After a great January of great new albums, I was expecting a pretty quiet period up to Easter. How wrong could I be. As always, only a few of this month’s music recommendations come from anywhere near what you might call the mainstream. But hey that’s what this column is for, helping you discover some of those rare musical nuggets buried in a miasma of mediocrity.

ALBUMS OF THE MONTH:
Sian Alice Group – 59.99
White Rabbits - Fort Nightly

The Sian Alice Group have one of the worst band names ever. But their debut album 59.99 (the time it takes to listen to the record) is anything but dull and predictable. Their music mixes pop melodies with improvisation to create music of epic proportions, not dissimilar to the best of Spiritualized or My Bloody Valentine. While, the band claim inspiration from Jeff Mills’ Detroit techno, the soundtracks of Angelo Badalamenti, and the minimalism of Steve Reich. Although London-based, they are signed to a small US label, which may suggest why the British music press have been particularly slow on the uptake (although they did play an NME showcase gig at SXSW recently). You can listen to some of their music here.

If you want to put a bet on the next US indie to break through Arcade Fire-style, then the 10-1 favourites are White Rabbits. Their début album has just got its UK release via the label responsible for Coldplay and Keane’s earliest output. The album garnered rave reviews in the US on it’s release last year, and deservedly so. Opener ‘Kid On My Shoulder’ bounds alone on a two-note keyboard riff, then grabs you by shoulders and drags you along, as it gallops towards the finale. While ‘March Of The Camels’ sounds like some bastard-son offspring of the Specials ‘Ghost Town’.

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This month sees the arrival of the first citizensound podcast. We decided that we wanted to share with you some of the vast array of music, from every genre imaginable, that makes up citizensound’s combined record collection of some 25,000 albums and singles. Our aim is to expose you to some great new music, including some of the best unsigned music around, but also some classic gems that you may not have heard before from times gone by. It will also give you the chance to hear some of the music we’ve been sounding off about in the ‘Stuff We Like’ section of our website, and we might even sneak in a few tracks that would make a great soundtrack for the odd advert or seven.

So let’s get down to volume one of It All Ads Up…

To listen:

To download the podcast:

For those of you who are PC users, or are not iTunes users, the MP3 version can be downloaded by right clicking your mouse, here

You can find out the track listing by clicking (more…)

The music release schedules at this time of year is more likely to compound S.A.D.(Seasonal Affective Disorder) amongst music fans, than alleviate them. Traditionally this is not a good month for music junkies in need of a fix. All the ‘BIG’ albums came out pre-Xmas, so all we are left with were a few straggly turkeys that labels didn’t dare chuck out into the market last November, worried that they would sink without trace. But come January nothing much happens, so those very same turkeys get a chance to be released into the shops, in the hope that a starved music public may be suckered into buying them. And what could have turned into very poor sales and a pretty embarrassing chart placing, ends up looking half decent! And don’t tell me this cynical ploy doesn’t happen. Does anyone remember the less than inspiring First Impressions Of Earth by The Strokes? Thought not! It was released on the 2nd January 2006, and pretty quickly sank without trace. Even the music press, who hate January just as much as the rest of us because they have nothing new to write about, couldn’t find it in their hearts to say anything particularly nice about it. But good citizens, something has changed!

January 2008 has already seen an inordinate number of great records appearing on the shelves of your favourite music emporium. The pick of the crop include These New Puritans, Vampire Weekend, One More Grain, Michael Dracula, Cat Power, Thao, The Chromatics, Glass Candy, British Sea Power, The Dynamics, and Black Mountain. Agreed none of them are exactly household names, but all of them have made cracking albums. (more…)

I saw Tawiah at the Gilles Peterson Worldwide Awards last week at Cargo in London. She completely blew me away. She has everything. A great band, well crafted songs, an amazing presence on stage, confidence unlimited (for a second performance no less!) and a voice that drifts from Carmun Lundy to reggae, back to Jill Scott and then to dubstep with Radiohead thrown in. This girl is London Town, but deserves to go global.

Whether you are still unconvinced about the power of popular music, you like smart ex-NME journalists talking about the music dialectic, or you simply love great pop TV - you must check out arts critic and author, Paul Morley's excellent documentary on BBC 4 last night. He explores and celebrates the beauty and mystery of three-minute pop single.

BBC4 are currently running an excellent season of programmes on pop music, including the excellent Pop Britannia series (Friday's at 10pm). You  can Watch Morley's excellent documentary and some of the other excellent programmes in the series on the BBC iPlayer online for the next 7 days.

This is the album cover of the most recent release from Andrew Bird. To me this is such an arresting image. It stopped me in the shop. I had to pick up the CD and find out about the artist. This is an example where the power of the visual can make a difference.

Special Mention for Sigur Ros Heima, I love this band. And now they have created a beautiful film to complement their images that their music conjures up in our minds. They toured their home country Iceland, playing free low key concerts in the farthest corners of the breathtaking country. The landscape is as much the star of this film as is the music

citizen bay shares his faves from 2007…

1. Jose James – a 29 year old from New York, who deserves as wide an audience as possible. He also has my vote for single of the year, the joyous Equinox/Resolution 10 inch that came out in the summer.

Anyone brave enough to put words to John Coltrane needs to be listened to. When I got hold of this 10inch, it just sat on the turntable playing again and again. He has an album coming out very soon. I have heard some tracks already (go to his myspace page for a listen… He has a track called Winter Wind. It is a future classic. For the time being I will make do with Equinox/Resolution).

Expect the term Urban Jazz get used a lot when his name is mentioned. Also expect the urban scene to be mixing things up with him…see him live and you will know what I mean…

Jazz dead? Yeah right…

2. Akron/Family - Grown to love this band since I heard Gone Beyond.

3. Old Romantic Killer Band - Saw them at In The City, and love their music, their look and live set. They make a heap of noise for a two piece too… Girl You Have All The Fun and Lovers Pass are my faves from them right now. Not played a lot of gigs. This two piece blues rock band play really loud. Harry can really sing, while he (guitar) and Bunse (drums) are tight tight tight. Go see them or at least go to their myspace and check them out…

4. That great Record Cover Art is not dead.

5. The Voices of Harlem - Found this single in a French ‘vide grenier' (like a car boot sale, but it translates as ‘empty attic’). What a tune. The 20-member strong Voices Of East Harlem formed in the late 60s, inspired by groups like The Staple Singers and the social and political struggles of the day.
Originally a local choir, put together by the East Harlem Youth Federation Association, the group were signed to the Elektra label. After supporting Jimi Hendrix in 1970, their debut album 'Right On Be Free' was recorded at his Electric Ladyland studio.

We've also been rubbing our crystal ball's around citizensound towers, as we guessed you might want a few recommendations for artists to look out for over the next 12 months. So here's Paul Martin's tips for 2008…

Tawiah (opposite) is currently unsigned, but check her forthcoming track Every Step. Forget all the other ex Brit schoolers, Tawiah is the real deal. Confident South London soul diva. Pure dynamite live.

Yo Majesty's forthcoming album, check out the track Nightriders (on Domino). Tough girls from the states with grooves and lyrics to shame the boys.

Temni (currently signed to SONY ATV Publishing) Unbelievably talented singer from Nigeria with the spirit of Lauryn Hill in her veins but a style of her own with on point mad funky productions to rule the world.

Cumbia fever. That’s Cumbia, not Cumbria folks. The new sound out of Mexico, was last year's Mexican Sound Institute album Pinata on Cooking Vinyl, and  the forthcoming Russ Jones and Felix ‘Basement Jaxx’ Buxton compilation. The sound for Summer 2008? While Fania, the classic New York label of the 60s and 70s, gets a remix makeover.

Bare Knuckle Soul – on the Knuckle imprint with a 4 track 12” single, check out Moon Dust. Proving that soul as well as rock comes from the city of Sheffield

Vampire Weekend - forthcoming début album from XL. New Yorkers with African touches.Check out their current single Mansard Roof on iTunes. 

Black Affair - Pleasure Pressure Point album. Steve Mason, the former Beta Band main man, takes us on a 80's electro throwback, and wins.

Inner City Dwellers are currently unsigned. This London duo mix the rock and the rap. The drum and the bass. The electronics and the live. Check also Dead Kids and Does It Offend You, Yeah? for similar mongrel crossbreeds.

Aaron Jerome - A Time to Rearrange album on BBE. A host of underground talent feature on this album. Check out the Yungun track Late Night Mission for a jazz hip house bump from the new wunderkid producer.

Jazz is still alive in the 21st century, and if you need proof check out José James’ album Dreamer on Brownswood. Keeping the flame of spiritual vocal jazz alive. A singer with John Coltrane in his lungs. On the instrumental jazz tip check out Polar Bear’s forthcoming second album, a sublime return for the twice Mercury-nominated Seb Rochford, pushing the envelope of jazz and electronics. Maybe a third nomination and a 1st ever jazz winner!

Christian Prommer - Drum Lesson: Volume One on Sonar Kollectiv is proper jazz -dance versions of classics including Kraftwerk’s Trans-Europe Express and Derek May’s Strings Of Life.

James Chance and the Contortions new album on Trigger music. A new album twenty years on from no-wave, featuring the original line up plus some very special guests. Still funky and more edgy that most young pretenders.  'Plus two' like any good guest list, here's two rappers pushing not just licking the envelope:

Saul Williams The Inevitable Rise And Liberation Of NiggyTardust on Wichita. He's back rockin' and a rappin'. The illest lyricist, this time produced by Trent Reznor from Nine Inch Nails. Highlight tracks include DNA and Trigger.

Jay Electronica Act 1: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge). No drums, no hooks, just new shit from this New Orleans native.

Settle down, settle down now. Our very own Paul Martin is a professional. And he's compiled us all an end of year chart. So pay attention, we'll be testing you later…

1. Tawiah - Watch Out on Brownswood Bubblers Vol 2 on Brownswood.  A vocalist with talent to burn.
2. Little Dragon’s eponymous album on Peacefrog.  Big basslines with soulful vocals. Swedish you know.
3. Black Affair - Tak Attack [vinyl only 12” single on V2. Steve Mason (ex-Beta Band/King Biscuit Time) morphs into Afrika Bambaatta via The Human League. Brilliant !
4. Dubstep produces some classic longplayers from a genre still joining the ring roads from Croydon to the rest of the world. If you want to check out what all the fuss is about here’s four places to start… Burial - Untrue on Hyper-Dub. Glitchy ravey 2-step soul to lift angels in the rain outside McDonalds. Pinch - Underwater Dancehall on Tec-Tonic. Dub still heavy in the waters around Bristol. Box of Dub - Vol. 1 and 2 on Soul Jazz. Classic reissue label with fingers still on the pulse of the city. Shackleton/Appleblim - Soundboy Punishments on Skull Disco. Ridiculous tribal dub-funk producer Shackleton is THE out there minimal man.
5. Hypnotic Brass Ensemble - War 10” single plus others. The son of afro-jazzer Philip Cochrane keeps the woozy Southern state brass band alive and blows a sound to mourn the drowned and raise the spirits of New Orleans.
6. Shawn Lee's Ping Pong Orchestra - Hits the Hits on Ubiquity. Amongst the plethora of covers albums this one is the most irreverent and downright funky. Check the version of " Hey Ya " which goes all 60s Ramsey Lewis-style.
7. Michael Fakesch  - Dos on  K7. Prince may still be kicking it live but this electro funk soul singer takes us back to his best days in the studio.
8. Reverso 68 had three 12in singles out on Eskimo.  Check Especial and my favourite Take Me Back To Yours plus remixes. Cosmic grooves and dubby disco.
9. The ever foward looking Warp records still kicking it with three killer releases last year from Prefuse 73 - Preperations, Battles  - Mirrored, and !!! - Myth Takes.
10. Compilation of the year is Ethiopiques - the Very Best of Ethiopiques: Hypnotic Grooves from the Legendary Series on Manteca/Union Square. Selected best-of from 22 volumes containing the cream of the crop although you need all of them really. Previously featured in the Jim Jarmusch movie Broken Flowers, and also Charlie Gillet's album of the year in OMM. Spot on I say.

I'm a terrible one for falling asleep to music. I often plug into my iPod when I go to bed and either wake up in the middle of the night tangled up in my headphones, or can't nod off because I get too involved in the music I'm listening to! This widget is the perfect solution for me, and no-doubt other musicholics, who just can't get enough.

With this Widget, you will now be able to fall asleep and wake up in music! You can set the time when you want the music to stop and to restart. You can also set how long you want the volume to decrease. You can use SleepMusic as an alarm clock! Since the Widget acts on the master volume of the computer, you can use it with every music players (Winamp, ITunes, etc.). In fact, with any program using your speakers!

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