Music

I probably take music a little too seriously. Some evidence: (i) I find High Fidelity an extremely funny novel (the movie is funny, too), even as bits of it hit a little too close to home for comfort; (ii) too much of my disposable income is spent on music; (iii) I've bothered to set up this page to let you know what records I've recently found satisfying and what I'm listening to a lot right now, even as I don't see why you would care. For faster downloading, the stuff is divided into four categories (though I'm not sure why this particular classification makes sense to me). (Throughout, "COID" means "Check Out If Doubtful".)

C A T C H Y   S T U F F

G L O O M Y   S T U F F

An umbrella category for anything from raunchy garage punk to sensitive chamber pop.

Varieties of the darker sides of life, from self-immolating impulses to late-night chats with a friend named Jack Daniels.

Q U I R K Y   S T U F F

M U S I C   S T A P L E S

This stuff strives to resist categorization . . .
So let's give it a category of its own.

Music diet staples are so called because of their role in sustaining coherence and continuity in a music diet, some by offering essential nutrients, others by offering the musical equivalent of comfort food. They keep you going when nothing new seems worth listening. Here are some of mine.

C U R R E N T L Y   O N   H E A V Y   R O T A T I O N

Los Campesinos!: "Broken Heartbeats Sound Like Breakbeats" (from Hold On Now, Youngster)

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds: "Lie Down Here (And Be My Girl)" (from Dig Lazarus Dig!!!)

A Place To Bury Strangers: "The Falling Sun" (from A Place To Bury Strangers)

White Denim: "Let's Talk About It" (from Let's Talk About It EP)

Ceremony: "Never Love Again" (from Disappear)

The Gutter Twins: "Bête Noire" (from Saturnalia)

Madrugada: "Look Away Lucifer" (from Madrugada)

British Sea Power: "Waving Flags" (from Do You Like Rock Music?)

The Moovers: "Darling I'll Go" (from Eccentric Soul: The Deep City Label)

S O M E   F I L M S   I ' V E   R E C E N T L Y   E N J O Y E D

Red Shoes (Powell & Pressburger)

Michael Clayton (Gilroy)

Rocco And His Brothers (Visconti)

Control (Corbijn)

Killer Of Sheep (Burnett)

This Is England (Meadows)

Breath (Ki-duk)

I'm a Cyborg But That's OK (Park)

The Lives Of Others (von Donnersmarck)

Ball Of Fire (Hawks)

T O P   3 0   F A V O R I T E   A L B U M S   I N   2 0 0 7  

1. The National: Boxer

2. Ceremony: Disappear

2. A Place To Bury Strangers: S/T

4. Les Savy Fav: Let's Stay Friends

5. Red Dons: Death To Idealism

6. Spoon: Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

7. Editors: An End Has A Start

8. PJ Harvey: White Chalk

9. Grinderman: S/T

10. Arctic Monkeys: Favourite Worst Nightmare

11. Richard Hawley: Lady's Bridge

12. Field Music: Tones Of Town

13. Blonde Redhead: 23

14. Jesu: Conqueror

15. Dax Riggs: We Sing Of Only Blood Or Love

16. The Twilight Sad: Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters

17. Radiohead: In Rainbows

18. David Kilgour: The Far Now

19. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings: 100 Days, 100 Nights

20. Midnight Movies: Lion The Girl

21. Witchcraft: The Alchemist

22. The Ponys: Turn The Lights Out

23. Arcade Fire: Neon Bible

24. Sweatmaster: Animal

25. Electrelane: No Shouts, No Calls

26. Patrick Wolf: The Magic Position

27. Klaxons: Myths Of The Near Future

28. Maximo Park: Our Earthly Pleasures

29. My Teenage Stride: Ears Like Golden Bats

30. The Noisettes: What's The Time Mr. Wolf?