The best albums of 2019! (so far)

Billie Eilish - When we all fall asleep where do we go?
At first Billie Eilish seemed a confusing prospect for the casual observer. A teenage pop-star promoted with shockingly edgy music videos, dank memes and her penchant for oversized clothes. With the internet debating her validity it proved to be the music itself most worth talking about. the huge single and opener to this album 'Bad guy' being the key introduction to her character. A darkly comic and sexual pop song with a creeping sense of unease. 'Xanny' is even stranger, a jazz song by a Gen Z singer advocating for not abusing Xanax like so many of her contemporaries do. 'You should see me in a crown' and 'bury a friend' provide the bangers while 'all the good girls go to hell' is a nihilistic look at global warming. Throughout her debut Billie and her brother (producer FINNEAS) completely disregard genre restraints and the final product brims with an experimental edge that could never be replicated by anyone else. While many have compared her to Lorde, Billie lacks the same holier than thou approach to writing about being a teenager. While Lorde is wise beyond her years Billie is utterly consumed by her teenage emotions and it's on the quiet piano ballads that detail first love and suicide 'Listen before i go' and 'I love you' that Eilish is at her most devastating. 
Check out - I love you

Tyler, The Creator - IGOR
Even back in his Odd Future days I knew that Tyler would one day be making groundbreaking albums. Following his acclaimed Scum Fuck Flower Boy LP Tyler has created an album which demands to be heard in one sitting. IGOR is a trip inside Tyler's own world and it's an often unsettling one. IGOR mixes a star studded cast of gursts such as Playboi Carti, Kanye West, Slowthai and many more into his sonic stew yet the ficus is always on Tyler himself. IGOR is a loose concept album about love and heartbreak. Tyler takes elements of N.E.R.D and Kanye West and mixes them with a warped style of funk and soul. While he was previous known as a rapper and producer its Tylers abilities as a musician that really make IGOR work such as the spine tinglingly brilliant keyboard hooks on 'Gone Gone'. This is an album by an artist at the peak of his powers that couldn't have been made by anyone else. 
Check out - The whole album in one sitting, as it was intended to be heard. 

Slowthai - Nothing Great about Britain
Nothing great about Britain tells you everything you need to know about Slowthai and where he's from in its opening 3 minutes. As Ty declares that there is nothing great about Britain, attacking politicians, cultural appropriation, racism, and royalty in a thrillingly hilarious fashion. For anyone who loves grime but doesn't feel that they belong in the culture Slowthai is a breath of fresh air. Throughout his brilliant debut album Ty paints a picture of his background as a young British man, the son of a Barbadian single mother, raised in the poorest suburbs of Northampton. Slowthai is far from your typical macho rapper. He finds strength in his vulnerability, his voice cracking under the pressure of all he has to say. his lyrics are full of memorable one liners, at times hilarious "Gotta thank mum for the 23 years she wiped my arse, Thank you Ma", now I’m gone".  At other times Ty reflects on his past in heartbreaking autobiographical detail, "What's mum done to you, you're lucky I'm not as big as you, i'll punch you till my hands turn blue" Nothing great about Britain is one of few British rap albums that live up to classics such as 'Original Pirate Material' and 'Boy in da Corner'.

Check out - Dead Leaves

Bring Me The Horizon - AMO
Bring Me The Horizon are at a point in their career that few bands, let alone heavy metal bands manage to reach. A point where after 4 albums they are left with a choice. They can either stick with their established sound and please their existing fanbase at the risk of that fanbase slowly dwindling with future releases or take risks, experiment with their sound and write songs that will encourage new fans to take the place of those who don't like the new direction. Thankfully BMTH haven't scrapped the guitars to the extent of Linkin Park's much maligned last album. The heavy tracks on AMO such as MANTRA and Wonderful life still bear all the heavy riffs and shouty refrains that BMTH are known for. For much of the rest of the album BMTH delve into electronica, with mixed results, while 'Medicine' finds them having a go at a 1975 style pop tune. Throughout AMO BMTH throw every millennial songwriting cliche they can at the wall, the whoops, pitched chipmunk vocals, Drum breaks and even an attempt at the triplet flow are all present. The eclectic approach mostly works on the strongest songs, but can be annoying when the songs aren't up to scratch (such as the irritating 'Sugar Honey Ice & Tea'). BMTH deserve credit for being one of the few mainstream rock bands who are willing to experiment and break new ground.
Check out - Heavy Metal

King Gizzard And The lizard Wizard - Fishing For Fishies
2 years is a long time to go without an album for a King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard fan. Almost too long. After 2017 blessed us with no less than 5 albums from the gonzo aussie 7 piece it was a long wait for the next step from them. Fishing For Fishes is yet another reinvention for KG, who regularly chance genres between albums. Fishing for fishes is their most divisive yet, as the band explore the little known musical style known as boogie. The opening title track may sound joyful and optimistic yet lyrically it's a sort of protest song about the damage caused by over-fishing. 'Plastic Boogie;' is similarly timely, screaming 'Fuck all of of that plastic' King Gizzard may be rightfully worried about the state of the environment but it still sounds like they're having a blast while singing about it. Yet over the course of Fishing For Fishes things get progressively darker as the lament of dying bees gives way to a sombre interlude, progressively getting more and more electronic until they finish things off with the brilliantly camp 'Cyboogie' which mixes their rootsy boogie with retro synths, it's unashamedly proggy, but also lots of fun. 
Check out - Plastic Boogie

Other great albums I've loved this year..
Lewis Capaldi - Divinely uninspired to a hellish extent
Better Oblivion Community Centre - S/T
James Blake - Assume Form

The Japanese House - Good at falling

Mercury Rev - Bobbie Gentry's The Delta Sweete revisited

Sundara Karma - Ulfilas' Alphabet

Injury Reserve - S/T

Vampire Weekend - Father of the Bride

Ezra collective - You can't steal my Joy

Loyle Carner - Not waving, but drowning 

Amyl & The Sniffers -S/T

Crywank- Wearing Beige on a Grey Day 

Denzel Curry - ZUU

Fontaines D.C.- Dogrel 

While She Sleeps - SO WHAT?

PUP - Morbid Stuff

Foals Live at The Digbeth Arena review.

In 2019 Foals are undeniably one of the few rock bands to have really made an impact over the past decade. Forging a style of their own, mixing the complex math rock of their breakout debut 'Antidotes with the muscular rock 'n roll of their more recent records. Now with a top 5 album under their belt in 'Everything not saved will be lost Part 1' (part 2 will be out later this year) I felt privileged to get a chance to finally see them at the Digbeth arena. Both shows sold out almost immediately and the converted open warehouse space still made for a relatively intimate space to see Foals in.  

I dragged a friend along ti the show who, unfamiliar with Foals and their output asked me to describe them in one world. I decided to settle on 'tropical'. It's hard for me to pin down why,  but Foals just seem suited for hot sweltering temperatures and sunlight. 

The same can be said for first support act KIEV (6/10). A Californian group whose blissful indie rock can best be described as Foals-ish. The real treat for me was to catch YAK (7.6) fora second time after their wonderfully chaotic show at The Castle and Falcon back in March. Unfortunately YAK's brilliant mix of psychdelic rock, krautrock and just plain noisyness was lost on a largely disintersted crowd. YAK may slay the smaller clubs but it may be some time until they are ready to do the same for arenas.

FOALS on the other hand had the audience in the palm of their hand. Riding high of the previous sold out Birmingham show. Frontman Yannis remarked on more than one occasion how much he loved the Birmingham crowd, praising us for drinking on a Sunday and not giving a shit about our jobs, as well; as the vibe of the urban graffiti covered arena. It was definitely fitting that Foals had chosen to return to Birmingham for these shows as their sound clearly had an influence on the nascent Digbeth based 'B-Town' scene. Birmingham also provided the site for one of their legendary early shows at the nearby Sunflower Lounge. However Yannis no longer seems to spend Foals gigs climbing up walls and assaulting security guards as in 2019 Foals are a well (snake) oiled machine. Delivering a setlist full of 'nasty little rippers' such as 'On the Luna', 'My Number', 'Mountain at my gates', and bringing out older favourites such as 'Olympic Airwaves', 'Red Socks Pugie'. All of which just seemed to be warming up for an incredible 'Inhaler' which was followed by a quick new number 'Black Bull'. A new track in the vein of heavy rockers such as 'What went down' which bodes well for the next record. 'What went down' itself was a highlight but Foals saved the best for last. Taking an old favourite 'Two steps twice' and stretching out out and building up tension for what seemed like an eternity, asking the crowd to kneel down before finally getting to the songs maddeningly catchy chorus. Ending a crowd pleasing set of indie rock bangers on a delirious high. (8.8)

Kamasi Washington Live at The Institute Birmingham review.

Who have thunk it? Jazz is cool again. It's hard to imagine why a genre so heavily associated with its golden era of the 'cool jazz' greats who provided a calm defiance to an era dominated by discriminatory right wing politics, racism, police violence and the fight for African-american men and women to be treated as equal to other human beings. Of course none of this has any relevance to the era we live in today. So why has Jazz gained relevance again? It may be partially down to Kendrick Lamar's game changing 'To Pimp a Butterfly' album and the man who played his saxophone all over that iconic record, Mr Kamasi Washington. Kamasi is a big man with a big afro, a big saxophone an a big band. everything about him and his music screams BIG! Not least his aptly titled debut 3 hour long record 'The Epic'. All this begs the question of whether Kamasi Washington is the new kid on the block or a genuine jazz legend in the making, the millennial answer to Coltrane or Davis. The best way of course to try and answer that question is to see him live. Before I got the chance to do this however Oscar Jerome (6.8/10) and his band kicked off proceedings. Oscar Jerome is a jazz guitarist and bandleader who specialises in a very modern style of jazz, mixing live experimentation with tight vocal and guitar led songs. Their live performance was enjoyable but maybe just a bit low key to really be wowed by. The same cannot be said of Yussef Dayes (8.4), the drummer and leader of a trio on keyboards and bass. Yussef is a fantastically talented jazz drummer who backed by the hard kitting bass and keyboards of his band out on a truly thrilling show. The trio are able to jam and reach incredible highs them bring the vibe down to a quiet lull. Compared with Kamasi's band they seemed relatively punk and new school in comparison, threatening to steal the show.
While Kamasi Washington's name may have been on the posters, it's hard to imagine a  more ego free band leader. Kamasi's band are less of a band than a travelling musical family. Kamasi introduced every member of his band individually, telling stories of their friendships and how they came to be on the stage. He seems especially close to keyboardist Brandon Coleman. Telling the crowd of how he managed the feat of mastering the keyboards in only two years and beaming with pride as his friend had his chance to shine during an incredible solo. Kamasi Washington's live show is a test of endurance for any jazz fan, stretching roughly 10 songs into a 100 minute masterclass in musicianship. At it's heights, such as the shared solo piece between his two drummers, it was thrilling, but for pieces such as the solo on soprano saxophone by his father Ricky Washington, not quite as much. Kamasi only gave himself a short chance to shine with one sax solo and a speech that prefixed the live version of 'Truth' (which had the lead melody performed by Brandon on a vocoder rather than sax and stretched out far pst its original time). Kamasi explained that "you're gonna hear us play 5 different melodies at the same time, as a metaphor for how beautiful this world can be when we all come together".
In slight contrast to 'Trruth' Kamasi's version of the Bruce Lee theme tune 'Fists of Fury' made for a defiant end to the show as singer Patrice Quinn made the statement that "Our time as victims is over, we will no longer ask for justice, instead we will take our retribution".
After all this it's hard to really say who Kamasi Washington really is. As I saw and learned more about his friends and band-mates than the man himself. As to whether he is the next jazz legend, only time can really tell. (8.8)


Links:
www.oscarjerome.com
www.facebook.com/pg/yussefdayes
www.kamasiwashington.com

The Best Albums of march 2019

Billie Eilish - WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?

Like many people i found it easy to dismiss Billie at first. The earlier singles from this album showed off a sound that was unique rather than defining. Usually when the entire industry decides that one person is worth obsessing over its tempting to do the opposite and ignore them entirely. But the only thing that ultimately matters is whether the music is good. And when you forget about the (admittedly brilliant) high budget music videos, baggy clothes and public persona, this debut album is actually good. In fact it's excellent. Far from the usual overproduced pop records of her peers, This record is the sound of Billie and her brother throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks. The production is unique and genuinely creative, cutting and pasting beats and vocals into songs that are both catchy and sinister. Billie herself is only 17 and the highs and lows of first love are recounted here in frank and sincere detail. When the effects are stripped back on deep cuts such as 'ilomilo' and 'i love you' it becomes clear that this is the emergence of a major talent.

Check out - i love you

Foals - Everything not saved will be lost Part 1

On first listen I was disappointed that after 5 years Foals hadn't changed up their sound or experimented with new ideas. Yet on repeated listens I grew to appreciate how much this album captures everything that is great about them. Aside from some muddy vocals the production is fantastic as are the performances and songs. Foals have taken the muscular rock sound of their later records and mixed it with the complex math rock of their early records and have created an lush sounding, compulsively listenable record that may be their definitive record. and there's still a second part tome come.. 

Check out - White Onions

Little Simz - GREY Area

After a string of promising alums dating back many years. it seems that GREY area is the album in which Little Simz has realised her full potential. Stripping away the pretence and filler of the average modern rap album for 10 tight as fuck bangers. From the raw empowerment anthems Offence and Boss Little Simz sets the tone by saying whatever the hell she wants over a back drop of raw, jazzy instrumentals. Best of all is the charming garage throwback 101 FM. A lyrically and musically retrospective tune that proves that no matter how far Little Simz has yet to come. She will never forget where she came from. 

I also Enjoyed:

Flume - Hi This is Flume

Nilufer Yanya - Miss Universe

Scarlord - Infinity

The Comet Is Coming - Trust in the lifeforce of the deep mystery

The Japanese House - Good at falling

Mercury Rev - Bobbie Gentry's The Delta Sweete revisited

Sundara Karma - Ulfilas' Alphabet

YAK + Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam. Live at The Castle And Falcon (30/3/19) Review

The local opener for this Yak show was Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam (6.4/10). A band who are currently at the forefront of the Birmingham scene, having released their last album 'Blackout Cowboy' to acclaim, after releasing a wealth of Bandcamp material over the years before it. Despite having been a part of the Birmingham scene for some time, this show supporting Yak was surprisingly enough my first time seeing them. Unsurprisingly Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam are a pretty solid band live. Their psych- rock sounding tight and focused. Blacking out the lights in time with the song 'Blackout Cowboy' was also a nice touch.

Since bursting onto the scene a few years back with their debut LP 'Alas Salvation' YAK have established themselves as one of the UK's best live bands and a strong part of the psych rock revival. Following a few years where Yak travelled across the world and Singer-guitarist Oli Burslem briefly ended up living in the back of a van they're back with the new album 'Pursuit of Momentary Happiness'. On the Friday night I saw them, the tiny Castle and Falcon venue was packed full of punters, watching an empty stage as abstract electronic noise filled the room. Once a white clad Oli and the rest of Yak hit the stage the young lads at the front started moshing and didn't stop till the end of the show, not long after that Oli decided to join them, not bothered at all by the fact that he was still playing his guitar. For a brief moment he fell right down in front of me, but was up before I could help him. 

Musically Yak are a bit hard to put into a simple box. Their newer material takes cues from Spiritualised, yet their stage show is more reminiscent of the feral energy you'd find at a King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard show. Oli plays guitar much like his label boss and guitar hero Jack White, stripping back all pretension, and distorting blues rock riffs into something far more heavy. In terms of songwriting Yak can be incredibly simplistic. Like when Oli spent a whole track deadpan singing 'He's got the whole world in his hands' down a loudspeaker. All this comes backed by the krautrock style rhythms of drummer and bassist Elliot Rawson and Andy Jones. Yak also took some time to slow things down a little bit and air some newer songs and also rant monologues about modern life down the loudspeaker, but the next burst of noise was never too far away. 

Almost as if to play a little prank on the audience after the supposed last song Yak simply walked off stage and let the lights and music back on, before walking back on stage a minute later to play more tunes without a word. A strange way to do an encore, but Yak are never ones to do things the normal way. 

(8.8)

Links:

www.yakband.co.uk/

https://www.facebook.com/sunshinefrisbeelaserbeam

https://www.facebook.com/CastleandFalcon/

Broken Lungs - Cultural Decay EP review.

Cultural Decay is the second EP from Brummie 'Loud Fast noise band' Broken Lungs. A band who emerged from the ashes of various brummie acts such as Crime And Punishment 2011 and Someone Said Fire. This is the second EP from the band formerly known as Ghostwriter and the opening track 'Sick to death' kicks off with a bang. Singer Joe Jones' vocals kick in a screamed '1,2.3,4,... GO!" with a huge guitar riff and pounding bass and drums. Its reminiscent of bands such as Gallows, or Every Time I Die, who in the 2000's blurred the lines between punk and metal. Guitarist Nik fills the track with enough quick fire riffs to keep the song interesting, adding a breakdown into the last minute with some nice snares from drummer Dan. What sets Broken Lungs apart from several other bands who can do this sort of thing however is Joe Jones lyrics. Broken Lungs do not appear to be a political band but their songs will be instantly relatable to anyone who's actually paid attention to current events in the past 5 years. Broken Lungs attack the stereotyped idea of the narcissistic millennial with glee, literally screaming 'if I had a penny for every slur I hear about millennial's I could rent a better world'
'Armed the teeth' keeps in a similar vein, with a similar mix of riffs and breakdowns, although the lyrics take a more poetic turn, opening with the line 'feeble hands meet stronger minds, lapping at the fangs the tides they rise'. Whatever any of this means is a bit hard to decipher than the straightforward anger of 'Sick to death'. Closing track 'Baloons in Catacombs' has a few old school heavy metal elements and ditches the obscure lyrics for nihilistic sloganeering, 'I've got all my eggs in the same casket, the whole of humanity is on my blacklist'. Broken Lungs rehearsed and wrote together as a side project a long time before they emerged with EP's such as this and it shows. The end result shows a band who have perfected their sound. It's the anger of punk meeting the aggression of heavy metal. My only real criticism is that these three songs all follow a similar formula. This is fine for an EP but I'm not sure how it would translate into an album. Broken Lungs have skipped the rough, experimental stage that most bands put out on their second EP's and have already arrived at the finished product. I feel that they have missed an opportunity to experiment with new ideas and sounds. Yet if it's loud, fast hardcore noise you're after then This EP comes highly recommended.

https://brokenlungsuk.bandcamp.com/album/cultural-decay

The Best Albums of February 2019

Better Oblivion Community Centre is the debut collaborative album from Pheobe Bridgers and Connor Oberst. The latter a long standing indie rock veteran and former singer of Bright Eyes. The former, is a rising star. Pheobe Bridgers' debut LP 'Stranger in the alps is a masterpiece of melancholy, confessional Alt-Folk. This collaborative album may have been slightly overshadowed by Pheobe Bridgers' allegations against her former boyfriend Ryan Adams. The nature of the relationship was detailed in uncomfortably honest songs such as 'Motion Sickness' on her debut. BOCC finds Pheobe moving on from her past and finding the perfect musical partner with Connor Obserst. The two span several genres and styles throughout this album, from synthpop to grungey indie rock and stripped back folk. Despite Connor's status Pheobe emerges as the real star, weaving beautifully nostalgic stories to match their experimentation.
Check out - Forest Lawn 

Andy Burrows & Matt Haig - Reasons to Stay Alive 
Matt Haig's book 'Reasons To Stay Alive' is one of my all time favourite books. It has helped me through many a difficult period and i feel is an essential resource for anyone who has or wants to understand mental health and the stigma that surrounds it. Part memoir, self help book and surprisingly funny and light hearted throughout. It is essential reading. This album is a collaboration with Andy Burrows. Who for better or worse is the perfect person to bring Matt's memoirs to life. The sentimentality of Matt's writing works better in novels than in music. Andy Burrows, musical accompaniment is generally lacking in any real edge or definable style. Yet as a reminder to find joy in the smaller things in life,  'Reason's to Stay Alive' is still worth a listen,
Check out - Hero

I also Enjoyed
Julia Jacklin - Crushing
Drenge - Strange Creatures.
Sleaford Mods - Eton Alive