February 2011 (I know I know...)

Yes yes yes, it isn't February anymore. Well it's my blog, and February is a stupid month anyway. I mean, what kind of freak puts 28 days in a month? Gregory, that's who. And what is a day? What is a minute? Why do we need to measure everything; labelise our entire existence?

I've had it. I for one am making a stand, right here, right now. February - you 28-day long (but sometimes 29, every 4 years you SADISTIC BASTARD) pustule of grey skies and almost-springtime dashed hope - you are going down.

WHO'S WITH ME?

[silence]

Yeah, fair enough, you probably just came to listen to some music. Well that's fine too.

Here we are then, 9 battle-hardened, February-hating behemoths for you.

Ready?

CHAAAAAARGE!

1. Zoo Kid - Out Getting Ribs

A sad slow one to start, written by a 16yr old ginger hipster. Turns out it's rather good. Amazing what you can do with 2 guitars, an interesting voice and a few shiny knobs. Ack, shhh, you know what I mean. I'm trying to be your serious music correspondent here. You're spoiling it.

2. The Low Suns - So Tired

Oooh I love acoustic songs. Very dangerous thing to do as a band; if anyone can't sing, it's going to sound absolutely horrific. Luckily, the vocals here are a perfect balance of subtlety and strength, exactly what you need in a slow sleepy one like this. Thumbs up.

3. Miami Horror - Moon Theory

Very Hercules & Love Affair this one. Probably why I love it so much. Partly that, partly the video. The lone horseman, embarking on a Peyote-fuelled vision quest. Can't imagine that riding a horse whilst tripping balls on Peyote is that clever an idea, but this guy seems to have it down to a fine art. What this video doesn't show though is all the coyotes and rattlesnakes that hang around in those Utah deserts. But it ends happily: he wakes up and finds some kind of alien power station, so clearly all is well and he found what he was looking for.

4. Small Black - Sun Was High (So Was I) (Best Coast Cover)

Another song that was clearly written whilst under the influence of a mind-bending substance. Big, lazy soundscapes and a sleepy drawl over the top. Put a bit of echo/reverb/[insert geeky effect] on top of that and you've got yourself another tasty morsel of American Slo-Fi. I just made that genre up by the way, so don't anyone go getting any ideas. Just look what happened to February.

5. James Blake - The Wilhelm Scream

This is a beauty.

However - and it is quite a big however - the album is incredibly hard going. It feels like you are reading Mr. Blake's musical dissertation: chock-full of footnotes, 200 word sentences and big scary words like "jectigation*".

There's an easy solution to this problem though - just listen to this on repeat, and sob into your pillow.

6. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues

From sad sobbing to happy sobbing. This song is full of some sort of mystical force that rushes good thoughts to the top of your head and makes you want to swell up and explode with joy, sadness and amazement at the beauty of the world, love, and every experience you've ever had. Five minutes and four seconds of perfection.

(There's a chance you won't like it as much as that I suppose.)

7. Digits - Rachel Marie

Oh Digits, please stop being so fucking good. You aren't being fair to all the other new bands. Give them at least a small chance.

It's like Hall & Oates had a sexy little electro baby that used to get dropped off at New Order's house for after-school tutoring. (Can you hear the Blue Monday homage?)

Rachel Marie is a lucky lady that's for sure. Maybe she is the surrogate mother that Hall & Oates used...

8. Gross Magic - Waiting For You

Ahhhhh YES, this is a good playlist! Starts off sad, takes you up and before you know it you are bouncing around to yet more 80s inspired goodness. This time it's a chirpy synth with a little MGMT small-boy vocal over the top. Add a bit of Lo-fi fuzz and you're off. It works. Hoh yes by golly it works.

9. Metronomy - She Wants

The difficult final track. How to end it? Take it back down to Sadville, or keep everyone in Happyland?

Well, the answer is neither. We are going down a winding country road, just as the daylight is fading, to the sexiest, sultriest place you've been to since you visited the town of XX a couple of years ago.

It's Metronomy, and it's one of my favourite songs this year. So moody and complex, full of some kind of very painful longing. The hours just keep coming, and the lonely guitar keeps on hopefully plugging away, waiting for something to change. It is mind-alteringly good.

Wow. I could listen to that on repeat for a good few days.

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We are done for the month Blippers. Hope you enjoyed it. I must say I did.

I'll try and be back soon to bring you some more of my latest loves.

In the meantime, keep on keepin' on.

*For the curious souls amongst you, 'jectigation' means "a trembling movement"

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