The Year In My Music

I listen to everything. It doesn't mean I buy everything. Especially the commercial stuff. Also, if you know me semi-well, you'd know I don't download.

Yes gasp. Yes I am the weirdo. Well fark you. We haven't got a system where artistes can make $ and music without record companies, not in the conventional sense anyway. So $ is important and not even the air you breathe is free.

Ok, the two cents done. I bought these albums in 2009:
1. Depeche Mode - Remixes 81-04
2. Razorlight - Razorlight
3. The Roots - Home Grown! The Beginner's Guide To Understanding The Roots, Vol. 1
4. The Finn Brothers - Everyone is Here
5. Richard Ashcroft - Keys To The World
6. Calvin Harris - I'm Not Alone (single)
7. Kings Of Leon - Only By Night
8. Pet Shop Boys - Before (single)
9. The Streets - Everything Is Borrowed
10. Global Underground - Toronto - Deep Dish
11. The Annual 2005
12. Ibiza Annual 2005
13. Global Underground - Shanghai - Nick Warren
14. Emo Love
15. Mambo Jambo, Now & Forever
16. Feel
17. +65 Indie Underground
18. Air - Everybody Hertz (single)

The singles I generally buy for the remixes but the Calvin Harris track, goodness, was seminal. It spoke to the old man in me trying to feel that 25-yr-old trance vibe once again. (Ah the memories of running back into Zouk when Gabriel & Dresden played Motorcycle's As The Rush Comes for the 4th time the same night) Simple electronics, great beat, awesome record.

Most albums I buy because they are on sale and I would like to own them. Especially the other singles and Annuals. Classic dance tracks in the Annuals I bought, Ministry of Sound publishings. The GU albums are credit to the DJs mixing the tracks. The other albums I buy full price because I know they will change the way I think.

The Finn Brothers are the blokes who were in Crowded House, that NZ band with the quirky hits. This album is equally interesting with nice harmonies and melodies, and poignant and funny lyrics.

Kings of Leon blew me away when I heard Sex On Fire on the radio, and then Use Somebody. Amazing rock from deep inside America. Sounding British like the early Killers and scoring big outside the US first. It is little wonder why they are Grammy nominated for next year. I predict a Record Of The Year win for them. Seriously.

Depeche mixes by today's best remixers in a must buy and try. It was a no brainer when I saw the cover in Gramaphone.

Emo Love, Mambo Jambo and Feel are compilations of 3 genres of music. Emo Love has today's radio ballads/love songs from bands like the Fray and Plain White T's. Mambo Jambo had 80 kitschy shit I had to own. I play the Culture Club's Time Clock Of The Heart, Rick Astley's Never Gonna Give You Up, Womack & Womack's Teardrops and Bananarama's Love Truth and Honesty quite a bit. Feel has atmospheric, chill out works from the likes of Moby, Kings of Convenience, Royskopp and EBTG. Variety is good for you, compilations serve me well.

The album you must get is +65 Indie Underground.
It is a 3-disc compilation of local rock/pop songs. It is just great, judging from the first 45mins I've heard today to and from work. Seriously, do not underestimate the talents of Singapore bands. They are not Idol material (heaven forbid!) but they deserve more than a mere mention in local music history. Bands like Humpback Oak, Padres and Stompin Ground inspired the next wave of homegrown musicians like Electrico, Concave Scream and Plain Sunset. The album has 50 individual songs and pieces (some rocking instrumentals) and every track kicks ass or lends weight to some serious, eyebrow stretching consideration about where SG music was, is and could be. If you love your country, get this album.

The +65 Indie Underground FB page >>