This season, I have mostly been listening to... (January Edition)

This is the second time I've done one of these, I think I may make it a regular feature. If nothing else, it lets me talk about anything else I couldn't squeeze in anywhere else. Anyways, January 2008, a time of frantic revision (ha!) and exam worries for some, as well as a recovery from the festive time past. For me, however, catching up on those great albums from last year that I somehow overlooked or ignored completely was first on the agenda.

The Shins - Wincing the Night Away
From the beginning of "Sleeping Lessons" you can instantly recognise the changes that James Mercer and co. have made from their, well, lazy, 2003 effort Chutes Too Narrow. What follows is possibly their most consistent album to date, also featuring the brilliant "Australia".

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Burial - Untrue
I was put onto this by a good friend of mine, but it seems that was first after ignoring perhaps every end of year album poll that featured this anonymous dubstep musician somewhere in the top 20. To be honest, dubstep is a genre I've never really understood, let alone really sat down and had a listen, but was genuinely pleased and impressed with what I heard on this, Burial's second LP.

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Four Tet - Pause
Pause was Four Tet(AKA Kieran Hebden)'s first album for Domino, released in 2001. It was (according to Wikipedia) one of the first albums to be dubbed "folktronica" based on the albums sparse acoustic guitar sound based around computer typing effects and simple drum loops. Of all Four Tet's albums, this is the one that most appeals to me as being the most complete listen. More together than Dialogue, and less polished than Rounds and Everything Ecstatic, it is the perfect example of a slightly bored post-rock band member waiting for his bandmates to finish college.

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Metronomy - Pip Paine, Pay Back the £5000 You Owe
This album is one that definately grows on you. At first, the production seems both lazy and clumsy, but a few listens later and this album is a classic. My personal favourite tracks being "You Could Easily Have Me" and "Trick or Treatz". Their new album is out soon and if latest single "Radio Ladio" is to be believed, is will be at least as good as their first.

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