Ok, so I haven't done one of these for a while but 2018 has been a good year for music so thought I'd get back on the horse and write a review of some of my personal favourites from the past twelve months. This is all down to personal taste and nothing to do with album sales or chart position. If anything, this gives a platform to some music that might be less well known. I've done a review of my top 18 songs of the year, with an extended playlist linked below. As always, feedback is well appreciated. I'm a bit rusty with this, so take it easy on me. Enjoy :)
Alice Merton- Why So Serious: 'Why So Serious' is the lead single from the upcoming debut album
by German/Canadian/English singer songwriter Alice Merton. Merton has had a
rapid rise to fame following on from her successful 'No Roots' E.P. released in
2017, her full length debut album, titled 'Mint' is due for release in January
2019. 'Why So Serious' captures that same catchy infectious energy. She could really be one to watch in 2019.
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| Ash- Copenhagen December 2018 |
Ash- Did Your Love Burn Out?: Taken from their 2018 album ‘Islands’ this is the third single from
album to coincide with album release. This is now the 8th studio
album from Northern Irish alt rockers and they only appear to be getting better
with age. There is now an added maturity to their sound and song writing. This song
is less youthful and punchy, more of a slow burner. There are sounds of a
slight Arctic Monkeys influence, if that was intentional or not is open to
debate, but it’s not bad thing. It’s instantly one of their best songs and sits
perfectly amongst the other big songs in their back catalogue. The guitar solo
in the middle rounds the song off perfectly.
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| Barns Courtney- London November 2018 |
Barns Courtney- “99”: ‘99’
is the new single from English singer/songwriter Barns Courtney, following on
from his superb 2017 debut album ‘The Attractions of Youth’ that spawned
singles such as ‘Fire’ and ‘Glitter and Gold’. New single ‘99’ and B-Side ‘Good
Thing’ will appear on his upcoming new album. It’s an uplifting indie anthem
harking back to good old days of the late 1990s. Catchy and upbeat song it fits
in well with his other material. His distinctive style and clever song writing
are present throughout. Definitely bodes well for the new album. By far my favourite
musical discovery of the year.
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| Black Honey- Brighton October 2018 |
Black Honey- Midnight: Taken
from the Brighton quartets’ self-titled debut album, ‘Midnight’ showcases a
band with the world at their feet. It’s a synth-pop disco inspired anthem with
a huge sing along chorus. It’s a great catchy single. The art of the music
video hasn’t been lost on this band either.
They’ve taken their time to get to their debut album but they’ve smashed
it out the park. Far from one trick pony’s, the album is really strong from
start to finish. All Killer, No Filler may seem like a cliché, but it’s an
accurate representation of their album. Definitely up there as contender for one
of my favourite albums of the year.
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| Brian Fallon- London February 2018 |
Brian Fallon- See You on the Other Side: This song appears on the Gaslight Anthem frontman’s second solo
album ‘Sleepwalkers’ following on from his 2016 debut ‘Painkillers’. Whereas ‘Painkillers’
was a healing process, ‘Sleepwalkers’ shows Fallon in a better place. He has
since remarried and is happy with life. This helps to show Fallon at top of his
game. He has always been a talented songsmith (as demonstrated with GA and
various other projects), wearing his heart on his sleeve. ‘See You on the Other Side’ is a brilliant
acoustic ballad. It’s a sad tale of love but one that expertly shows Fallon’s
song writing strength.
Cecilia Krull- My Life is Going On: ‘My Life is Going On’ is a song by Spanish artist Cecilia Krull
which provided the theme tune to hit Spanish Netflix drama ‘La Casa De Papel’,
or ‘Money Heist’ as the rest of the world knows it. As with most hit shows a
strong song during the opening credits can work wonders, and ‘Money Heist’ is
no different. It captures the feeling of the show perfectly. An acoustic single
that deserves a lot more recognition.
Dead Sara- Anybody: Having
lost bassist Chris Null after their last studio album, Dead Sara returned with
a new EP ‘Temporary Things Taking Up Space’. It shows the band taking a
different direction. ‘Unamerican’ shows band as angsty rockers, something that
has come across in previous records. ‘Heaven has a backdoor too’ shows a softer
bluesy side, again something demonstrated on previous albums. However, an 80s
sounding synth rock sound is something new to the Dead Sara armoury and they
pull it off brilliantly. Shows a different side to the band, and the recent
acoustic release of the same song shows what a talent Emily Armstrong is as a
vocalist. It’s different to the Dead Sara we are used to, but it’s a welcome
step in a different direction. Would really welcome a UK tour. Been a long time
since their last appearance on these shores.
George Ezra- Paradise: The
follow up album to his smash debut ‘Wanted on Voyage’ sees George Ezra carry on
where he left off with his infectious brand of pop. His debut album seems a
long time ago but the time off hasn’t done him any harm if the lead single is
anything to go by. It’s a wonderful, catchy piece of song writing. It has a
number of hooks which grab you and it only takes a handful of listens to grasp
the lyrics and unconsciously sing along. It’s been a long wait, but it’s good
to have him back.
Graham Coxon- Walking All Day: Blur guitarist Graham Coxon went in different direction to provide
the soundtrack for Channel 4/Netflix show ‘End of the F***ing World’. One of
the highlights is this gem. Again it’s a catchy, acoustic song, totally
different from any of his Blur material. It fits the quirky, left field nature
of the show perfectly. A really good song, and definitely recommend catching
the show on Netflix too.
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| Greta van Fleet- London November 2018 |
Greta van Fleet- Lover, Leaver: Greta van Fleet are a band that seem to divide rock fans. On the one
hand, they are derided for being Led Zeppelin rip offs. The other are lauding
them as one of the saviours of rock. Truth is, they are somewhere in the
middle. There are similarities to Zep, you cannot escape it, but that isn’t a
bad thing and it certainly isn’t the be all and end all of the band.
Impressively, they have managed to gain a huge following without actually
releasing an album until late this year. Following on from two EP’s, their
debut ‘Anthems of the Peaceful Army’ was met with great fanfare, including a
sold out European tour. For a band to be selling out 3000+ capacity venues for
multiple nights shows they are band who could be on their way to something big.
Given that they have a strong back catalogue already, and half the band members
are too young to legally drink in their home State of Michigan, it will take a
lot to stop them.
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| Myself with Lissie at Resident Records in Brighton |
Lissie- Best Days: 'Best
Days' is the third single from American singer songwriter Lissie's fourth
studio album returns with 4th studio album 'Castles'. I've been a
fan of Lissie's since her debut album 'Catching a Tiger' back in 2010 and she
has been consistently brilliant with every release. There have been slight
changes in style with each album, but her talent remains evident throughout.
There is a charming, raw huskiness to her vocals, something which is best
experienced live.
Isaac Gracie- Running on Empty: 2018 saw the eponymous debut by the London born singer songwriter
Isaac Gracie. Similar in terms of style to the likes of James Bay and Ben
Howard, Gracie has helped carved his own little niche with well an album of
well crafted songs. Having taught himself to play the guitar at 18, the now 24
year old has had a long road reaching his debut album. Influenced by the likes
of Jeff Buckley and Bob Dylan, Gracie's songwriting touches on some quite
personal experiences. The songs are very well produced however, belying his
tender years. He is definitely a star of the future to watch out for. If his
debut is anything to go by, it's an exciting future as he can only get better.
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| Miles Kane- Brighton June 2018 |
Miles Kane- Cry on My Guitar: The Liverpudlian indie rocker has made a triumphant return with new
solo music after 5 years away. Having completed and toured a second album with
Alex Turner as Last Shadow Puppets, it’s good to have Kane back with solo
material. He has come back on the top of
his game, it’s like he hasn’t been away. This song fuses a Muse/T-Rex sound
into this modern indie rock anthem. Having seen him on the promotional tour
before the album was released, he’s still up there as one of the best live acts
around.
Mike Shinoda feat K.Flay- Make It Up As I Go: 'Make It Up as I Go' is one of the singles from the debut solo album
by ex-Linkin Park singer Mike Shinoda. The album titled 'Post Traumatic', is
his first solo work since the tragic death of Linkin Park bandmate Chester
Bennington. Released in June 2018, it features a mixture of tracks written by
Shinoda himself as well as a number of collaborations. One such collaboration
that struck me was 'Make It Up As I Go' written with American rapper K.Flay.
Having recently discovered K.Flay's music after seeing her tour with Imagine
Dragons, I started listening to more of her music and really liked what I
heard. The collobaroation between Shinoda and herself works really well, they
compliment each other perfectly. Anyone expecting something similar to LInkin
Park will be disappointed, what you have instead is something more toned down
but no less powerful. It's good to see Shinoda back making music and of high
quality too.
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| Razorlight- Brighton December 2018 |
Razorlight- Japanrock: Johnny
Borrell et al return after 10 years away. Razorlight were staples of the indie
rock scene in the mid-2000s with hits such as 'America', 'In the Morning' and
'Golden Touch'. However, there has been little activity since the band's 2008
album 'Slipway Fires' other than a handful of live appearences and a solo album
by frontman Johnny Borrell in 2013. 2018 sees the band return with a new album,
'Olympus Sleeping', and it's like they haven't been away. 'Japanrock' for
example is a catchy, guitar-led indie anthem which wouldn't have sounded out of
place on any of Razorlight's previous albums. It's really good to have them
back.
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| The Struts- London September 2017 |
The Struts- Fire (Part1): It’s
really good to have The Struts back. Having teased fans last year with the
single ‘One Night Only’, they finally have the full length follow up their
brilliant debut ‘Everybody Wants…’. It was really difficult to choose just one
song from the new album ‘Young and Dangerous’, to list here, but gone for ‘Fire
(Part 1)’. It shows the band at their flamboyant glam best. It’s catchy, has a
big chorus and a killer guitar solo. The guitar work on the album as a whole is
very impressive, with a number of solos catching the listener’s ear. ‘Body Talks’, ‘In Love with a Camera’ and the
Rolling Stones-esque ‘Primadonna like Me’ are other highlights on a very strong
album. My personal favourite album of the year.
The Weeks- Buttons (Live):
Bending the rules slightly for this one, but it is strictly a 2018 release so
it’s being included here. Plus The Weeks are one of my favourite bands so had
to include them. The Weeks released their first ‘Live’ album this year entitled
‘Live at the Vines’, a twelve track live record with the tracks chosen by the
fans. My personal favourite track ‘The House We Grew Up In’ is missing, but it
includes the mega fan favourite ‘Buttons’ which sounds immense in a live
environment. The guitars are turned up to eleven, the crowd are singing along
and you get the band jamming at the end. The band are seriously underrated and on
this showing, it is hard to believe they haven’t got a bigger profile.
Weezer- Rosanna: Weezer
have been on a prolific run recently. Their upcoming ‘Black Album’ is their
third album in three years following 2016’s ‘White Album’ and last year’s ‘Pacific
Daydream’. In between, earlier this year they surprised fans with the surprise
cover of the 1980s hit ‘Rosanna’ by Toto. This followed a social media campaign
by fans requesting the band cover Toto’s iconic song ‘Africa’. The cover of ‘Africa’
eventually followed with both tracks receiving positive reviews. Toto
themselves responded by covering Weezer’s 2001 hit ‘Hash Pipe’. It shows a band
having fun whilst showing they are very good at what they do.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4ZbxWGsZ48R2ALXzLmd09V
Thank You for reading. I wish you all a Merry Christmas and very happy new year.
