M.I.A. "MATA" (2022)

MATA

release date: Oct. 14, 2022

format: digital (13 x File, FLAC)

[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,65]

producer: various

label: Island Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "F.I.A.S.O.M. Pt. 2" - 4. "Beep" - 5. "Energy Freq" - 6. "The One" - 8. "Time Traveller" - 9. "Popular" - 11. "K.T.P. (Keep the Peace)" - 13. "Marigold"

6th studio album by M.I.A. following six years after AIM (Sep. 2016) is M.I.A.'s first album to only be issued in digital format. AIM had initially been released as her final studio album but the desire to release new material made her change her decision. MATA is a typical M.I.A. title - instead of refering to an individual, the title is an ironic pun hinted at the change of the name of Facebook to Meta. Furthermore, the front cover depicts a Christian cross in the writing of MATA in vertical letters, and M.I.A. has been outspoken in finding a meaningful life after turning to Christianity, and then, when pronounced in 'working-class' British, 'MATA' becomes 'matter' - meaning this is the / what 'MATA[r]'s. The album consists of thirteen tracks of which none is longer than 3:36 minutes and three tracks are below two minutes making it a relative short full-length album with a total running time under 33 minutes.

MATA is in many ways a typical album from M.I.A. with lyrics touching on social and political awareness. It's music about her role, about being parents, and about living at a current age where global issues demand our full attention.

M.I.A. is confrontatory in her very approach, and that has made her both extremely unpopular but also the opposite, and she's been perfectly aware of this from the very beginning of her career. The song "Popular" says everything about being just that, and that's just very much the very essence of her narrative. "F.I.A.S.O.M. Pt. 1" and "F.I.A.S.O.M. Pt. 2" are other neat examples of her gift with words to elaborate on issues of concern. Here, it's an abbreviation for 'Freedom Is A State Of Mind' ('whatcha gonna do with mine?'), which she uses to deal with exactly what it implies, and at the same time it cleverly refers to being 'Fearsome'. She speaks her mind of the things that she encounters - there's no hiding behind a public image or a media persona, and at the same time, that also reveals her conflicts of trying to be herself in a world where the media image is out of your own control. She rides along, reacts to issues and accusations and no matter what always find herself in the middle of a conflict she never asked for. And the fact that she never writes a song just to make it sound like a good hook or rhyme, but starts off by having something on her mind, and then makes a song about it incorporating rhymes, hooks, and beats is something extremely rare these days.

Anyway, MATA is another fine album from M.I.A., although, its not really among her absolute best, but in this case, much less will do, 'cause she's always right there in the midst of war zones reporting about actual human issues and not really caring about being [TaylorSwift-Reehannah-and-the-like-radio-friendly]-pop-ulaaar!

Recommended.

[ allmusic.com, Slant Magazine 4 / 5 stars ]

Thom Yorke "Anima" (2019)

Anima
release date: Jun. 27, 2019
format: digital (9 x File, FLAC)
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,92]
producer: Nigel Godrich
label: XL Recordings - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Traffic" - 2. "Last I Heard (...He Was Circling the Drain)" - 4. "Dawn Chorus" (live at Montreux) - 6. "Not the News" - 8. "Impossible Knots" - 9. "Runwayaway" (live at Montreux)

3rd solo studio album by Thom Yorke is very much 'business as usual' by being produced by Nigel Godrich. Apparently, Yorke found inspiration to the songs in readings about dreams and the subconscious, and the entire album was recorded partly through live studio recordings, Godrich's collaborative takes on Yorke's musical drafts, and eventually Yorke writing lyrics to pieces they came up with along the way.
Stylistically, the result is not far from his two previous solos, The Eraser from 2006 and Tomorrow's Modern Boxes from 2014, as well as drawing on similar elements from the Radiohead album A Moon Shaped Pool from 2016 with a clear glitch pop twist and the usage of musical loops.
The album release was followed by American film director Paul Thomas Anderson's 15 mins. short "Anima" featuring Yorke and his partner, actress Dajana Roncione as choreographed dancers with music from the album [excerpt from the film].
The album has generally been met by positive reviews with The Guardian and its 3 out of 5 stars review presenting the perhaps most luke-warm reception, and the Telegraph and a 5 out of 5 stars review as probably one of the most positive responds.
I find it quite fascinating and clearly bettering his second solo Tomorrow's Modern Boxes, and it took me quite a long time wondering whether the album, as some critics suggest, is his best. I finally settled with a similar judgement and rate it close to his solo debut from 2006, and I can only say that it's a very fine and originally sounding album, which is worth a great many spins.
[ 👎The Guardian 3 / 5, The Independent, 👍NME, Rolling Stone 4 / 5, The Telegraph 5 / 5 stars ]

Björk "Vulnicura" (2015)

Vulnicura
release date: Jan. 20, 2015
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,52]
producer: Björk, Arca
label: One Little Indian - nationality: Iceland

Track highlights: 1. "Stonemilker" - 2. "Lionsong" - 4. "Black Lake" - 5. "Family" - 7. "Atom Dance" (feat. Anohni) - 8. "Mouth Mantra" - 9. "Quicksand"

8th studio album by Björk is co-produced by Venezuelan electronic producer / musician Arca [aka Alejandro Ghersi]. Stylistically, a Björk studio album is always within an art pop universe, and here she attributes that with chamber, ambient pop and electronic. It's not far from what she has released before - perhaps the biggest change is the distance to her most recent album Biophilia (Oct. 2011), although, they share the common theme of nature. In many ways this is closer to a mix of her three consecutive albums around the new millennium: Homogenic (1997), Vespertine (2001), Medúlla (2004), and frankly, Vulnicura sounds much like the outcome of a combo of all three albums.
Without containing obvious hits, I think the result is her most interesting album in more than 14 years. An alternative title could have been 'Homogeneous', 'cause that's also what it is.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5, Rolling Stone, The Guardian, NME, Spin 4 / 5 stars ]
=> Needledrop review

Björk "Biophilia" (2011)

Biophilia
release date: Oct. 7, 2011
format: cd (Deluxe)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [2,98]
producer: Björk
label: Polydor Records - nationality: Iceland

Track highlight: 3. "Crystalline" - 4. "Cosmogony"

7th studio album by Björk who is also credited as producer. Only one track is co-produced by the electronic duo 16bit (track #3), and for the first time around Björk is credited for a vast number of (electronic) instruments and as head of arrangements and the mixing process. The album follows more than four years after Volta (2007) and the album was launched as an "iPad-album", which meant that consumers were able to download the album in a 'Biophilia mother app' with all tracks as individual apps including both sound and vision.
With Biophilia, Björk once again takes decisive choices of sonic texture, which in this case takes her into ambient pop territory with several compositions held in a cappella mood and some with a clear presence of chamber pop and glitch pop - ultimately, making it her so far most experimental studio release.
As usual - one might add - the album was met by critical acclaim and several prize nominations. No hit singles was released with the album, although, it spawned four single releases (tracks #3, #4, #7, and #1). Only "Crystalline" and "Cosmogony" entered the Icelandic singles charts as number #12 and #23 respectively, and no other entries are registered around the world. The album peaked at number #4 in Iceland and in France, as number #9 in Switzerland, but apart from these top-10 entries the album was not a commercial success - basically making it her so far poorest selling studio album; however, music critics seemed to love it.
The album is a highly conceptual one, and may be regarded as Björk's take on environmental issues. After her 2007 album, she had fulfilled her contractual obligations and was in a position of artistic freedom, and free to produce whatever she felt like doing, and this together with her engagement with 'mother nature' as well as a deep financial crisis in all of Iceland gave her the idea to work on this project. You will also notice that she doesn't challenge her voice as on former releases - instead she sings steadily and softly on many of the tracks (some have been recorded earlier), presumably the result of having gone through surgery on her vocal cords. Thus, the album touches on progressive ambient. It's an album rich on sensations and it requires fully attention of the listener, as it also contains interesting details and ideas.
I never enjoyed this much, though, and I basically find it among her least favourable albums - with form over matter as a general complaint, although, one could argue that it may be viewed as a near modern classical work of art, and the idea of the project with music, video and a vision of 'biophilia' represented in all we touch and connect to is anything but mere pretentiousness. However, and knowing that it's a media transgressing release, I focus on the music aspect of the album, and I simply consider Biophilia her least interesting studio album. There you have it!
Not recommended.
[ allmusic.com, The Guardian, Rolling Stone, PopMatters 4 / 5, NME 4,5 / 5 stars ]

Gorillaz "Humanz" (2017)

EU cover
[2-D]

Humanz
release date: Apr. 28, 2017
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,64]
producer: Gorillaz, The Twilite Tone of D/\P & Remi Kabaka
label: Parlophone - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "Ascension" (feat. Vince Staples) - 3. "Strobelite" (feat. Peven Everett) - 7. "Submission" (feat. Danny Brown & Kelela) - 8. "Charger" (feat. Grace Jones) - 10. "Andromeda" (feat. D.R.A.M.) - 14. "Let Me Out" (feat. Mavis Staples & Pusha T)

5th studio album by Gorillaz is a 20 track album ending a seven year hiatus from the Damon Albarn-led project is the follow-up to The Fall (Dec. 2010). The many tracks are the result of having six short breaks in form of various intermezzos, however, its total running time is approx. 49 min. Stylistically, it's a bit subdued compared to the first three releases. You'll find bits of glitch pop but more apparent is the presence of electropop and art pop in combination with hip hop. There's the almost natural ever-present signature element of dub on top or underneath all tracks. What I find less attractive is the constant use of various rappers instead of Albarn's characteristic vocal, which places it alongside Plastic Beach (Mar. 2010). He's there, but more as complementary vocal, which is a bit of a shame. When Albarn's most present, there's an immediate connection to his fine Everyday Robots from 2014.
At a first glance it may not be as direct and good as Demon Days (2005), but I easily found it bettering Plastic Beach and The Fall, and after ten spins or more, I simply consider it the band's best [!]. Yes, I know some reviewers haven't been that positive about it. I on the other hand find it much more pleasant, accessible and enjoyable. It may not add "that something new" to the Gorillaz project, and in that way could be considered a bit on a plain, but the positive dance pop tunes and the laid-back unworried tone mix so well. I've rated this lower almost for a whole year, but at the end of the day, it has come down as one of the most enjoyable albums of 2017.
The front cover comes in various versions, all of which naturally made by Gorillaz' "art department" member Jamie Hewlett.
[ allmusic.com, The Guardian, NME, Q Magazine 4 / 5, Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5 stars ]

UK cover
[Noodle]

vinyl cover
[Murdoc]

deluxe double
vinyl cover
[Russel]

streaming cover
[Gorillaz]

BEST OF 2001:Björk "Vespertine" (2001)

Vespertine
release date: Aug. 27, 2001
format: cd (2008 remaster)
[album rate: 4,5 / 5] [4,32]
producer: Björk
label: Polydor Records - nationality: Iceland

Track highlights: 1. "Hidden Place" (4 / 5) - 2. "Cocoon" - 3. "It's Not Up to You" (5 / 5) (live) - 4. "Undo" (live) - 5. "Pagan Poetry" - 7. "Aurora" (4 / 5) - 10. "Heirloom" - 12. "Unison" (4,5 / 5)

4th studio album by Björk following four years after Homogenic (Aug. 1997) is primarily produced by Björk and is originally released by One Little Indian. Before this she released the soundtrack album Selmasongs (2000), an album with (reworked) songs from the musical film "Dancer in the Dark" starring Björk and directed by Lars von Trier.
Vespertine marks a new change of style with the addition of ambient and glitch pop. A move from trip hop towards glitch pop may not be the biggest imaginable leap, but with the album, Björk introduces a completely different sound compared to any of her previous releases. It's an album with much less focus on electronic beats and a bolder organic sound filled with strings and vocal harmonies.
I've always enjoyed this album and think of it as possibly her biggest accomplishment.
Vespertine is the second album by Björk to be enlisted in "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die".
Highly recommended.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5, NME, Rolling Stone, Q Magazine, The Guardian 4 / 5 stars ]

2001 Favourite releases: 1. Björk Vespertine - 2. Nathalie Merchant Motherland - 3. Rammstein Mutter

David Sylvian "Blemish" (2003)

Blemish
release date: May 2003
format: cd
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,08]
producer: David Sylvian
label: Samadhisound - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Blemish" - 8. "A Fire in the Forest"

6th studio solo album by David Sylvian. The album is released on Sylvian's own label Samadhisound (as the label's first release) after leaving Virgin Records for whom he has released his solo albums since his very first solo album in 1984. This is not the "normal" Sylvian solo sound, if ever there was one. Usually, a solo album from his hands is in the style of art pop and sophisti-pop with more or less jazz to it but here he excels in electronic art pop and glitch, although, I guess the overall sensation is one of experimental. The album consists of 8 tracks with track #1 lasting more than 13 minutes. The music was primarily recorded during improvisational sessions live in a studio with few people to support him. Jazz guitarist Derek Bailey feature on three compositions (#2, #5, #7), co-written by Bailey, and Austrian electronic guitarist Christian Fennesz has co-written, arranged and features on the end-track. The music is not easily digested but has its moments, and it was generally met with positive reviews and I find it more than just interesting.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5 stars ]

Björk "Jóga" (1997) (single)

Jóga, cd single
release date: Sep. 15, 1997
format: cd
[single rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,66]
producer: Björk, Mark Bell
label: Mother Records - nationality: Iceland

Tracklist: 1. "Jóga (Howie B Main Mix)" - 2. "Sod Off" - 3. "Immature (Björk's Version)" - 4. "So Broken"

Single cd release from the forthcoming album Homogenic originally released by One Little Indian. Yes, "Jóga" is a strong and fine composition, and here it's in a slightly altered version, and with the 3 extra tracks (which are found on the Japanese album version of the album) it doesn't really contribute with anything new.

Thom Yorke "Tomorrow's Modern Boxes" (2014)

Tomorrow's Modern Boxes
release date: Sep. 26, 2014
format: digital
[album rate: 2,5 / 5] [2,48]
producer: Nigel Godrich
label: Landgrab - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "A Brain in a Bottle" - 8. "Nose Grows Some"

Second solo album by Thom Yorke released 8 years after his acclaimed solo debut The Eraser from 2006. Again, Yorke works with producer Nigel Godrich and the music is much the debut in the electronic and glitch pop genre. Since the 1st solo album, Yorke has rejoined forces with Radiohead and released two studio albums, and the track "Atoms for Peace" from the solo debut gave name to the eponymous project-band featuring Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist, Flea and producer Godrich on keyboards, together with Yorke and several other well-established musicians - initially, just to perform tracks from Yorke's debut album live, but in 2013 this project released the album Amok. From the early Radiohead albums, Yorke has moved from musical styles built on post-rock and alt. rock references, via experimental and art rock to embrace the electronic genre. The interesting aspect about Yorke's turn on electronics is the inclusion and combination of what appears as more piano-based singer / songwriter compositions. Tomorrow's Modern Boxes contains many of the same elements as his first solo album, but I don't find it neither refreshing or really original. It appears both more coherent, and more meditative, but I must admit that I find it somewhat boring. Yorke is undoubtedly one of the most interesting and gifted musicians on this side of the new millennium, and I'm sure he will release great music again.
After this Yorke worked with Robert Del Naja (from Massive Attack) and together they made the music for the Mark Donne documentary "The UK Gold" (2015) (aka "Offshore Incorporated"), which was Yorke's first attempt with soundtrack music.
[ allmusic.com 3,5 / 5, Rolling Stone 4 / 5, The Guardian 3 / 5 stars ]

Atoms for Peace "Amok" (2013)

Amok [debut]
release date: Feb. 25, 2013
format: digital
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,22]
producer: Nigel Godrich
label: XL Recordings - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Before Your Very Eyes" - 2. "Default" - 3. "Ingenue" - 7. "Judge, Jury and Executioner" - 9. "Amok"

Studio album debut by project-band Atoms for Peace consisting of Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke on vocals and guitar, and that band's most frequently used producer Nigel Godrich on programming, Red Hot Chili Peppers Flea on bass, Joey Waronker of Beck and R.E.M. on drums, and with Mauro Refosco of Forro in the Dark (and David Byrne backing band) on percussion.
According to various magazines the band intended a sound and style, which took its inspiration in African funk, and drum and percussion-based music as exemplified by Fela Kuti; however, to me, this mostly falls in a much closer relation to the works by Radiohead and Thom Yorke with a supplement of a more advanced rhythm section... at times. More than the mutual work of a super-group, it mostly turns out as a [Radiohead] Yorke and Godrich project with what is quite familiar to that. Now, it's not bad - it's just really really close to the solo debut album Eraser by Yorke and e.g. Amnesiac by Radiohead, and in that way I don't feel it brings much new to the table. "Ingenue" is THE highlight here and the rest somewhat appears a bit anonymous.
[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone 4 / 5, Slant 3,5 / 5, Sputnikmusic 3 / 5 stars ]

John Frusciante "Enclosure" (2014)

Enclosure
release date: Mar. 25, 2014
format: cd (ECM 72542)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [2,86]
producer: John Frusciante
label: The Record Collection - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Shining Desert" - 2. "Sleep" - 4. "Stage" - 5. "Fanfare" - 6. "Cinch"

10th full-length solo album by John Frusciante is a further experiment into electronic, glitch pop and art rock as initiated with his 2012 album PBX Funicular Intaglio Zone and continued on the ep Outsides from 2013. At first I found this really poor - like an experiment taken too far. But... there's actually some interesting compositions here. Many of the tracks are piano- and vocal-based with synth drums hitting away and basically with scarse instrumental contributions. The best parts are when he seems to be what sounds like improvising on his guitar - in some places resembling music by Mike Oldfield... without comparison. It's really not all that bad, and I may just rate it higher in time. Anyway, it's clearly bettering his 2012 album.
[ allmusic.com, Mojo, Classic Rock 3 / 5, Q Magazine 2 / 5 stars ]

M.I.A. "AIM" (2016)

AIM
release date: Sep. 9, 2016
format: digital (Deluxe - 17 x File, FLAC)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,60]
producer: M.I.A., various
label: Interscope - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Borders" - 2. "Go Off" - 3. "Bird Song (Blaqstarr Remix)" - 5. "Freedun (feat. Zayn)" (4 / 5) - 6. "Foreign Friend (feat. Dexta Daps)" - 7. "Finally" - 10. "Visa" - 12. "Survivor"

5th studio album by M.I.A. is like the predecessor Matangi (2013) a collection of songs written and produced by M.I.A. in collaboration with many others, including Diplo, Skrillex, and Blaqstarr to mention just a few. The standard album contains twelve tracks, the Deluxe version 17 tracks.

The style and her choice of narratives are more or less the same as on her 2013 album, and without just being a copy of that, I think she still contributes with some fine compositions that is more than just danceable music.

AIM was met by luke-warm reviews, some stating she has released a bunch of lesser and unfocused songs instead of creating what she's capable of. I honestly think, it betters Matangi, although, it doesn't quite reach the level of /\/\ /\ Y /\ (2010) nor her best album, Kala (2007). Track #2 and especially track #5 are some of her best songs ever but the consistency is not the biggest asset here, although, it's by no means a minor release.

As always, M.I.A makes music with contemporary concern and her narratives are always a recommended listen.

[ allmusic.com 3,5 / 5, The Guardian, Rolling Stone 3 / 5, NME 4 / 5 stars ]

M.I.A. "Matangi" (2013)

Matangi
release date: Nov. 5, 2013
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,58]
producer: various
label: N.E.E.T. Recordings - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "MATANGI" - 3. "Only 1 U" - 4. "Warriors" - 5. "Come Walk with Me" - 6. "aTENTion" - 8. "Bad Girls" (4 / 5) - 10. "Double Bubble Trouble" - 12. "Bring the Noize" - 15. "Sexodus" (feat. The Weeknd)

4th studio album by M.I.A. following the 2010 release of M/\Y/\. The album is released on her own label N.E.E.T. through Interscope Records and as usual with a long list of exclusive producers to put their mark on the single tracks. The title is like her 2010 album a variant of her real name (Mathangi Arulpragasam), which also refers to the Hindu goddess, Matangi.

The album sounds more like a return to her style from before M/\Y/\ with more pop-founded compositions built on the uk hip-hop and electropop she is associated with.

It's fine, almost on par with her previous album, and it has some great tracks, but it also contains a number of compositions of lesser quality without being poor, I think.

[ allmusic.com 3 / 5, Rolling Stone, Slant 3,5 / 5, The Guardian 4 / 5, The Independent 5 / 5 stars ]

M.I.A. "/\/\ /\ Y /\" (2010)

/\/\ /\ Y /\
release date: Jul. 13, 2010
format: cd (XLCD 497)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,70]
producer: various
label: XL Recordings - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "Steppin Up" - 3. "XXXO" - 4. "Teqkilla" - 7. "It Takes a Muscle" (4 / 5) - 8. "It Iz What It Iz" - 9. "Born Free" - 11. "Tell Me Why"

3rd studio album by M.I.A. released on her own label N.E.E.T. through XL Recordings and Interscope Records. The album is named after herself, Mathangi Arulpragasam, or just "Maya", which is also the correct way to pronounce her artist name, M.I.A.

I find the album more complex than the fine Kala (2007), and initially found this a lesser album, but it really contains some fine tracks. Stylistically, this is not like her 2007 album, but more electronically-founded with glitch pop, electroclash, and what may be identified as industrial - some also call it synth punk or noise pop. Anyway, it is more 'noisy' and probably less mainstream oriented, and I think of it as her second best album. It really makes sense that it's more complex - giving the fact that it's about herself. It reflects her life, her struggles with identity, the Sri-Lankan (violent) background, and her view and feelings about love and politics, which is a bit of a mouthful. And therefore it can only be complex, and anything but polished.

[ allmusic.com, The Guardian, Slant 3 / 5, Rolling Stone 4 / 5, Spin 4,5 / 5 stars ]

Veto "Sinus" (2012)

Sinus, ep
release date: Sep. 2, 2012
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,45]
producer: Veto
label: Sony BMG - nationality: Denmark

Tracklist: 1. "Bowls" (3 / 5) - 2. "Upwards" - 3. "Four to the Floor" (4 / 5) - 4. "Spears" (3 / 5) - 5. "Filter" (3,5 / 5) - 6. "Show Me Where You Go" (3 / 5)

6-track ep release by Veto. The band doesn't do a lot to incorporate new styles in its sound, although, this shows a small tendency in borrowing elements from glitch pop. Sometimes I still hear a little too much inspiration from Bloc Party (e.g. 'Upwards') but Troels Abrahamsen has a very different vocal sound which makes that tolerable.
The band produces some great tunes but struggles in making coherent and solid album releases. This is, however, a strong ep, perhaps the band's very best release, that makes you wish there were more.

Thom Yorke "The Eraser" (2006)

The Eraser [debut]
release date: Jul. 10, 2006
format: cd
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,88]
producer: Nigel Godrich
label: XL Recordings - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "The Eraser" - 2. "Analyse" - 3. "The Clock" - 4. "Black Swan" (4 / 5) - 6. "Atoms for Peace" (5 / 5) (live) - 8. "Harrowdown Hill"

Studio solo album debut by Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke, who has worked with the 'usual' Radiohead producer, Nigel Godrich, also credited 'extra instrumentation'. Yorke's associate from the band, multi-instrumentalist, Jonny Greenwood also features on piano on the album's title track. Aside from these two, most tracks only have music composed, programmed, played and sung by Yorke himself. The style is electronic glitch pop with hints of post-rock. It took me more than a few listens to fully appreciate the album, but I kept returning to it 'cause it just had something highly original and insisting. However, the track "Atoms for Peace" immediately caught my attention. It's a haunting and utmost beautiful composition, which needs full volume. The album was nominated the Mercury Prize in 2006 (won by Arctic Monkeys for the debut album Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not). Great music for driving.
[ allmusic.com, Uncut, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]

múm "Finally We Are No One" (2002)

Finally We Are No One
release date: May 20, 2002
format: digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5]

Track highlights: 2. "Green Grass of Tunnel" - 3. "We Have a Map of the Piano" - 9. "I Can't Feel My Hand Any More, It's Alright, Sleep Still" - 11. "The Land Between Solar Systems"
[ full album ]

A studio album by múm. Like the debut album, it's electronic and glitch but there's more traditional songwriting in this, and not the same sketches of ideas that may or may not have been the case on the first album. This is also much closer to the style of Sigur Rós without copying, or following the same recipe, but in the way they succeed in making the sound more progressive and orchestrated.
[ allmusic.com 4 / 5 stars ]

múm "Yesterday Was Dramatic - Today Is OK" (2001)

Yesterday Was Dramatic - Today Is OK [debut]
release date: Apr. 2, 2001
format: digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,40]
producer: múm
label: Tugboat Records - nationality: Iceland

Track highlights: 2. "Smell Memory" - 3. "There Is a Number of Small Things" - 7. "The Ballad of the Broken Birdie Records" - 10. "Slow Bicycle"

Studio debut album by Icelandic band múm (who also made the soundtrack Blái hnötturinn, aka "The Blue Planet" in 2001). The band is a quartet consisting of Örvar Þóreyjarson Smárason, Gunnar Örn Tynes, and the twin-sisters, Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir [from 2007 solo artist aka Kría Brekkan] and Gyða Valtýsdóttir [2 men + 2 women]. The genre is electronic and stylistically it's glitch pop with a progressive and / or ambient touch of idm and folktronica [electronica fused with folk / folklore elements].
It's a small but quite interesting album that just feels like a rather warm and cute collection of somewhat longy [typically 5-7 mins running time], though never too long compositions.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5, NME, Mojo 4 / 5, The Guardian 5 / 5 stars]

Gorillaz "The Fall" (2010)

The Fall
release date: Dec. 25, 2010
format: digital
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,18]
producer: Gorillaz, Stephen Sedgwick
label: Parlophone - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 2. "Revolving Doors" - 3. "HillBilly Man" - 4. "Detroit" - 9. "The Snake in Dallas" - 10. "Amarillo" - 13. "Bobby in Phoenix" (feat. Bobby Womack)

4th studio album by Gorillaz [read: Damon Albarn] released only 7 months after Plastic Beach is an album, which actually showcases a much bolder change of style than one might expect. Albarn experiments, and here he has (luckily) left much of the experimental hip hop universe and instead digged into glitch pop, minimal house and electropop. Except from the two The Clash members Mick Jones (track #3) and Paul Simonon (track #12), and Bobby Womack (track #13), the vast crowd of featuring guest performers are as good as stripped down to Damon Albarn, who has composed, played and sang most of the tracks on his own.
Apparently, the entire album was recorded and mixed on Albarn's iPad during the American leg of the Escape to Plastic Beach World Tour (and more specifically the tracks were recorded from Oct. 3 to Nov. 2, 2010). Some critics point to the quick recording and production time when referring to the album as "outtakes" from Plastic Beach. Others just ignore it for being a commercial stunt. I think, they're both wrong, and it does contain fine music.
My first impression was an album of lesser interest than Plastic Beach and Demon Days, but most of all it really comes out as a document of Albarn's musicality - his interest for incorporating and playing with new styles in his broad musical universe, and, I think he has found a tone of his own. The thing is, with Albarn one has to come to terms with being confronted with new music, new influences, and in the end The Fall simply is more than just some sketches without being truly essential.
[ allmusic.com, The Guardian 3 / 5, Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5 stars ]

Gorillaz "Plastic Beach" (2010)

Plastic Beach
release date: Mar. 9, 2010
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,48]
producer: Gorillaz
label: Parlophone - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 4. "Rhinestone Eyes" - 5. "Stylo" (feat. Bobby Womack & Mos Def) - 6. "Superfast Jellyfish" (feat. Gruff Rhys & De La Soul) - 8. "Glitter Freeze" (feat. Mark E. Smith) - 10. "On Melancholy Hill" - 11. "Broken" - 13. "Plastic Beach" (feat. Mick Jones & Paul Simon)

3rd studio album by Gorillaz following Demon Days by almost five years is an album with a more 'experimental hip hop' and 'glitch pop' style on top of the 'art pop'. The album features a vast number of prominent guest appearances - including Snoop Dogg, Bobby Womack, De La Soul, Mark E. Smith. Mick Jones and Lou Reed.

Naturally, Damon Albarn hasn't just stopped making music for nearly five years. He has been involved in all sorts of side-projects - initiating the lasting "super-group" The Good, The Bad & The Queen, being involved in projects connected to African music: Monkey Journey to the West (2008) and Africa Express (2009) - as well as re-joining Blur for live concerts. Albarn is a genuine music machine.

My initial thoughts about the album had me thinking of it as weak. I found that it didn't contain any evident hits, where "Stylo" and especially "Superfast Jellyfish" were the only tracks above the mediocre, but - like is the case with, I think, all Gorillaz studio releases except the debut - I have changed my opinion during the last 10 years or so. And possibly this album took me the longest time to embrace. No, it doesn't showcase a lot of memorable songs. And, I do find the bold focus on 'experimental hip hop' a bit tedious in the long run, which initially had me thinking of it as far from an immediate favourite; however, looking at it from a contemporary perspective and with a mindset on what Gorillaz did that worked, it's really not that bad, and I do find that it contains original fine tunes. Plastic Beach is really the band's first conceptual album in that it has its centre around modern society and the obvious pits of various types of pollution - be it the most literal: Plastic on the world's beaches, or the more symbolic themes about questionable lifestyles and what seems to be a stress on artificial material, which is underlined by utilizing synthesizers, loops, 'dub' programming, electronic beats and various types of electronic equipment.

And no, the hit material may be less evident, but the overall thematic tone and message is put at first hand, and that, I think works quite all right. There's a sensation of seriousness that isn't present on Demon Days or the debut, which makes it gloomier - less positive. I don't consider it among the absolute best by Gorillaz, as it generally points in all sorts of directions, but then again, this band is and never was about making cohesive albums, as much as showcasing what they have as their most potential strength: a platform / playground for near endless musical possibilities, and here they demonstrate an original perspective on modern life.

[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone 3,5 / 5, Q Magazine 5 / 5 stars ]