I'll continue to not turn off the radio when GA come on but I don't think I'll take it any further thanks.

What I'm listening to at the moment mainly comes from BBC 6 Music's Tom Robinson Introducing Podcasts. I urge everyone with a little time to check them out as you get an hour's worth (about 12 tracks) of free music every week that ranges from the bonkers to the sublime.

I currently love Trust by Bitter Ruin. Which should be at the end of that link as a download with luck (I've not tried out the download link).

PS A may well be coming back; they're supporting The Wildhearts in Hammersmith on the 12th Dec. Bloody brilliant.

As well as the obvious Adam and Joe amazingness on Saturday mornings, BBC 6 Music also has Jon Richardson on Sunday mornings. Well worth a listen.

Failing that get the podcasts.

Hey; why, when I type download, does the word download appear?

I thought it was download.

Edit: Ahh - can't deal with plural podcasts.

Someone ought to sort that.

I am somewhat heartened by Jonnyboy's affection for the girls aloud crew.

As some of you may know, I have often fallen under the magical spells woven by girl groups of the past. From All Saints to Mystique through to B*witched (that's right, i even know the proper way to write their name!), i've often been guilty of humming their tunes on the way to work (but never wearing an all denim combo in honor of b*witched, never, never...)

Recently however, I've found that the latest single of the saturdays (don't know the name) is the latest in the line of girl group music that is setting my toes a tappin'.


and re the jon richardson download, I used to listen to the edited version of the russell and Jon richardson show. T'was very funny, so much so, I had to sit in a corner on the train in the mornings, so that people didn't see me smiling like a lunatic (well more than usually anyway).

I agree, but draw the line way before B*witched.

A few word on Itunes free single of the week. Usually crap, but this week is a song called Reasons Not To Be An Idiot by Frank Turner. I like it.

Oh and I also like the current Lily Allen effort.

I don't know what any of you people are talking about. In dubai they play the same 20 songs over and over again These include:

Red red wine
Shut up and let me go - ting tings
Human?
Black and Gold
Anything and everything by squirrel-voiced black men or aggressive dance-off type black men
Everything by Leona Lewis (she should really just succumb to porn and stop singing)

And all these squidgy-Calling type rock/alt songs that sound like everyone decided to give their old 3 Doors Down and Goo Goo Doll albums another whirl and rehash em. It's awful - even Gavin Rossdale has just done a song that's oh so gay, not to mention Live's latest effort (Forever - God it's bad) and all these songs about turning the car around, where were you?, and anything by Daltry. 1000 points to anyone who can tell me which songs these are.

I hate the radio. Someone help me.

I thought I'd start linking to the songs I find particularly jolly from the Tom Robinson Introducing Show starting with this example of Chap-hop about 'Timothy St John Westwood'.

I find it chucklesome.

(PS I'm guessing at the url, if it doesn't work search Myspace for Mr B The Gentleman Rhymer)

(PPS This sort of thing may well also provide a solution to your problems Govi: the internet is a wonderful thing and all BBC shows are available on iPlayer.)

iPlayer only works in the UK though, so this is actually likely to infuriate Govi* even more.

or you could just use a proxy, so they think you're in the uk

Good point.

But as Tart says there are ways round this, and even if you couldn't be bothered with that there are numerous 'podcasts' and a squillion other online stations to stream. I'm sure someone can recommend a decent one to the hairy beast.

This is all good advice...except how do I get all of this technology into my car without resorting to Westwood type West Sharmal Sheikh type Customs?

AHA!

And I don't know how this is going to go down on the fest but Ive just been listening to Dave Seaman's Global Underground sessions and Im afraid I like it.

Determined to make it difficult aren't you? I guess in a car your best bet will be to set it up for an mp3 player and download all the 'casts you are interested in. If it's music you're looking for you probably won't find much but (once again) I'd recommend Tom Robinson Introducing which provides an hour a week of obscure but usually decent stuff (such as Edit, edit, edit by Vanity Theft) and is free.

Otherwise I go for the following to get me through Mondays:

Fighting Talk
Friday Night Comedy
Adam & Joe
Mayo & Kermode's Film Reviews
Daily Mayo

PS What, the ex-England goalkeeper?

That's what I thought at first, but a trance/house DJ it would seem.

I gave Cake's greatest hits a whirl yesterday and goddamn those guys are awesome. Guitar Man and of course Friend is a Four Letter Word are superb.

check out www.spotify.com

spotify is freakin awsome man.

Check out the drums on The Same Page by Proof of Concept.

I wouldn't have put this down as your sort of thing, King. It's a bit over-cymbally for my taste, but there we go - tell me it's not a drum machine and I'll be impressed.

Well it's true I probably wouldn't listen to a whole album of similar but I do like the odd instrumental. I was particularly taken by the thought that someone could make the noise live: I reckon it's probably not a drum machine but it could well be looped up to the max. Whilst it's ambiguous though, I'll take my illusions.

PS I await the news from Dub (ala Ween talking about the fingering on Butch Reads a Pamphlet) that it actually uses quite an easy technique and I shouldn't waste my awe on such amateurs.

While I'm linking to all the ...Introducing tracks that I've particularly liked I'll finish off the back catalogue with Monkey Fist by Mon Mon, March of the Dawn by The Mummers and Kiss your Teeth by Last Mango in Paris, and yes that really is Don Letts on the latter. Apparently they met him (and the ladies at the beginning) on a train and got him to record an intervention.

Elbow - The Seldom Seen Kid

This album has had more awards (most notably the Mercury Music Prize) thrust at it than Tom Cruise has had mobile phones so I felt it was worth a listen. Elbow aren't a band that have really made an impression over the years; their songs have been good but not particularly attention-grabbing, tending to merge into one another after a while.

So has the situation changed? Well, not really: there's just not enough variation in there for my taste; Elbow are a band that rely more on delicate arrangements and Guy Garvey's haunting vocals than any big riff and anthemic chorus, and I'm a sucker for a big riff. That's not to say they don't do anthemic: the recent (6 minute!) single One Day Like This has huge, swelling strings and and an even more swelling chorus juxtaposed with some quieter, delicate moments; the whole combining to create a stand-out track that will no doubt appear at the end of many an American TV show/England world cup run for years to come. An unjust use perhaps but one that producers won't be able to resist (if Elbow permit of course). The other single I've heard, Grounds for Divorce is Kasabian-like in tone and sound and is a perfectly acceptable 3 minute pop-rock song. The stand-out track on the album (or perhaps just the one I like most) is the first; Starling. This consists of little more than Guy Garvey gently singing a strange little poem over some very light strumming but the lyrics struck a chord somewhere. Probably the off-beat first lines...

The rest hasn't yet done much for me - as I said, it is a bit samey; it strikes me that Elbow are in some ways quite similar in sound to Doves and yet I'm not nearly as excited by them. I think I'm just a fan of 'wall of sound' music, something that Doves do to great effect. However, I've not listened to the album that many times. Perhaps as an un-musical listener it has subtleties I've missed. Perhaps the tracks I've mentioned provide enough promise to continue listening. Perhaps its subtleties will grow on me before I get bored. Perhaps.

3.5/5


How dare the premiere ignore my invitations? He'll have to go. So too the bunch he luncheons with; it's second on my list of things to do. At the top is stopping by your place of work and acting like I haven't dreamed of you and I and marriage in an orange grove. You are the only thing in any room you're ever in. I'm stubborn, selfish and too old. I sat you down and told you how the truest love that's ever found is for oneself. You pulled apart my theory with a weary and disinterested sigh. So yes I guess I'm asking you to back a horse that's good for glue, ain't nothing else. Well find a man that's truer than, find a man that needs you more than I. Sit with me a while and let me listen to you talk about your dreams and your obsessions, I'll be quiet and confessional, the violence exploding inside me when I meet your eyes, then I'm spinning and I'm diving like a cloud of starlings.

Darling is this love?

Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You

As some of you may have noticed from my facebook status, I really like this album. Those of you who did read my facebook status may also have read the reply to it from a mate of mine who agreed with me saying 'i can't help but like her. i know i probably shouldn't, but there's something about her - maybe the sweet singing voice, coupled with the fact she's clearly filth. i like that.'

As well as being comedy genius, I think this is a fair summing up of the album - a heady mix of sweetness and filth. The sweetness is exemplified by 'Who'd Have Known?', a lovely song about friendship turning to love. Further towards the filth end of the spectrum is 'Not Fair', in which Allen lambasts her man for being crap between the sheets.

Everything is delivered in Allen's trademark talky, sing-song voice, but far from this grating I find myself mesmerised by her voice. It really is very sweet.

Finally, every tune on the album is a catchy winner.

I recommend it.

I've always liked the slag. Her songs are so wonderfully London and street without having that dirty Lady Sovereign tinge to it. And she's witty. She makes me laff.

I like her less because she deigned to allow me to take a photo of her at Glasto, after I said I was from Rolling Stone and then sniggered when I said, India edition. Black points all round and a slumdog millionaire slap to boot. I should have asked to her to get dressed first.

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Tart.

Chris Cornell - SCREAM

I like Chris Cornell. I'd even go so far as to say I love the man. If there's one person I would love to emulate in terms of his rock and roll rocket propulsion, or even envy for his God-given talent for sounding like milk and honey over Southern Comfort and razorblade vocals, it's him.

Listening to the opening of his new album, Scream, produced by that goon in a suit, Timbaland, I thought perhaps the tinkly and beat boxy overture was a joke. When the drum machines and mindless poptastic tweets kicked in on the backing tracks - I began to feel suicidal. And when Chris Cornell's voice filtered through to my ears like the sounds of a dance-drug-popping member of an Eastern European boy band that'd just been selected for the Eurovision Song Contest, it was all I could do to stop myself from crashing my car into the nearest building.

Chris Cornell has sold out. Or gone insane. Or simply got bored with being a stellar, iconic and living legend of a rock and roll singer. He has abased himself to the murky and body-popping depths of the consumerist approach to music. From being considered in the ranks of a Plant or Hendrix of our generation, the man has put on a pair of Mickey Mouse ears and stood shoulder to shoulder with Britney, Justin and Beyonce. Not that I have anything against Britney, Justin or Beyonce. It's just that they never pretended to be anything other than pop entertainers. To give you a fitting definition of what Cornell has done, he has just acquitted himself as the Fergie of Rock Music. Laughable, pitiable and wholly embraced by an industrial machine of music that's trying to pry dollars solely from the hands of teenagers.

Skipping through the tracks, you are treated to Cornell's voice as an echoing, fading and electro-synthesised accompaniment to mechanical drum beats, happy clapping and the kind of musical arrangements you hear for iPod commercials. It's the kind of stuff you'll soon be hearing remixed to faster and bigger dropped beats in the clubs of Ibiza. To the dancing masses, Cornell is now probably the new faceless singer to some 'wick'id tune man innit' kind of appraisal. It's trying to be cool. It's what you'd expect a wannabe out of music-burnout-hell to do to get back into favour with the CD-buying masses, or what a desperate ageing band would attempt if they were faced with bankruptcy. Cornell is neither - so this move is a sure sign that he's either bored or senile. I'm hoping the former.

If this is a creative tangent, it has failed miserably. When you marry Chris Cornell's voice with the R and B tunes and ghetto phrases of today's pop music, you're left feeling a little cheated, betrayed and heavily soiled. When Depeche Mode segued into another music world, namely clubland, they did so keeping their characteristic brooding, guitar-jangly and angsty notes riding high in time to monstrous beats and befitting drum machine loops - it was still Depeche Mode. Cornell on the other hand is simply a voice on a pop track. No angst, no raging guitars and no soul. He's singing in time to a jam with kids half his age that are plinking on synthesisers and scratching records. This is botox music - artificial, superficial and visibly belying something seriously wrong beneath the surface.

Cornell's attempt at a contemporary record is to suggest that soon we'll be seeing pictures of him in trucker caps, oversized jeans and loose fitting baseball tops. If he's going in this direction, I'll wait till the Chris Cornell breakdance workout video before I throw out all my Audioslave and Soundgarden CDs and taking a one way ticket to his house to beat him over the head with a Les Paul.

I haven't been this depressed since George Harrison died. I for one am hoping Cornell's fans will come out in force to alert him to of this creatively labotomised travesty. Aside from the fact that it's selling out, the man's wings and pedestals are being torn asunder in this regrettable drop from Godly status. It's not fusion or creative experimentation I'm worried about. It's just that this album just ain't rock and roll. It's a rift in the time and space continuum of logic and good taste. It's something you see in the movies. Get that alien out of Chris Cornell you intergalactic bastards or simply - get that tune mixing, cheesy-peasy and bloody annoying super producer away from the dude.

I'm officially in mourning.

Nice review Govi*. I lack your love for Cornell, but I certainly won't be listening to this, sounds like it's drivel.

I do have one problem, and that is with the phrase 'sold out'. No one has ever adequately explained to me what this phrase means. It's used all the time by fans, but as far as I can make out it simply means 'someone I like has produced something that now appeals to people I don't like and therefore they have lost my respect'.

There seems to be a lot of anti-populist thinking out there which goes along the lines of: 'if the teenage girls like it, it must be crap', or more commonly 'if it's being played on the radio, then I'm no longer interested in it'. Now I should qualify my comments in two respects here. Firstly, I am in no way accusing you Govi* of this kind of thinking. Secondly, there is obviously a lot of music that teenage girls like that is total cack (in my opinion).

However, I think we do people like Chris Cornell a disservice when we use the phrase 'sold out'. There is no doubt that he has moved away from his Soundgarden days artistically but there is no evidence to suggest that this is purely motivated by money. All pop/rockstars are ultimately looking to make money from what they do - otherwise they wouldn't have sought a record deal in the first place (actually, the point at which these people 'sell out', if they do at all, is the moment they sign that first contract). Beyond that, they might start to appeal to more people, or to a different group of people, but that is their choice.

They owe us nothing as rockstars and we owe them nothing as fans. To me, the idea of being 'loyal' to a singer or band is bonkers. Albums (or songs in my case as I rarely buy albums) should be taken on their merits. If you don't like it, you don't like it. No reason to take it personally and never listen to that artist again. Similarly, the idea that artists should be loyal to their fans is just as crazy.

Anyhow, as I say Govi*, I liked your review, I just don't buy that you believe that whole 'sold out' thing.

Just don't get me started on whether the music of Beyonce or Trousersnake is inherently less worthy than that of Hendrix. (it's not)

And before you ask, yes I do have work I should be doing.

I have to disagree... I much preferred Hendrix cover of "All the single ladies"

on a serious note, I understand your point, but I'll be happy in the knowledge that in 50 years time, people will still be listening to Hey Joe, All along the watch tower, Voodoo Chile etc... where as I doubt there'll be many people hunting down the first vinyl press of Beyonce's "irreplaceable".

You're probably right. But on the other hand I wouldn't bet against people dancing the night away to Crazy In Love for the next few decades or so, in the same way that people still do to the old Supremes stuff from the sixties. And no doubt there are at least a few rambling self-indulgent Hendrix tracks which have already been pretty much forgotten about.

You crazy homies - am loving the debate shenanigans.

Jonnyploy - I like Timberlake and Beyonce and I agree with your negation of selling out as a concept on its own - except of course when you build a career in one direction, have a swarming legion of fans for your artistic merits (be they headbanging or different styles within your genre) and suddenly transport yourself into the world of Timbaland and it doesn't work, fans do feel a little cheated. I bought his album blind - no reviews, no questions - that's what a fan does. He doesn't owe me anything but when someone's as far up in your esteem as CC and he does a parallel shift like this, it's demeaning on some level. I take it more personally because I heard him sing live and I promise you, the guy has a God given talent to sing - raw,pained and in a totally effortless manner. It's pretty spellbinding. He's pissed it away on this album in a Johnny Cash sings at Blackpool Leisure Centre kind of way, which suggests he's either bored or trying a new thing. Whatever it is - he shouldn't have been on the cover of the album, mid-air bringing a guitar down over his head to smash it - he's left that world behind and hopefully, temporarily entered a world of Timberlake-esque beats and bops. Like I said - he's no Timberlake so what's he doing with Timbaland? Duran Duran did it but it fit their evolution. This - this is like a carpenter attempting orthopaedics. It's ugly. Don't be loyal to us fans, but do yourself a favour and don't produce shit like this - it's just awful! It's like if Timberlake moved back to N Sync, his RnB fans would lose respect for him on some level - he's free to do it, but then so are we to like him a little less. His transformation from singing dancing head to 'artist' garnered a lot of respect for him - it doesn't work when you go back to the industry's profiteering side.

Ween - totally with you all the way baybay. I have that scene from Watchmen in my head with All Along... kicking off. Ohhhhhh yessss!

Govi*, like I said I don't doubt for a moment that the album is shit. You argue that point eloquently. I guess when it comes to buying music I'm just far less trusting. I never buy anything without trying it first - I suspect that's to my detriment.

Just a thought on the cover: is the picture of Cornell smashing his guitar meant to be symbolic of him leaving that world behind? If so , let's hope for your sake that he's goes out and buys a new one pronto.

To shift subjects: has anyone listened to any Tilly And The Wall? Nebraskan band with a tap dancer instead of a drummer. Worth checking out. (Writing that has put an image in my head of Feedback playing but with Sammyboy tap-dancing like a mofo innstead of drumming. Genius).

My god, I can finally contribute....

Yes, I bought Beat Control off itunes a while ago. A sort of jackson five esque sound. Love it.

I have heard some Tilly and the Wall stuff; thought it was OK but lacked any real punch...I actually thought they would do better with some drums. They may have improved in the interim though. I'll Spotify.

As to selling out; can anyone give a cast-iron example of someone (musician, film-maker, poitician, whatever) doing so? Wasn't Dylan accused of doing so when he moved from folk to rock? Why has Damon Albran never been accused? What is the average air-speed of an unladen swallow?

Has anyone heard any Stone Gods stuff? It's so retro it might as well come in a studded leather case and automatically dial up the volume on your stereo to 11. Stone Gods are the what became of The Darkness when Justin left; gone are the falsetto prancings but the banging, eighties-inspired riffs and faint whiff of lycra remain. If you liked The Darkness for bringing the rock (rather than the sense of fun) they're worth a listen.

Dylan has definitely been accused of it at various points. Also Paul Weller, Green Day, Nirvana, Pearl Jam (accused by Nirvana I think). None of them actually ever did.

Here is Mike Dimt's response to Green Day being accused:

"If there's a formula to selling out, I think every band in the world would be doing it", he said. "The fact that you write good songs and you sell too many of them, if everybody in the world knew how to do that they'd do it. It's not something we chose to do."
"The fact was we got to a point that we were so big that tons of people were showing up at punk-rock clubs, and some clubs were even getting shut down because too many were showing up. We had to make a decision: either break up or remove ourselves from that element. And I'll be damned if I was going to flip fucking burgers. I do what I do best. Selling out is compromising your musical intention and I don't even know how to do that".

On the other hand, selling out is something that actors do all the time, and mostly don't really hide it.

A recent example would be Janeane Garofalo's current stint on right-wing pro-torture genius-show 24 despite being a prominent left-wing activist. When asked about it she said 'I needed the money'. Fair enough.

I have been mulling over what I think is a definition of selling out - feel free to add or subtract from this.

Selling Out
When you forego or alter your identity, principles, values or artistic integrity, without considering it experimentation or natural evolution of your art, and intend to expressly gain commercially from this new artistic venture, that you would have considered disingenuous, faintly reprehensible or misrepresentative of yourself or your musical intention when you began your career, is essentially when you 'sell out'. To also ride on the coattails of another artist's merits to produce work where the artists do not meet as equals is also in some sense selling out. And if an artist were to become so prolific so as to gain commercially from simply riding high on good sentiment, but to work with any and all comers, styles or trends without considering the value of the artistic output - is selling out (Robbie Williams to an extent). I think selling out is a something that people do to a degree rather than as an absolute (they part sell out).

Essentially I think it's a loss of integrity and identity for moolah/fame/popularity. This as a disambiguation from signing on the dotted line to earn from your art for a livelihood. Selling out is not the exchange of artistic output for cash, but the relinquishing of core aspects of your identity, style or content as an artist or foregoing your 'musical intention' for commercial gain, outside of what is characteristic of you, your work or your personality. This is also nuanced from evolving into complementary artistic styles or experimentation, as a lapse from previous work.

Eg - if Slash suddenly became the Ja Rule of pop and began playing guitar accompaniments and bopping like a girl in videos for Rihanna, Ja Rule, Fergie, The Pussycat Dolls, Britney and anyone else who wanted a piece of him (without being ironic) I would say he'd sold out. It's kind of what Santana did in the late 1990s. Playing for Lenny or MJ was rock and roll back in the day and Slash maintained his wailing guitar splendidness. If he didn't, he's have sold a part of himself forever. How's that?

You might point to John Lydon advertisng Country Lfe butter - surely a complete overturning of any punk sentiment he uttered in the 80s.

Then again, people (and times) change...Iggy Pop advertises car insurance. Who'd have thought?

Sorry, I don't buy a word of that. Firstly, no one can possibly know what another person's core identity/principles/values are. Only I know what my core values are, just as only you know what yours are. Therefore it is inherently ridiculous for me to come to come to the conclusion that you have betrayed yours. It seems to be a common mistake for fans to assume that they in any way know a popstar simply because they have listened to their songs.

Secondly, to claim that these artistic values remain static is plainly untrue. On pretty much every subject (including music) my tastes and views have changed since this time last year, let alone ten years ago. And they will continue to change I hope.

Thirdly, I dispute the notion that doing something purely with the intention of earning money undermines the artistic merit of that project. I have no idea what the term 'artistic integrity' means.

What my argument boils down to I guess is this:

Santana probably enjoyed what he did in the late 90s. Who are we to complain about it? If he didn't enjoy it, then that's his problem, not ours.

Blimey this is all getting a bit serious! Interesting arguments but I can't be bothered to get involved in the whole 'selling out' debate.

But seeing as I haven't contributed any reviews or anything for a while I thought I'd say what I'm listening to at the moment.

I went to see a couple of gigs last week, Doves at Kentish Tow Forum and Paul Weller at the O2. The new Doves album Kingdom of Rust is out soon and judging from the gig there will be some good tunes on there.

However as Jonnyboy says, I rarely buy albums these days, I'll tend to hear something on the radio or on a film and get it off iTunes. Here are some of my (random) recent purchases:

Paper Planes (MIA) - heard this on Slumdog Millionaire. Great tune, once you get over the bonkersness of the gunshots and ringing till noises.

Supermassive Black Hole (Muse) - OMG tune

Just Like Honey (Jesus and Mary Chain) - I watched Lost in Translation again the other day and this is the song it finishes on. Class

Business Time (Flight of the Conchords) - absolute genius and the best episode IMHO

Started out with Nothing (Seasick Steve) - saw this guy live supporting the Stereophonics. Amazing

Oh and by the way, Jonnyboy maybe I should take up tap-dancing? I'm sure that would have gone down a storm at the Rock Concert!

I'm off to see Doves in Reading on 30th April. Should be shiny.

SS Steve is a class act.

I concur on all three counts.

I seem to have also acquired a significant chunk of the MGMT album through the same method of hearing something I like and getting from itunes. Leads me to conclude that they are pretty good.

I still think my definition's pretty good. And you're just being obstreperous in the face of rock n roll baybee. So ner.

I have been mostly listening to Cake. They make me laugh. I have also started eating muesli and fresh fruit soaked in yoghurt and honey for half an hour. It's incredible. It has nothing to do with music, but thought I'd share that anyway.

I am so not down with all the iTunes purchasing. I need to upgrade my human disk processor and chips.

Okay, new mini-thread:

Songs that should be on Guitar Hero/Rock Band but aren't

I'll get the ball rolling with the following three:

My Sharona - The Knack
He-Man Woman Hater - Extreme
Now I'm Here - Queen

Bosh.

Looks like I'm rolling this ball all on my own then...

No problems:

Song 2 - Blur

Ok here's one:

Canon in D - Funtwo rock style
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjA5faZF1A8

I would but I don't know what's not so...

I'm guessing there's no Sympompadomp though...or I can Climb Mountains by Hell is for Heroes.

Sort it!

I'd like some more Kiss. Crazy, Crazy Nights would fit the bill.

Ooh, or even an expansion of 'Classic movie rock themes' for things like 'back in black' and 'iron man'.

I was under the impression that Crazy nights was done - I'm pretty sure its in the demo for the new Guitar Hero that I downloaded the other day (along with Take me out by FF and Woman by Wolfmother).

Muse United States Of Eurasia

This is a song from Muse's new album. It is a glorious mix of Queen-esque harmonies, Persian influences and Chopin. Bonkers, but amazing.

Word is that the new album will be ambitious even by Muse's standards - the last three tracks constitute a fully orchestrated symphony. I can't wait.

I was reading today apparently it has been inspired by Matt Bellamy reading 1984. Should be good.

Songs I am currently listening to a lot:

Does He Love You? - Rilo Kiley
Various tracks by The Noisettes
New York - Paloma Faith (or Polenta Cake as a friend of mine insists on calling her)
Krangface - Inspector Knockerjob

(okay the last one may be imaginary).

Saw Zero 7 in concert recently, absolute pants. No Sia for starters, and their new stuff is odd.

Editors however were immense. And their new album is growing on me. However Im not sure that any of you lot like old Editors never mind new Editors.

Peas

Okay, in the tradition of all those end-of-year lists that have been on the telly, but a bit late and obviously a lot better because it's us, I have the following questions:

1. What were you favourite songs of 2009? I don't mind how many you list, in fact the more the better.

2. What was your favourite album of 2009?

And here are my answers (in purple just to shake things up a bit):

1. My top 3 are:

Lily Allen - The Fear
The Airborne Toxic Event - Sometime Around Midnight
The Noisettes - Never Forget You

Notable mentions:

Groove Armada - I Won't Kneel
Editors - Papillon
The Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition
Paloma Faith - New York
Jay-Z and Alicia Keys - Empire State Of Mind
Miss Li - Bourgeois Shangri-La
Paolo Nutini - Pencil Full Of Lead
The Veronicas - Untouched
Paramore - Ignorance
Alphabeat - The Spell
3OH!3 - Don't Trust Me
Dizzee Rascal - Dirtee Cash
Pixie Lott - Boys And Girls
Kid Cudi - Make Her Say
The Duckworth Lewis Method - The Sweet Spot
V V Brown - Shark In The Water
Dan Black - U + Me =
Simian Mobile Disco - Audacity Of Huge
Polly Scattergood - Other Too Endless
Empire Of The Sun - Walking On A Dream
Frank Turner - Reasons Not To Be An Idiot
Muse - Uprising
Two Door Cinema Club - Something Good Can Work


2. Top of the list is:

Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You.

Notable mentions for:

Muse - The Resistance
Jay-Z - The Blueprint 3
30 Seconds To Mars - This Is War