Autobiographical Vinyl

That scene in High Fidelity had a bad influence on me.

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Blur  The Magic Whip 

Discogs

I really thought the new Blur album would be bad, but I was pleasantly surprised to hear something fresh and interesting while also familiar. 'Lonesome Street’ is definitely my highlight so far, but the rest of the album holds it’s ground, and I’m sure as time goes on more and more songs will worm their way into my head. The packaging on this album is also phenomenal, with really good card and paper stock, excellent design work, and good quality vinyl. There’s even a giant poster of the ice cream cone! If you’re a Blur fan and have been on the fence about whether to try this new album, give it a spin, it’s definitely worth a listen.

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Stephen Rennicks  Frank: Music and Songs by Stephen Rennicks  Record Store Day 2015

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I loved the film, so couldn’t resist picking up the soundtrack released for Record Store Day. This is a little different than the soundtrack they put out digitally (and probably on CD) previously, but considering it contained ‘I Love You All’, I’m happy. While the addition of a cardboard ‘Frank Sidebottom’ mask is a pretty funny inclusion, and the translucent green (which is significantly lighter than it looks in the photo) vinyl is fantastic, I would have loved a digital code too.

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Ramones / Hüsker Dü  Sheena Is A Punk Rocker  Record Store Day 2015 Mystery 7″

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This thing cost way too much money (£12!) but I couldn’t resist it! Not only is it a classic song, that vinyl is beautiful. There is an irony to a punk rock track printed to expensive limited edition vinyl, but I’m happy to ignore it for now.

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Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds  Chasing Yesterday

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Much like Johnny Marr’s Playland last year, this album surprised me quite a bit. I remember hearing the previous album and enjoying it quite a bit, but never going out of my way to pick it up. The first single didn’t catch me the first time round, but like a lot of the tracks on this album, it really grew on me. Punchier than you expect, but also far more subtle and crafted too. Having picked this up the same day as Torche, it turned out to be a great day for new records!

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Radiohead  In Rainbows

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Always loved this record, although I had picked it up on their website back when they released it on the ‘pay-what-you-want’ model so never got around to picking it up on CD. It’s a great cover and some decent chunky vinyl, and probably marks the last Radiohead album I was crazy about.

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Torche  Restarter

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I had completely forgotten that Torche had a new record coming out, and having picked this up I’m so glad I stumbled into it. I enjoyed Harmonicraft, but Restarter is fantastic. The first side of this record blasts past so quickly you don’t even notice there’s 6 tracks on it, and the second half really doubles down on the heavier elements. Also had no idea until I got it home that it came on purple vinyl, which is pretty awesome, especially with that green label.

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Mastodon  Blood Mountain

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I completely stumbled across this! Wandering through my local record store I discovered that they had reissued this album, and got it home to find out it’s on textured green vinyl! The album always sounded very compressed on CD, so hearing Crystal Skull without the digital clipping on the guitar solo is a great thing.

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SOHN  Tremors

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Yet another record to add to the ‘I heard this on 6Music’ pile. I think hearing ‘The Wheel’ repeatedly for several weeks sold me on picking this up, and the packaging made it hard not to pick up on vinyl. Really chunky vinyl too!

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The Subways  The Subways

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Glad I pledged on this fantastic double 10″ vinyl version of The Subways latest record. The artwork is really outstanding, and even if I’d probably have preferred the album on a regular 12″ record (especially since the album is only 33 minutes), this is a really great way of presenting an album.

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Wye Oak  Shriek

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Another 6 Music recommendation, I picked this record up cheap based purely on the quality of ‘Glory’. There’s an interesting blend of instrumentation and styles that play out in this album, but ‘Glory’ hits the sweet spot of being musically dense while also being punchy and immediately catchy. Worth a look if you like your electronica to wander and drift along.

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Metallica  Master Of Puppets

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Think this one speaks for itself.

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Mutation  The Frankenstein Effect / Error 500

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Ginger Wildheart does it again. These two Mutation albums are fantastic, finally unleashing the extreme metal riffs that are usually caged behind pop choruses. There was always a fear for me that the fine balance with The Wildhearts is that you never got too much of any element, blending the pop with the metal and the punk. Mutation proves that even without the balance, he can still write some brilliantly catchy music, even with an endless barrage of blast beats, guitar riffs, and real guttural vocal work. Certainly not one for the faint of heart, but dig into these albums and you’ll find a ton to reward you. Just when you think it can’t get any better, Mark E Smith turns up. Brilliantly twisted, and great fun to listen to. 

Says a lot that I haven’t even talked about the amazing packaging and vinyl colours for this PledgeMusic exclusive set, but the albums are just that good.

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Jimi Goodwin  Odludek 

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This album really came out of nowhere for me. They played a couple of singles on BBC 6 Music and I knew I had to investigate further. I never fully appreciated Doves when they were around, but this solo album is fantastic. There’s a tendency with solo albums to go too weird or too traditional, but for me Odludek strikes a healthy balance between experimental sounds and really solid song-writing. Something like ‘Oh! Whiskey’ sticks to the acoustic guitars and instruments, but then a track like ‘Live Like a River’ blows you away with it’s huge drums and energetic synths. Highly recommended!

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Iron Maiden  Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (Picture Disc) 

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And what a picture disc this is! Once again, the vinyl packaging is fantastic quality, but that picture disc is really nice. I’m very often put off buying picture discs by both the price, and also the crappy clear plastic covers they tend to ship in, so having the traditional vinyl gatefold sleeve is a nice addition, especially for a band so well known for their cover art. Also... Moonchild: 

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Iron Maiden  The Complete Albums Collection 

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Decided not to bother breaking these out into separate posts, because even though you had to buy most of them separately, it all combines to become one box set. These are really nice quality reissues, and I've gotten all but one of them, but the only reason I don’t have Seventh Son in this set is because I received the picture disc as a gift...

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Reuben  Racecar is Racecar Backwards (Tenth Anniversary Edition)

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Great to see Xtra Mile reissuing such a fantastic album from such an underrated band. I’d still love to see a reissue of ‘In Nothing We Trust’, but the more I listen to their debut album, the more I get out of it. It’s so packed with catchy riffs and harmonies that I can’t resist it’s charms. Picked this up from Xtra Mile’s site, and it came with an awesome red t-shirt which is still available to purchase!

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Black Sabbath  Vol 4

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Wasn't planning on picking this up, but at the same time as picking up that Iron Maiden single remaster, I found this 180 gram Rhino pressing of Volume 4. I'm not sure it matters how good quality the pressing of this album is considering the quality of the original recordings, but it's nice to have some chunky vinyl either way, and the cardboard sleeve is incredibly well constructed. So well constructed in fact that it's an absolute nightmare to get the vinyl back in the sleeve as you can tell from the massive ding in the paper sleeve! Couldn't resist for £15.