The Year Dot to 16th April 2007

I could start with listing the 1500+ articles of music that I already own. But I'm not going to do that.

This blog will work as a sort of online catalogue of what I own, what I think of it, and the thinking (if there is any) behind these purchases, who the recommenders were and all that.

So, I'll start with the last week's haul, which has to be said, is larger than normal.

Beck - 'Guero' CD, 2005, 15 tracks, Polydor, £3, Greenwich Music & Video Exc.
As I mentioned in the main blog, this is a real return to form for Beck. Although Beck would probably be pissed off with that comment, because I like most other normal non-Beckalites think that his form is 'Odelay'. The music on this is back to the ramshackle lo-fi noises of his debut, with off kilter lyrics and head nodding beats. Best track: 'E-Pro' 8/10.

Human League - 'Travelogue' CD, 1980, 17 tracks, Virgin, £4, Greenwich MVE
This was brought on the strength of two things, the excellence of another early Human League single 'Empire State Human' and the recommendation from the book Rip It Up And Start Again which details the rise of post punk and new pop. This album is slightly disappointing when compared to their later stuff but is an interesting insight into where the 'League came from. Best track: 'Being Boiled'. 5/10

Rogers Sisters - 'The Invisible Deck' CD, 2006, 10 tracks, Too Pure, £3, Greenwich MVE
The Rogers Sisters are a band that first came to my attention on the brilliant 'Yes New York' compilation of 2003. They are spiky, and the previous mini-album 'Three Fingers' of 2004 is pretty good and includes versions of songs in French and Japanese. I haven't had chance to listen to this yet.

Electrelane - 'Rock It To The Moon' CD, 2001, 11 tracks, Let's Rock, £3, Greenwich MVE
These are an all-girl English group in a similar vein to Mogwai and Broadcast dealing in albums chock full of brooding lyricless soundscapes. They are group who have consistently been in my recommend lists on Amazon, so when I saw this I thought I'd give a whirl. I'm not disappointed, but at the same time it feels a bit listless and lacks direction. Their later album 'The Power Out' is supposedly a better bet and I shall reserve judgement on the group until then. Best track: 'Long Dark'. 6/10

The Cooper Temple Clause - 'Head EP' CD, 2007, 5 tracks, Sanctuary, £3.99, HMV Oxford Street
I think this will be the last release off TCTC's latest album 'Make This Your Own', in itself a big let down. 'Head', at least is a good tune and the inclusion of three unheard Coopers tracks as well as a pointless remix made this an essential purchase on the day of release. As I've said 'Head' itself is excellent, reminiscent of the Coopers of old in comparison to their new, FM-friendly sound shown on earlier singles 'Waiting Game' and 'Homo Sapiens'. The other tracks on this are standard Coopers B-side fare, a dark instrumental number that never goes anywhere, a lightweight acoustic track, and a track called 'Mayhem's Theme'. I'd have thought with a track name like that it would be an absolute belter but unfortunately not. And the 'Head Rhysmix' is crap. Best track: 'Head', 6/10.

Battles - 'Atlas' 12", 2007, 2 tracks, Warp, £4.99, HMV Kingston
Sometimes you come across a track, and a band, that really blows you away. If you reverse that feeling you will come close to the complete apathy that accompanies this track. To use the music as a journey metaphor, some journeys might have a crap journey but the destination is ace, ie the track might be long and pre-ambly but leaves you satisfied that the length was worthwhile with some sort of climax. 'Atlas' is like being on an overcrowded train stuffed full of screaming babies and your final destination is Skegness and you get there and find everything closed. The track goes on and on for 7 minutes plus, bleeping and sweeping it's way to absolutely nothing, it just fades out. Drowned in Sound recommended this to me and all I can say about it is it's bollocks, and the remix on the b-side is even worse. Warp has produced some brilliant music, Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, Autechre, Maximo Park. They've dropped a clanger here. Best track: none, 0/10.

Billy Bragg - 'Life's A Riot With Spy vs Spy' LP, 1983, 7 tracks, Go! Discs, £0.99, Ebay
I bought this for one reason, the track 'New England' which I first heard being covered in spectacular fashion by Kirsty Macoll. I'm looking forward to hearing the rest of the album, and I don't really know what to expect. Bragg is famous for his exceptionally left-leaning political stance, indeed he headed up (along with Paul Weller) Red Wedge, the musical movement that attempted to increase interest in voting Labour in the mid-80s. This doesn't really sit well with my political outlook; but his back catalogue is supposedly one of sheer class and consistency. This is critically recommended as a place to start, so start I shall.

Faultline - 'Your Love Means Everything' LP, 2002, 12 tracks, Elektra, £0.99, Ebay
This album comes highly recommended from Droz, and I have heard it a few times round his place. I thought this was too good a bargain to pass up, and is a nice addition to the collection. From what I remember the premise is similar to that of One Giant Leap, and electronic producer bringing in a host of vocal talent to embellish his tracks. The vocalists on this outing include Michael Stipe, Chris Martin and Wayne Coyne.