It strikes me that this might be a very sensible way forward for smaller bands in the modern music industry. There are a number of bands with solid fanbases who might either struggle to be signed in the traditional label model, or not enjoy working within that framework. This kind of website allows bands to allow fans to purchase something which they’ll really appreciate and in the process fund the release of new material.

Since I started composing this post Grammatics not only announced that they were splitting up, but that they were funding the release of their final EP via Pledge Music due in part to the success of the I Like Trains project. For my part I snagged their new EP and also a rarities CD. In addition to the release of the EP they’re going to tour for a final time, I’ll aim to catch them when they’re in Scotland. Pledge Music has enabled this release, something which might not have happened otherwise. It seems like a lot of bands are repaing the benefits of this business model already.

10. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – It’s Blitz

Had I been quicker off the mark with this, this album wouldn’t have made this list. As it is its relatively lowly position in the list is perhaps due to limited exposure to its charms. This has some excellent synth pop, some of which is true dance floor filler stuff. Heads Will Roll in particular is the sort of pounding, pulsating song which I would genuinely like to hear in clubs. The album has this strong synth pop edge, but a gentle heart of fragile songs like the brilliant Skeleton. So synth pop + fragility + clean guitar = a highly enjoyable album.

9. Jarvis Cocker – Further Complications

With his second solo album, Jarvis Cocker brought his trademark witty lyrics to bear with an album which was much more satisfying than The Jarvis Cocker Record. There was something which I just didn’t enjoy all that much about The Jarvis Cocker Record in retrospect. Further Complications is the album I was looking for. The heart of this album is all about good fun, with songs like Caucasian Blues featuring the whitest instrument known to man (the recorder) playing the blues. Jarvis’ lyrics usually delight on this album, be it lines like “I never said I was deep, though I am profoundly shallow” from I never said I was deep, or the corny “I met her in the museum of Palentology, and I make no bones about it” he finds a way to delight in most songs. What lets the album down however is that its best song is a million times better live. You’re In My Eyes (Disco Song) this version including an amusing improvisation with the lyrics at the start.

8. Sky Larkin – The Golden Spike

Sky Larkin are a band I find hard to explain in the context of most of what I listen to. They are easily the closest thing to pure pop that’s on this list. The album is all about simple hooks, a clever vocal harmony here, a well placed breakdown there, it is pop and unashamedly so. There’s something undeniably likable and honest about the band, they’ve made an album that’s just good honest fun and you can’t really ask for much more than that. Katie Harkin’s  vocals really make the album in a way, it’s unlikely the album would feel even remotely the same with another singer.

See also this fantastic video for the song Molten (not the album version if I’m correct though).

7. Grammatics – Grammatics

Grammatics are a band whose album I was really looking forward to in the early parts of last year. In all honesty they only appear so low on the list because of the sheer quality of the releases higher up. They are everything I like from a band, male falsetto singing, female backing vocals, super clean – super delayed – guitar, an interesting extra instrument (double bass), a good sense for the stereoscopic and some fantastic songs. One or two songs prevented the album from being a real great. Check out D.I.L.E.M.M.A. but my favourite song (Relentless Fours) wasn’t a single, so here’s a live version.

6. Graham Coxon – The Spinning Top

The Spinning Top is a return to form and a return to the more acoustic stylings of Coxon’s earlier solo albums. Coxon’s last effort Love Travels At Illegal Speeds seemed to indicate that as an artist he was determined to plough the successful commercial furrow first explored in Happiness in Magazines. Instead Coxon has brought things back to a simpler, yet more satisfying folk style. More importantly the album is whimisical in places and doesn’t take itself too seriously. The two combine to ensure that the album feels enjoyable and also achieves true beuaty in some places. Caspian Sea even manages a riff that sounds like it’s straight out of a 1970s children’s television show.

5. 65daysofstatic – Escape From New York

I won’t dwell on what was essentially a live album. They’re very good. It is very good. The only downside was the relative lack of new material, that has to be expected on a live album though. A band who can only be described as emotional and visceral.

4. The Appleseed Cast – Sagramartha

A band line-up that constantly changes probably helps the sense of progression, or at least difference, from album to album. This may well be their best to date though. As a band they’ve developed to a point where they create truly affecting soundscapes. It ticks all the boxes for something I like, clean guitar, delay, slow build ups, interesting percussion, all mixed together with a hint of piano. South Facing Col is probably the best track on the album. It builds to a crescendo then morphs into something altogether more beautiful, before crumbling in fragility near the end. Excellent stuff.

3. Johnny Foreigner – Grace and the Bigger Picture

Grace and the Bigger Picture is definitely Waited Up ‘Til it was Light’s smarter, wiser older brother. The album was constructed in a much more careful way than its predecessor. There’s a lot of call and response between different tracks, not least the excellent duo Choose Yr Side and Shut Up! and Illchoosemysideandshutup, Alright. These also help form the perfect live trifecta with the addition of Salt Pepa and Spindarella from their debut album. The album pulsates with energy moving at a quick pace before finally ending in relative chaos by the end of album closer The Coast Was Always Clear. The album isn’t without its quieter moments, though most of them come in the early part of the aforemention Illchoosemysideandshutup, Alright and Every Cloakroom Ever.

2. Dananananaykroyd – Hey Everyone!

A brilliantly constructed album. Every song is an absolute riot. The album doesn’t quite convey the energy of their live shows, but that it comes close is testament to its quality. Standout tracks are probably the hand-clapping, “woo”-ing pop number that is Black Wax and the simply brilliant Some Dresses. Not forgetting The Greater Than Symbol and the Hash. Some Dresses is probably just about my favourite song that ever deconstructs itself and re-emerges in a completely different state.

1. Jeniferever – Spring Tides

I once rather cruelly said that while Jeniferever are a great band, I could never see them being anybodies favourite band. That was after seeing them play songs from their debut album Choose A Bright Morning live at King Tuts. Their second album Spring Tides made me eat my words. It is a marvellous piece of work and hardly a week has gone by since its release that I’ve not listened to it at least once. Spring Tides takes the post rock of the first album and infuses it with more strings and more Bowie. Somehow that’s a combination which works fantastically well. They know how to build up a song and then release the tension with a rock out, followed by a calming soothing section which almost always leaves you wanting more. While Nangijala is definitely the centrepiece of the album, Green Meadow island is probably my favourite track.

Grammatics

Grammatics are a band who concentrate on creating intelligent pop songs. They’ve occasionally been accused of being too clever for their own good, though I have to disagree based on their output to date. The really interesting dynamic is that a cellist features prominently, something not often seen in modern popular music. The cello is integrated really well with the rest of the music, it makes you wonder why it isn’t more common. Vocals are likely to be a point of contention for some, falsetto is a bit of a love/hate thing so it’s easy to see why. The really interesting point for me is that one of my favourite songs of last year, New Franchise, hasn’t even made it onto the album. Usually this is a good sign.

Dilemma video:

‘Dilemma’ video for the Leeds band Grammatics from Marcus Macaulay on Vimeo.

New Franchise video:

Grammatics – New Franchise from LEFT EYE BLIND on Vimeo.

Dananananakroyd

Dananananakroyd come from almost the opposite direction. It’s still clever music but, instead of seeming careful and considered, it’s a big, fun punch in the face. The lead single for their debut album Hey Everyone is a bit more relaxed, but features nearly all of their trademark musical touches. Based on their output so far, you can expect intro-verse-chorus-verse-chorus-middle eight-outro, but it’s executed in such a way as to make it irresistable. They’re probably going to be more famous as a live band, but I have high hopes for their studio recordings too.

Black Wax video:

Black Wax from Best Before Records on Vimeo.

It’s unfortunate that these albums are being released during a hectic period in my year, it will make digesting them a slightly harder process. Expect reviews sometime near the end of May at this rate…