July- September Quarterly Review

July

The Summer months are not particularly great for releases and July started us off with only two really great albums of note. First up there was the Kills/ White Stripes meeting of minds The Dead Weather. 'Horehound' is not a flawless record but when it works it's as good as anything Jack White or Alison Mosshart have achieved in their respective day jobs. Second up, and far better, is the debut album from Florence and The Machine, 'Lungs'. A non stop, bombastic harps and hearts assault it captures the ostentatious nature of it's creator perfectly and has gone on to become a Platinum selling album. No bones about it Florence is now a massive bona-fide popstar.

August

Another relatively quiet month but one which came with 3 of the best albums of the year so far. Arctic Monkeys returned with their third album 'Humbug' and showed their teeth for the first time with a beefed up sound courtesy of producer Josh Homme and the Mojave Desert. Still cryptic of lyric and catchy of chorus 'Humbug shows a new found confidence and a willing to e+xplore the less obvious path which results in tracks like 'My Propellor' and the brilliant 'Pretty Visitors'. Wild Beasts built on their stunning but inconsistent first album with it's follow up 'Two Dancers'. Featuring the brilliant 'Hooting and Howling' and 'All The Kings Men' it's a controlled yet triumphant and emotional journey. Finally we get to The xx. Their self titled album is arguably the best of the year (currently only tipped by Yeah Yeah Yeah's for me). Taking in a disparate range of influences and channeling youthful heartbreak through them all 'XX' is a stunning piece of 3am introspection showcasing some of the most natural and impressive songwriting heard for years.

September

Jamie T released the follow up to 'Panic Prevention' with the brilliant 'Kings and Queens'. The album is good, you know that I know it so who really cares what else I type about it. Other good albums from the month can be found here.

July- September Quarterly Review