The Underground of Happiness

enjoy people x Playlist 1. Cluster & Eno – Ho Renomo (bureau b) 2. Midori Hirano – Oto, Kioku (Thrill Jockey) 3. Jimi Tenor Band – Selenites (Tapete Records) 4. Lucy Gooch – Clouds (Fire Records) 5. Barry Walker Jr feat. Rob Smith & Jason Willmon – Quiessence (Thrill Jockey) 6. The Notwist – X-ray (Morr Music) 7. Bill Callahan – The man I’m supposed to be (Drag City) 8. claire rousay feat m sage – just (Thrill Jockey) 9. Clementine March – Fireworks (PRAH Recordings) 10. Lande Hekt – Favourite pair of shoes (Tapete Records) 11. Prima Queen feat Girl Group – The prize (Submarine Cat) 12. Anna Prior – True for you (Beat Palace Records) 13. Hater – This guy (Fire Records) 14. Haylie Davis – Country boy (Fire Records) 15. Homer – Chrysanthemum (Big Crown Records) 16. The Cords – Just don’t know how to be you (Skep Wax) 17. Ladytron – I believe in you (Nettwerk) (playing Gorilla, Manchester, Mar 21) 18. lucky break – Burning string (Fire Records) 19. Ma...

A mix of some of my favourite instrumental music. There are some vocals involved here, I hear you say, but voices used in an instrumental way, I would say. Non lyrical voices, let's say. What strikes me listening back is the range of emotions in these tunes. Romantic. Melancholy. Reverie. Delirious. Stoic. Noirish. Beauty and strangeness. Electronic. Stringed. Ambient. Gothenburg. Tokyo. Dublin. Down. Philadelphia. Berlin. Tucson. Toronto. Enjoy. x Playlist Ennio Morricone – Come Maddalena (EMI) Moondog – Theme (Columbia) Áine O’Dwyer – For the souls of our fleas (Fort Evil Fruit) Faten Kanaan – Ebla (Fire Records) ( playing Union Chapel, London, Apr 28, w/ Colin Stetson ) Silver Servants – Spailing farrows (Second Language) Pieter Nooten – Lo-fi lullaby (Rocket Girl) Maggie Bjorklund – Flow (Tompkins Square) ( Luke Schneider presents Imaginational Anthem Vol XI: Chrome Universal – A survey of modern pedal steel ) Edward Williams – Japanese m...

Another batch from end of year compiling. Some you may have heard of. Some you probably haven't. Enjoy them all. x Playlist 1. BJ Cole – Ely revisited (Tompkins Square) ( Luke Schneider Presents Imaginational Anthem vol. XI : Chrome Universal - A Survey of Modern Pedal Steel ) 2. Yuko Kono – Ginger (Morr Music) ( Minna Miteru 2 ) 3. Jimi Tenor – Lifehugger (bureau b) 4. L.A. Salami – Desperate times, mediocre measures (Sunday Best Recordings) 5. Shake Chain – RU (Upset The Rhythm) 6. The Umlauts – Sweat (PRAH Recordings) 7. Etienne Jaumet & Fabrizio Rat – Visione pop (bureau b) 8. Aoife Nessa Frances – Emptiness follows (Partisan Records) 9. Marina Allen – Or else (Fire Records) 10. Telefís feat Sean O’Hagan – Space is us (Dimple Discs) 11. Yosa Peit – Anthy (Fire Records) 12. The Burning Hell – Dirty Microphones (BB*Island) 13. Modern Studies – Geese (Fire Records) 14. Bjork – Sorrowful soil (One Little Independent) 15. The Orchids – This boy is...

Another instalment of June earwigs. Enjoy. x Playlist 1. Astrel K – Is it it or is it I? (Duophonic Super 45s) 2. Ghost Power – Asteroid witch (Duophonic Super 45s) 3. Jimi Tenor – Life hugger (bureau b) 4. Charles Watson – All my mountains (Moshi Moshi Records) 5. Dana Gavanski – I kiss the night (Full Time Hobby) 6. elkyn – If you’re still leaving (Curation Records) 7. Guerilla Toss – Live exponential (Sub Pop) 8. Marisa Anderson – Waking (Thrill Jockey) ( playing Clonakilty International Guitar Festival, Sept 16-17 ) 9. Naima Bock – Every morning (Sub Pop) ( playing End of the Road Festival, Sept 1-4 ) 10. Sam Prekop and John McEntire – A ghost at noon (Thrill Jockey) 11. The Notwist feat Juana Molina – Al sur (Elijah Minnelli Remix) (Morr Music) 12. Soccer96 feat Salami Rose Joe Louis – Yesterday knows me (Moshi Moshi Records) 13. Film Noir – Erotica (Albé Productions/Un Plan Simple) 14. The B-52s – Give me back my man (Island) 15. The B-52s – Planet Cl...

Some odds and ends here. Mixture of things that fell through the cracks towards the end of last year, plus some new releases from January. More great sounds in the world. Enjoy. x Playlist 1. God is God – The song Part II (bureau b) 2. The Monochrome Set – Hello, save me (Tapete) 3. Analphabet – The wirtschaftswunder (bureau b) 4. Blue States feat Allison Brice Grasso – Alarms (Memphis Industries) 5. Guerilla Toss – Cannibal capitol (Sub Pop) 6. Junk Drawer – Tears in Costa (Art For Blind) 7. Lael Neale – Hotline (Sub Pop) 8. Naima Bock – 30 degrees (Sub Pop) 9. Prima Queen – Chew my cheeks (Nice Swan Records) 10. Sprints – Little fix (Nice Swan Records) ( playing Ulster Sports Club, Belfast, Mar 6 ) 11. Saroos feat Sequoyah Tiger – Frequency change (Alien Transistor) 12. Odd Nosdam & Rayon – From nowhere to north (Morr Music) 13. Abiodun Oyewole – My life (AFAR) 14. Anita Lane – Home is where the hatred is (Mute) 15. The Burning Hell – Bird Queen...

Part 2 of this lookback. Enjoy. x Playlist Cathal Coughlan – Owl in the parlour (Dimple Discs) Alasdair Roberts og Volvur – Nu solen gar ned (Drag City) Ann Scott – Sweetheart (Raghouse Records) Bobby Oroza – I got love (Big Crown Records) Brainstory – Bye bye (Big Crown Records) Daniel Blumberg feat Josephine Foster – The world to come (from the soundtrack of the film The world to come ) (Node Records/Wise Music Group) Ed Dowie – Number Eight Wire (Needle Mythology) Henrik Lindstrand – Enghave lys (Alex Somers rework) (One Little Independent) Fine Place – It’s your house (Night School Records) Junior Brother – Life’s new haircut (Strange Brew) Low – Days like these (Sub Pop) Lucy Gooch – Rain’s break (Fire Records) M Ward – Birthday (Anti) Pretty Happy – Sea sea sea (Art For Blind) Rats on Rafts – Osaka (Fire Records) Ruthann Friedman – Hurried life (Tompkins Square) (reissue) Sack – What a way to live (Dimple Discs) St Vincent – Pay your way in pain (L...

More tunes from the universe. Enjoy. x Playlist 1. Soccer96 – Carry us home (Moshi Moshi) 2. Telefís – Mister Imperator (Dimple Discs) 3. Craig Fortnam – Peter Roy and Ron are gone 4. Richard Dawson – weaver (Weird World) 5. Vapors of Morphine – Irene (Schnitzel Records Ltd.) 6. Lewsberg – The corner ( playing Moth Club, London, Nov 23 ) 7. Mocky – Bora! (Heavy Sheet) 8. El Michels Affair – Ala vida (Big Crown Records) 9. The Allergies – Love somebody (Jalapeno Records) 10. Dragon Welding – Frog (Dimple Discs) 11. Stereo Total – A la sortie du lycee (Tapete Records) 12. Me Lost Me – Sing to the sun 13. Rozi Plain – Silent fan (Memphis Industries) 14. Ruthann Friedmann – Hurried life (Tompkins Square) 15. Jessica Pratt – Back baby (Drag City) 16. The Association – Windy (Warner Bros) 17. Sparks – So may we start (Milan Records) (from the soundtrack of the film Annette ) 18. Prefab Sprout – Appetite (acoustic) (Epic) 19. Mose Allison Trio – Autumn song (...

A backlog of music in the autumn time. Enjoy. x Playlist 1. Buffet Lunch – Cheeks (Upset the Rhythm)( playing Mono, Glasgow, Nov 11 ) 2. Faust – I’ve got my car and my tv (Bureau B) 3. Harmonious Thelonious – Ayranman (Bureau B) 4. Herbert feat Mel Uye-Parker – Hypnotised (Accidental Records) 5. SUEP – Domesticated dream (Memorials of Distinction) 6. Clear History – Solar death ray (Upset The Rhythm) 7. Sone Institute – Echo Zulu India (Mystery Bridge) 8. Margot – Watercolour (Full Time Hobby) ( playing Sebright Arms, London, Nov 11 ) 9. Shuko feat Lee Fields & Nia Wyn – Nothing’s gonna change (For the Love of It Recordings) 10. The Magic Lantern – There’s a light (Hectic Eclectic Records) ( playing Wardrobe, Bristol, Dec 13 ) 11. Abiodun Oyewole – Harlem (Afar) 12. Anna Vincent – Thin skin (Ultimate Blends) ( playing Waiting Room, London, Nov 1 ) 13. Barry Adamson – The climber (Mute) 14. Pretty Happy – Sea sea sea (Art For Blind) ( playin...

New music for your lugholes. Enjoy. x Playlist 1. Herbert feat Y’akoto – The way (Accidental Records) 2. Me & My Friends – All that is you 3. Nation of Language – Across that fine line ( playing Reading/Leeds Festivals, Aug 27 & 28 2021 ) 4. Soccer96 feat Nuha Ruby Ra – Dopamine (Moshi Moshi) 5. The Go! Team – Pow (Memphis Industries) 6. Shannon Lay – Rare to wake (Sub Pop) 7. Jack Cheshire – Mystery train (Loose Tongue Records) 8. The Magic Lantern – Bound for glory (Hectic Eclectic Records) 9. Mocky – Stevie’s room (Heavy Sheet) 10. Band of Holy Joy – Leap into the great unknown (Tiny Global Productions) 11. Telefís – We need (251 Records/Dimple Discs) 12. Alasdair Roberts og Volvur – Orison of union (Drag City) 13. Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band – Dirt off your shoulder (Big Crown Records) 14. Craig Fortnam – Ark (Onomatopoeia Records) 15. Henrik Lindstrand – Enghave Lys (Alex Somers Remix) (One Little Independent) 16. Boa Morte –...

A round up of my favourite music released in 2020. Despite everything, it seems like a marvellous year for recorded sound. Enjoy and stay well. x Playlist Sleeper & Snake – Shoot through (Upset The Rhythm) Louis Philippe & The Night Mail – Rio Grande (Tapete) Emily Barker – Sonogram (bandcamp) Arch Garrison – The more I know (Believers Roast) Bill Callahan & Bonnie Prince Billy feat. Sean O’Hagan – Wish you were gay (Drag City) Skinshape feat. D’alma – Sua alma (Big Crown Records) Caribou – Home (Merge Records/City Slang) The Hamrahlid Choir – Cosmogony (One Little Independent) Keeley Forsyth – Large oak (The Leaf Label) Nadia Reid – Get the devil out of me (Spacebomb) Bert Jansch – Crimson moon (Earth, reissue) Tame Impala – Is it true (Caroline) Rats on Rafts – Tokyo Music Experience (Fire) Mikael Tariverdiev – Prelude from My younger brother (Earth) (from the soundtrack of the film My younger ...

Sounds from the universe. Sounding well. With love. x Playlist The Chills – The male monster with the id (Fire, reissue) St Vincent – Piggy (Caroline) Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard – 30,000 megabucks (Communion) Terry Gross – Specificity (Or what have you) (Thrill Jockey) Sleeper & Snake – Lock up the loose (Upset The Ryhthm) Louis Philippe & The Night Mail – Fall in a daydream (Tapete) Emily Barker – The woman who planted trees Arch Garrison – Lady young ghost (Believers Roast) Joe Hisaishi with New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra – Procession of the spirits (from the soundtrack of the film Spirited away ) Bill Callahan & Bonnie Prince Billy feat. Sean O’Hagan – Wish you were gay (Drag City) Drug Store Romeos – Jim, let’s play (Caroline) Half Japanese – Undisputed champions (Fire) Margot – Falling in between days (Full Time Hobby) Trashcan Sinatras – Twisted and bent (Go! Discs) Skinshape – Another day (Big Crown Records) Edwa...

New tunes for a new decade. Enjoy. Playlist The Fantasy Orchestra - Flow (Disco-Ordination) Arboretum – A prism in reverse (Thrill Jockey) Cabane feat. Kate Stables & Bost Gehio – Now, winter comes (White Label) Coco – Empty Beach (FCA Records) Craven Faults – Vacca wall (The Leaf Label) Caribou – Never come back (Merge/City Slang) Olafur Arnalds feat. Voces8 – Nyepi (choir version) Daniel Knox – Room key (HP Johnson Presents) Keeley Forsyth – Look to yourself (The Leaf label) Aoife Nessa Frances – Libra (Basin Rock) Dead Famous People – Groovy girl (Fire Records) Jeffrey Lewis & The Voltage – Exactly what nobody wanted (Moshi Moshi Records) Katie Von Schleicher – Caged sleep (Full Time Hobby) Theatre Royal – A marvellous death (Vacilando ’68) Shadow Show – Contessa (Stolen Body Records) Lewsberg – From never to once M Ward – Migration of souls (Anti Records) Mick Harvey – The Somme (from the soundtrack of the film Waves of Anzac) (Mute) Modern Stu...

My favourite tunes of 2019.* Sounds like another great year. Enjoy. *A few snuck in from other years on the basis that they happened for me in 2019. So as well as the year of Twen, Purple Mountains, Vanishing Twin, Paul & The Tall Trees... The year of Bright Phoebus . The year of Steve McQueen (acoustic) . The year of Loch na hEala . Playlist Vanishing Twin – Magician’s success (Fire Records) POZI – Engaged (Prah Recordings) Weyes Blood – Everyday (Sub Pop) Hiss Golden Messenger – My wing (Merge) Charles Rumback & Ryley Walker – Half joking (Thrill Jockey) Twen – Holy river (Frenchkiss Records) Paul & The Tall Trees – Then we’ll wave (So long) (Big Crown Records) Rozi Plain – Trouble (Memphis Industries) Fixity – Becoming an earthworm (Penske Recordings) C Duncan – Reverie (Fat Cat Records) Sarah Louise – Late night healing choir (Thrill Jockey) Bedouine – Tall man (Caroline) Paperface – Little monsters (Daydream Records) Purple Mou...

New releases from this latest period in time. Spirals and drones. A capella and instrumentals. Walls of sound and cries for help. A piece of aural history. Enjoy the magic. Playlist Hiss Golden Messenger – I need a teacher (Merge Records) Moonchy & Tobias – Atmosfere (Hidden Shoal/Tiny Room) Murray Lightburn – To the top (Dangerbird) ALA.NI – Sha la la (ALA.NI) Alasdair Roberts – Common clay (Drag City) Boa Morte – Ships passing (Gare du Nord) Brainstory – Mnemophobia (Big Crown records) Clairo – Impossible (Caroline) Comet Gain – The institute debased (Tapete) Dana Gavanski – Catch (Full Time Hobby) Fenella – Bright curse (Fire Records) Hater – It’s a mess (Fire Records) Hochzeitskapelle – Anohito (Gutfeeling Records/Broken Silence) Joanne & Sonny – Journey (Tompkins Square) Kiwi Jr – Salary man (Mint Records) Mermaidens – Millenia (Flying Nun) Spindle Ensemble - Okemah Sundown Rachael Dadd – Cut my roots (Memphis Industries) Sean O’Hagan fea...

Keep the pop gems coming in this wet steamy summer. Playlist Mambo Noir Trio – Matador (Oona Records) Laurence Pike – Dance of the earth (The Leaf Label) Kingo Dia Ntotila – Mutwashi (Fancy Cat Remix) (Pussyfoot Records) Purple Mountains – Margaritas at the mall (Drag City) Bananagun – Do yeah (Full Time Hobby) Corey King – Fertility filter (Def Pressé) Cross Record – The fly (Ba Da Bing) Alasdair Roberts – The evernew tongue (Drag City) Drahla – Pyramid Estate (Captured Tracks) Gruff Rhys – Pang (Rough Trade) Hochzeitskapelle – Sonido Amazonico (Gutfeeling Records/Broken Silence) Manu Louis – Internet (Igloo Records) Mermaidens – I might disappear (Flying Nun) Sarathy Korwar – Bol (The Leaf Label) Band of Holy Joy – Electric pilgrims Terry – Spud (Upset The Rhythm) Twen – Damsel (Frenchkiss Records) Cabogato – Drive on dust (Hidden Shoal) Solo Collective – By the tower, at nightfall (Nonostar Records) Dubi Dolczek – Tangerine Moon (Stolen Body Re...

Playlist Sufjan Stevens – Love yourself (Asthmatic Kitty) Aldous Harding – Fixture picture (4AD) Pozi – Engaged (Prah Recordings) Jane Weaver – Slow motion (LITSS variation) (Fire Records) Stereo Total – Einfach (Tapete) Apparat – Caronte (Mute) Holy Hive feat. Mary Lattimore – Oh I miss her so (Big Crown Records) Laurence Pike – Taught by spirits (The Leaf Label) Polypores – Third level (Front & Follow) Lewsberg – Chances Vanishing Twin – Magician’s success (Fire Records) The Catenary Wires – Dream town (Tapete) Lee Hazlewood with Nina Lizell – Leather and lace (Light in the Attic) Purple Mountains – All my happiness is gone (Drag City) Sam Evian – Cherry tree (Saddle Creek) RaleghLong – Dukes of Stratosphear (Gare du Nord) Rozi Plain – Swing shut (Memphis Industries) Prefab Sprout – I trawl the megahertz (excerpt) (Sony) Prefab Sprout – Appetite (acoustic) (Columbia) The Go Betweens – Core of a flame (Beggars Banquet) Red Channel – Crazy diamonds (Upset...

*Dedicated to LK who loves autumn* Autumn. Fall. I’ve been threatening to do one of these for a while. What are autumn songs? What is autumn music? There are the ones that reference autumn explicitly. Leaves. Wind. Rain. Colours. Sun lower in the sky. Those unforgettable moons. But beyond that there’s the metaphor of time passing. A certain mood. The beginning of the end of something. That can still be beautiful. Lots of music taps into this well for its atmosphere. A certain meditative quality might be in it. A contemplation of something. Maybe nostalgia. Often a minor key. Or at least bittersweet. (Possibly related – many of the tracks here feature woodwind. Flutes. Clarinets. Double recorder. The force of breath? There’s even the sighing of an accordion. And a harmonica.) There might even be spirits involved. Souls. Halloween. Contact with another world. Or like birds taking off for warmer climates some kind of migration. Transformation. Death or decay...

******************************************************************************************************** Laetitia Sadier Source Ensemble – Undying love for humanity (from the album Find me finding you , Drag City) Wonderful Brazilian twist on Laetitia’s signature kosmische. It’s hard to pick out any one element but I must say the vocals are a particular joy. Not just the lead which is as clear and pure as the best Stereolab . But the inspired backing ba da das which drive the playout. Still sounds fresh as a daisy almost a year after release. Michael Nau – I root (Full Time Hobby) Sublime hazy memories of love from Maryland in the US... ... as if Harry Nilsson turned his mind to happier fuzzier times. There’s very little detail to list here – a one and a half note guitar figure, a snare roll, a ride cymbal, a dream of a voice – but really the story is more to do with the atmosphere. Languid is a word. Sleepy maybe. Intimate for sure. ...

******************************************************************************************************** Bill MacKay & Ryley Walker – Spider Beetlebee (Drag City) Beautiful album of bright and bracing guitar instrumentals from this Chicago duo collaboration. The range of styles spanned over the course of just half an hour is a clue to the open mindedness and sense of adventure of both musicians. There’s a real sense of the shared joy in playing about the whole piece. A gorgeous miniature body of work and in many ways perfect music for this time of year. SpiderBeetleBee by Bill MacKay & Ryley Walker Laura Cannell – Lines of copper gold (Brawl Records) Bracing is also a word to describe this blast of overbowed fiddle from Laura Cannell of East Anglia recorded in a semi ruined church from her current album Hunter Huntress Hawker . Call it early music. Improvised. Experimental. It is primal and it is stirring. It feels essential. HUNTER HUN...

Beautiful album of bright and bracing guitar instrumentals from this Chicago duo collaboration. The range of styles spanned over the course of just half an hour is a clue to the open mindedness and sense of adventure of both musicians. Some highlights. The pastoral proud maybe even courtly atmosphere of ‘The grand old trout’ nodding in the direction of the great Bert Jansch. Sublime key changes and hints of French jazz in ‘Lower Chesnut’. The uplifting addition of tabla drums on ‘I heard them singing’. The energising bends and slides of ‘Lonesome traveler’. There’s a real sense of the shared joy in playing about the whole piece. A gorgeous miniature body of work and in many ways perfect music for this time of year. SpiderBeetleBee by Bill MacKay & Ryley Walker