chrisp65 Posted December 2, 2023 Share Posted December 2, 2023 4 hours ago, theboyangel said: Right here we go! Apologies in advance for being so big (insert KW gif) In alphabetical order this is what I've really loved this year (but will highlight my top ten choices) A.Savage - Several Songs About Fire Bar Italia - Tracey Denim Baxter Dury - I Thought I Was Better Than You BC Camplight - The Last Rotation Of Earth Brad - In The Moment That You Were Born The Chemical Brothers - For That Beautiful Feeling Civic - Taken By Force The Coral - Sea Of Mirrors CVC - Get Real Das Koolies - DK.01 The Dream Machine - Thank God! It's The Dream Machine Frankie & The Witch Fingers - Data Doom Gaadge - Somewhere Down Below Geese - 3D Country The Goa Express - The Goa Express Goat - Medicine Golden Hours - Golden Hours Jadu Heart - Derealised John - A Life Diagramatic John J.Presley - Chaos & Calypso Katy J Pearson - Songs From The Wicker Man King Tuff - Smalltown Stardust Kurt Vile - Back To Moon Beach The Murlocs - Calm Ya Farm Mystic 100s - On A Micro Diet Osees - Intercepted Message Psychedelic Porn Crumpets - Fronzoli Purling Hiss - Drag On Girard Quasi - Breaking The Balls Of History Shame - Food For Worms Timber Timbre - Lovage Water From Your Eyes - Everyone's Crushed The Wytches - Our Guest Can't Be Named There's also been some terrific EP/Single releases from new and up and coming bands too. Big Special - all three singles, Shithouse, This Here Ain't Water and Desperate Breakfast (one of my tips for 2024!) Cooper T - Sapiens EP Cowboyy - Epic The Movie EP Deadletter - Heat! EP Geese - 4D Country EP Opus Kink - My Eyes, Brother EP Youth Sector - Quarrels EP Already looking forward to these albums due for release in the New Year Sprints - Letter To Self (05/01/2024) The Folly Group - Down There (12/01/2024) Bill Ryder-Jones - Iechyd Da (12/01/2024) Gruff Rhys - Sadness Sets Me Free (26/01/2024) Royel Otis - Pratts & Pains (09/02/2024) Idles - Tangk (16/02/2024) Granddaddy - Blue Wav (16/02/2024) Yard Act - Where's My Utopia (01/03/2024) I’d never heard of CVC before this year, bought the album, now I see they have a gig at the TramShed and its sold out. I also think I’ve got to circle back around and get that Baxter Dury. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisp65 Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 In a sort of semblance of an approximate order, but it does tend to change as I play an album and remember it was good! So the order becomes somewhat reliant on when I bought it, and when I last played it. AhGeBee - Chin Up Chief - Cardiff based clever sod with an excellent Americana / folksy / country laid back vibe The Bug Club - Rare Birds - Caldicot’s finest jangly angular wordy witty pop stars The Gentle Good - Galargan - Cardiff welsh language guitar folk to relax to Part Time Signals - Another Day In Paradise - Cardiff band knocking out impromptu gigs for a fiver and albums of BRE material for £14.99, laid back and middle of the road in the best possible way My Name Is Ian - Go Bananas - Cardiff witty fun pop tunes the good stuff is great, but with a couple of fillers Das Koolies - DK.01 - A really good single album hidden in a double album Sister Wives - Y Gawres - a mix of english and welsh language with some great hooks in there, all female post punk modern psych and folk bundle, based in Sheffield! Rogue Jones - Dos Bebes - bi lingual arty guitar and synth pop from Cardiff and winners of this years welsh music prize Sock - Sock - more Cardiff cheap gigs sand cheap vinyl on the Bubblewrap label which somehow produces really low number short run albums for £15 then does album launch gigs for a fiver, then gives the proceeds to charity CVC - Get Real - Cardiff band with first album release earlier this year and now selling out 1,000 capacity venues with their psych pop rock Trampolene - Rules Of Love And War - Swansea getting their turn with some modern ladz rock band Brit pop music Ynys - Ynys - gentle well crafted thoughtful guitar lead pop tunes from Aberystwyth Sweet Baboo - The Wreckage - well crafted Cardiff based pop from a master of all instruments, and song writer, and music producer clever fellow Royston Club - Shaking Hips - Wrexham a bit late to rollicking ladz end of rock pop Don Leisure - Beyond The Midnight Sun - Cardiff DJ with a mini album of 30 minutes of relaxed chilled out background music for the young people Quiet Marauder - Introducing Malcom - More Cardiff based witty lyrics and pop tunes Swansea Sound - Twentieth Century - sort of from Swansea, old people that used to be Pooh Sticks doing 80’s / 90’s pop one more time Thoroughly enjoyed that year of fairly random new discoveries. Mostly bought off a 30 second listen to one track to make sure it wasn’t utterly outside of my threshold of tolerance. What next year? Maybe I’ll fill in some of the missing numbers in my Pressure Sounds back catalogue. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seat68 Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 4 minutes ago, chrisp65 said: In a sort of semblance of an approximate order, but it does tend to change as I play an album and remember it was good! So the order becomes somewhat reliant on when I bought it, and when I last played it. AhGeBee - Chin Up Chief - Cardiff based clever sod with an excellent Americana / folksy / country laid back vibe The Bug Club - Rare Birds - Caldicot’s finest jangly angular wordy witty pop stars The Gentle Good - Galargan - Cardiff welsh language guitar folk to relax to Part Time Signals - Another Day In Paradise - Cardiff band knocking out impromptu gigs for a fiver and albums of BRE material for £14.99, laid back and middle of the road in the best possible way My Name Is Ian - Go Bananas - Cardiff witty fun pop tunes the good stuff is great, but with a couple of fillers Das Koolies - DK.01 - A really good single album hidden in a double album Sister Wives - Y Gawres - a mix of english and welsh language with some great hooks in there, all female post punk modern psych and folk bundle, based in Sheffield! Rogue Jones - Dos Bebes - bi lingual arty guitar and synth pop from Cardiff and winners of this years welsh music prize Sock - Sock - more Cardiff cheap gigs sand cheap vinyl on the Bubblewrap label which somehow produces really low number short run albums for £15 then does album launch gigs for a fiver, then gives the proceeds to charity CVC - Get Real - Cardiff band with first album release earlier this year and now selling out 1,000 capacity venues with their psych pop rock Trampolene - Rules Of Love And War - Swansea getting their turn with some modern ladz rock band Brit pop music Ynys - Ynys - gentle well crafted thoughtful guitar lead pop tunes from Aberystwyth Sweet Baboo - The Wreckage - well crafted Cardiff based pop from a master of all instruments, and song writer, and music producer clever fellow Royston Club - Shaking Hips - Wrexham a bit late to rollicking ladz end of rock pop Don Leisure - Beyond The Midnight Sun - Cardiff DJ with a mini album of 30 minutes of relaxed chilled out background music for the young people Quiet Marauder - Introducing Malcom - More Cardiff based witty lyrics and pop tunes Swansea Sound - Twentieth Century - sort of from Swansea, old people that used to be Pooh Sticks doing 80’s / 90’s pop one more time Thoroughly enjoyed that year of fairly random new discoveries. Mostly bought off a 30 second listen to one track to make sure it wasn’t utterly outside of my threshold of tolerance. What next year? Maybe I’ll fill in some of the missing numbers in my Pressure Sounds back catalogue. As I fancied a listen to your top one, its AhGeeBe. Its about to go on, see how long I last. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisp65 Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 45 minutes later. This has to be a good sign? Doesn’t it? Unless he fell asleep? What if he’s on the M6 and he fell asleep? No way is that my fault. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seat68 Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 11 minutes ago, chrisp65 said: 45 minutes later. This has to be a good sign? Doesn’t it? Unless he fell asleep? What if he’s on the M6 and he fell asleep? No way is that my fault. Listened to it in its entirety, I enjoyed it a lot. I even looked to see if I could buy a physical copy. Enough to say that money is still in my bank account. It was really very good. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisp65 Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 Yes, some of those albums are being produced in very low numbers. I think there were 100 copies of that one. Next to no promotion of them either. It’s almost like a vanity publisher / hobby project. It’s a weird mix of there clearly being lots of talent around, but a lack of some sort of confidence or networking. Or their taste and ours very much doesn’t shift units. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 I bought a grand total of zero albums this year However I did pre order Shed Seven's new album for 2024 , so if anyone wants to make a best Albums of 2024 thread , I can already enter my winner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blandy Posted December 5, 2023 Moderator Share Posted December 5, 2023 5 minutes ago, tonyh29 said: I bought a grand total of zero albums this year However I did pre order Shed Seven's new album for 2024 , so if anyone wants to make a best Albums of 2024 thread , I can already enter my winner Well, I pre ordered next years Lovely Eggs LP a couple of weeks ago, so there will be at least one competitor. Dunno if @chrisp65 has done the same? 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisp65 Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 15 minutes ago, blandy said: Well, I pre ordered next years Lovely Eggs LP a couple of weeks ago, so there will be at least one competitor. Dunno if @chrisp65 has done the same? I’m sulking because they skipped Cardiff on their world tour yet again. They keep saying Cardiff is their spiritual home, then **** off to Bristol. On the 2024 albums, Carwyn Ellis and Rio 18 have an album out early January that I’m really looking forward to. I bought a xylophone off a Portugese chap and introduced him to Carwyn & Rio 18 and he was absolutely bowled over by it, amazed by the South Wales samba scene that he didn’t know existed! How could he not know! People must live under a bloody rock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bickster Posted December 22, 2023 Author Moderator Share Posted December 22, 2023 Finally got around to it. Apologies for the long post, it's been a good year Albums of the Year 2023 In no particular order (though it may be sort of reverse added to the database order) Panda Bear, Sonic Boom, Adrian Sherwood – Reset In Dub Dub Version of Reset by PB & SB by AMS Pascal Comelade, Lionel Limiñana, Marie Limiñana – BOOM BOOM! The Limiñanas and fine purveyor of toy instuments Comelade’s second collaboration album PJ Harvey – I Inside The Old Year Dying Better than the critics would have you believe Bonnacons of Doom Under the radar Scouse electronic metallic depresionists sophomore release that improves on their debut’s formula Osees – Intercepted Message I had been growing a little tired of them but this is a corking return to form. A. Savage – Several Songs About Fire Parquet Courts frontman goes acoustic with a brand new British band. It really does work too Pachyman – Switched On Prettiest Eyes drummer with another solo dub encounter with broader horizons than the previous Creation Rebel – Hostile Environment First album in… decades. It’s a grower, took a few listens for me to fully click but the perseverance was worth it African Head Charge – A Trip To Bolgatanga Another first release for aeons, another absolute barnstorming reappearance from the On-U stable House of All – House of All Founder and original singer of The Fall, Martin Brammah with assorted ex-Fall band member which could have been either awful or brilliant – it’s the latter Gina Birch – I Play My Bass Loud Ex-Raincoats Bass player’s solo debut many years later. Should have been massive this. Shame – Food For Worms It’s the best album to date Various – Adrian Sherwood Presents Dub No Frontiers THE best dub album of the year. It has quite the backstory, was a long time coming and features some that have sadly passed since the project started. AMS has done them all proud. If any album is my AOTY it’s this one. Billy Nomates – Cacti Excellent Pop Music Honourable Mentions Modern Cosmology – What Will You Grow Now? Lorelle Meets The Obsolete – Datura HAWKSMOOR – Telepathic Heights Rose City Band – Garden Party Ulrika Spacek – Compact Trauma Wild Billy Childish & CTMF - Failure Not Success Mozart Estate - Pop-Up! Ker-Ching! And The Possibilities Of Modern Shopping Goat Medicine Squid – O Monolith 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MakemineVanilla Posted December 22, 2023 Share Posted December 22, 2023 I am curious to know whether these picks of the year are actual purchases or streams. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bickster Posted December 22, 2023 Author Moderator Share Posted December 22, 2023 16 minutes ago, MakemineVanilla said: I am curious to know whether these picks of the year are actual purchases or streams. Thanks! Every one of mine is a purchase and I think all but two are vinyl 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seat68 Posted December 22, 2023 Share Posted December 22, 2023 All mine are physical purchases, my purchases this year equal around 40 to 50 albums, The majority are not from this year though. Come monday I may have some other albums that may make it into the best of the year. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Xann Posted December 22, 2023 Popular Post Share Posted December 22, 2023 23 minutes ago, MakemineVanilla said: I am curious to know whether these picks of the year are actual purchases or streams. Thanks! You already know the answer. The vinylistas are the audio vegans. 2 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MakemineVanilla Posted December 22, 2023 Share Posted December 22, 2023 42 minutes ago, Seat68 said: All mine are physical purchases, my purchases this year equal around 40 to 50 albums, The majority are not from this year though. Come monday I may have some other albums that may make it into the best of the year. That reminds me of how proud I was when I could finally boast about owning 100 LPs. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xann Posted December 22, 2023 Share Posted December 22, 2023 @bickster - The album for houseplants is following you around now, haunting you 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bickster Posted December 22, 2023 Author Moderator Share Posted December 22, 2023 1 minute ago, Xann said: @bickster - The album for houseplants is following you around now, haunting you I'm sure I'll buy it at some point 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisp65 Posted December 22, 2023 Share Posted December 22, 2023 2 hours ago, MakemineVanilla said: I am curious to know whether these picks of the year are actual purchases or streams. Thanks! All mine are physical vinyl, except one. I picked up a last minute stocking filler CD which I haven’t played yet as it’s a prezzy for Christmas Day. It’s the first CD I’ve bought since 2016. Worth noting (well for nerds it’s worth noting), that the majority of vinyl comes with a download code, or can be bought via Bandcamp which then allows you a free download of the same. So whilst I’m buying physical format, I’m then playing them in the car and the office. I’m gonna flout the rules later and do my 2023 purchases or non 2023 stuff. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GarethRDR Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 Last week has thrown up a new contender for me, at the very least it's my noodly-jam of the year: Oavette's self-titled debut. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisp65 Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 22 hours ago, MakemineVanilla said: That reminds me of how proud I was when I could finally boast about owning 100 LPs. For me it was 10 records. That meant 6 were my own purchases and I now had more of my own choice records than donated or inherited ones. But for a lot of years it was predominantly singles, a lot easier to get 75p together than hold the money until I had £4.99. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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