The Garden Of Earthly Delights 2024 Volume 4

 

Librarians With Hickeys - How To Make Friends By Telephone 

Probably the best Guitar Pop band on the splendid Big Stir label and they mine the full depth of the genre. From Jangle Pop to Surf, Pop Rock to UK Beat, West Coast Pop to 80s New Wave, they master it all melodically and vocal harmony.

Possibly at their best when they Jangle and that takes on different avenues. However, I've chosen Psych Pop for the example below, simply because I usually do. The variety on show however means no two songs are the same. Whoever mentioned difficult third albums are proven wrong by the joy on display here.

You can listen to and buy the album here. 

The Greek Theatre - A Deeper Scar

It is wonderful to have The Greek Theatre back. It has been a while since When Seasons Change and the Swedes never disappoint. They generally master a sort of gentle West Coast Psych that can edge into even gentler Prog akin to bands like Beaulieu Porch.

They aren't afraid of opening the box though and here they venture into Classic Rock and Pop Rock without ever forgetting what they are good at. Chilled and masterfully arranged. Don't be fooled by the laidback mood as you soon realise how much work goes into their work.

You can listen to and buy the album here.

Gnome - Vestiges of Verumex Visidrome

Now for something louder. Antwerp's Gnome Rock your socks off. Riff heavy and a little nearer to Classic Rock than we normally cover, but a much noisier version. These riffs reverberate around your brain, whilst the band take different paths to reveal and variety that just grips you in an extraordinary way.

Expect Hard Rock, Prog and Stoner and don't expect to come up for air throughout the journey. However, the results are surprisingly melodic and those riffs are just a heavier version of what we listen to. This will rattle the dentures.

https://gnome.bandcamp.com/album/vestiges-of-verumex-visidrome

You can listen to and buy the EP here.

Charming Arson - Another Kind Of Vision

This is called an EP, but with six tracks coming in at over 23 minutes, it is nearly as long as some Power Pop albums. The Boston quartet continue to show that variety and I suppose variance is the key thing that we love here. 

Another Kind Of Vision is not afraid to Rock, taking in 90s College Rock, IRS Indie, Pop Rock, Modern Prog and Intelligent Indie Rock. There's even Funk and a little Jazz. Loads is packed into this excellent affair that showcases how ace this lot are.

You can listen to and buy the album here.

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I Don't Hear A Single Albums Of The Year 2022 : 31-40

 

This year, the standard has been the highest since IDHAS began six and a half years ago. Narrowing things down to this 100 as been really difficult. For each album, I've posted a song from it and a link to the IDHAS Review where you can find further details and how to listen or buy the album.

A reminder that anything reviewed on I Don't Hear A Single is highly recommended. 

No 31 : The Bye Bye Blackbirds - August Lightning Complex    IDHAS Review

No 32 : Emperor Penguin - Sunday Carvery        IDHAS Review





No 33 : The Summer Holiday - Acqua     IDHAS Review

No 34 : Andy Bopp - An Andy Bopp Compilation          IDHAS Review

      

No 35 : Elvis Eno - A Startling Realization Of The Obvious     IDHAS Review

No 36 : Whelligan - In The Mean Meantime      IDHAS Review


  


No 37 : Phil Yates & the Affiliates - A Thin Thread      IDHAS Review

No 38 :  Derrero - Curvy Lines    IDHAS Review

  

No 39 : Librarians With Hickeys - Handclaps & Tambourines   IDHAS Review 

 
No 40 : The Glad Machine - Hey       IDHAS Review

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Librarians With Hickeys - Handclaps & Tambourines

 

The new album from Librarians With Hickeys has been eagerly awaited by many of my peers for quite a while which is quite unusual for a Pop Rock album. Certain Reviewers just want to be the first to get an album or the first to review it, but generally the buzz starts much closer to the release. So what makes this band and album different?

I will try and tell you. There is nothing ground breaking in what they do, they just do it so well. In a genre that can try to bewitch you with Beach Boys style harmonies or offer up riff after riff to rock your socks off, the band just concentrate on writing and performing great songs. Bit by bit they gently grab you and you find yourself washed away in a soothing river of wonderful melodic tunes.

Teenage Fanclub's recent output has the same effect, even though LWH are nothing like them really. The quartet give the impression of having been around forever. You have to convince yourself that is only their second album.

A song like When We Were Young is so worldly, but so beautifully done. Ghost Singer is one of the songs of the year, very West Coast 1967 with a splendid Jangle and a Byrds like chorus. Handclaps & Tambourines offers up a fair bit of Jangle, but unlike other bands they don't rely on similar-ish songs to display it. Often it is understated as much of the material here.

I Better Get Home is all Farfisa with overtones of Psych Pop, yet is still essentially UK Beat Pop. Lady Overdrive is probably the noisiest they get and is very New Wave 1979, yet I Can't Stop Thinking About You is very Carnaby Street. The Last Days Of Summer comes close to Baroque Folk with some fine Violin, courtesy of The Armoires' Larysa Bulbenko.

It is slightly unfair to single one person out as the band arrange and perform so well together and are such a collaborative team, but Ray Carmen's vocals are top notch. Handclaps & Tambourines is an album to be listened to from start to finish and I guarantee that your day will feel better.

You can listen to and buy the album here. 

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I Don't Hear A Single Albums Of The Year 2020 : 41-50

It's been difficult to get these choices down to 100. I'm also not a believer in saying one album is better than another. Most of the time you are comparing Apples To Oranges. I'm not a List person, I just think what's the point.

However, for the last few years I have compiled annual Best Of 's  because these posts seem so popular and the aim of this Blog is to get exposure (and Sales) for the artists. There is no meaning or judgement on an album that is Number 1, Number 100 or not on the list. Anything that I review on here, mention on Social Media or play on the Radio Show is as highly recommended.

I would also add that the Top 100 includes albums available as Download Only. To suggest that they are anything less than equal to a Physical release is grossly unfair, even more so in 2020 with all that has happened during the year. To qualify, an album has to be available for sale in any format.

For each album, I've posted a song from it and a link to where you can find further details on how to listen or buy the album. 

No 41 : Captain Wilberforce - When The Dust Just Won't Settle    IDHAS Review

No 42 : mylittlebrother - Howl        IDHAS Review









No 43 : The Overtures - Once In A World     IDHAS Review

No 44 : Mothboxer - Accelerator          IDHAS Review

       

No 45 : Ex Norwegian - Hue Spotting    IDHAS Review

No 46 : Cary Grace - Lady Of Turquoise      Review









No 47 : Dolph Chaney - Rebuilding Permit     Review

No 48 :  Shrug Life - Maybe You're The Punchline    IDHAS Review




 



No 49 : Gal Gun - Critical Hit    IDHAS Review

   



No 50 : Librarians With Hickeys - Long Overdue         Review

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