I Am Kloot - Natural History

I first came across this band a few years ago on a free sampler CD and was so intrigued I decided to check out their debut album Natural History. I wasn't disappointed, it's packed with catchy clever songs that veer from soft tender ballads like No Fear Of Falling to the jazzy Sunlight Hits The Snow through the off kilter quirky genius of To You. The album is a nice mix of acoustic guitar, crashing drums and odd sound effects all held together by some great lyrics. They share certain similarities with their Manchester contemporaries Doves and Elbow but for some reason they've never had a breakout hit and they remain relatively obscure which is a shame...9/10



It's also worth checking out their other albums and I could have easily recommended any of those above this one. Particularly their second album, the self titled I Am Kloot, which picks up where Natural History left off with a slight expansion to the sound and a heavier and more polished feel and their last album Sky At Night which has a more introspective sound.

3 Feet Tall from I Am Kloot



Northern Skys from Sky At Night

Django Django - Django Django

These guys seem to be gaining popularity fairly lively. They sound a bit like Hot Chip meets the Super Furries only no where near as annoying as Hot Chip. A lot of the tracks have a fresh sounding feel to them. All heavy on the drums which in this case is a really good thing. Might not light everybodies fire but i really enjoyed the first few listens. The biggest single they have so far is Default which I'm sure most of you will already of heard  by now. 8/10

A Joyful Slog - Music Documentary

Here is a great way to discover new music - dip a toe in the bubbling waters of the DIY music scene in Ireland. This is a very well made documentary by some guys I know that has just been released which will give you a taster of just some of the great bands out there in the undergrowth. One of the bands featured - Adebisi Shank - comes highly recommended by me. Their frenetic live shows are, how shall I say it, off the hook.

Wipers - Is This Real?

This debut album is not exactly a new record but it might be new to you. It did a fine job of introducing Portland band the Wipers to the world back in 1980 and more than 3 decades later it still has the ability to make you sit up, smile, nod and say yes.

The band was formed by a kid who was lucky enough to possess his very own late 70's version of Garage Band - a record cutting lathe. You can imagine the enthusiasm that the ability to make your own records would generate back then. You might think this is reflected in the relatively short length of the songs on the record. It's like he just kept saying, "Okay, done. Next song!" But the really great thing here is the quality doesn't suffer. Each tune is an infectiously energetic post-punk sparkler. Stripped raw vocals with drums racing headlong through a variety of catchy, interesting riffs.

With this record and some of their subsequent albums the Wipers had a huge influence on many later bands most notably bands from the so-called grunge era. There was even a tribute album released in '92 and one of their most vocal fans were Nirvana who covered two songs from Is This Real? and in whom, I would go so far as to say, there is some Wipers DNA. But even with these props and the fact that they're great, most people have never heard them or heard of them. Make sure you have.
4 stars ****

You'll Never Beat the Irish

Felt this should be spread around as much as possible.


Go on the Boys in Green

Can - Tago Mago

Heard the song below on the Paul McCloone show and thought it was good so decided to go and check out the album. I was shocked to see when it was first released after i had listened to. it sounds so modern now for something that was released over 40 years ago. The album seems to have two distict half. The second half seeming to be a bit more mental than the first. Some of the tracks are just outright wierd. but on a whole there is some really good music here. 7/10