It's the classic desert island discs scenario, which if you've had the pleasure of listening to the Radio4 'Castaways' you will appreciate http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/features/desert-island-discs/find-a-castaway. However, in this case the impetus was a conversation with a colleague about a more modern equivalent. It went something like "I'm getting a new ipod. I reckon I can fit about 200 albums on there so now I need to choose" and so the Top 200 Project was born. You might think that it's not hard at all, you think 200 is plenty, it sounds luxurious until all of a sudden you've got 2 slots left…

Panda Bear - Tomboy http://pitchfork-cdn.s3.amazonaws.com/albums/16408/cover-list.jpg http://covers.nmstudio.pl/img/free-parts/spacer.gif

After the sheer brilliance of Person Pitch, this was my most anticipated album of the year and it didn’t disappoint. The advance track, Last Night At The Jetty, that dropped late 2010 really gave an inkling of the genius of Noah Lennox that awaited us. It is hard for me to talk about Panda Bear without drawing comparison to Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys. His commanding voice with layered harmonies creates this dreamy atmosphere that captures your imagination and carries you away. The blend of electronic elements, with acoustic instrumentation and…

Mon 2 May – Gruff Rhys
When I found out Gruff was coming to town AND playing at one of my favourite little venues I was very excited. He generously made his new record Hotel Shampoo available for streaming on his website well before it was released. I spent a good deal of time with it then, and have done more so since I finally got my hands on the CD.

The night started with a delightfully witty solo performance by Dan Kelly. It was a small crowd to begin with, but he came prepared with his own laughter…

Sat 30 Apr – Groovin' The Moo 2011
I like the idea of Groovin' the Moo. Lots of major festivals like BDO are uber-popular and played in the big cities. So it is nice to see a festival go to some regional centers to give the country folk some love.

The line-up had some big highlights for me. I justified going (I have seen ALOT of music this year) just to see The Go! Team & Cut Copy but there were plenty of other great highlights.

So here is my wrap up:

Crowd Favourite: Architecture in Helsinki
These guys had…