Recent Posts from to die by your side

to die by your side — As far as perfect albums go, I'd say 'It's A Shame About Ray' is up there with the best of them.In my humble opinion there isn't a bad moment on it.Not that it really gives you the chance to spot them if there were. With 13 songs rushed through in... read more »

to die by your side — I’ve written about bands and their legacy a few times before.So I’m not going to go for too long. But whatever happened to bands splitting up and staying split up? Do you remember when that happened? It seems a little old fashioned these days. Thi... read more »

to die by your side — Sometimes you just want something loud and noisy to listen to.I think it's fair to say this fits that bill.It's loud. Noisy. Visceral. Intense. Unhinged. And pretty damn thrilling. Not to mention utterly incomprehensible. A description which I thi... read more »

to die by your side — Is it too early in the year to name one of my favourite records of 2010?I think it might be.But I also think that, come December when I’m compiling that list, Frightened Rabbit’s ‘The Winter Of Mixed Drinks’ is certain to be in there. No question.... read more »

to die by your side — 'Cannonball' is just one of my favourite songs ever.It's certainly The Breeders best song by far.No question about it. There's something slightly hypnotic about the way the baseline undulates through the verses before sidestepping into that unhing... read more »

to die by your side — I’d planned to post this at the tail end of last year.But the timing seemed wrong.I didn’t want people to think it was a cynical attempt to boost my readership by jumping on the Rage bandwagon that trundled through December. Besides there was enou... read more »

to die by your side — Cut me some slack here.I know this is generally seen as a Christmas song.And, having removed the decorations and chopped up the tree, I’m well aware the Christmas period officially ended on Wednesday. But these facts aren’t going to stop me postin... read more »

to die by your side — Here's something that doesn't happen often.One of my favourite songs of the year being a bona fide hit single.Reaching the heady heights of number 13 in the UK charts, 'New In Town' was that rare of things. A proper pop song that I actually liked.... read more »

to die by your side — Happy New Year!A few days late but no less heartfelt.I hope you all had a good one. Alas mine was pretty quiet as I was struck down by a rather severe cold and thus my last day of 2009 was spent mostly blowing my nose, sneezing, snuffling and coug... read more »

to die by your side — Well I hope you all had a lovely Christmas.I certainly did.Santa was most generous and the last week or so has mostly involved a lot of sitting around in front of the tv, filling my face with an assortment of festive food and sweets. Not to mentio... read more »

to die by your side — Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions - 'Through The Devil Softly'The problem with Hope Sandoval, is that she always sounds like Hope Sandoval. Not that it's a major problem when she sounds as swoonsomely gorgeous as this. More acoustic with tha... read more »

to die by your side — Aidan Moffat & The Best Ofs - "How To Get To Heaven From Scotland"Following last year's album of spoken word prose, the former Arab Strap frontman returned with his first solo album of proper songs. Feeling like some kind of ramshackle late ni... read more »

to die by your side — Jarvis Cocker - "Further Complications"Aside from my questionable ability to alphabetise, the inclusion here of Jarvis' second solo album should come as little surprise. I've written about it a few times this year already and it remains one of the... read more »

to die by your side — Bat for Lashes - Two SunsOne of the first standout records released this year, it seems like ages since 'Two Suns' was released. And frankly it's taken some time to fully appreciate the scope of this magnificent record in all it's glory. Richly la... read more »

to die by your side — The cull is complete.Down from 29 albums to a slightly more acceptable 17.Now all I've got to do, is sit down and write about them. As with previous years, the list will not be classed as the best albums of 2009, rather it will be my favourite alb... read more »

to die by your side — Things have been a little quiet round here the last week or so.For which I apologise.December always proves to be a busy month and frankly, finding the time to sit down and write isn't easy at the best of times. A slew of birthdays, early Christma... read more »

to die by your side — I'm guessing there's isn't a single person that doesn't like this song.Or at least can't relate to it.Feel free to be the exception to the rule but it just seems to be one of those songs that strikes a chord with just about everyone. An eternally ... read more »

to die by your side — The news that U2 are to headline the Glastonbury Festival seems to have been greeted with a mixed reaction.Some disparaging, some encouraging.Personally I couldn't care less because once again, I'm not going. That said, if I was going, I wouldn't ... read more »

to die by your side — Certain songs are guaranteed to get me dancing on a night out.'Babies' by Pulp is one of them.It's a certified indie disco classic. That teasing guitar intro ringing like a bell to Pavlov's dogs. I may not salivate as such but there's definately s... read more »

to die by your side — Today, it’s exactly 15 years since I first heard the debut album by dEUS.Now, you may be wondering how I can be so precise on the timing, so I’ll explain.‘Worst Case Scenario’ was one of the CD shaped presents I ripped the wrapping off on my 17th ... read more »