Realisation

As always, I am a bit slow on the uptake but the sentiment expressed in Radiohead's song Like Spinning Plates is remarkably similar to the poetry of Seigfried Sassoon. Both written with the same sense of disillusionment, however one  draws from experience while the other from observation, but who says modern artists can't write.

Classic Album of The Week (Part 5)

The road to hell is paved with good intentions, or so the saying goes. This was meant to be a weekly slot an as so far as material goes it should run dry for want of material. With no apparent pattern or sense of purpose I have hopped from Neil Young to Fleetwood Mac through Bruce Springsteen to end last time I wrote at The Stereophonics. The path is something like travelling the world with a Lonely Planet guide by visiting places chosen through closing one's eyes and using a thumb tack (apologies to all for the long and meandering metaphor). This week is no different and neatly contains some giant chunks of i-pod listening time.

The Bends was Radiohead's last traditional rock album. It saw them teetering on the edge of stadium rock stardom, something which they have pulled back from in recent years to take up the mantle of plain greatest band of the modern era. Anyways The Bends, the soundtrack of disaffected youth, without really understanding what in god's name they were signing about. From disaffection with modern life (Fake Plastic Trees) to disaffection with modern life (Black Star). An album with a rhythm section to die for and some mesmerising Johnny Greenwood guitars (if I continue along these lines I will have to search for the patented Rolling Stone album review phrase book).

Finishing with deeper than you first think Street Spirit [Fade Out] a song which perfectly encompasses all of what Thom Yorke is about, its an album that will be continued to be played. Anyways the song of the album (which really is a contradiction in terms) is Blackstar, doom/angst/comment all rolled into one. Genius

Exit Music

Don't feel much like writing. Just let Radiohead play us out

If This Song Is Prophetic We Are In Trouble

This group, were according to no less a man than Thom Yorke, one of the main influences and reference points for a developing Radiohead (when the moved from being destined to be the greatest rock band of the nineties to becoming the voice of a generation). Scott Walker (originally Engel) is an enigma of popular music (popular music not meant with its usual derogatory connotations) and disappeared for a number from the recording arena for a number of years. This song probably didn't influence the epic Kid A as some of his later work did, but it still is a stone-wall classic from the sixties.

Amazing voice, superb lyrics and a base-line that can only be described as quality. It seems to cause a flow of sixties images in my mind at least. As a result I think I'm going to relax and chill out to the Walker Brothers and the optimistically entitled The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore..

Play It Again and Again

A song to help me hit the hay and unwind after another one of those days, and also with no end to those days on the horizon. The genius of Radiohead and Pyramid Song. Amazing

From Crisis To 5 Covers

After yesterdays rather depressing Davos '09 blog ending in a doom laden Arcade Fire song, I reckon its time to get back on an upward trajectory and talk about some of the best covers around. So what makes a good cover? Is it a totally new way of interpreting an old song, if that was the case we all would be in love with the X-Factor hatchet jobs on Snow Patrol's "Run" and Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" and those covers are just shocking.

So I've decided you have to be a band with some form of street cred or the song has to be a hidden gem that was previously under-rated. All up and coming bands out there should consider at least one wisely chosen cover! Although on second thoughts that plan did not exactly work for Toploader dancing all the way back into the moonlight!

Radiohead "Nobody Does It Better"
The White Stripes "Jolene"
Pixies "Winterlong"
Muse "Feeling Good"
and finally....
Clayhill "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want".