter Danish black metaller does Scandinavian folk: bright and beautiful Sufjan Stevens, Lowell Brams – The Runaround A weird album, even by Sufjan standards, but I found these electronic ambient sounds strangely comforting R.A.P. Ferreira – ABSOLUTES Rhythm & poetry The Weeknd – Blinding Lights What can I add to the smash of 2020? Catchy af Porridge Radio – Long Indie banger, with a decidedly angry, bitter, playful lyrics Cleo Sol – Her Light If online research is to be believed Cleo is part of the collective in SAULT with producer Inflo, but this album is standalone brilliance without knowing that, this is pure vintage soul vibes Malena Zavala – En la Noche I returned to this track more than any other this year, the rhythm, the vocals, the melody, the production, even if I have to use google translate to fully understand the lyrics Tom Misch, Yussef Dayes – Lift Off Molten guitar, groovy arrangements, and plenty of business from Dayes Yves Tumor – Kerosene! An absolute belter, amazing vocals, groove and crescendo perfection Warm Digits, The Orielles – Shake The Wheels Off (feat. The Orielles) Immediate synth pop, indie dancefloor (with some solid cowbell) EOB – Brasil First solo venture for Ed, acoustic folk gives way to rumbling bass banger, would very much like to experience this in a field Other Lives – Hey Hey I Grand rocking orchestral aural assault with hints of Morricone Elephant Tree – Sails Fulfilling the heavy dirge quota, that hit at 2:33 is a proper head in the speakers moment The Strokes – Why Are Sundays So Depressing This album snuck up on me, and then I found myself listening to it non-stop, this track such an ear worm Houses of Heaven – In Soft Confusion I think the right descriptor is darkwave – insistent drum machine, reverb soaked vocals, industrial production, gloomy pop hooks Joel Sarakula – Don’t Give Up on Me Operating in a dangerous space between homage and pastiche, groove and parody, this is smooth easy yacht rock Donny Benét – Second Dinner Following hot on the heels of pastiche, this time with tongue firmly in cheek, The Don and his 80s reverence lolz Perfume Genius – Whole Life Completely arresting, the lyrics an absolute gut punch, yet still gorgeous Jake Blount – Beyond This Wall From the press release, this album “features fourteen carefully chosen tracks drawn from Blount’s extensive research of Black and Indigenous mountain music. The result is an unprecedented testament to the voices paradoxically obscured yet profoundly ingrained into the Appalachian tradition” – this contemporary instrumental is a superb banjo and fiddle tune Holy Hive – Broom Formed by the drummer from the Dap Tones and inspired by being on tour with Lee Fields, this gentle soul, complete with tremolo guitar and horns, really floats Woods – Where Do You Go When You Dream A welcome return to form, this mellotron infused number is beautifully catchy Erland Cooper – Linga Holm Dramatic piano and strings from an altogether wild and wonderful album Mystery Jets – Screwdriver Loud / quiet dynamic, bombastic riffs, seething verses, the Jets turn it up to eleven to fight with love Jehnny Beth – Flower Another track where hushed verses give way to chorus explosions, serious tension and intensity Hinds – Good Bad Times Love that thudding bass drum, big stomping pop Norah Jones – Were You Watching? Smooth but haunting, with added Celtic flavour Braids – Young Buck Bleeps and bloops, melancholic poppy vocals, and the damnedest catchiest chorus Jessie Ware – What’s Your Pleasure? Is it getting hot in here? No further questions LA Priest – What Moves Quirky strutting electro, sleek yet squelchy SAULT – Wildfires + SAULT, Michael Kiwanuka – Bow Double billing because I couldn’t make a choice (plus when I realised the rhythms flow perfectly into one another it’s like it’s one song) Run The Jewels – a few words for the firing squad (radiation) Again, difficult to choose which track on this album; this is pure fire with sax and all GUM – The Thrill Of Doing It Right Turn this feel good banger up! Such a big hit when the horns drop at the start The Vacant Lots - Fracture Catchy, icy, synths (and Desert Sands label mates by the by) A.A. Williams – Melt Enchanting slow-burning, stirring post-rock, with a wonderful, soaring crescendo Lightning Orchestra – For Those Who Are Yet To Be Born A late discovery, but immediately catapulted to the top, self-described “psychedelic booty-shake” Kamaal Williams – Save Me Almost chose ‘Pigalle’ but the tight push drumming on this won out, hard funky jazz stylings of the Herbie variety Victoria Monét – Dive Lavish and groovy, and as Monét puts it: “They say most humans are about 60% water, but I believe women must be 69% so dive in baby." Secret Machines – Talos’ Corpse Genuinely so happy to see Brandon and Josh back and still with the big sounds All Them Witches – Enemy of My Enemy Relentlessly heavy, all the chops and described by one reviewer as the love child of TOOL, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Kyuss; I love this band Fenne Lily – Birthday Beautiful and bruised Mildlife – Automatic Another new discovery, in the pocket cosmic goodness and much as it pains me to quote from NME I can’t think of a better description than ‘Mobius strip funk’ Puscifer – Apocalyptical Maynard in the video for this track is an indelible image; massive swaggering Intruder-esque drums, angular menacing guitars, Carina’s ethereal edgy vocals, Maynard’s gritted teeth whispers, and apposite apocalyptical lyrics Matt Berninger – Loved So Little Confessional moody acoustic conjuring up Western-esque vistas Goldensuns – Denandra Moore Californian sun-drenched lo-fi groove, for fans of Conan Mockasin and Night Moves Frankie and the Witch Fingers – Cavehead F*cking excellent west coast garage psych melange and the B,D,E ascend at 3:10 is nod central King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – The Hungry Wolf Of Fate Genre bending brilliance once again from down under, this cut a heavy, doomy Sabbath assault King Hannah – Meal Deal Ominous drone opens into an acoustic tale of buying a flat with a spider in the bath, Hannah’s sinister smoky sultry vocals draw you in, before some menacing low frequency dirge guitar and drums kick in at 1:30… By this point on first listen I was already hooked, but then comes a great walloping Angel Olsen ‘Sister’ style crescendo, a glorious find at the end of the year (props to Manuel) HONOURABLE MENTIONS Elephant Stone – I See You Sam Lee, Elizabeth Frazer – The Moon Shines Bright Priscilla Ermel – Martim Pescador Rheinzand – Blind Dogleg – Fox The Flaming Lips, Deap Lips – Home Thru Hell The Heliocentrics – Hanging By A Thread Midwife – 2018 Chicano Batman – Color My life Trace Mountains – Rock & Roll Peach Pit – Shampoo Bottles Buscabulla – Vámono Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Cars In Space Jess Williamson – Wind on Tin Thiago Nassif, Arto Lindsay – Plástico The Vacant Lots – Endless Rain Nubya Garcia – Stand With Each Other (Feat. Ms MAURICE, Cassie Kinoshi, & Richie Seivwright) Juanita Stein – L.O.T.F. Carlton Melton – Waylay Paul McCartney – Long Tailed Winter Bird