Thursday, April 02, 2020

The Saga Continues...

Cool Music Central continues its musical journey here: 



Come and join us!

Saturday, March 07, 2020

The Best Albums of the '10s

It's been a pleasure sharing with you our musical discoveries for the past 12 years on this blog, as well as some of our all-time favorite albums and songs. By going through the 686 posts we've managed here since our very first one on March 6th, 2008, I'm sure you can discover plenty of great music from the last four decades and then some.

For our last post here we revisit the 2010s and present our Top 100 favorite albums of the decade. It goes without saying that the choice is tough and the end result can be quite different if we ever decide to revisit the subject at a later date, but the task is made easier with the thought that we have covered extensively the 2010s in this blog and every single album we have loved in the past ten years can be found somewhere in our previous posts.

If you want to keep following Cool Music Central's continuous journey of new music discovery, visit us at our new home on tumblr: https://coolmusiccentral.tumblr.com

Time to sign off and say so long to our blogger site with our final list on this blog! Here are our Top 100 Albums of the 2010s:

Top 100 Albums of the '10s


01.   Your future our clutter - THE FALL (2010)


02.   Let England shake - P.J. HARVEY (2011)



03.   To be kind - SWANS (2014)


04.   Sometimes I sit and think, and sometimes I just sit - COURTNEY BARNETT (2015)


05.   Sun - CAT POWER (2012)


06.   St. Vincent - ST. VINCENT (2014)


07.   Teens of denial - CAR SEAT HEADREST (2016)


08.   American dream - LCD SOUNDSYSTEM (2017)


09.   Factory Floor - FACTORY FLOOR (2013)


10.   In a poem unlimited - U.S. GIRLS (2018)


11.   Dogrel - FONTAINES D.C. (2019)
12.   Wild Flag - WILD FLAG (2011)
13.   Shaking the habitual - THE KNIFE (2013)
14.   Silence yourself - SAVAGES (2013)
15.   High violet - THE NATIONAL (2010)
16.   My woman - ANGEL OLSEN (2016)
17.   Hunter - ANNA CALVI (2018)
18.   Only in dreams - DUM DUM GIRLS (2011)
19.   Manipulator - TY SEGALL (2014)
20.   Hope downs - ROLLING BLACKOUTS COASTAL FEVER (2018)
21.   Warpaint - WARPAINT (2014)
22.   Nikki nack - TUNE-YARDS (2014)
23.   Visions - GRIMES (2012)
24.   Have you in my wilderness - JULIA HOLTER (2015)
25.   No cities to love - SLEATER-KINNEY (2015)
26.   Blues funeral - MARK LANEGAN BAND (2012)
27.   Bloom - BEACH HOUSE (2012)
28.   Ring - GLASSER (2010)
29.   Currents - TAME IMPALA (2015)
30.   The agent intellect - PROTOMARTYR (2015)
31.   I will be - DUM DUM GIRLS (2010)
32.   Treats - SLEIGH BELLS (2010)
33.   More light - PRIMAL SCREAM (2013)
34.   M B V - MY BLOODY VALENTINE (2013)
35.   Untethered moon - BUILT TO SPILL (2015)
36.   The suburbs - ARCADE FIRE (2010)
37.   Anna Calvi - ANNA CALVI  (2011)
38.   Shrines - PURITY RING (2012)
39.   Masseduction - ST. VINCENT (2017)
40.   Past life martyred saints - EMA (2011)
41.   Adore life - SAVAGES (2016)
42.   Is the is are - DIIV (2016)
43.   Human performance - PARQUET COURTS (2016)
44.   Indigo meadow - THE BLACK ANGELS (2013)
45.   They want my soul - SPOON (2014)
46.   Do to the beast - THE AFGHAN WHIGS (2014)
47.   Purgatory / Paradise - THROWING MUSES (2013)
48.   Push the sky away - NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS (2013)
49.  I am easy to find - THE NATIONAL (2019)
50.  The underside of power - ALGIERS (2017)
51.   Kill for love - CHROMATICS (2012)
52.   Ivy tripp - WAXAHATCHEE (2015)
53.   Rips - EX HEX (2014)
54.   Tell me how you really feel - COURTNEY BARNETT (2018)
55.   Holiday destination - NADINE SHAH (2017)
56.   Plunge - FEVER RAY (2017)
57.   Blackstar - DAVID BOWIE (2016)
58.   Loud city song - JULIA HOLTER (2013)
59.   U.F.O.F. - BIG THIEF (2019)
60.   7 - BEACH HOUSE (2018)
61.   Schlagenheim - BLACK MIDI  (2019)
62.   Everything in between - NO AGE (2010)
63.   Attack on memory - CLOUD NOTHINGS (2012)
64.   Silver age - BOB MOULD (2012)
65.   Blunderbuss - JACK WHITE (2012)
66.   Expo 86 - WOLF PARADE (2010)
67.   We are the 21st century ambassadors of peace and magic - FOXYGEN (2013)
68.   Sun structures - TEMPLES (2014)
69.   Waiting for something to happen - VERONICA FALLS (2013)
70.   Platform - HOLLY HERNDON (2015)
71.   Leaving meaning - SWANS (2019)
72.   Purple Mountains - PURPLE MOUNTAINS (2019)
73.   Remind me tomorrow - SHARON VAN ETTEN (2019)
74.   All mirrors - ANGEL OLSEN (2019)
75.   Why hasn't everything already disappeared? - DEERHUNTER (2019)
76.   Run The Jewels 3 - RUN THE JEWELS (2017)
77.   King night - SALEM (2010)
78.   The glowing man - SWANS (2016)
79.   The hope six demolition project - P.J. HARVEY (2016)
80.   Modern kosmology - JANE WEAVER (2017)
81.   Hot thoughts - SPOON (2017)
82.   Relatives in descent - PROTOMARTYR (2017)
83.   Wide awaaaaake! - PARQUET COURTS (2018)
84.   Freedom's goblin - TY SEGALL (2018)
85.   All nerve - THE BREEDERS (2018)
86.   Rock n roll consciousness - THURSTON MOORE (2017)
87.   Damage and joy - THE JESUS AND MARY CHAIN (2017)
88.   Benji - SUN KIL MOON (2014)
89.   A deeper understanding - THE WAR ON DRUGS (2017)
90.   Damn. - KENDRICK LAMAR (2017)
91.   Reflektor - ARCADE FIRE (2013)
92.   Inform - Educate - Entertain - PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING (2013)
93.   Requiem - GOAT (2016)
94.   Heads up - WARPAINT (2016)
95.   Teen dream - BEACH HOUSE (2010)
96.   Sisterworld - LIARS (2010)
97.   Grinderman 2 - GRINDERMAN (2010)
98.   Goat Girl - GOAT GIRL  (2018)
99.   Songs of praise - SHAME (2018)
100. Joy as an act of resistance - IDLES (2018)


Sunday, February 09, 2020

It's the new thing! New decade, new blog!

It is now official! After 12 years on blogger, Cool Music Central will continue its online journey at a new home on tumblr! Update your bookmarks and visit us here:


For the official launch, we have photos and video from the recent Membranes gig at Temple Club, the return of the band to Athens after 33 years (their previous visit was in April 1987 - I still have that poster!). The new site will be simpler and more frequently updated with links to our favorite new music, "Best Of" lists and of course all the live music action coming our way. Check out below a shot from the front lines of Membranes gig at Temple Club on February 6, 2020, and go here for more.

Membranes, live @ Temple Club (Athens, Feb. 6, 2020)
To close the curtains here, we are preparing a list with our favorite albums of the '10s, a decade of great music which we had the pleasure of sharing with you on this website! Stay tuned for that list, coming in the next few weeks. In the meantime, see you on tumblr!

Monday, January 06, 2020

Top 50 Tracks of 2019

Happy New Year everybody and welcome to the '20s! We are closing our 2019 account with the selection of our Top 50 Tracks of the Year, a collection of outstanding songs from albums, singles and EPs released in the past 12 months that sum up our listening habits and set the benchmark of excellence for the music we care about.

To help us in the difficult task of narrowing down a year's worth of great new music to just 50 tracks, we are sticking to the rule of choosing just one song from each artist or band (usually one of their singles), although in many cases even that choice proved difficult.

However, there was no doubt about what song should be honored with C.M.C.'s Track of the Year title, as "Not" by Big Thief is that rare piece of music that hits you immediately with its intense emotional power and haunts you long after the end of the six wonderful minutes of tearful joy it offers. The greatest moment yet in Adrianne Lenker's magnificent songbook and one for the list of The Best Songs of the '10s! More on this subject soon, but first here are our Top 50 Tracks of 2019:

Top 50 Tracks of 2019


1. Not - BIG THIEF



2. Blankenship - DIIV



3. Seventeen - SHARON VAN ETTEN



4. The barrel - ALDOUS HARDING



5. All my happiness is gone - PURPLE MOUNTAINS



6. Rylan - THE NATIONAL



7. Big - FONTAINES D.C.



8. Green & Blue - THE MURDER CAPITAL



9. In the capital - ROLLING BLACKOUTS COASTAL FEVER



10. All mirrors - ANGEL OLSEN



11. This life - VAMPIRE WEEKEND
12. I want your dreams - PETER PERRETT
13. Woman - KAREN O & DANGER MOUSE
14. High Alice - JENNY HVAL
15. Deadzone - LADYTRON
16. Future love - RIDE
17. Element - DEERHUNTER
18. White stuff - ROYAL TRUX
19. Rechargeable - SNAPPED ANKLES
20. Ducter - BLACK MIDI
21. Feet - FAT WHITE FAMILY
22. Summon the fire - THE COMET IS COMING  
23. Stitch it up - MARK LANEGAN BAND
24. Sketch artist - KIM GORDON
25. Not the news - THOM YORKE
26. Hurry on home - SLEATER-KINNEY
27. The 20 teens - WIVES
28. Shiny new model - BODEGA
29. Wasted nun - CHERRY GLAZERR
30. Tough enough - EX HEX
31. Jesus’ son - PRIESTS
32. The one - MARIKA HACKMAN
33. Red Bull & Hennessy - JENNY LEWIS
34. Walking away from love - STEVE MASON
35. The hunger - BAT FOR LASHES
36. On the Luna - FOALS
37. Daddy issues - PIP BLOM
38. Got you - AMYL AND THE SNIFFERS
39. On graveyard hill - PIXIES
40. Warranty - MEAT PUPPETS
41. Addicted to the day - BLUE ORCHIDS
42. Lineas en hojas - LORELLE MEETS THE OBSOLETE
43. Lost heads - MOON DUO
44. Future shade - BLACK MOUNTAIN
45. Help me stranger - THE RACONTEURS
46. Taste - TY SEGALL
47. Lost faith - BOB MOULD
48. Falling down the stairs of your smile - THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS
49. LPs - JEFFREY LEWIS & THE VOLTAGE
50. Sunglasses - BLACK COUNTRY, NEW ROAD


Sunday, December 29, 2019

Top 50 Albums of 2019

With only a couple of days left on the calendar for the end of the year and the decade, Cool Music Central closes 2019 with the list of our Albums of the Year, while lists of our favorite tracks of 2019 and our Albums of the Decade are under preparation and will follow in the New Year. As I have already hinted in our previous post, 2020 will bring changes for this blog as I feel that a fresh start is needed, but we will get into the details after we conclude our 2019 review.

2019 has been excellent for rock music, despite the fact that in terms of popularity guitar music has been in decline for the whole of this decade. However, in the last few years we have seen a new generation of young musicians turning to the raw power of rock 'n' roll to express themselves and I truly believe there is no better way to channel youthful energy and rebellion. A prime example is the Dublin band that tops our "Best Albums" list this year, the great Fontaines D.C., who nailed it in their first try with their excellent debut "Dogrel", a bold post-punk statement that takes its musical inspiration from the greats of the past, but it is all about the issues and concerns of the here and now.

Elsewhere in our Top 50 list (actually a top 52, as we had a couple of bands releasing two equally fine records this year, which we decided to group together), you will a few more great debuts from guitar bands, with black midi, The Murder Capital, Amyl And The Sniffers and Wives giving us further evidence of the enduring power of rock 'n' roll. Among the new (or relatively new) artists that stood out in 2019, perhaps the most impressive feat came from Big Thief, a band that had already turned heads with previous releases, but thanks to their two wonderful records of this year, "U.F.O.F" and "Two Hands", they have truly reached another level of excellence.

Among the more experienced practitioners of the rock arts who graced 2019 with their latest efforts, we were particularly impressed with The National and the way they enriched their sound and perspective by collaborating with a fine group of women vocalists for "I Am Easy to Find",  their best album since "High Violet" from the start of this decade, while Michael Gira's Swans delivered another awesome chapter to their unique body of work with "Leaving Meaning". The swan song of David Berman with "Purple Mountains" was both beautiful and heartbreaking, while Sharon Van Etten and Angel Olsen cemented their place among the best women voices of this decade, with albums that expanded their sound to new directions.

Here is the full list of all of our favorite albums of the past twelve months, based on what we were able to listen to so far, and to say goodbye to 2019 in style, press play to our "Best of the Year" playlist below:

Top 50 Albums of 2019


1.   Dogrel - FONTAINES D.C.


2.   I am easy to find - THE NATIONAL 


3.   U.F.O.F. / Two hands - BIG THIEF 


 


4.   Schlagenheim - BLACK MIDI 


5.   Leaving meaning - SWANS 


6.   Purple Mountains - PURPLE MOUNTAINS 


7.   Remind me tomorrow - SHARON VAN ETTEN 


8.   All mirrors - ANGEL OLSEN 


9.   Why hasn't everything already disappeared? - DEERHUNTER 


10. Stunning luxury - SNAPPED ANKLES 


11. White stuff - ROYAL TRUX
12. Somebody's knocking - MARK LANEGAN BAND
13. Sunshine rock - BOB MOULD
14. No home record - KIM GORDON
15. Designer - ALDOUS HARDING
16. When I have fears - THE MURDER CAPITAL
17. Amyl And The Sniffers - AMYL AND THE SNIFFERS
18. First taste - TY SEGALL
19. Deceiver - DIIV
20. The practice of love - JENNY HVAL
21. Anima - THOM YORKE
22. Serfs up! - FAT WHITE FAMILY
23. So removed - WIVES
24. The seduction of Kansas - PRIESTS
25. The center won't hold - SLEATER-KINNEY
26. Father of the bride - VAMPIRE WEEKEND
27. Humanworld - PETER PERRETT
28. Ghosteen - NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
29. Ex:Re - EX:RE
30. Lost girls - BAT FOR LASHES
31. Any human friend - MARIKA HACKMAN
32. Close it quietly - FRANKIE COSMOS
33. Boat - PIP BLOM
34. Everything not saved will be lost part 1 / Everything not saved will be lost part 2 - FOALS
35. Lux Prima - KAREN O & DANGER MOUSE
36. Ladytron - LADYTRON
37. This is not a safe place - RIDE
38. It's real - EX HEX
39. Help us stranger - THE RACONTEURS
40. These times - THE DREAM SYNDICATE
41. Dusty notes - MEAT PUPPETS
42. Trust in the lifeforce of the deep mystery - THE COMET IS COMING
43. Proto - HOLLY HERNDON
44. Venus in Leo - HTRK
45. Birth of violence - CHELSEA WOLFE
46. Stuffed & ready - CHERRY GLAZERR
47. Beneath the eyrie - PIXIES
48. Psychedelic country soul - THE LONG RYDERS
49. Destroyer - BLACK MOUNTAIN
50. Act surprised - SEBADOH

Also recommended:

In the Morse code of break lights - THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS, Stars are the light - MOON DUO, Patience - MANNEQUIN PUSSY, Eton alive - SLEAFORD MODS, About the light - STEVE MASON, The unseen in between - STEVE GUNN, Shepherd in a sheepskin vest - BILL CALLAHAN, Inside the rose - THESE NEW PURITANS, On the line - JENNY LEWIS, Let’s rock - THE BLACK KEYS, De facto - LORELLE MEETS THE OBSOLETE, The magical record of Blue Orchids - BLUE ORCHIDS, I used to be pretty - THE FLESH EATERS, Years to burn - CALEXICO / IRON AND WINE


Sunday, December 22, 2019

Listening Habits: 11-12.2019

In the last "Listening Habits" of the year, we present the 10 albums that we've listened to the most in the last two months of 2019 and select our favorite tracks from them. As we have always done in the 12 years of this blog, we'll close the year with the lists of our favorite albums and songs of the past 12 months, while in the new year we'll present the music and artists that stood out for us in the last decade. The new year will also bring changes for this blog. I haven't worked out all the details just yet, but the new decade will also usher in a new Cool Music Central. More on this subject, very soon...

The last batch of new arrivals for 2019 consists of some truly fine albums, some from dear old friends who we go a long way back with and who continue to brighten our days with their music creations, despite (or maybe because of?) the darkness that lies within (Swans, Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds, Mark Lanegan, Pixies), some from artists who have established themselves in the course of the last decade and returned with excellent new chapters to their story (Bat For Lashes, Chelsea Wolfe, Jenny Hval) and some from relatively new names who we believe we are going to listen to a lot more in the 2020s (Big Thief, Bodega, Wives).

A special mention goes out to Big Thief who doubled their discography in 2019 with two wonderful albums of poetic, emotionally charged, folk rock music and who are also responsible for our Track of the Year for 2019 with the stunning "Not", an electrifying live version of which you can watch in the video below.

Top 10 Albums

1.   Leaving Meaning - SWANS
2.   Two Hands - BIG THIEF
3.   Somebody's Knocking - MARK LANEGAN BAND
4.   The Practice Of Love - JENNY HVAL
5.   So Removed - WIVES
6.   Ghosteen - NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
7.   Lost Girls - BAT FOR LASHES
8.   Birth Of Violence - CHELSEA WOLFE
9.   Beneath The Eyrie - PIXIES
10. Shiny New Model EP - BODEGA

Top 10 Tracks

1.   Not - BIG THIEF
2.   The Hanging Man - SWANS
3.   Hollywood - NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS
4.   Night Flight To Kabul - MARK LANEGAN BAND
5.   High Alice - JENNY HVAL
6.   The 20 Teens - WIVES
7.   The Hunger - BAT FOR LASHES
8.   The Mother Road - CHELSEA WOLFE
9.   On Graveyard Hill - PIXIES
10. Shiny New Model - BODEGA



Big Thief - Not (Live from The Bunker Studios)

Sunday, December 15, 2019

Live: Plisskën Festival - Winter 2019 (Athens, December 7, 2019)

Snapped Ankles, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019
The Winter 2019 edition of Plisskën Festival was slimmed down in comparison to previous years, taking place in two different venues on a single night. As was also the case in recent editions of the festival, the focus has shifted almost entirely to dance and electronic music, with little on offer for rock fans, which explains why we've skipped a couple of editions since the Winter 2017 event.


However, the participation of Snapped Ankles this year, convinced me to pay a visit to Piraeus 117 Academy early in the afternoon, as the eccentric London-based quartet is responsible for one of the most enjoyable records of 2019, the magnificent "Stunning Luxury".


Dressed in their shamanistic costumes, looking like creatures inhabiting an enchanted forest, Snapped Ankles sprang into action on stage, unleashing their infectious, kraut rock-influenced, post-punk sounds and spreading their joyous, mad energy to the few faithful who came early to the festival to see them.


Their 50-minute set comprised of songs from both of their albums, played at maximum velocity, with the beat augmented by DIY percussive instruments, while at some point their singer ended up performing in the crowd, expanding the party to the whole of the venue.



The performance by Snapped Ankles, as expected, was the highlight of the festival for us, while earlier we also enjoyed the 40-minute set by Australian singer and songwriter Carla Dal Forno, who opened the night with an atmospheric performance, somewhere between Cocteau Twins, trip-hop and the soundtrack to David Lynch's cult TV series "Twin Peaks".



Carla Dal Forno, who recently released her second album "Look Up Sharp", dresses her folk melodies with dark, electronic sounds and trip-hop beats, a gentle construction which was recreated on-stage by her bass and a table full of electronic equipment handled by her band-mate.

Carla Dal Forno, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019
The festival's main stage was headlined by electronic music wizard Floating Points, while promising rapper Bishop Nehru and Quantic, William Holland's music project which combines electronic, jazz, soul and latin sounds completed the line-up at Piraeus 117 Academy. For those who enjoy clubbing, there was more on offer on Plisskën's Aquarium stage to dance the  night away, but as we were among the few early birds of the festival, we had to call it a night much earlier and leave just as the big white balloons started floating around towards the end of Quantic's performance.


Bishop Nehru, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019

Quantic, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019
Check out below Snapped Ankles performing "I Want My Minutes Back" and Carla Del Forno in "Blue Morning" from their sets at Winter Plisskën Festival 2019.

Snapped Ankles - I Want My Minutes Back (live @ Winter Plisskën Festival 2019)


Carla Dal Forno - Blue Morning (live @Winter Plisskën Festival 2019)

Friday, December 06, 2019

Live: Mark Lanegan Band @ Gagarin 205 Club (Athens, November 30, 2019)


This time it took a little longer than usual, but finally Mark Lanegan and his band returned to Athens for another great night of menacing rock 'n' roll, odes to sad disco and muddy water blues.


Dark Mark somehow managed to avoid the lights for almost the entirety of the 75-minute set (hence the poor quality of our photos), but his distinctive voice shone brightly throughout, while his band was in fine form, switching gears effortlessly from the driving electrorock of his latest material ("Disbelief Suspension", "Stitch It Up", "Night Flight to Kabul", "Penthouse High") to the haunting blues ballads of songs like "Burning Jacob's Ladder", "Bleeding Muddy Water" or "One Hundred Days".


In short, another great rock night courtesy of the Mark Lanegan Band, where the only complaint one might have is that it didn't last longer, despite the enthusiastic cheering that met the ending of "Harborview Hospital", the only song of the encore. It was certainly a pleasure though, and we're already looking forward to the next time.


Have a listen below to "Ode to Sad Disco" and check out the set list of the Gagarin 205 show:


Mark Lanegan Band - Ode to Sad Disco (live @ Gagarin 205, Athens, November 30th, 2019)

Tuesday, December 03, 2019

New Releases: November 2019

Roundup of November's most interesting new releases, featuring albums by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Tindersticks, Bonnie Prince Billy, Jeffrey Lewis and the Voltage, Beck plus the latest singles and EPs by Lucy Dacus, Soccer Mommy, Hot Snakes and Deerhunter:

Albums

NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS - Ghosteen
TINDERSTICKS - No Treasure But Hope
BONNIE PRINCE BILLY - I Made a Place
JEFFREY LEWIS AND THE VOLTAGE - Bad Wiring
BECK - Hyperspace
OMNI - Networker
SUDAN ARCHIVES - Athena
PUMAROSA - Devastation
JULIANA HATFIELD - Juliana Hatfield Sings The Police
EARL SWEATSHIRT - Feet of Clay
FKA TWIGS - Magdalene
DJ SHADOW - Our Pathetic Age
UNDERWORLD - Drift Songs
THOMAS BRINKMANN - Raupenbahn
KELE - 2042
MICHAEL KIWANUKA - Kiwanuka
COLD WAR KIDS - New Age Norms 1
THE WONDER STUFF - Better Being Lucky
TOY - Songs Of Consumption
VETIVER - Up on High
XYLOURIS WHITE - The Sisypheans
FENELLA - Fenella
GIRL RAY - Girl
YOUNG GUV - GUV I and II
WARMDUSCHER - Tainted Lunch
SKINT AND DEMORALISED - We Are Humans
TR/ST - The Destroyer - 2
ANNA MEREDITH - FIBS
A WINGED VICTORY FOR THE SULLEN - The Undivided Five
TUNE-YARDS - Sorry To Bother You: Original Soundtrack

Singles & EPs

Lucy Dacus
LUCY DACUS - 2019 EP
SOCCER MOMMY - Yellow Is the Color of Her Eyes
DEERHUNTER - Timebends
CATE LE BON AND BRADFORD COX - Myths 004 EP
CATE LE BON - Here It Comes Again EP
THE BIG MOON - Take A Piece / Your Light
CHERRY GLAZERR - Daddi (Reggie Watts Remix) / Self Explained (TuneYards Remix)
THURSTON MOORE - Spring Swells / Leave Me Alone
THURSTON MOORE - Pollination / Leave Me Alone
THURSTON MOORE - Three Graces / Leave Me Alone
FONTAINES D.C. - Darklands Versions
ANGEL OLSEN - Three Covers
FAILED FLOWERS - Faces
SMOKE FAIRIES - Out Of The Woods / Disconnect
BJORK - Country Creatures EP
SLEAFORD MODS - Eton Alive Extras - B Sides and Demos
IMPERIAL WAX - Bromidic Thrills / Bloom and Wither
EX-VOID - Only One
YAK - Atlas Complex EP
SPORTS TEAM - Making Hay EP
SHE DREW THE GUN - Trouble Every Day EP
VILLAGERS - The Sunday Walker EP
THE DELINES - Eight Floors Up / Wait For Me
THE DIVINE COMEDY - Infernal Machines / You'll Never Work In This Town Again
VANISHING TWIN - Cryonic Suspension May Save Your Life (Extended Life Version) / Who Wants to Live Forever?
VIRNA LINDT - Avant-Garde (Pts 1 and 2)
LOUP GAROUX - Painter of Trophies
LES BIG BYRD - Sno-Golem
BOKOMOLECH - Bright New Darkness EP
HOT SNAKES - Checkmate

Soccer Mommy - yellow is the color of her eyes


Hot Snakes - Checkmate

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Live: Deerhunter @ Fuzz Club (Athens, November 21st, 2019)


It's a long distance from Athens, Georgia, to Athens, Greece, and even longer the time we had to wait until we finally got to see Deerhunter live in our city. The excellent 90-minute set they played at Fuzz Club last Thursday could not possibly include all the great songs they have given us over the years, but despite missing several of our favorites, we would certainly include this performance among the best live experiences of this year.


Bradford Cox and his band presented us earlier this year "Why Hasn't Everything Already Disappeared?", one of my favorite albums of 2019, and as expected a good part of the set was based on this release, including the excellent opening salvo of "Death in Midsummer", "No One's Sleeping" and "What Happens to People?".


The other record that featured heavily in the set was "Halcyon Digest", an album which will be turning 10 next year (perhaps an indication that this is the band's favorite work?), with "Revival" and "Desire Lines" being among the highlights of the evening. New and old material combined seamlessly to create a unique rock experience containing all the idiosyncrasies that make Deerhunter such a special band.



Before Deerhunter's performance, we had the opportunity to catch a brief set by Moon Diagrams, the name which Deerhunter's drummer Moses Archuleta uses to present his warped electronic experiments. A different kind of experience, for sure, but certainly an interesting one.

Moon Diagrams, live @ Fuzz Club (Athens, Nov. 21st, 2019)
Deerhunter, live @ Fuzz Club (Athens, Nov. 21st, 2019)
Check out below what Deerhunter played at their first ever Athens, Greece, show and videos of "Futurism" and "He Would Have Laughed", the epic set closer:

Deerhunter - Futurism (live @ Fuzz Club, Athens)


Deerhunter - He Would Have Laughed (live @ Fuzz Club, Athens)