Congrats to King Stingray who pleasantly surprised a few and are our winners this week, plus have the TOTW.
The increase in class size is really bringing some diversity - even with 3 scores of 8.5+ they do not make it into our top 40 of the year.
Hypnotone took a few of us back to those hazy days, but were unable to sway anyone who is not already a parishioner in the house of House. They sit with General Fiasco and Keane on the classics.
Steve and Adam both have their first 9’s. Steve also awards the first 1 of the year to a new release (Andy’s felt equally miffed about a couple of classics).
Guy and SI, share the 😀.
Steve has his first ☹️ as well. (Phil, that’s now 2 weeks without it. In the words of Holly W, are you OK?).
Andy
King Stingray - Very much a first for us, even though these are apparently on The Chats’ record label, but they didn’t have any didgeridoo on their shouty tunes. I rather enjoyed this with the pleasant Yolŋu vocals over a guitar based sound we’re very familiar with. Spotify played me another of their songs which was a bit more world music like but might send me down a Yolŋu rabbit hole 6.5
Our Girl - I enjoyed these even though it was all a bit poor man’s Boygenius. A pretty pleasant listen 6
Primal Scream - All over the shop stylistically but generally decent. The funky stuff is really good but when they go disco it’s a bit too boilerplate. Also, while I’m often a fan of a bit of moodiness they go a bit far here, Melancholy Man is just a bit too melancholy, man. Settlers Blues is not what I’d expect from a Primal Scream album closer either! 6.5
Yoo Doo Right - Hello sonic cathedrals my old friend! Not quite at Mogwai level walls of sound but the pulsating drums and driving guitars are present and correct especially on Ponders End and the quite epic title track. Good stuff 6.5
TotW - From the Heights of our Pastureland from off of Yoo Doo Right
Hypnotone - Apart from the concern that YouTube will start promoting similar albums I didn’t really enjoy this. It sounds like a mish-mash of loads of (marginally) different ravey styles to no great effect. Maybe I should have popped some pills this morning 3
Guy
King Stingray – I’m not sure what I was expecting here but I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this as much as I did. What a great album. A real discovery. I loved it. Catchy tunes, loads of jingle jangle guitar. Breezed along beautifully - 8
Our Girl – Enjoyable selection of catchy guitar-based tunes. A little slow for me to get really excited about it although she’s got a nice voice. I recognise the BoyGenius comment Andy made and will raise him Wolf Alice in some of the faster numbers. - 7
Primal Scream – It wasn’t necessarily what I was expecting but quite liked the 70s disco vibe. It felt like the soundtrack to Fantasy Island in places... It does get a big maudlin in places but I think there’s enough in the good stuff to drag it up – 7.7
You Doo Right – We’ve had a few of these sonic soundscape albums that sound like movie soundtracks. This is decent but not the best. I did like Ponders End but the rest of it was more pedestrian and unmemorable – 6.5
TOTW – King Stingray – Through The Trees
Hypnotone – I agree with Andy that this feels really disjointed. Some really good tunes on it like Dream Beam with classic Italian House piano belting out, but equally some that are just plinky plonky beeps and whistles. Feels like a compilation album which would have made it as ineligible. Just as an album not on Spotify should be imho. - 6
Justin
King Stingray - boring MOR 5
Our Girl - nice vocals and some nice grunge guitars but otherwise unlikely to get any repeat plays 6
Primal Scream - there are a few terrible songs on here False Flags and Settlors Blues being the worst two. Some of the others could probably do with a remaster and/or speed up. However, extra points for still trying new things and some of it works well. 7
You Doo Right - we do many an epic sonic guitar journey album these days, but this one stayed on the right side of noodling 7.5
TOTW. Lost in the Overcast - You Doo Right
Hypnotone - this album perfectly mashes up the techno, acid and Italian house sounds of 89/90. It's a cold sparse futuristic sound which was on repeat for many a bus journey when I was at Manchester. 8.5
Phil
King Stingray 7
Quality upbeat breezy indie pop/rock. This lot are just as happy with guitar-led rock workouts as with slower more thoughtful numbers. Nothing radical just keeping things simple and doing them well.
Our Girl 7.25
Mellow, sunny enjoyable indie pop. I played this once and thought it ordinary but when I gave it a second spin, the good things – appropriately enough – began to emerge. Most of the songs are gentle and melodic, the sort of tracks that are hard to get right but they do. It helps that they have what amounts to a fourth gear for when the songs are just a little too gentle – Something about me being a woman is a good example of the way they can beef up their sound when they need to.
Extra marks for the Duane Eddy-esque riff towards the end of Something exciting.
Primal Scream 6
This was hard work. I’m far from a Scream buff but their records – and the one time I saw them live – always sound good until Gillespie starts singing. There are a few tracks here where he gets away with it – on Circus life he sort-of raps, and it works! It helps that the arrangement is terrific, like Talking Heads circa Remain in light. The final track though is a case in point. The subject matter is heavy enough – the colonial behaviour of the English - and it’s NINE minutes long. Betcha Shane MacGowan would have made it work though.
Musically the album is pretty chaotic. There’s some funk, a Chic-alike number, another that channels Simply Red (saints preserve us!) and one track that seems to be aiming for a Curtis Mayfield vibe. But throughout you have Gillespie’s mostly lifeless vocals, undermining any quality there is.
This will still appeal to Scream fans, I don’t doubt, but it didn’t do much for me.
Yoo Doo Right 6
Well, much as I admire sonic adventurers such as Godspeed! You Black Emperor, you need something more than epic soundscapes and the occasional dramatic sequence. You need some sort of structure even if it’s wedded to slow, meditative tunes and tempos. This album finally wakes up with Ponder’s End and the final, title track is good value for its eight and half minutes’ length, but the first twenty-three minutes are heavy going, man.
TOTW : Our Girl – The good kind
Classic
Hypnotone 3
EDM before the term had been coined, I think. I enjoyed this about as much as I normally enjoy EDM, ie scarcely at all.
Adam
King Stingray - Wonderful kick-off to this album with Light Up This Path - these Aussie rockers bring upbeat, catchy tunes that you could easily be sat on a beach to kick back a few schooners with. Really taken with this one - 9
Our Girl - Felt like I was being transported back to early 10’s shoegaze arts like Beach House, Cults etc. No frills but very listenable, laid back indie. 8
Primal Scream - lovely disco threads throughout. Ready to Go Home is a belter. Not beating the classics for me on this but a good album nonetheless. 6
Yoo Doo Right - Some good anthemic tracks on here but have to save I was glad it was a short album in the end. A little too on the experimental end. 5
TOTW - Day Off - King Stingray
Hypnotone - do love a bit of house and was an interesting listen through but would likely go back to other 90s contributions for a boogie. 6
Steve
King Stingray
Ooh I liked this, album of the week for me. Gave me a faux Echo and the Bunnymen fix with the odd shade of Two Door Cinema Club.Loved the guitar intros, particularly track 4. - 9
Our Girl
Soothing, melodic and nice vocals.However was a bit safe and didn't set the world on fire.Track 8 showed some life bit otherwise felt rather tedious. - 3
Primal Scream
Felt like putting on a familiar, comfortable pair of dancing shoes.Great 1st track and they still have the ability to create some bangers but it felt like they ran out of puff at times and needed a rest. Some maudling numbers but quite liked the morose closing track. - 6
You Doo
Or 'You Shouldn't' in my book! I've still got a headache from the Formula one car or circular saw intro to track 1! Felt a long time until I heard any actual music and considered starting a crowd funding page to buy them a new amp! Overall I found it an assault on the senses akin to techniques used in SAS interrogation training! - 1
Hypnotone
This took me back to listening to this type of music on vinyl on a portable record player, gifted by a grandparent, is it really that old?! Loved the nostalgia of it all including the repetitive hi hats and the vocal house.- 8
Jim
King Stingray 6.5
A few interesting tracks at the start, JJ with a bit of something extra. Kept me interested it not enthralled
Our Girl 6
Quite enjoyed this light indie/pop although we have a lot of this style and only a few have been etched in the memory. Doubt this will
Primal Scream 6.5
Starts of great, a couple of tracks with that more recent PS soulful sound, but from then it's very hit and miss and some of the misses already noted were by quite a distance. As you said Steve feels like Bobby, the ledge, has run out of puff. Plus, another good example of creating a 60 min. album then omitting the cull of the weakest quarter.
Yoo Doo Right 4
No yoo don't. When it got going it has some cracking big sounds , but these were annoyingly fleeting moments
TOTW Primal Scream - Ready To Go Home
Hypnotone 8.5
Justin - you bought me this as a gift many moons ago I think?
Absolutely classic acid house and Italian pianoooo mashup. Includes half a point for the memories of Tuesday night Sunset 102 radio shows back in the day
Simon
King Stingray: for the first few seconds of this I thought I was listening to Pale Blue Eyes, and whilst the similarities ended there this has the same cheery, upbeat vibe as the Devon dream pop trio. It's not pushing the boundaries but it's certainly a lot of fun. 7.5
Our Girl: I tend to find these female-led alt-pop acts all a bit of a muchness at times but this one definitely has a bit more about it - a willingness to crank up the guitars certainly helps, there's shades of the Pixies at times and a handful of excellent tracks (Who Do You Love, Something About Me Being a Woman). 7
Primal Scream: the album was co-written by David Holmes and it's not difficult to see his influence in the funk/soul flavours - thought it was pretty enjoyable overall without ever shooting the lights out, the uptempo numbers are much more effective than the slower ones not least Ready To Go Home and Innocent Money. 7.5
Yoo Doo Right: opens and closes really strongly, particularly Spirits Heavy (Part 2), but the tracks in-between don't stand out in the same way - would probably have benefited from some vocals. As epic, wall of noise, (mostly) instrumental albums go though, this worked for me. 7.2
Hypnotone: haven't listened to this for aeons, but it all came flooding back - like Justin, thought this was one of the better examples of the early house albums although sounds very much of its time now. 7
TotW: Our Girl - Who Do You Love
Sam
King Stingray , never heard anything from this language unsurprisingly. Decent bouncy indie in the most part . 7
Our Girl : yea we get a lot like this but good voice plus an ear for a tune sets this above most of the rest . 7
Primal Scream : I love them but this is a bit all over the place . A bit more coherence and a bit more oomph please . 7
Yooo dooooo right : some of the doom laden soundscapes flicked my switch but some of this was dull and pointless. 6
Hypnotone : took me straight back to The Black Orchid in Nottingham 91’ . Most enjoyable . Cheers 8.5
TOTW : something about me being a woman by Our Girl
Erol
King Stingray - moderately enjoyable soft Aussie rock. It bounces along quite nicely and the didgeridoo moments were a nice touch. 6
Our Girl - pleasant enough and quite relaxing to listen to. I’m quite partial to a bit of melodic mood-music like this. 6.9
Primal Scream - the opening few tracks were disco-tastic but they don’t offer anything new. It feels like they cobbled together every 70s strings induced beat they could lay their hands on. The rest of the album was, apart from one track, too downbeat and melancholic. All in, it’s a fairly decent album but a bit disappointing compared to what I was expecting. 7
You Doo - sonic landscapes or just a wall of noise that gave me a headache in the gym? I still can’t make my mind up but I doubt I’ll be going back to this in a hurry. 5
TOTW - Love Ain’t Enough, Primal Scream. The best track on the album but only because of the dirty guitar riff.
Hypnotone - it’s a bit basic and it does sound dated with all its beeps and pia-pia-piano moments, but it conjures up nostalgic memories of happy times in the early 90s. There are better albums out there from that era, but it still put a smile on my face. 7
Annette
King Stingray: 6
Our Girl: 7
Primal Scream: 6.5
You Do Right: 4
Hypnotone: 7.5
TOTW: Primal Scream- Innocent money
Matt
King Stingray: Was surprised by how much I enjoyed this. Jangly surf-rock shot through with sunshine. 8.5 (includes the bonus point for didgeridoo usage)
Our Girl: Pleasingly melodic and quite soothing but slipped in and then out of my consciousness without making too much of an impression. 6.5
Primal Scream: a slightly unexpected disco undertone like TJAMC meets Sister Sledge. It grew on me though, until we got into the clunky and tedious tracks towards the end (which were notably lacking in funkadelica). Overall I think it's a grower (and the Terry Farley mix of Ready to go Home is a proper tune). 8
Yoo Doo Right: Nothing wrong with a cathedral of sound but this was more like an empty warehouse of humming. 5
Hypnotone: I remember on first hearing this how different and modern it sounded and it still does ( but oddly, a little bleaker) 7
TOTW: Through the Trees, King Stingray
Mark
King Stingray - Jolnu surf rock, that's a new one on me. Actually liked this a lot, the aboriginal vocal is something new and the music's decent - 6.5
Our Girl - setting aside the obvious Boygenius comparisons and the fact we've heard a lot of this kind of thing over the past few years, to be fair this was a pretty good listen, quality songwriting and nice atmospherics - 7
Primal Scream - a mixed bag, opens up with three or four crackers, all the right classic Scream ingredients then rather loses its way and some of the slower numbers are just dirges. Sign of a good new album is that you genuinely want to hear some of it in their live set and there's several that make the cut here, so on balance it's a - 8
Yoo Doo Right - hopes were raised by the industrial rev up of the opening track which created a real sense of anticipation, but no vocals and too much noisenik indulgence soon lost my interest - 5
TOTW - Love Insurrection by Primal Scream
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