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Dec 27

My Singles Of The Year 2012

1. Jake Bugg - Two Fingers
It’s been a while since there was a drinking song as catchy as ‘Two Fingers’

2. Alabama Shakes - Hold On
3. DJ Fresh ft. Rita Ora - Hot Right Now
4. Plan B - Ill Manors
5. We Are Augustines - Book Of James
6. Jack White - Sixteen Saltines
7. Spector - Friday Night, Don’t Ever Let It End
8. Band Of Skulls - Bruises
9. Of Monsters & Men - Little Talks
10. Maximo Park - Hips & Lips

Past winners

2011 winner: White Lies - Bigger Than Us
2010 winner: Crystal Castles - Doe Deer
2009 winner: Jordin Sparks - Battlefield
2008 winner: Noah & The Whale - Five Years Time
2007 winner: Los Campesinos! - We Throw Parties, You Throw Knives
2006 winner: Justice vs Simian - We Are Your Friends
2005 winner: Ladytron - Destroy Everything You Touch

My Albums Of The Year 2012

Not a great year for albums by any stretch of the imagination, but there were still one or two gems that rarely left my CD player all year:

1. Bloc Party - Four
Four albums in, and the Bloc Party sound is edgier and grittier than ever. The lead single, ‘Octopus’ and the menacing ‘3x3’ set the tone.

2. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds - Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds
3. The XX - Coexist
4. Imagine Dragons - Night Visions
5. Spector - Enjoy It While It Lasts
6. The Vaccines - Come Of Age
7. Metric - Synthetica
8. Hot Chip - In Our Heads
9. Maximo Park - The National Health
10. Crystal Castles - III

Past winners

2011 winner: (not awarded)
2010 winner: Delphic - Acolyte
2009 winner: Biffy Clyro - Only Revolutions
2008 winner: Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
2007 winner: Britney Spears - Blackout
2006 winner: The Pipettes - We Are The Pipettes
2005 winner: The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan

My Gigs Of The Year 2012

Didn’t go to anywhere near as many gigs in 2012 as in previous years, but I still managed to see some fantastic shows:

1. Grandaddy - Rock En Seine (26th August)
After 6 years away, my favourite band re-formed and this was their first European show. It was great to see them back and in such good form.

2. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band - Hyde Park (14th July)
3. Bloc Party - Rock En Seine (24th August)
4. Frank Turner - V Festival (19th August)
5. Green Day - Rock En Seine (26th August)
6. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds - Rock En Seine (25th August)
7. Hot Chip - Lovebox Festival (15th June)
8. The XX - Brixton Academy (16th December)
9. M83 - Somerset House (16th July)
10. The Enemy - V Festival (19th August)

Past winners

2011 winner: Biffy Clyro @ Royal Albert Hall, 23rd March 2011
2010 winner: Rage Against The Machine @ Finsbury Park, 6th June 2010
2009 winner: (not awarded)
2008 winner: Jay Z @ Hyde Park, 3rd July 2008
2007 winner: Muse @ Wembley Stadium, 16th June 2007
2006 winner: Madness @ Benicassim, 23rd July 2006
2005 winner: Queens of the Stone Age @ Kokos, 23rd August 2005

My TV Shows Of The Year 2012

It’s been a great year for TV, and there were many shows that could have made it into my Top 10. But the winner, predictably, was my favourite show of 2010 (and would have been my favourite of 2011 too, had I bothered to produce this list):

1. The Walking Dead
Despite a change in the show’s writers and directors, The Walking Dead continues to be the must-see show on TV. Disappointing then that so few of my friends appear to be watching it. I realise that zombies are not everyone’s cup of tea, but this is so much more than a zombie show. It’s intense and keeps you on the edge of your seat week after week.

2. Fresh Meat
3. Boardwalk Empire
4. Lilyhammer
5. Treme
6. Red Dwarf
7. Peep Show
8. Homeland
9. Twenty Twelve
10. Veep

Past winners

2011 winner: (not awarded)
2010 winner: The Walking Dead
2009 winner: Not awarded
2008 winner: The I.T. Crowd
2007 winner: Heroes
2006 winner: Extras
2005 winner: Lost

My Films Of The Year 2012

I’ve watched 36 films this year, but only 7 which were actually released in 2012. In order of preference:

1. The Dark Knight Rises
2. Wild Bill
3. Jeff Who Lives At Home
4. 21 Jump Street
5. The In-Betweeners
6. John Carter
7. Avengers Assemble

Past winners

2011 winner: (not awarded)
2010 winner: The Social Network
2009 winner: A Prophet
2008 winner: The Dark Knight
2007 winner: Superbad
2006 winner: Borat
2005 winner: Maria Full Of Grace

Apr 12

Ooh, look, here’s me at the Kassam Stadium for Oxford United versus Wycombe Wanderers last weekend. Famous, at last.

Why have I never heard of the Name Of The Year contest before now?

Quadrophenia Taylor FTW

Jan 25

lolpats:

Because The Steelers Scored More Points Than You Guys…THAT’S WHY!

Jan 18

In My Collection The Carpenters Sit Next To Carcass!

tomewing:

They don’t write ‘em like this any more! OR SO I THOUGHT.

“I’ve just been to a record shop and bought 21 CDs,” declares The Vaccines singer Justin Young down the phone from Aberdeen, where they have been on tour.

He is trying to dispel the suggestion, raised by their raucously infectious 84-second debut single Wreckin’ Bar (Ra Ra Ra), that they are obsessed with The Ramones.

21 CDs! The man loves his music. Let’s hear what he bought.

“Let me start from the top,” Young says. “I bought The Legendary Sun Records Story, a Replacements record, Primal Scream’s Sonic Flower Groove, Neutral Milk Hotel, Abba’s Greatest Hits, Thee Headcoats…”

“…and from the NEXT page of the Mojo article I bought…” But wait!

Hang on a minute. Rewind a bit.

Yes! Rewind a bit! Sonic Flower Groove? You’ve been done, mate.

Abba?

Ahhh. One of these critically acclaimed touchstones of the rock era is not like the other ones.

“They’re an incredible pop band, yeah,” Young replies coolly.

HE HAS NERVELESSLY BATTED AWAY YOUR KILLER QUESTION.

“I don’t feel guilty about liking anything. I just love good music. And while some people probably find Abba nauseating, I love the songwriting.

Fearless stuff from the young star. A great song is a great song.

“Then I got The Cars, Elvis Costello, Scott 4, the Scott Walker record. I would say that’s pretty diverse.”

Phew! You’re telling us - that ABBA record had women on it for a start!

The Vaccines are built on a tangle of unlikely contrasts and connections. They are an old-fashioned rock ‘n’ roll band who sound fresh in 2011, which is rare enough for a start.

Sounds great! How do they sound fresh?

They write songs that sound like The Ramones

Ah.

but like listening to Abba.

THAT’S OK THEN! There is plenty more to chew on in this piece - I do recommend reading about the singer’s past as a “tortured acoustic troubadour” - but let’s fast forward to the end where the Vaccines state some pretty lofty goals.

“I don’t like pop without any depth or integrity,” he says. “Hopefully people will see that there’s slightly more to a Vaccines lyric than a Fratellis lyric or something like that.

“I’d like to think there’s slightly more depth to us than that.”

And so the pop bar is raised once again. 2011, you’re in safe hands.

Just another example of a new band being hyped so much that it becomes trendy to hate them before they’ve ever really released very much. I actually quite like what I’ve heard so far. There is an obvious Ramones influence, but ‘Post Break-Up Sex’ is more ‘Strength To Endure’ than ‘Sheena Is A Punk Rocker’.

When viewed in comparison with many of the other “new” indie bands who are emerging at present (Mona, Brother etc.) I feel The Vaccines might actually be pretty decent.

(And yes, I appreciate that you were criticising the quality of journalism as much as you were criticising the band)

Jan 11

tomewing:

I still love this record so much. I’m not sure there’s been an album released since I love as much, to be honest.

I’m struggling to name others I’ve loved as much since then, although there are probably a handful. But yes, very excited about the new album.

My girlfriend, however, has been giving me weird looks since I mentioned how excited I was about the new single and album.