In League With Paton

Django Bates and Stormchaser – Spring is Here (Shall We Dance?) (Lost Marble, 2008) With a characteristic tinge of self-importance, Keith Ja...

Radiohead, Victoria Park, London 24th June 2008 These shows in Victoria Park may have been Radiohead’s biggest UK concert performances outsi...

Lykke Li - Youth Novels (LL Recordings, 2008) Joan as Police Woman - To Survive (Pias/Reveal, 2008) Swedish pop singer Lykke Li’s debut albu...

'I wouldn't wish a Massive Attack Meltdown on anyone', quips the drummer from Fleet Foxes, a charming and endearing band with a ...

There have been a number of shocking deaths in the world of the arts over the last twelve months, but Swedish pianist and composer Esbjorn S...

Coldplay - Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends (EMI, 2008) I’ve been meaning to compose a calm, rational piece about Coldplay’s new al...

Some records I'm digesting (some of which I've been mulling over for some time), but haven't got around to blogging about yet: O...

Emmylou Harris - All I Intended To Be (Nonesuch, 2008) When musicians reach a certain age it becomes tempting to speculate on what might be ...

My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges (Atco/Rough Trade, 2008) The last we heard from My Morning Jacket’s Jim James came in the form of a cameo app...

Two exciting gigs this week have been very much focused on the musical possibilities of drums and percussion. First up, The Dodos had little...

Mystery Jets - Twentyone (679, 2008) I can’t exactly claim to be ahead of the game here and I’m not really sure why it’s taken me a full thr...

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - Lie Down In The Light (Domino, 2008) There’s a satisfying irony in the observation that Will Oldham is at on...

The Notwist - The Devil, You + Me (City Slang, 2008) I'm really quite perplexed by the lack of attention afforded this release by the UK...

Nico Muhly - Mothertongue (Bedroom Community, 2008) At last, versatility and the search for connections between musical forms are becoming l...

James Hunter - The Hard Way (Universal Classics, 2008) I often wonder why some retrogressive facsimiles of classic pop music irritate me whi...

The Shortwave Set - Replica Sun Machine (Wall of Sound, 2008) A degree of credit must go to The Shortwave Set for their audacity and ambitio...

Bill Frisell - History, Mystery (Nonesuch, 2008) The American guitarist and composer Bill Frisell continues to divide opinion. There are sti...

Much of the past couple of weeks has been passed in various sweaty gig venues, indulging in a real plethora of quality live performances. Ti...

Skyphone – Avellaneda (Rune Grammofon, 2008) Scorch Trio – Brolt! (Rune Grammofon, 2008) Box – Studio 1 (Rune Grammofon, 2008) Since its inc...

Spiritualized - Songs in A&E (Spaceman, 2008) Somewhere, somehow, Jason Spaceman lost his spacesuit. After all the justified acclaim tha...