Robbery

And so another year drawith to a close. Started off well, dipped towards the end, but December's been alright, so no complaints.

Oh, other than it's a tad too windy for wearing flat-caps as I found out last night hunting for a 24-hr shop down Leith.

Anyhoo. In yet another feature blatantly ripped off from Paul's blog (a wonderful tome, I suggest you visit), I thought i'd do a quick musical review of the year.

By that I mean what was on the stereo a lot, and not per say, writing this whilst playing a mouth organ.

Track of the year?
Country Girl by Primal Scream was a good one, although a little derivative. Leave Before the Lights Come On by Arctic Monkeys, a damn fine track, and we've all been there. However, I'm going to have to go with "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol. Like all good Snow Patrol tracks, it sounds like a final plea to a lover not to leave, and it ends ambiguously. However, it's pretty uplifting in a weird sort of way, and sounds great on headphones in the pouring rain.

Album of the Year?
Spoilt for choice really, so I'm going to cheat and go for two, Muse - Blackholes and Revelations and Nicky Wire - I Killed the Zeitgeist.

The Muse album, as always, was stupendous. Like listening to Queen jamming with Thom Yorke after they've listen Led Zeppelin's rockier numbers, it sounded like nothing else this year. A common theme with Muse reviews is that they are bordering on being Queen for the new millennium, but I don't think that's a bad thing. If anything, all bands should have the baws to produce daring music like this.

Nicky Wire's effort on the face of it is a weird choice. He can't sing, his lyrics are pretentious at times, and he's not a natural musician. Indeed, one review went on to say that "It's probably the least awaited solo album ever..". However, the same article give it a respectful appraisal, and with good reason. For some reason everything that should hold it back, actually works pretty well. The lyrics, for someone whose writings are normally seething with contempt for the world, are pretty reflective. The production is pretty stripped back, and the vocals are surprisingly fragile. The whole thing comes across as quite autumnal, and actually quite pleasant.

Right, that's yer lot, and my final post for 2006.

Have a good new year, and haste ye back!

Scott