Saturday, February 14, 2009

highly recommended...

back in the day when we got our first computer and i was discovering the joy of the internet for the very first time i used the one-click facility on amazon a lot. a couple of bank statements later we decided that maybe one-click was not such a great idea, and now anything that i like the look of on there goes into my wish list where it sits gathering dust...

this explains why i'm a bit behind the curve with this, but i just recently got to spend some amazon vouchers on bon iver's utterly magnificent for emma forever ago. i read a review that said something like "every minute spent not listening to this record feels like time wasted", which sounded like ridiculous music-journalist-hyperbole to me, but actually that's not so wide of the mark, as the cd has barely been out of the player since it arrived earlier in the week. you can grab a four-track live session showcasing some of the album here.

when i can bear to prise bon from the cd tray, he's replaced by the welcome wagon. (there's a free download of a track off the album to be had at that link). again, it's a great album full of very genuine folky gospel songs. 'up on a mountain' is the pick of the bunch, and - apart from a dodgy smiths cover and an unnecessary tune about a snowman - it's a total delight.

2 comments:

bigdaddystevieB said...

SI (my music guru):
Well, as much as I tried to resist, I DID download the Bon Iver live stuff on your advice.... and subsequently purchased the album a couple of days ago (yes, pathetic I know)!! Absolutely, wonderful.
I was in "Fopp" earlier today (it's half-term so you have to do these things!) and noticed that the album was amongst their "best albums of 2008" and a woman was trying to persuade her friend how good it was... so, of course, I just had to chip in!
Really pleased that, to date, you haven't been charging for your musical recommendations!!
In return, the two CDs I've been playing non-stop recently are Cara Dillon's "Hill of Thieves" and Emeliana Torrini's "Me and Armini".
Check them out!
Very many thanks once again....

said...

aye up bdsb!
ta for the reminder - i've been meaning to give those two a listen...
loved the cara dillon - there's something in her voice that really reminds me of someone but i can't put my finger on it [rosie thomas maybe?]... anyway, 'hill of thieves' has been duly wishlisted!
struggled a bit with the newer emilliana torrini stuff on her myspace, but she does have an amazing voice, and i really liked the songs on there from her earlier albums [which have also made their way onto the wishlist...!]