Top 50 songs of 2012: 30-21

In no particular order …

30. Snapline – She

Hypnotic motorik from the Carsick Cars side-project from China.

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Reinspired Year 2 mixtape

It’s been exactly two years since I started this blog and the difference it has made to my life has been remarkable. Not the writing part; I’ve always done that. Even when I wasn’t writing for publication, I was wittering away on internet forums or clogging up Facebook with my rantings. No, it’s the inspiration. It’s like being in love. You know, the butterflies-in-the-tummy feeling you get that makes you feel like you’ll just burst if you don’t shout it from the rooftops – that’s how I feel when I hear a great song. It goes far beyond just transforming my mood or giving me an idea. The word “inspiration” is related to breathing, and that’s how essential and natural this process is. I might have a conscious discipline to blog every day, but that just facilitates my discovery of these wonderful tunes – the words that appear on the screen are just a manifestation, a by-product of the process. If I couldn’t write, I’d just have to speak about it, and if I couldn’t speak I’d grunt and gibber. I’d point. I’d take you by the hand and drag you over to the record player. This. Hear it. Now.

These are just a few of the songs that have inspired me in the past 12 months. You can hear them as a Youtube Playlist (click to stream). Enjoy!

Best of 2011 Virtual Mix Tape

It’s that time of year again where we reflect on the best of the year’s new music. Here’s some of my favourite songs of the year, with download purchase links for the songs you’d like to keep.

Pages: 1 2

#musicmonday : DJ Food – Magpies, Maps and Moons

Hey, it’s still Monday in California.

Free music! Free video game!

If you’ve ever liked music, there’s a reasonable chance that you have enjoyed the music of Portishead. I certainly did in the 90s, but lost touch with what they were up to some years back. At the end of this month, they’re curating a festival at Astbury Park, NJ. If that’s a little far for you, they’ve handily put together a free-to-download mixtape featuring the acts who’ll perform, including Battles, Factory Floor, Cults, Swans, DD/MM/YYYY, and Manorexia. I’ve only heard the first track so far (Oneida), but this is seriously good music.