Best of NBGL 2007
No best album list. This is a list of the most soulful, the most original, the biggest, the most enlightening and the most entertaining music that I’ve featured and written about this year. The best of NBGL 2007.
Such is the nature of the sort of bands I write about - bands that are frequently unsigned, still finding their feet and British - you should expect to hear a helluva lot more about these guys and girls in the year to come - I’m expecting new or debut eps and album from almost all of them, and lots of live shows.
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11. Last Dinosaur
At the time I said: “A droning and jazzy march towards the dusk, thousands of people stomping, and receiving a hearty round of applause from onlookers and well wishers. A welcome return to nourishment after the Radiohead album… (although it has ended up being one of my favourite albums of the year)” [more]. The Last Dinosaur continue to get great international press on the back of this demo and continue to record.
http://myspace.com/thelastdinosauruk
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10. Essie Jain
MP3: Essie Jain - Glory
“It works because the voice carries it, in a way the production draws the voice upwards and the rest follows, swirling a close course behind… passionate acoustic indie flowing and ebbing: so much power in so little, something I find myself following to the end every time” [more] Essie Jain is recording her new album which will be out on Ba Da Bing early in 2008.
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9. Message to Bears
MP3: Message to Bears - Found and You’re safe
“Go to the woods. Plug it into the trees. Let it warm up. An organic drum machine. And old power line that powered peoples lives and eventually drove them mad. Years later, still juiced up, random beats, forgotten loops, all day long. Whose drum machine was that anyway?” [more]. Message to Bears are expected to release some music on a Scandanavian label in 2008.
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8. Cats in Paris
MP3: Cats in Paris - Terrapins
“Terrapins is an instant and infinite mystery to unravel… get closer to the city and it’s possible to make out images, but difficult to understand. You see lots of startling images, dancing on the clouds, made up of brightly coloured pixels, reflecting on the rain as it falls. This all somehow reminds me of nature, darkness, and a positive, optimistic potential.” [more].
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7. A Classic Education
MP3: A Classic Education - Stay Son
“Sigur Ros recorded deep underground, only the roof has just caved in: the sky, echoes and space come together and begin to explode apart. Music shoots up, and rain falls in.” [more]
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6. Misophone
MP3: Misophone - The Sea Has Spoken
“It quivers, and forces me to turn the pages quickly. But nothing is given away until the story tells it, the moment that you start to hear and feel the twists and turns.” [more]
Their album of really smart and dynamic orchestral-folk-pop is available to listen to, buy and download at Kning Disk.
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5. Slow Club
MP3: Slow Club - I’m Alive (live at NBGL HQ)
“Their sublime folk-pop will tour the country will the glee and happiness of a 100 men all opening a cold beer similtaneously.” [more] Slow Club have a couple of releases out on Moshi Moshi, and are writing their album in between nationwide tours.
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4. Magic Arm
you can get the mp3 from Grizzly Bear’s blog, Ed is a big fan of the band.
“These lo-fi ambitionists sound fantastic on this side of the Atlantic tonight. Here we have a British band that sparkle with the subtleties of sound and glimpses of brand new sonic dimensions you knew existed but never looked for; repeated mantras become forgotten questions, as this occurs familiar but quieter sounds ascend and become just as grand as the first time someone asked you ‘what are you going to do about it’.” [more]
The 10″ record is available now from Switchflicker.
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3. Buttonhead
MP3: Buttonhead - Kitson/Lucerne
“folk that is a triumph of brightness, and subtle, accommodating post-rock… melodies become epic and evolutionary, shedding shards of rainbows and sorrowful laments” [more]
http://www.myspace.com/buttonhead
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2. Sleeping States
MP3: Sleeping States - Under a Capricorn Sky
http://nothingbutgreenlights.net/music/capricorn.mp3
“A classical wave strokes your senses here and in the place where your thoughts and ideas develop you see melody revealing it’s self for a few short moments, like the dream memories that wash out of you, before retreating back in on itself, bringing you back to the world of us.” [more]
The album was very received worldwide is available now. UK: Tome US: Misra
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1. Jonquil
MP3: Jonquil - Lions
“It’s like folk music recovering from the revolution: rejuvination and lost memories of the songs that rallied them” Artist of the year, and one of the finest albums of 2007 too.
Their album is available now on Try Harder records.
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In 2008 I intend on continuing the pace set this year and as long as Britain keeps churning out really great new music, I’ll continue to seek out it and write about it. You can keep up to date with new posts my either subscribing to the NBGL RSS Feed, or by ask google what rss feeds are.
Keep emailing me with your suggestions for U.K bands to feature on NBGL, I listen to all of them.
So I wish you happy downloading and happy new year - I’m off to drink a lot of cider by the seaside and then have a party.
Thank-you for putting me onto ‘Message to Bears’, it’s truly excellent. i agree that Jonquil has been the highlight of the year, i can’t believe it’s not been better received, it was easily the best record of 2007. I live in Manchester, and the excitement about Cats In Paris is quite something, it’s nice to have a band like that here. Magic Arm too is brilliant. You might want to check out another local guy/band called Planet Earth, they’re very good, remind me of early B&S a little. Gossamer Albatross, Lanterns On The Lake, Ross Clark & The Rosie Taylor Project are all brilliant, too, and Held By Hands, who’re probably my favourite band at the minute.
Great blog!
hey cats in paris will get the A+R buzz this year methinks…
i’ve seen gossamer and rosie taylor at a folk night here recently, rosie taylor were great.
And the Napoleon IIIrd record is playing well… i’ll check out the rest of your selections too.