Yearly Round Up - Five Good Albums and One Turkey

Well, everyone else is doing it, so here's my top 5 albums of the year and the biggest turkey ever to be put in my cd player:

Good 1 - Just A Little Lovin' - Shelby Lynne

This is a stripped down and immaculately produced album from Shelby Lynne. She covers the Dusty Springfield songbook. It's a good late night listen. Cilla's version of Anyone Who Had A Heart is still the best though.

Good 2 - Kurr - Amiina

Four women from Iceland, who play quiet, orchestral music on a variety of instruments - from violins to bottles to saws. I imagine small children might like to do expressive dance to this. Amiina do the orchestration for Sigur Ros.

Good 3 - Mande Variatons - Toumani Diabate

Sounds very much like his Kaya album from 1989. Just a guy with a kora playing complex, reflective and ancient Malian music. The bit from The God, The Bad And The Ugly is a nice touch.

Good 4 - Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes

Baroque American music from 5 young guys with tight harmonies and even tighter playing. When we saw them live, they were better than the album. The album is brilliant, however.

Good 5 - Sonata Mix Dwarf Cosmos - Susanna

I reviewed this two or three blogs entries down from this. She's just put out a new album called Flower of Evil, another one of her covers albums. Never thought someone would do an ambient, haunting version of Thin Lizzy's Jailbreak, but she has.


And The Turkey Of The Year Is...........

Ys - Joanna Newsom

Overhyped - every reviewer's album of the year - until something listenable came out in March that is. She plays harp (with polymetric styling no less) and, err, sings. Well, she doesn't sing because she can't sing, she just kind of whines in her little girl's voice that could strip paint. I took it back, life's too short.