Blog

2012

25) Pulled Apart By Horses - V.E.N.O.M
24) Future of the Left - The Plot Against Common Sense
23) Marina & the Diamonds - Electra Heart
22) Tame Impala - Lonerism
21) Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Crown and Treaty
20) Metric - Synthetica
19) First Aid Kit - The Lion's Roar
18) Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory
17) Sleigh Bells - Reign of Terror
16) Chairlift - Something
15) Cate le Bon - CYRK
14) Dog is Dead - All Our Favourite Stories
13) Lucy Rose - Like I Used to
12) The Mars Volta - Noctourinquet
11) Rolo Tomassi - Astraea
10) Gallows - Gallows
9) Friends - Manifest!
8) Bat for Lashes - The Haunted Man
7) 2:54 - S/T
6) Grimes - Visions
5) Sharon van Etten - Tramp
4) Alt-J - An Awesome Wave
3) David Byrne & St Vincent - Love this Giant
2) Beach House - Bloom
1) Mark Lanegan - Blues Funeral

2011

10) Feist - Metals
9) PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
8) Laura Marling - A Creature I Don't Know
7) Dutch Uncles - Cadenza
6) Lykke Li - Wounded Rhymes
5) Anna Calvi - S/T
4) Battles - Gloss Drop
3) Emmy the Great - Virtue
2) Wild Beasts - Smother
1) St Vincent - Strange Mercy

2010

10) Pulled Apart By Horses - S/T
9) Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster - Blood & Fire
8) Marina & the Diamonds - The Family Jewels
7) Liars - Sisterworld
6) Warpaint - The Fool
5) Rolo Tomassi – Cosmology
4) Arcade Fire - The Suburbs
3) Peggy Sue - Fossils & Other Phantoms
2) Amplifier - The Octopus
1) Laura Marling - I Speak Because I Can

2009

10) Bat For Lashes - Two Suns
9) St Vincent - Actor
8) Spinnerette - Spinnerette
7) Mastodon - Crack the Skye
6) Emmy the Great - First Love
5) Arctic Monkeys - Humbug
4) Wild Beasts - Two Dancers
3) Florence and the Machine - Lungs
2) Metric - Fantasies
1) Soulsavers – Broken

2008

7) British Sea Power – Do you like Rock Music
6) The Gutter Twins - Saturnalia
5) Be Your Own Pet - Get Awkward
4) Mystery Jets - Twenty One
3) Isobell Campbell and Mark Lanegan - Sunday At Devil Dirt
2) Metallica - Death Magnetic
1) Laura Marling - Alas I Cannot Swim

Worst -> Best

41) Florence + the Machine

40) The Shins

39) Random Hand

38) Japanese Popstars

37) Ceremony

36) Green Day

35) The Flatliners

34) This is Hell

33) Hildamay

32) The Skints

31) Friends


30) Paramore

29) The Minutes

28) Polar Bear Club

27) Cancer Bats

26) The Cure

25) Every time I Die

24) Grimes

23) Clement Marfo and the Frontline

22) Turbonegro

21) Trash Talk


20) Pure Love

19) Foo Fighters

18) Dog is Dead

17) Mastodon

16) Less than Jake

15) Billy Talent

14) The Cribs

13) Fidlar

12) Me First & The Gimme Gimmes

11) We are Augustines


10) Gallows

9) Lucy Rose

8) Future of the Left

7) Pulled Apart by Horses

6) At the Drive-In

5) Mongol Horde

4) Alt-J

3) Mark Lanegan

2) 2:54

1) Sleigh Bells

Worst -> Best

Mazzy Star
The Vaccines
Liars
Jessie Ware
Kindness
Metronomy
Summer Camp
R. Stevie Moore
Sleigh Bells
Revere
Blood Orange
Grimes
Friends


Que obligatory picture of hipster group:

...because it was getting too far down my journal(s) to edit easily


#

2:54 (3)
30 Seconds to Mars
80's Matchbox B-Line Disaster (2)

A

AFI
Alexisonfire (3)
Alkaline Trio (2)
Alessi's Ark
All American Rejects
All Time Low
Alt-J
Amen
American Head Charge
Amplifier (7)
Anthony & the Johnsons
Anthrax
Anti-flag
The Antlers
Anti-product
The Apples
Arcade Fire (2)
Archers of Loaf
Architects
Arctic Monkeys
Ash
At the Drive-In (2)
Auf Der Maur
Avenged Sevenfold

B

Babyshambles (3)
Charlie Barnes (3)
Bastions
Battles (2)
Beach House
Bedouin Soundclash
Best Coast
Be Your Own Pet (2)
Biffy Clyro (2)
Bilge Pump
Billy Talent (2)
Blackhole
Black Label Society (2)
James Blake
Blasted
Blink 182
Bloc Party
Blood Brothers
Blood Orange
Blood Red Shoes (2)
Bo Pepper
Bouncing Souls
Brand New
British Sea Power
Broadcast Radio
Broke'N £nglish
The Bronx (8)
Bullet for my Valentine

C

Cage the Elephant
Anna Calvi (2)
Isobell Campbell & Mark Lanegan
Cancer Bats (2)
Capdown
Caribou (2)
Cate Le Bon
Cave In
Cerebral Ballzy
Ceremony
Chapel Club
Chiodos
Clara Clara
Cleopatra
Clement Marfo & the Frontline
Clock Opera (2)
Coheed and Cambria
The Computers
Crazy Arm
The Cribs
Crystal Castles (3)
Cults
The Cure
Cypress Hill

D

Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip
Dan Michaelson and the Coastguards
The Darkness
Dashboard Confessional
The Datsuns
Ray Davies
The Dead 60's
The Deadbeats
Deftones
De La Soul
The Descendents
Digitalism
Dillinger Escape Plan
Dirty Pretty Things (2)
The Distillers
Dog is Dead
Pete Doherty (2)
Do Me Bad Things
Dropkick Murphys
Drowning Pool
Dutch Uncles (2)
Bob Dylan

E

Eagles of Death Metal (3)
Emmy the Great (4)
The Enemy
Everything Everything
Exit Music
Exit Ten (2)
The Ex & Getatchew Merkurya

F

Faith No More
Fall Out Boy (3)
Faust
Feeder (2)
Fiction
Fidlar
The Field
Fightstar (3)
The Flatliners
Flogging Molly (2)
Florence and the Machine (7)
Johnny Flynn
Foo Fighters
Foreign Beggars
Four Tet
Friendly Fires
Friends (2)
Fucked Up (2)
Funeral for a Friend
Funeral Party (2)
The Futureheads
Future of the Left

G

Gaggle
Gallows (3)
The Gaslight Anthem
Gentleman's Dub Club
A Genuine Freakshow
Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly
Laura Gibson
Girlschool
Glasser
Glassjaw
Glasvegas
God's Little Eskimo
Goldheart Assembly
Goldie Lookin' Chain (2)
Gogol Bordello (3)
Gossip
Grand Volume
Green Day (2)
Grimes (2)
Guillemots
Guns & Roses

H

Hatebreed
Hexes
Hildamay
Robyn Hitchcock
The Hives
Hollow Promise (lol)
Hot Snakes
Hundred Reasons (2)

I

Ida Maria
Iggy & the Stooges
Ill Nino
Imadethismistake
Incubus
In Flames
Interpol
Iron Maiden
Islet (2)

J

The Jakpot (2)
Japanese Popstars
Jecano
The Jessie Rose Trip
Jimmy Eat World (3)
Johnny Foreigner
Daniel Johnston
Junip

K

Kasabian (2)
Keith
Rose Kemp
Kentaro (DJ)
Kids in Glass Houses
The Killers
Killswitch Engage
Kindness
The King Blues
Kings of Leon
Kissy Sell Out (DJ)
Kittie
Klaus Johann Grobe
Kong
Kyuss Lives

L

Lamb of God
Mark Lanegan (2)
The Last Republic
Letlive
Les Savy Fav (2)
Less than Jake (3)
Liars
The Libertines
Limp Bizkit
Little Boots
The Living End (3)
Lost Prophets (3)
Louie (2)
The Low Anthem

M

Mad Caddies
Mad Capsule Markets
Madness
The Magic Numbers
Manchester Orchestra
Manic Street Preachers
Mariachi El Bronx
Marilyn Manson
Marina and the Diamonds (3)
Laura Marling (3)
The Mars Volta
Willy Mason (2)
Masters of Reality
Mastodon (2)
Mazzy Star
Me First & the Gimme Gimmes
Megadeth
Mercury Rev
Metallica
Metric
Metronomy
Millencolin (2)
Million Dead
The Minutes
Conan Mockasin (2)
Mondo Generator
Mongol Horde
Monster Magnet
R. Stevie Moore
Morrissey
Motorhead
Mumford and Sons
Muse
Mushroomhead
My Chemical Romance (3)
Mystery Jets (2)

N

Nadir
New Found Glory (2)
New Young Pony Club
Nine Inch Nails
Nissennmondai
No Age
Noah and the Whale (2)
Nofx (3)
Gary Numan

O

Obediencia
Oceansize
Odd Future Wolfgang Kill Them All
The Offspring (2)
Off With Their Heads
Out Like a Lion
Oxes

P

Panic! at the disco (3)
Paramore (3)
Theo Parrish (DJ)
Mike Patton & Rahzel
Pearl Jam
Hannah Peel (with Laura Groves aka Blue Roses)
Peggy Sue (3)
Pelican
Pennywise
Pettybone
The Pineapple Thief
The Pins
Placebo (2)
Plain White T's
Plan B
Polar Bear Club
The Psychic Paramount
Pulled Apart By Horses (3)
Pure Love

Q

Queens of the Stone Age (4)

R

Radiohead
Rage Against the Machine
Random Hand
Razorlight
Reel Big Fish
Refused (2)
Revere
Rise Against (2)
Rise To Addiction
Rival Schools
Rival Sons
Rob Da Bank (DJ)
Robin Williams
Rolo Tomassi (4)
Roots Manuva
Lucy Rose (2)

S

Roxy Saint
Seasick Steve (2)
Seventh Void
Shadows Fall
Sharks
She Keeps Bees
Shield Your Eyes
The Shins
Sick Of It All
Silent Front
Simian Mobile Disco
The Skints
Skrillex (DJ)
Slaves to Gravity
Slayer (2)
Sleigh Bells (2)
Sonic Boom Six
Soulsavers
Omar Souleyman
Soundgarden
Sparta
Spinnerette
Marnie Stern
Stray from the Path
The Streets (2)
The Strokes
St Vincent (2)
The Subways (3)
The Sugars
Summer Camp (2)
Sun Ra Arkestra (2)
The Sunshine Underground (3)
Surfer Blood
Sweethead
Sylosis
System of a Down

T

Taking Back Sunday (2)
Teenage Bottlerocket
Tellison
Tenacious D
Them Crooked Vultures
Theory of Dreams
This is Hell
Thrice (3)
Thursday (2)
The Ting Tings
Toro y Moi
To The Bones
Towers of London (2)
Trash Talk (2)
The Travelling Band
Tunng
Turbonegro (2)
Frank Turner (2)
Twilight Singers

U

Underground Resistance
The Used

V

The Vaccines
Sharon van Etten
The View (2)
Villagers
Violent Soho

W

Walls
Jessie Ware
Warpaint (5)
Washed Out
We Are Augustines
Weezer
We Fell to Earth
We Start Fires
White Lies
Wild Beasts (2)
Winnebago Deal
Wolfmother

X

The Xx

Y

Yeah Yeah Yeahs (2)
Young Heart Attack
Young Husband
The Young Knives
Yourcodenameis:Milo

Z

Zebrahead
The Zico Chain
Zola Jesus


Total = 365 Artists (last new band: Bastions (Rolo Tomassi support)

Milestones:

250th: Monster Magnet

Most Seen:

The Bronx (8)
Florence and the Machine (7)
Amplifier (7)
Warpaint (5)
Queens of the Stone Age (4)
Emmy the Great (4)
Rolo Tomassi (4)

Mark Lanegan (5)

[As M. Lanegan twice, & with: Isobell Campbell, Soulsavers & Twilight Singers]

As I just bought a 2012 ticket, I figure I should post a list of what I saw last year.

In order of worst to best:

35) - Chapel Club
34) - The Strokes
33) - Glassjaw
32) - Jimmy Eat World
31) - Teenage Bottlerocket

30) - Panic at the Disco
29) - Rise Against
28) - 30 Seconds to Mars
27) - The Offspring
26) - New Found Glory

25) - Capdown
24) - The Descendents
23) - Flogging Molly
22) - A Genuine Freakshow
21) - Pulled Apart by Horses

20) - Funeral Party
19) - LetLive
18) - Cage the Elephant
17) - My Chemical Romance
16) - Dutch Uncles

15) - Seasick Steve
14) - Crystal Castles
13) - Fucked Up
12) - Madness
11) - The Computers

10) - Islet
9) - OFWGKTA
8) - Anna Calvi
7) - The Antlers
6) - Warpaint

5) - Best Coast
4) - Cerebral Ballzy
3) - The Bronx
2) - She Keeps Bees
1) - Noah & the Whale



It wasn't exactly a classic year, still, the Bronx played Strobe Life for the first time in the 7 gigs I'd seen them, Noah & the Whale wipped a crowd into a frenzy with a Bohemian Rhapsody intro sing-along and the greatest-named band in the world asked us if we like skateboarding.



Thinking about it, I never posted anything about 2010 either:

36) Crazy Arm
35) Off With Their Heads
34) Axl & Clowns
33) Gogol Bordello
32) All Time Low
31) Everything Everything

30) The King Blues
29) Limp Bizkit
28) New Young Pony Club
27) Lost Prophets
26) Mystery Jets

25) Cancer Bats
24) Zebrahead
23) Sick Of It All
22) Gaggle
21) Cypress Hill

20) Wild Beasts
19) Nofx
18) Nofx (LU)
17) The Gaslight Anthem
16) Blink 182

15) Trash Talk
14) Pulled Apart By Horses
13) Goldheart Assembly
12) The Libertines
11) Qotsa

10) Crystal Castles
9) Thrice
8) Warpaint
7) Marina & the Diamonds
6) Gallows

5) Paramore
4) Rolo Tomassi
3) Weezer
2) Funeral Party
1) Arcade Fire

Despite CDs going out of fashion quicker than casual racism, I've somehow managed to acquire 56 of them this year.

In the order of purchase, I now own a copy of:

Lissie: Catching a Tiger
R.E.M: Up
Metallica: Load
Morrissey: Viva Hate
Anna Calvi: S/T
The XX: S/T
The Mars Volta: Octahedron
Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Is Is
At the Drive-In: El Gran Orgo
Jefferson Airplane: Surrealistic Pillow
Mark Lanegan: Field Songs
Faith No More: Album of the Year
Amy Winehouse: Back to Black
Janelle Monae: The Archandroid
Mellisa Auf Der Maur: S/T
Babyshambles: Shotter's Nation
Emmy the Great: Virtue
Sleigh Bells: S/T
No Doubt: Tragic Kingdom
De La Soul: 3 Feet High and Rising
Portishead: Dummy
Bat for Lashes: Two Suns
Be Your Own Pet: S/T
Jemina Pearl: Break it Up
St Vincent: Actor
Beach House: Teen Dream
Yeah Yeah Yeahs: It's Blitz
Villagers: Becoming a Jackal
Summer Camp: Young
Morrissey: Years of Refusal
Mercury Rev: Deserter Songs
Feist: The Reminder
The Avalanches: Since I left you
Don Mclean: American Pie
Crystal Castles
Best Coast: Crazy for You
Dutch Uncles: Cadenza
The Bronx: III
Peggy Sue: Acrobats
Laura Marling: A Creature I Don't Know
St Vincent: Strange Mercy
Anthony and the Johnsons: I am Bird Now
Masters of Reality: S/T
Alice in Chains: Unplugged
The Clash: London Calling
Coheed and Cambria: Good Apollo I'm Burning Star IV
Pink Floyd: Dark Side of the Moon
The Antlers: Hospice
Lykke Li: Wounded Rhymes
St Vincent: Marry Me
Marnie Stern: S/T
Cults: S/T
Surfer Blood: Astro Coast
Marnie Stern: This is it...
Peter Gabriel: So
Battles: Gloss Drop
PJ Harvey: Let England Shake


A lot of these were purchased from Sound Machine. Their 3 for £10 offer certainly did lead to me finding one or two cds I wanted and then hunting about just for something to complete the set.

Still, I think I bought most of the albums that made my top ten, which is unusual. Usually I'll wait until the price has dropped a bit.

Albums of the Year

Those that just missed the cut...

Hannah Peel: The Broken Wave
Cage the Elephant: Thank You Happy Birthday
Peggy Sue: Acrobats
Cults: S/T
Metronomy: The English Riveria


So without further adieu, my top ten.

10) Feist: Metals
9) PJ Harvey: Let England Shake
8) Laura Marling: A Creature I Don't Know
7) Dutch Uncles: Cadenza
6) Lykke Li: Wounded Rhymes

Yes, I know...PJ Harvey, just the same as everyone else. At first, 'The Words that Maketh Murder' aside I really didn't rate that album, but given how much everyone praised it, I gave the record a 2nd, 3rd, 4th chance until something clicked. It's still a bit like all of PJ's back catalogue, good...but not that good.

And poor Laura Marling, always judged by the impossible standards of her previous work.

I was intrigued by just how much Lykke Li changed her vocals for her Sophomore effort. That, and the frankly a bit scary video for Get Some, prevented me from dismissing the album entirely.



...and the top 5

5) Anna Calvi: S/T



4) Battles: Gloss Drop



3) Emmy the Great: Virtue



2) Wild Beasts: Smother



1) St Vincent: Strange Mercy



It wasn't really much of a hard decision - Strange Mercy is miles better than anything else I heard new this year. It's not exactly a classic, but it's bold, diverse, and just about better than Annie Clark's last release.

Songs of the Year

I was going to do a top 25, but for some reason I'm stuck on 24.

24) Fucked Up: On the Other Shoe
23) Feist: How Come You Never Go There
22) Battles: Sweetie & Shag
21) Zola Jesus: Vessel

20) Metronomy: The Bay
19) Florence + the Machine: Shake it Out
18) Dutch Uncles: Fragrant
17) Anna Calvi: Desire
16) Gary Numan: The Fall

15) Lykke Li: Sadness is a Blessing
14) Cage the Elephant: Shake me Down
13) St Vincent: Surgeon
12) Metronomy: Everything Goes my Way
11) Wild Beast : End Come too Soon

10) Emmy the Great: A Woman, A Woman, A Century of Sleep
9) St Vincent: Cruel
8) Wild Beasts: Bed of Nails
7) Emmy the Great: Paper Forrest
6) Laura Marling: Sophia

5) EMA: Milkman



4) Battles: Ice Cream



3) PJ Harvey: The Words that Maketh Murder



2) British Sea Power: Who's in Control



1) Laura Marling: Night after Night

I was only there for the Sunday with my parental units...

[Family outting alert]

...but Wilderness was such an interesting place that I've decided to keep a permanent record of it.

I'm not sure why my Mother had the idea of going to a festival. I think she read about Wilderness in the Times due to some of the chefs that were cooking there.

It certainly was one of those weird festivals where you could wind up doing anything. There was a foraging tour for example.



When we first got there I was pretty certain this was going to be one of those festivals where hardly anyone shows up.

As the afternoon got going however, some strange people showed up, including this portly fellow:



There were folks in fancy dress everywhere.



If I wasn't so insistant on seeing all the bands, I'd have probably just gone for a wander round the huge site.



There was even a boating lake. If I wasn't with my folks I'd have probably got mashed and wound up swimming in there.



Other fun things to do included reading newspapers. Oh dear.



Or watch some guy make massive bubbles in front of my parent's favourite band of the day, Mercury Rev.



Props to whoever spent the time and effort turning a rather bland looking stage into something unique



And also large congratulations to Anthony Hegarty for rabbiting on enough about wanting to be a woman to bring out some rather homophobic remarks from my Dad.



Worst of the day -> Best of the day

The Low Anthem
Daniel Johnston
Robyn Hitchcock
Guillemots
Mercury Rev
Anthony & the Johnsons
Laura Marling

Look a youtube video of Anthony & the Johnsons, uploaded by myself - hence the shaft picture.

I've been to the last 8 Reading Festivals.

2004 --> 2011

I've had a pretty good time at each one of those but from going to some smaller events recently, it's become pretty obvious that the large mainstream events no longer offer the best of the UK festival calender.

One such smaller event I went to was Field Day, where for £40 I saw the following:

Faust
Willy Mason
2:54
Junip
Conan Mockasin
Sun Ra Arkestra
Villagers
Zola Jesus
Clock Opera
Warpaint
James Blake
Anna Calvi
Wild Beasts
Glasser



A lot of folks have criticized Field Day for having a bad atmosphere. To me, considering it is just an all-dayer, I thought it was pretty good.



The above was taken at the Main Stage during Villagers set I believe, which as you can see from the below was hardly rammed at the front either.



The relaxed atmosphere for the most part, suited the acts playing.

That, and unlike Reading, there was actually things to do besides watching bands...like Corn on the Cob eating contests.



One of Field Day's ideal attributes is the amount of space it has in Victoria Park.

There were 6 stages and they even had room for some trees.



The novelty of a festival in public park, kind of helped the vibe of the place. There aren't too many outdoor events that have to fence off decaying monuments.



Most of the stages were small, which I think is a definite plus.



Zola Jesus (above), played in a tent this size and was probably one of the best things all day.



It was slightly odd that the main stage had acts who drew very small crowds and then everyone piles into a tiny marquee but Zola Jesus aside, I think everyone got to see who they wanted to.

The one act who played to a completely full tent was James Blake, but that was only because it started pelting it down with rain. He then proceeded to be upstaged by a rainbow



May I add, that when watching James Blake, I was eating oysters and chips. Oysters at a gig! That will probably never happen for me again. I regret not taking a picture of them.



Still, despite the inconsistent crowds, as the night wore on, it started to feel more and more like the end of a festival that might have some household name pulling in the punters.

Wild Beasts, who I'd been pretty unimpressed with at Reading 2010 closed the mainstage and seem like a band who should be headlining an arena of that magnitude.



Having sat through Guns & Roses, 30 Seconds to Mars, The Strokes, to name a few awful headlining performances recently, I think it's great that smaller festivals give a band like Wild Beasts the chance to step up to plate.

Presumably if I didn't live in Reading and was say, shacked up in Salisbury, I'd head to festivals like End of the Road every year. I would go to more smaller events but getting other people to come is a bit of a mission. Reading is ever-so convenient.

Worst -> Best at Field Day:


Conan Mockasin
James Blake
Sun Ra Arkestra
Junip
Villagers
Clock Opera
Willy Mason
2:54
Glasser
Faust
Warpaint
Zola Jesus
Anna Calvi
Wild Beasts


...Those last three were the particular highlights, hard to choose between them.