code meets music

White Chalk did arrive, and I was a tiny bit disappointed. It’s a nice album, a little haunting but quite relaxing but lacks the power of PJ Harvey’s earlier stuff.

After seeing Go! Team live (again), I got their second album Proof of Youth and it’s pretty good. Not as surprising as the first, and I still think they’re best live (a lot seem to disagree) but it carries on the sample-driven, brass-powered, catchy tradition of Thunder Lightening Strike.

Supporting Go! Team were Operator Please, who are pretty darn good. “Just a song about Ping Pong” has been getting a bit of radio-play, and there’s meant to be an album in November, so I’m looking forward to that.

The Klaxons and New Young Pony Club are both described along the lines “the epitomy of so-called new-rave, though they’d be the first to deny it” and while the former jumped out at me right away as being a band worth listening to, I remember looking up NYPC and not being particularly impressed. When they were nominated for this year’s Mercury prize, I decided to reconsider and their album joined the many others that sit in my amazon basket waiting for me to feel like some new music. Their turn came a couple of weeks ago (My Machine wasn’t enough on its own to get me free shipping!) and I’m quite pleased I got it. “Hiding on the Staircase” and “Jerk Me” are really good, the rest of the album is quirky and catchy enough to be a good listen.