what January 2020 sounded like

  Despite the portentous title, this is a round up of things I was sent by nice PR people that sounded interesting, since I said at some point a while ago that I’d do this regularly (and why not?) so here they are, in alphabetical…

Inevitably, the Releases of the Year 2017 (part two)

  The list continues, at this point with no rhyme or reason and in no particular order, so… The Doom Trip label went from strength to strength in 2017. The Doom Mix Vol 1. compilation should be heard as a matter of course (personal favourite:…

Play For Today – Current Playlist 3rd January 2017

  A new year, a (slightly) new look, yet another playlist! This time, things I am listening to as the year begins, including (naturally) some things that I got for Christmas… Patti Smith – Radio Ethiopia (Arista, 1976) 2. IC Rex – Tulen jumalat (Saturnal, 2017) 3. Aidan Baker w….

Inevitably, the releases of the year, 2016 (Part Two)

  Here are some more of the things I thought were good this year Vaguely (or very) shoegaze-related releases of the year I didn’t like the term ‘shoegaze’ back in the early 90s and I don’t like it now. I dislike ‘dreampop’ even more. Neo-shoegaze…

Play For Today – Current Playlist 25th November 2016

  After many delays, another week, another playlist… 1. Kristin Hersh – Wyatt At The Coyote Palace (Omnibus Books, 2016) Review here!  2. Stench Price – Stench Price EP (Transcending Obscurity Records, 2016) 3. Baby Tears – Succubus Slides (Choice Records, 2016) 4. Bethlehem – Bethlehem (Prophecy Productions, 2016)…

Weekly update: the charm of the EP

  This Friday’s weekly musings have a specific subject: the ‘Extended Play’ (EP): Just when the album as a physical format seemed to be dying out, the (somewhat overstated) vinyl renaissance came along, reiterating the obvious; that songs are great, but sometimes a collection of…

Soft As Snow (But Warm Inside) – “shoegaze” 1988 – 1993

First a note: this is not an exhaustive exploration of the (for want of a better term) shoegaze genre. It’s extremely subjective, being based on my own memories and tastes c.1990-2 and therefore has some glaring omissions (unaccountably I never really heard much of the…