While I was writing the post on Tanita Tikaram (A Long-lost Voice), I started thinking about musicians that had not been heard of for a while – many for the good of the world at large and some, like Ms. Tikaram, that I for one would love to hear more of. And in that respect, my cup of joy has been full to the brim these last few months. Tom Waits came out with new material after about 7 years on ‘Bad As Me’, the striking voice of Sinead O’Connor is heard again on ‘How About I Be Me (And You Be You)?’, The Cranberries re-united after nearly 11 years with ‘Roses’, a much re-formed The Shins (to me it seems that this band’s really only James Mercer with none of the other members from 5 years back on this new album) return after a 5-year break with ‘Port Of Morrow’.
But I drink deep (my friends will ‘Aye’ to that, loud and long) and I haven’t yet had my fill. I’d love to see the return of The Hold Steady whose last album ‘Heaven Is Whenever’ was, in my reckoning, one of the best releases of 2010. That might be only wishful thinking with Craig Finn going solo but I can still hope. The National have quietly evolved over five albums since their 2001 eponymous debut to their last, ‘High Violet’ of 2010. Matt Berninger’s baritone layered on top of the Devendorf and Dessner brothers’ pulsing instrumentation forms the sound of one of the most easily identifiable groups around. But the band that I’m probably looking forward the most to is Spoon who were last heard in 2010 on ‘Transference’. Spoon have been one of the most consistent producers of great music of the last about 15 years. So I was very excited with all the chatter online about a possible new album this year.
While new albums from these artistes dwell in the realm of conjecture and hope, what’s certain is that there are releases in the next couple of months from The Counting Crows after a gap of 4 years, the oh-so-cool Norah Jones, Joan Osborne with her reworking of some classic blues and R&B material, the tireless Bonnie Raitt, and the very special Mr. Jack White.
By the time this year ends, I sure will be stoned drunk from that cup of endless pour. Cheers 🙂
The embedded audio file samples from ‘The Sweet Part Of The City’ by The Hold Steady, ‘Bloodbuzz Ohio’ by The National and Spoon’s ‘Me And The Bean’.
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The Hold Steady!!! I had forgotten about them! I remeber when Tanita was everywhere and on ridiculously high rotation on MTV (back in the good ol’days when it actually still played music). Do you know whom I would lilke to return in its original line-up? (Quite cheesily) Bananarama! Used to love those girls..lol… Love in the First Degree- one of the best pop songs ever… ;o). I saw there will be a “Hit Factory” (Stock/Aitken/Waterman) concert in Hyde Park this summer… might be too depressing…as we are all so much older now…lol.
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Stock/Aitken/Waterman – responsible for perhaps half the hits on the UK charts in the ’80s. But most of ’80s pop music was not something I enjoyed. Just the other day I was ribbing a friend about Rick Astley. ‘MTV (back in the good ol’days when it actually still played music)’ 🙂 how true. Having said that, the network is doing a few interesting things on music here in this part of the world with MTV Coke Studio and Roots.
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