radioSpin

ISLANDS
A Sleep & A Forgetting

It’s said that Phil Collins would never have left Genesis and ventured out on his own if his relationship with his first wife hadn’t crumbled. If Adele’s boyfriend hadn’t smashed her heart, her hit 21 may have never have made its way to the top of the charts. And Beck’s tear-jerking and game-changing Sea Change was recorded after he split with his girlfriend of nine years. For Islands frontman Nick Thorburn, the band’s latest album, A Sleep & A Forgetting, is about more than a breakup: it’s about completely losing a way of life and having to start all over again. He started writing it on Valentine’s Day last year after breaking up with his longtime partner, leaving his New York home and moving to Los Angeles: he started messing around and writing songs on a piano he found in his new abode, and a year later came Islands’ fourth record. But though the subject of A Sleep & A Forgetting is one of the most common human experiences, the album is not a generic tribute to a breakup: it’s an inspired look at the grieving human heart. And one of the best Islands records so far, to boot.

ARTIST: Islands
TITLE: A Sleep & A Forgetting
LABEL: ANTI / Epitaph
RELEASE DATE: February 10, 2012
TIME: 37:43 min.
WEB: http://islandsareforever.com/

01. In a Dream It Seemed Real [03:21]
02. This Is Not a Song [03:56]
03. Never Go Solo [04:45]
04. No Crying [03:05]
05. Hallways [02:54]
06. Can’t Feel My Face [02:46]
07. Lonely Love [03:40]
08. Oh Maria [04:08]
09. Cold Again [03:19]
10. Don’t Love You [03:20]
11. Same Thing [02:32]

Islands – Hallways

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DREW SMITH
The Secret Languages

After the release of two wonderful videos such as Love Teeth and Smoke and Mirrors that hit the YouTube community with thousands of views, Canadian singer-songwriter Drew Smith release his full-length. The Secret Languages is an interesting collection of classic americana pop songs and a dynamic projection of Drew’s simple, efficient songwriting and a genuine depth of artistic delivery. A mix of heartfelt, visually descriptive lyrics and masterful compositions to fall in love with.

ARTIST: Drew Smith
TITLE: The Secret Languages
LABEL: self-released
RELEASE DATE: January 20, 2012
TIME: 36:46 min.
WEB: http://www.drewsmith.ca/

01. Frozen Still [03:07]
02. Bang Bang [03:34]
03. Kachina [03:39]
04. Smoke and Mirrors [03:10]
05. Love Teeth [03:52]
06. Box Me Up [05:53]
07. Mute [03:33]
08. River So Deep [03:18]
09. Old Souls [03:23]
10. Grotesque [03:17]

Drew Smith – Kachina

removed by request

MARK LANEGAN BAND
Blues Funeral

What else do we need to say that hasn’t been alrealdy said about Mark Lanegan? It would be enough to enumerate the bands and artist he has sung with, such as Screaming Trees, Queens Of the Stone Age, The Twilight Singers, The Gutter Twins, Soulsavers and Isobel Campbell. Blues Funeral is the first Mark Lanegan Band album since 2004′s Bubblegum. It was recorded in Hollywood (California) by Alain Johannes at his 11ad studio. The music was played by Johannes himself and Jack Irons with appearances from Greg Dulli, Josh Homme and many others. Enjoy.

ARTIST: Mark Lanegan Band
TITLE: Blues Funeral
LABEL: 4AD
RELEASE DATE: February 7, 2012
TIME: 56:00 min.
WEB: http://marklanegan.com/

01. The Gravedigger’s Song [03:46]
02. Bleeding Muddy Water [06:20]
03. Gray Goes Black [04:14]
04. St. Louis Elegy [04:37]
05. Riot in My House [03:56]
06. Ode to Sad Disco [06:27]
07. Phantasmagoria Blues [03:19]
08. Quiver Syndrome [04:06]
09. Harborview Hospital [04:34]
10. Leviathan [04:25]
11. Deep Black Vanishing Train [03:09]
12. Tiny Grain of Truth [07:07]

Mark Lanegan – The Gravedigger’s Song

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LEONARD COHEN
Old Ideas

From one of the master singer-songwriter, Leonard Cohen, here are ten new songs that mine the heart, shake the body and break the boundaries as everybody knows only Leonard can do. As a signature of our time, these are songs that nobody knows and everyone will treasure. The album was produced with Patrick Leonard, Anjani Thomas, Ed Sanders and Dino Soldo. Complementing Cohen’s wonderful baritone on Old Ideas are the exceptional vocalists Dana Glover, Sharon Robinson, The Webb Sisters and Jennifer Warnes. The album’s cover design and drawings are Cohen’s own.

ARTIST: Leonard Cohen
TITLE: Old Ideas
LABEL: Columbia
RELEASE DATE: January 31, 2012
TIME: 41:27 min.
WEB: http://www.leonardcohen.com/

01. Going Home [03:51]
02. Amen [07:36]
03. Show Me the Place [04:09]
04. Darkness [04:29]
05. Anyhow [03:08]
06. Crazy to Love You [03:06]
07. Come Healing [02:53]
08. Banjo [03:23]
09. Lullaby [04:46]
10. Different Sides [04:06]

Leonard Cohen – Show Me the Place

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AA.VV.
Megaphone XMas Compilation

Megaphone is a collective of artists based in Friuli, Italy.
For this year’s compilation, Megaphone asked 9 artists to write a song based on this unique video created by Francesco Imperato and Flavio Toffoli. So first came the video, then the music. That sounds cool, isn’t it? 9 soundtracks inspired by a single muse, 9 interpretations for a silent motion picture. The XMas Compilation 2011 includes members of the collective and some international very special guests.

ARTIST: AA.VV. selected by Megaphone Records
TITLE: XMas Compilation 2011
LABEL: Megaphone
RELEASE DATE: December 23, 2011
TIME: 28:41 min.
WEB: http://www.megaphone.it/

01. ARNOUX (feat. STEVE NARDINI) – Firebombs [02:36]
02. THE STORYLINES – Cause/Effect [02:53]
03. SJ ESAU – Drops [02:42]
04. THE SLEEPING TREE (feat. MICHELA GRENA) – Sammy Don’t Go [03:02]
05. VIDEODREAMS – Waterfalls of Light [03:34]
06. VAGUE ANGELS – S’Agaro [03:28]
07. ANGELA AUX – Float Downstream [02:49]
08. TOP BANANA – Because of the Void [02:41]
09. JACKEYED & THE SOUL FARMERS – Empty Crisis [04:56]

The Storylines – Cause/Effect

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AA.VV.
RS Top50 2011

So here we are: this year is coming to its end and it’s summing-up-time! It has been a really really hard work (but someone’s gotta do it, you know) to select the best albums of 2011. Obviously, no claim to be exahustive round here: it’s a matter of musical taste, and surely we’ve missed some fantastic release (we pre-apologize for that), but we’ve tried, and here are the RS-TOP20 album between the ones featured on radioSpin.
Let us know what you think about it.

01. RADIOHEAD – The King of Limbs
02. THE TWILIGHT SINGERS – Dynamite Steps
03. APPARAT – The Devil’s Walk
04. dEUS – Keep You Close
05. MOGWAI – Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will
06. MODESELEKTOR – Monkeytown
07. BIG CHARLIE – Too Little Too Late
08. ATARI – Can Eating Hot Stars Make Me Sick?
09. AUSTRA – Feel It Break
10. JUSTICE – Audio, Video, Disco
11. THE WOMBATS – This Modern Glitch
12. THE BLACK KEYS – El Camino
13. ZOLA JESUS – Conatus
14. MANCHESTER ORCHESTRA – Simple Math
15. DIGITALISM – I Love You, Dude
16. THE NEW DIVISION – Shadows
17. TYCHO – Dive
18. JANE’S ADDICTION – The Great Escape Artist
19. KING’S DAUGHTERS & SONS – If Then Not When
20. S.C.U.M. – Again Into Eyes

Here below (and, of course, inside the concerning section) a slighlty mixed exclusive podcast (downloadable at the end of the post) with the previous tracks. But that’s not enough: we’ve realized that there are some albums it wouldn’t be fair not to recall back: so this is why we go on with the rest of the chart to complete the RS-TOP50!

21. PJ HARVEY – Let England Shake
22. WILCO – The Whole Love
23. OKKERVIL RIVER – I Am Very Far
24. GOMEZ – Whatever’s On Your Mind
25. KATE WAX – Dust Collision
26. BVDUB – Resistance Is Beautiful
27. 65DAYSOFSTATIC – Silent Running
28. THE DUKE SPIRIT – Bruiser
29. PAUL KALKBRENNER – Icke Wieder
30. DANGER MOUSE & DANIELE LUPPI – Rome
31. FINK – Perfect Darkness
32. ALVA NOTO & RYUICHI SAKAMOTO – Summvs
33. AUTOKRATZ – Self-Help for Beginners
34. J MASCIS – Several Shades of Why
35. LADYTRON – Gravity the Seducer
36. LOW – C’mon
37. THE KILLS – Blood Pressure
38. JAMES BLAKE – James Blake
39. STATELESS – Matilda
40. ERRORS – Come Down With Me
41. RAFALE – Obsessions
42. BYETONE – Symeta
43. JUNIOR BOYS – It’s All True
44. M83 – Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming
45. SOFT METALS – Soft Metals
46. HANDSOME FURS – Sound Kapital
47. GOOSE – Synrise
48. DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE – Codes & Keys
49. ARCTIC MONKEYS – Suck It and See
50. KASABIAN – Velociraptor!

AA.VV. selected by radioSpin – RS TOP20 2011

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TOM WAITS
Bad As Me

Throughout his career, Tom Waits has created milestone albums that serve both to refine the music that has come before, and to signal a new phase in his musical path: Rain Dogs and Mule Variations are both counted by fans as among these pivotal works. Now comes Bad As Me, his first studio album of all new music in seven years, which finds Tom Waits in possibly the finest voice of his career and at the height of his songwriting powers, working with a veteran team of gifted musicians and longtime co-writer/producer Kathleen Brennan. Like a good boxer, these songs are lean and mean, with strong hooks and tight running times and there is a pervasive sense of players delighting in each other’s musical company that brings a feeling of loose joy even to the album’s saddest songs. Bad As Me is a Tom Waits album for the ages.

ARTIST: Tom Waits
TITLE: Bad As Me
LABEL: ANTI
RELEASE DATE: October 24, 2011
TIME: 44:42 min.
WEB: http://www.tomwaits.com/

01. Chicago [02:15]
02. Raised Right Men [03:24]
03. Talking at the Same Time [04:14]
04. Get Lost [02:42]
05. Face to the Highway [03:43]
06. Pay Me [03:14]
07. Back in the Crowd [02:49]
08. Bad As Me [03:10]
09. Kiss Me [03:41]
10. Satisfied [04:05]
11. Last Leaf [02:56]
12. Hell Broke Luce [03:57]
13. New Year’s Eve [04:32]

Tom Waits – Get Lost

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TORI AMOS
Night of Hunters

Tori Amos marks her debut album for Deutsche Grammophon, the world’s most celebrated classical music record label with Night of Hunters. The iconic, platinum-selling singer-songwriter continues her legacy of ground-breaking recordings with this 21st century song cycle inspired by select classical pieces spanning the last 400 years. With Night of Hunters, Tori Amos carries on the classical tradition of variations on a theme: taking inspiration from classical forms to create a bold new work while paying tribute to the mastery of the original compositions.

ARTIST: Tori Amos
TITLE: Night of Hunters
LABEL: Detusche Grammophon
RELEASE DATE: September 20, 2011
TIME: 72:20 min.
WEB: http://www.toriamos.com/

01. Shattering Sea [05:44]
02. Snowblind [03:19]
03. Battle of Trees [08:49]
04. Fearlessness [06:37]
05. Cactus Practice [04:33]
06. Star Whisperer [09:57]
07. Job’s Coffin [03:36]
08. Nautical Twilight [03:24]
09. Your Ghost [05:44]
10. Edge of the Moon [04:57]
11. The Chase [03:06]
12. Night of Hunters [05:37]
13. Seven Sisters [02:50]
14. Carry [04:07]

Tori Amos – Snowblind

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CITY & COLOUR
Little Hell

Dallas Green releases his third solo album as a singer-songwriter under the moniker City & Colour. The album, titled Little Hell, is the highly-anticipated follow-up to the 2008′s Bring Me Your Love, which was certified platinum in Green’s native Canada. Alternately sparse and inviting, intense and delicate, Little Hell shows music fans another side of Green’s incredible songwriting skills, and features some of his finest songs to date. Little Hell was recorded earlier this winter at Catherine North Studios in Hamilton, ON with producer/engineer/mixer Alex Newport (At The Drive-In, Mars Volta, Death Cab For Cutie). The record allows Green to highlight all of the facets of his songwriting, from blues-tinged rockers to pedal steel-soaked acoustic gems.

ARTIST: City & Colour
TITLE: Little Hell
LABEL: Vagrant
RELEASE DATE: June 7, 2011
TIME: 47:28 min.
WEB: http://cityandcolour.ca/

01. We Found Each Other in the Dark [04:22]
02. Natural Disaster [03:50]
03. The Grand Optimist [04:05]
04. Little Hell [04:43]
05. Fragile Bird [04:17]
06. Northern Wind [04:16]
07. O’Sister [04:16]
08. Weightless [03:32]
09. Sorrowing Man [04:32]
10. Silver and Gold [04:40]
11. Hope for Now [04:55]

City & Colur – Little Hell

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THE WOODEN BIRDS
Two Matchsticks

After spending several years in New York, The Wooden Birds‘ frontman Andrew Kenny decided he’d swallowed a big enough bite of the Big Apple and made his way back to Austin, Tte capital of Texas where he once led slowcore icons The American Analog Set into rivers of hypnotic grooves and dreamy guitars. Two Matchsticks, the band’s second album,finds Kenny continuing to explore his singer-songwriter side and show off his ability to pair atmospheric tendencies with sturdy folk-pop. While the new disc retains many of the same colors used in the past, Two Matchsticks has moved away from the Southern charms of 2009′s Magnolia and contains an energy not felt on its predecessor.

ARTIST: The Wooden Birds
TITLE: Two Matchsticks
LABEL: Barsuk
RELEASE DATE: June 7, 2011
TIME: 38:14 min.
WEB: http://www.thewoodenbirds.com/

01. Folly Club [02:43]
02. Two Matchsticks [03:01]
03. Cross My Heart [03:47]
04. Criminals Win [02:50]
05. Company Time [02:54]
06. Warm to the Blade [02:33]
07. Baby Jeans [03:53]
08. Too Pretty to Say Please [03:25]
09. Struck By Lightning [03:43]
10. Secrets [02:31]
11. Be No Lie [02:17]
12. Long Time to Lose It [04:36]

The Wooden Birds – Two Matchsticks

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FINK
Perfect Darkness

Recorded and mixed by producer Billy Bush, Perfect Darkness is a smouldering, pulsating, and purposeful book of songs. From its emotion-rousing, self-titled opener, to the darkly cinematic Fear Is Like Fire and the uplifting nostalgia of album closer Berlin Sunrise, this Fink‘s fifth studio album bristles with tense passion and hypnotic charm. It is in two words: bewitching and addictive.

ARTIST: Fink
TITLE: Perfect Darkness
LABEL: Ninja Tune
RELEASE DATE: July 19, 2011
TIME: 46:57 min.
WEB: http://www.finkworld.co.uk/

01. Perfect Darkness [06:39]
02. Fear Is Like Fire [03:58]
03. Yesterday Was Hard On All of Us [04:55]
04. Honesty [04:33]
05. Wheels [03:04]
06. Warm Shadow [05:47]
07. Save It For Somebody Else [03:49]
08. Who Says? [05:04]
09. Foot in the Door [05:03]
10. Berlin Sunrise [04:04]

Fink – Perfect Darkness

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EDDIE VEDDER
Ukulele Songs

If you include the soundtrack album he recorded for Into the Wild, Ukulele Songs is only Eddie Vedder‘s second solo album. This makes this release even more of a curiosity: as its title makes clear, the album consists of 16 tracks of Vedder pawing the tiny, four-stringed Hawaiian instrument and warbling love songs. That’s it. In a way, it’s as clear-cut a proposition as you’re going to get these days. You either instantly know you need 35 minutes of this in your life or are already backing slowly away. Vedder has said he wants this record to inspire people to pick up the instrument and sing with their friends, an old-fashioned sentiment impossible not to be charmed by.

ARTIST: Eddie Vedder
TITLE: Ukulele Songs
LABEL: Monkeywrench
RELEASE DATE: May 31, 2011
TIME: 34:42 min.
WEB: http://www.pearljam.com/users/eddievedder

01. Can’t Keep [02:36]
02. Sleeping By Myself [01:54]
03. Without You [03:19]
04. More Than You Know [02:25]
05. Goodbye [02:28]
06. Broken Heart [02:36]
07. Satellite [02:28]
08. Longing to Belonging [02:39]
09. Hey Fahkah [00:08]
10. You’re True [03:23]
11. Light Today [02:41]
12. Sleepless Nights [02:39]
13. Once in a While [01:45]
14. Waving Palms [00:37]
15. Tonight You Belong to Me [01:42]
16. Dream a Little Dream [01:31]

Eddie Vedder – Can’t Keep

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THURSTON MOORE
Demolished Thoughts

Demolished Thoughts, the third solo album from Sonic Youth‘s Thurston Moore was produced by Beck and features Mary Lattimore on harp, Samara Lubielski on violin, and Beck on various instruments. Demolished Thoughts is an equally beautiful and brooding work: while there are more than a few tonal similarities to some of your older favorite Moore compositions, the execution this time is nothing short of staggering.

ARTIST: Thurston Moore
TITLE: Demolished Thoughts
LABEL: Matador
RELEASE DATE: May 24, 2011
TIME: 46:53 min.
WEB: http://www.sonicyouth.com/main/

01. Benediction [05:16]
02. Illuminine [04:03]
03. Circulation [04:11]
04. Blood Never Lies [05:08]
05. Orchard Street [06:57]
06. In Silver Rain with a Paper Key [05:44]
07. Mina Loy [04:02]
08. Space [06:40]
09. January [04:52]

Thurston Moore - Circulation

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