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Album Reviews
Page 2
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Page 2
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| Album Reviews Page: 1 |
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Jimi
Hendrix - Electric Ladyland Again difficult to pick one album out from one of my boyhood heroes but I've settled for this one. Apparently he was obsessive about the recording of this album and I think it was worth the effort. 'Crosstown Traffic' and 'All Along the Watchtower' are two of his best. |
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The
Girl
Choristers
of
All Saints' Church, Northampton - En Priere The under-appreciated choristers of All Saints, Northampton. These choirs put on a free performance nearly every night and virtually no one went. I think the 'Ave Maria' was my favourite. You can buy it here. |
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Blind
Melon Another eponymous first album. Shannon Hoon's voice might be a bit too much for some but if you can get past that you'll discover a fine album. Hoon's untimely death was a real tragedy and the band have yet to recover. God rest him. |
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Raul
Midon - State of Mind I was browsing through internet radio stations when I stumbled across a live session by this guy. What a talent. His guitar technique is something else and the voice and vocal sax sounds all add up to a formidable performer. It's nice to see a genuine virtuoso get a bit of pop exposure. |
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Alison
Krauss & Union Station Live I know I've already endorsed the DVD on the films page but I'll give this another plug here. It's a live country and bluegrass concert performed by a great band of equally talented artists. Like I mentioned before, the sound quality is fantastic, largely thanks to the impressive array of microphones on stage. Beware occasional cheesiness though. |
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The
Chemical
Brothers - Exit Planet Dust I remember a friend exclaiming after listening to the first track 'Leave Home', "now that's music", and she was right. It was an exciting first album that was, in my opinion, let down by subsequent efforts which sound like a photocopier put through a distortion pedal |
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Simon
& Garfunkel: The Columbia Studio
Recordings 1964 - 1970 The 5 cd box set that includes their best stuff plus some interesting extras. They wrote and performed some great songs and I'm a big fan of Paul Simon's guitar playing. The fingerpicking on 'Boxer', for example. |
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Bjork
- Debut I know I tend to throw praise around a bit extravagantly, but Bjork actually gives me faith in humanity. Honestly. That our species can produce someone like this is a great comfort to me. |
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Portishead
- Dummy A groundbreaking album made up almost entirely of samples of other people's records. The mixing is incredible and there's a nice sprinkling of great scratching as well. |
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Jesca
Hoop - Silverscreen Demos A formidable talent who certainly inspired me although I have to say I thought her debut album was a little over-produced. This demo is available at her website, alternatively check her out on MySpace or see her and her band in action here. |
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Slayer
- Decade of Aggression It will probably turn out that these guys are satanists or white supremacists or something but in the hope that they're not I thought I'd give this album a mention. I used to listen to this album a lot when I was a kid and it still stands up today. A collection of raw, relentless masterpieces. |
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Paul
Simon - Graceland The lead singer of Slayer claims this is one of his favourite albums. My teacher Mr Richardson lent me it when I was about ten years old and it was a fine gesture from a slightly odd man. The occasional loud percussion noises can be annoying and it sounds a little dated but it's still great songwriting. |
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Laura
Veirs - Year of Meteors Lovely album I discovered recently thanks to Isie. Some really interesting arrangements and fine musicianship make this a quality album from an artist who, if there's any justice, is destined for much greater public exposure. |
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Vanessa
Peters and Ice Cream on Mondays -
Little Films A girl with something to sing and something to say and a fine Italian band to help her do it. I found her on MySpace and I'm a fan. She's got a lovely turn of phrase. Check out her page here. |
| Go to Album Reviews Page: 1 |