Thursday 16 December 2010

The Best (and worst) of 2010....


Albums
- The Suburbs - Arcade Fire
- Postcards From A Young Man - Manic Street Preachers
- Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You - Lightspeed Champion
- Contra - Vampire Weekend
- Butterfly House - The Coral



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Films
- Toy Story 3
- Four Lions
- A Single Man
- Anvil - The True Story of Anvil
- Cemetery Junction





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TV
- A History of Horror with Mark Gattis - BBC4
- The Trip - BBC2
- Mad Men (Season 4) - BBC4
- Sherlock - BBC1
- An Idiot Abroard - Sky1




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Heroes
- Aung San Suu Kyi
- Lionel Messi
- Julian Assange
- Nicky Wire





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Villains
- Nick Clegg
- David Cameron
- Rev Terry Jones
- Sepp Blatter
- Kim Jong-Il




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News Events
- 33 Chilean miners trapped after the collapse of the San José mine are rescued successfully.
- The BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the largest in human history, occurs in the Gulf of Mexico.
- Widespread flooding in Pakistan kills over 1600 and displaces millions from their homes.
- North Korea shells South Korean Yeonpyeong Island, escalating tensions between the two nations.
- The UK General Election produces 'no winner' with the first non-majority result since 1974.

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Sporting Events
- Chelsea win a League and FA Cup 'Double' (only the 7th team to do so).
- John Isner beats Nicolas Mahut 70-68 in the final set of the longest Tennis match in history at Wimbledon.
- Graeme McDowell beats Hunter Mahan in the final singles match as Europe defeat the United States 14½-13½ to regain the Ryder Cup.
- At 52, Steve Davis beats reigning Champion John Higgins, in the 2nd Round of the Snooker World Championship at the Crucible, to become the oldest Quarter-Finalist since Eddie Charlton in 1983.
- Germany destroy a much fancied Argentina side, including Lionel Messi, 4-0 in the Quarter-Finals of the Football World Cup.

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Personal Events
- Seeing The Libertines perform at the Reading Festival.
- Watching Germany's World Cup defeat of Argentina at Old Street's Bavarian Beerhouse
- George's 1st birthday party.
- #moktoberfest2
- Taking and passing my First Aid Course.

Friday 3 December 2010

Album Review: Serotonin - Mystery Jets


***
Mystery Jets are an indie band that have operated under my radar for some time but, thanks to their billing under the Libertines, the Cribs et al at the Reading Festival - at which I was in attendance of course - I have recently forced myself to investigate further.

In doing so, I discovered Serotonin, an album chock full of the most wonderful, melodic pop songs I've heard in some time. The title track and 'Flash a Hungry Smile', in particular, are indie standards worthy of wider audiences, although, surprisingly, neither have been released as singles to date.

The tracks furnished with that prestigious status are 'Dreaming of Another World' and 'Show Me The Light', archetypal in demonstrating the Eel Pie Islander's talent for crafting a catchy number and with such self-assured inventiveness as to send imaginations skyward.

In fact, Mystery Jets' penchant for a flight of fancy is very reminiscent of Super Furry Animals, especially on lines such as 'Have you heard the birds and bees/Have all caught STD's?' and, indeed, these moments, when the album shows the band's more eccentric side, are key to their success.

Elsewhere however, Serotonin does risk sounding like the work of just another indie also ran, bringing to bear further lovelorn malady on an industry already drowning in guitar driven drivel.

Yet overall, there's a tangible and infectious joie de vivre about the album which just avoids the tipping point into sentimentality, and even though some of the well-worn tales of heart break and loss offer little originality, it's impossible not to find yourself slipping into a jaunty reverie and simply enjoying the ride.