MASSIVE THREAD ALERT (probably). I'm now approaching 750 vinyl records in my collection, and I thought, why not give them all a listen and see how I feel about them these days? So, every day or so I will shake my Discogs app and pick 5 or so records at random. Then tweet about it

(S/o to @PickyBastards / @Fran_Slater for the idea, and their original execution)

So, first up - we have a one-track release from Burial/Four Tet. Nova was the last song of their collab to be released, and though it's the weakest of the five tracks, it's still lush and very nice to hear accompanied by bird song in a stifling office. (1/750?)

Bonus video of my vinyl companion, Vinylsaurus, that my wife got me one Christmas enjoying some laidback melancholy grooves...

So, onto our first album... the mighty "Sold Out" by DJ Paypal. Footwork
/Juke if you're into genres. Some of the tightest production you'll ever hear. And what an intro! I would say at least 3 out the 8 songs on this album are a solid 10. But let's step in again..

I think the highlight of the record is the last track "Say Goodbye", so it's the first song going on my VINYL collection playlist... https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7HKZhZrXj6lywv3yI5MAWh?si=lUMTowPDSeKBXGM99Wwo1Q
Got that gorgeous "end of the night" feel. Birds outside my window going mental for it as well...

Short, but sweet. Immaculately produced. Nice. That was DJ PAYPAL (2/750)

Next up, @RomareMusic's debut "Projections". Stunning artwork on this one straight out the box, and I love a sleeve which opens at the top. I seem to recall "Roots" being the big tune here, but let's dive in and see what we have.. (3/750)

"Rainbow" and "Roots" the big bangers on here.. but a fair few downtempo highlights - "Prison Blues" and "Nina's Charm" among them...

Very excited about record (4/750) - @thefield_axel "From Here We Go Sublime". The reason I started doing Record Store Day in 2014, this is one of my favourite albums ever. Great for running as well..

I already have a few favourites in mind, but not a lot beats the opening track to be honest. The mighty "Over The Ice" (which I was lucky enough to see live once) - sampling Kate Bush's "Under The Ice" - this is a monster of a track and a hell of an album opener.

Then, again "Everday" is an absolute beast.. and I love the @KOMPAKTREC design on the record label here... (Vinylsaurus is also a big fan!)

(5/750)....
Time to wake up a bit...

#HüskerDü
#ZenArcade

Had to work a bit late, so I'll revisit Hüsker Dü in the morning.. HOWEVER my good friend Joe and I had pre-arranged a listening party, and it was my turn to pick an album he hadn't hurt. So I chose the first @thesonicyouth album I heard which began my obsession... Dirty (6/750)

There are some great songs on this album - Sugar Kane, Wish Fulfilment, Orange Rolls.., Purr, Drunken Butterfly, etc. But. The exact moment I think I fell for Sonic Youth is when this snare comes in in Theresa's Sound World..

Record (7/750) - nearly 1% through! - is the third @BatForLashes album "The Haunted Man". Bit of tasteful nudity first thing in the morning. Lovely white vinyl too. More of a sombre start to match the weather as well - Discogs shuffle app nailed today's selections.

I never liked this album as much as the first two, a few songs like "Lilies" and "Laura" aside. Perhaps because it's much more subtle and songs less immediate. Gotta say there are some great moments here, like "A Wall" hidden away at the end of Side C...

Well that was really enjoyable. Can't wait for her 4th album to come up as well now. So now "listen to the wind blow" and onto record (8/750) - and damn records used to be cheaper right? I definitely paid more than 13 quid for PJ Harvey - Is This Desire...

One of Peej's bleakest albums this. The melancholy of the more traditional guitar-based songs, and the real harshness of the more electronic tracks as well. 1998 was a great year for weird albums like this, Adore, Gran Turismo etc. Always found side B a little daunting here..

In which Peej uncovers a secret on Tomb Raider just as they're laying down the intro to The Wind.. she really nails the electronic groove on this track and A Perfect Day Elise, combines perfectly with guitar as well..

Argh. Annoying/hilarious locked groove on the penultimate track. But.. let's get past it to what is still my favourite song on the album..

...Is This Desire? from Is This Desire? is still an absolute wonder. Decaying like an old treasure map, fluttering like a candle, soaring like a cormorant, I love this song so much - probably why I shelled out so much for the vinyl in the first place..

Ok, afternoon time and onto record (9/750). Pretty sure I bought this because it was a tenner and the artwork is cool (and I'd vaguely heard of Stereolab).. The UHF vinyl contains superbly recorded music - I present Margerine Eclipse. Just sounds like sunshine doesn't it?

Fuck. I've just realised I now have to spend some time getting more acquainted with *checks Discogs* the SIXTEEN ALBUMS from Stereolab... this is fantastic. #NowPlaying "La Demeure"

"Bop Scotch" is an absolute... well.. bop!

Quick throwback to yesterday and my thoughts on Hüsker Dü. Great album and a band I need to investigate more. This moment here between One Step At A Time and Pink Turns To Blue is Replacements meets Meat Puppets 80s rock glory...

Right, now a non-random album (10/750) Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures as it's tonight's #TimsTwitterListeningParty album... really must get the 40th anniversary reissue - my copy has an annoying skip on Disorder :( - probably my favourite JD song..

#FeelingFeelingFeelingFeeling
#TimsTwitterListeningParty

Never fear! Vinylsaurus is back for Side B and another favourite "She's Lost Control"... #TimsTwitterListeningParty

Man, there's just a feeling after listening to a Joy Division album isn't there... a great album, probably gonna have to get that remaster soon... 10 records down already...

Starting a little later today, it's record 11, White Blood Cells. I wasn't a fully-fledged White Stripes fan so to speak, but I've a lot of love for this album - which I bought the day after seeing Hotel Yorba on Jools Holland I believe... always loved that artwork as well.

#HotelYorba
#AllTheyGotInsideIsVacancies

When's the last time you watched Napoleon Dynamite? #WereGoingToBeFriends

Second record of the day is the mighty @idlesband and BRUTALISM. A fucking savage record still, my body still aches when I think of the time I saw them at Electric Ballroom...

I think this will always be my favourite Idles song.. that lyric and that riff in combination is absolutely lethal... the mighty 1049 Gotho!
#IPissedInTheKitchenSink

I've listened to 1049 Gotho 4 times now. I will get to side B soon, honest. It's just... that good a song.

I did get to side B and it's just as relentless..
Till the end, a lullaby by their standards, Slow Savage. Absolutely incredible album.

Back on the records after a day of housework. So number 13 while I unwind, a first picture disc, and a first visit to the @Tool discography. One of my all time favourite albums this - Lateralus from 2001... and how better to announce your return than with The Grudge?

Tell you what, the lack of surface noise you normally get on picture discs is staggering here. After a bad Bloc Party experience, I would never normally recommend them, but Lateralus is definitely an exception.

Onto my favourite side of this album. First, the artwork is gorgeous. Second, the track list is slightly different on the vinyl, so we get one of my favourites a bit earlier. Schism > Parabol > Parabola > Disposition is a hell of a run of songs..

Disposition is so so lush

I will never not enjoy listening to Tool. More from them later on in the thread I'm sure...
Next record 14, something a little more relaxing... @KamasiW 's EP Harmony Of Difference. Released between his last two epic (get it?) albums..

I've never even opened this record, so it's a lovely surprise to see this little artwork booklet with art from Amani Washington.. one for each track on the EP..

@KamasiW just never disappoints does he? The arrangement on everything I've ever heard from him is nothing short of astounding..

Onto record 15, one of my favourite hip hop records, @TalibKweli - Beautiful Struggle.. socially conscious lyrics and the music goes in as well.. hard to believe this album is 16 years old..

I forgot Faith Evans was on this record. "We Know" is perfect for hot summer days (like today)...

Mary J Blige has joined the party! Kanye West produced this track "I Try"
One of my favourite memories of this album is listening on repeat on my New Zealand trip a while back. It really felt like 2004 again. Hot AF as well!

In an album full of contenders (Going Hard, We Know, Around My Way, I Try, Black Girl Pain... seriously this album's got so many tunes..), I *think* this is still my favourite.. "Never Been In Love"..

Really strong album from Talib. Now onto record 16 - and it's @guillemots debut "Through The Window Pane". A jazzy pop indie dreamy summer outing, complete with sweeping strings, sunset brass and Fyfe's gorgeous vocals. A 2006 highlight, let's dive in to Little Bear...

Is a song as happy/sad as "Trains to Brazil"? This was constantly in my ears in 2006... and many years afterwards tbh..

Probably my favourite on the album.. "We're Here" soars like a guillem.. ah, no I can't do that joke. Bloody good song though. Strings are gorgeous..

Now THIS is how you close an album, "Sao Paolo" is the definition of epic, begins as a piano ballad and ends 12 minutes later as a real kitchen sink of arrangements, brass, chorus, strings you name it.. Incredible when you see it live as well..

And that is Guillemots - Through the windowpane. Nice balance of some ballads and more upbeat moments, and still wonderfully wandering.. later on they would go full pop, and later on dial it back down again, but never again would they be this lush I don't think. Special LP.

Now, onto the darker sounds of a rainy, cold, dark Britain - as soundtracked by LA, goth indie-pop outfit @Scarling - another project from @Jessicka of @JOJ_official fame. Record 17 is "So Long Scarecrow" from 2005 - another disturbing Mark Ryden cover as well :)

First track is "Hello London". This and "City Noise" really remind me of getting the bus home from work in the rain and the dark back in 2005. Lovely MBV-esque noise and general gloom on this intro..

Best song on the album for me is "We Are The Music Makers" - violent, sexy shoegaze and (obviously) a great title. That chorus... this song is begging to be part of a great movie soundtrack at some point..
"Kiss like painted tigers... bleed like no one else..."

Onto record 18, and this time it's the sultry electronica of @kelelam and "Take Me Apart". Absolutely gorgeous record with a really striking cover. One of my favourite albums of the last few years.. here's the #needledrop for "Frontline"...

"Waitin" is the kind of song I think Aaliyah would have ended up making and I can pay it no higher compliment.

The synths on "Jupiter"... my gosh.

"LMK" is definitely the highlight of the first disc, tucked away at the end of side B. But this record has just served up SEVEN straight chooooons! Damn I forgot just HOW much I love this album.. @kelelam - when you coming back?!!

Got to the end of disc 2 and I'm about to download the remixes album from @bleep as part of their Warp sale..

An incredible album from Kelela. I recommend "Take Me Apart" to everyone if you've never heard it. It's a special record.

Record number 19, and another album by @thefield_axel (that @discogs shuffle looking a bit techno-y)
This is the third Field album, and the tracks are that little bit slower and that much longer - the loops a bit more complex than on the debut further up the thread ^^^.

When I do long distance runs, I often listen to @thefield_axel. Those long build ups and slight, carefully crafted changes are always good. Plus these tracks coupled with a runner's high and getting a good sweat on can make you feel like you're jogging on clouds... "Burned Out"

I listened to a couple of records yesterday, but didn't want to post about music with other shit going on in the world.. so I've saved them for today...
First up record 20, and it's @MassiveAttackUK - Protection (still in the shrink)

The opening track "Protection" is just incredible. Tracey Thorn's sweet, plaintive vocals and that beautifully gentle, deep bass is absolutely iconic..

I won't post them all, because I could, but this whole side is so so good. "Karmacoma" obviously the best known, but "Three", "Weather Storm" and "Spying Glass" are huge parts of my teens. "Three" in particular is very special - reminds me of Hyperballad - uptempo but delicate..

Oh go on then, have a bit of "Weather Storm"...

"Eurochild". I watched them play this song live in Hyde Park a week or two after the Br*xit vote. It was really quite sad, but ultimately hopeful...

To be honest, Protection isn't my favourite Massive Attack album, and I think it remains less celebrated than Blue Lines and Mezzanine which come either side of it. But it's a beautiful piece of work where they refined their craft, added more orchestration, and created ...

.. something beautiful which I don't visit as much as I should. Songs like Heat Miser and Weather Storm where they add those gorgeous pianos are so calming, but never "chillout compilation" fodder. And Light My Fire is really fun at the end! Great stuff..

Onto record 21, and on an absolute scorcher of a day where my office turned into a sauna, there are few records that are built for that "heatwave" vibe than @metronomy - The English Riviera.. what a beautiful cover.

I saw Metronomy play the sweltering "We Broke Free" at Glastonbury 2011. It was about midday and it was so hot - everything about that moment was just perfect..

Side A, like Protection, just so consistent. "She Wants" soundtracks those hot nights where sleep won't come and "The Look" comes from a dodgy fairground carousel. And Anna's vocals on "Everything Goes My Way"..
Side B starts with "The Bay" - one of my songs of the last decade

.. and side B is in fact just as consistent. Metronomy serve up classics like "Corinne", "Love Underlined" and "The Loving Arm" and make one of the best records around in 2011. Probably unlucky to be going up against PJ Harvey for the Mercury prize that year..

Record 22 - a first visit to one of the best 80s and best Scottish bands - the mighty Cocteau Twins - Blue Bell Knoll. Copped the remaster from the much-missed Rise in Cheltenham, swapped a large portion of my CD collection for vinyl there.. #needledrop on 1st self-titled track..

Side A is gorgeous. "Athol-Brose" shows off Liz's delicate vocals so beautifully, and the range she has on "Carolyn's Fingers" is just astonishing. By this point, their 5th album, they have really struck a balance where all the musical forces are even..

Side B opens with the transcending "Cico Buff". This one's all about that guitar tone...

And my favourite song on the album tucked away near the end - "A kissed out red floatboat".. I mean... it's never easy to decipher Cocteau Twins lyrics, especially when they start you off with titles like this! So so beautiful though..

Now to #needledrop record 23 - @65dos 2004 album "The Fall Of Math" - and intro track "Another Code Against The Gone". I got this beautiful green/black spatter vinyl from Shoreditch Record Fair a few years' back and never listened to it! Let's dive in...

... sorry for the delay on that one, been a long weekend... some highlights of that @65dos record then - first Retreat! Retreat! ...

This album is just absolutely epic.. the blips of breakcore, lovely thick drums, and some soaring guitars and keys. Over 10 years later, this band would go on to soundtrack probably the largest scale game ever - No Mans Sky - "epic"

My literal nightmare here "the fall of math"... I love the juxtaposition of the break core type elements, while the guitar kinda sounds a bit lo-fi? The whole album is a little muddy, and likes that kind of sheen you often get with this kind of music, and it really works...

Their song titles are just as good as their label artwork...

Side B is really great.. concluding with "Aren't We All Running?" Which does sound like it would be great for running... really glad I finally tried this album out proper. There are some very good songs here. Nice one @65dos!

Record 24 - this is a brief one - and again a first-time listen. From Record Store Day 2014 (I think), this is @si_bonobo - Get Thy Bearings from the Late Night Tales comp.. there are 2 songs, "Get Thy Bearings" and the instrumental on side B... #needledrop

But wait! There's also a short sneaky hidden track on side B, apparently titled "Sofia". GTB itself is a Donovan cover... the vocalist is Szjerdene. It's not the best moment in an amazing discography, but a very nice, lazy, summery song from Bonobo... lovely :)

Now for one of my favourite albums - from 2001, it's "Resist" from @kosheenmusic. I absolutely wore my CD out when this first came out. Then I got the record with just Side B (arghh..) a while back, BUT it was finally reissued this year... let's #needledrop on "Demonstrate"...

FIFA 03 CREW, where you at!? Love this song, just as much as the single remix which is how I was introduced to them... an absolute banger, full of menace but also serenity. Essential noughties tune.

I think this was the song that made me double down my attention. Might even have the CD single somewhere... "Catch".. the next track Cover is much more lowkey (I can't just video the whole album.. sadly)

I still listened to the UK top 40 back in 2002. Sleeping the night before, I dreamt that this single had got to no. 1.. woke up super happy. Only to realise that it was now Sunday, and "Harder" had only got to number 57. The actual number 1 that week?

Blazin' Squad - Crossroads

... never mind. What a gorgeous song though eh? Teenage angsty me listened to that a lot...

Up next, something a little-more direct.. "Slip N Slide"

"Empty Skies" and "I Want It All" complete Side B. A lot less radio-friendly these two, a bit earthier, and Sian's vocals really soar on these tracks. I find her a very underrated vocalist, full of power when needed, but incredibly tender as well.

Side C consists of the ballad-ish title track, more radio friendly "Hungry" (probably my least favourite, but still a very decent pop song) and D&B-lite "Face In The Crowd". Bit of a mixed bag, still hitting those highs.. this is a pic of the original vinyl with sides C/D only..

Side D, despite (kind of) having no singles, contains the richest tracks... first up is "Pride", also from the FIFA 03 soundtrack... another uptempo banger in the vein of "Hide U".. "Cruelty" is tense and vulnerable, an absolute bassy treat when I saw the band live in 2003..

Then we have "Let Go". Probably my favourite song on the album, reminds me of Massive Attack or Björk, with Sian's best vocal performance.. this is definitely the 3am track..

The outro to "Gone" is like the sun coming up over the Welsh hillside.. beautiful stuff. And there endeth one of my favou... BUT WAIT BONUS HIDE U REMIX hiding (lol) at the end. (I do think I prefer this version... just).. anyway, that's Resist. A solid 9 for me, this one.

Onto records 26 and 27, which make up 8 tracks of the incredible debut by @Commix_ - Call to Mind from 2007.. 6 tracks make up the LP, and a further 2 released as a single for the first track on the CD album (hope that makes sense). Anyway #needledrop for "Be True"..

"Be True" is sadly not on the vinyl version of the album, but you can get it on 12". A d&b classic... love this tune..

Bit off topic but I bloody love the high quality tapestry like finish on this cover. It suits the artwork so well and feels lovely..

There's some great misprinting on this record - Disk 2 is actually disk 3, but side C is not side E, but side F... or something - *insert Charlie from Always Sunny In Philadelphia GIF* anyway actual side C/D contain "How You Gonna Feel" and...

... the mighty "Japanese Electronics". This song is perfect for the gym and running, as well as good ol' fashioned stay-at-home rave, so it's racked up a lot of plays for me... there's also an amazing Instra:Mental remix on the Re:Call To Mind remix album..

Disk 3 is the "chilled" one - "Emily's Smile" is gorgeous... but the song that makes the album for me is "Strictly".. with those gorgeous pads and silky drums, it's the soundtrack for all those nostalgic lookbacks at nights out gone by.. a perfect end to a great album..

Record 28 is what was the long-awaited followed up the debut from Death From Above 1979. The debut was a stomper but this effort, The Physical World, was a little less breakneck, more mature, but no less of a knockout punch.. (and that front cover is so awesome)

#needledrop - "Cheap Talk"
What a way to reannounce yourselves after 10 years away! Seeing them live at (I think Electric Ballroom) was absolutely insane...

"Crystal Ball" is just so fucking groovy... that bass-line is super catchy but never cheesy..

The whole side A of The Physical World is just absolute breakneck speed.. so the change of pace for "White Is Red" at the end of the side is very welcome. Weirdly emotional for DFA79 but they do it really well.. (and there was still a hella mosh pit seeing this live so...)

Quick sidenote, but I love these illustrations for each song on the record on the inner sleeve..

Can't imagine why I would choose to highlight the song "Government Trash" in the midst of all this... *gestures round hopelessly*.. ah well this one's dedicated to Boris.. the rest of the album returns to light speed and side B is over before you know it. Fucking thrilling album

Record 30 is the first appearance of one of my favourite electronic artists, the mighty @Lone from Nottingham.. no two albums from him are quite the same, this 2016 release "Levitate" is much more into jungle and breakbeats than his previous effort. #needledrop - "Alpha Wheel"

Side A is a thrilling mix of the gorgeous synth pads and sequences that Lone does so well, and those jungle/break beats. Perfect example on this breakdown in Triple Helix...

Side B is much more calming, but no less upbeat.. more 4am than 1am... Breeze Out gives you a minute to breathe and then Sleepwalker transports you to a rave on a beach while the tide comes in...

.. and Sea of Tranquility takes you to the moon. A gorgeous, airy track, whose early 90s beats slide in halfway through to elevate a beautiful ambient pad. If you listen carefully there's a little sound hiding in there that sounds like the cutoff of a space transmission..

The album ends with Hiraeth, calming and meditative. Levitate is something of a departure for Lone - short at just 33 mins and only 9 songs, but every moment on this album is used to great effect. If I'm honest, I overlooked this album before. It's a firm fave now. Nice one @Lone

Right, record 30! It's the first "proper" @leeranaldo solo album "Between The Tides and the Times". Released 2012, couldn't get enough of this album. If you're a Sonic Youth fan, I strongly recommend it. Let's #needledrop on "Waiting On A Dream" (excuse the skype noise haha)

There's a lack of dissonance and noise that you'd find in Sonic Youth albums, but the easy-on-the-ear melodies and chord patterns are definitely what Lee brought to SY. "Off The Wall" is as poppy as anything he ever recorded, but "Xtina" definitely has that SY-type vibe..

The record owes a lot to 60s/70s era songs, and you can hear it in the harmonies of Angles and the stop-starts of Fire Island.. it's a very yearning, nostalgic album. "Lost" on side B combines sadness and sunshine in a very Lee Ranaldo way...

Love a gatefold record

Stranded is a goosebump inducing highlight. Used to listen to this one a lot on late night trains and coaches...

Love that Lee still uses "yr" instead of "your". I once saw a guy at a Sonic Youth gig composing a text message with the word "your" that he then deleted and replaced with "yr". Definitely wasn't to save characters..

The record finishes with "Tomorrow Never Comes" - very obvious nod to the Beatles, both lyrically and musically. A great finish to a lovely record. Without the other members of SY to pull these songs through their noise machine, it's great to see what Lee does on his own.

It's not an immediate "hit" record, and it never hits the highs of my favourite SY albums (perhaps unfair comparison), but there is nothing bad here. The best songs are awesome, and definitely hold up a few years after my initial hype wore off. Great gigs for this album too!

Record number 31 is the debut from A Tribe Called Quest. One of the first records I purchased from @sliderecordshop when it opened it Bedford a few years back. #needledrop was a bit trickier, I wanted to avoid the baby noises at the beginning of Push It Along...

"People's Instinctive Travels" is just perfect for those hot summer days.. upbeat, bassy, deep, yet light and easy-going. The production on their first few albums balances all these moments so well. Here's After Hours...

Can I Kick It and Bonita Applebum are obviously classics, but pick of the litter from side B gotta be "Rhythm".. love this song...

An absolute classic album there. Actually listened to it two or three times before moving on..
Record 32 is Martin Courteney - Many Moons from 2015. Another great record for a sunny day, but here it's because of the airy guitars and double tracked vocals.. #needledrop "Awake"

(Any birdsong you can hear is outside my window, you will need to supply your own when listening yourself)
The first 3 tracks on this album are so so good. Nothing fancy, simple arrangements, nice easy listening, lovely depth to the recording.. this is Foto..

Vestiges is also gorgeous, has to pick out the guitar solo. I'll try not to record every song tho..

Asleep on side B is very pretty. Like a lost 60s song. I really enjoyed this album, lots of lovely moments that don't necessarily stick straight away but I found myself humming days later.

Onto record 33 - the debut from @circasurvive - Juturna. This was one of my favourite albums of 2005, and indeed the noughties, an amazing mix of post-hardcore, emo and swathes of lush guitars. #NeedleDrop on "Holding Someone's Hair Back"

I first saw Circa Survive supporting Coheed and Cambria and Thrice at Birmingham Academy in 2005. An incredible gig.. the song that grabbed my attention was "Act Appalled"... Anthony Green got so into the song he forgot to actually sing into the mic at one point...

Wish Resign and Glorious Nosebleed follow on, a very similar vein. The guitar work from Circa is so good - icy and skeletal but without being too brittle - and then the unexpected warmth in the chorus of In Fear And Faith...

Side B starts with a couple of slower-paced tracks, but then "Oh, Hello" wakes you the fuck up..

There's a bonus track "House Of Leaves" after the last song "Meet Me In Montauk" (this album was partly inspired by Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind).. the fade out from this song is the same sound you hear at the beginning of Side A Track 1. A cyclical album, very cool.

So. It's been a while and for that I apologise.. but now record 34. This is @DeerhunterMusic - Microcastle. The vinyl copy I have also comes with a copy of the previous album Weird Era Cont... which is cool. We'll start with Microcastle, #needledrop on Cover Me (Slowly)..

This track segues beautifully into Agoraphobia.. chilled out indie rock is definitely my jam.

Never Stops and Little Kids are in a similar vein, echoes of Broken Social Scene kind of lazy, but loud, guitar driven pieces. Little Kids is a little fuzzier, and great textural changes... lovely stuff.

The mid section of the album is a bit of a change up - lots of reverbed solo guitar and voice on Calvary Scars and Green Jacket, but the second half of the title track absolutely bangs...

Side B consists of more of the same, a mix of laidback and more frenetic indie rock, but as though seen in sepia tones. Neither Of Us, Uncertainly is the highlight, with some definite MBV vibes and a nice 6/8 going on...

So, onto Weird Era Cont... and #needledrop on Backspace Century

This album is much more Animal Collective than Broken Social Scene, plenty of lovely abstract sounds that would be at home on a Fridge album, sometimes drawn into sharper focus like on Dot Gain..

Cicadas is absolutely beautiful

Slow Swords is also exquisite... such a big fan of these type of abstract pieces. A lovely, chilled vibe on this one..

And the ten minute epic which concludes this album is Calvary Scars II/Aux Out. Really nice double album this - enjoyed spending time with it. Some of it doesn't really stick the first time, but all of it is very enjoyable. Will definitely return to this, and investigate more DH

So onto record 35 - and it's the 4th album from @LittleDragon - Nabuma Rubberband. At this point they were starting to get top billings at festivals and were becoming more of a household name. #needledrop is Mirror...

Klapp Klapp is such a banger. Love the chorus in this one. Yukimi's vocals are their usual perfection - and the rest of the band have really beefed their sound up on this record, it's a little more exciting and accessible on some tracks, but retaining their signature sound...

Where's Bart Simpson's skateboard? It's... never mind - this is Underbart. Deep, propelling bass + restrained kick drum works so well even before the vocal...

This is probably my favourite track on the album. Happy coincidence, my wife and I were celebrating our wedding anniversary in Paris at the time, so I always have that happy memory association. Anyway, this is Paris..

There's an undercurrent of it the whole way through the album, but this song has the most obvious reference to Goldfrapp's Black Cherry. This song could have been on that album, slow sexy synths and another amazing vocal..

So that's Little Dragon - Nabuma Runnerband. It's a really great electronic/pop record, and it feels slightly more polished and perhaps a little less experimental than their previous albums. There's so much to love on here - and at least 3 10/10 songs I would say. Summery.

Onto record 36 - a favourite of my teenage years which definitely still holds up today - @aperfectcircle - Mer De Noms from 2000. An alt rock supergroup in every sense - #needledrop on The Hollow

Mer De Noms (sea of names?) was written by Billy Howerdel - guitar tech for NIN and Tool amongst others - Maynard from Tool got interested and gave his vocals to the project.. the result is a deep, sexy, gothic alt. rock album with some classic songs. Rose is tender but dark...

and Magdalena and Judith are amongst the titles with biblical connotations. The intro to Judith on side B is still one of my favourite ways to enter a song ever. I don't think I have ever skipped this song when listening to it..

The outro to Judith is dazzlingly epic. I saw APC live in 2004 and they finished the show with this song. I was in greebo heaven.. Billy Howerdel's slide guitar and Maynard's amazing sustained vocals.

Ahhh... 3 Libras. If you didn't put this on your mixtapes, did you even want to get with that rock chick? One of the most romantic, beautiful songs in the genre. And still heavy AF at the end. This was a whole new texture to me when I first heard it. Paz Lenchantin on violin here

And with that the first record is done, and in my opinion it's one of the finest sides of vinyl imaginable. Onto record 2, Sleeping Beauty comes with an alternate, extended intro on the vinyl version... I also love the artwork for this album. That back cover detail is so cool..

Thomas has a chorus thick as sludge and Renholder sounds almost like a sea shanty.. lovely lilting acoustic guitars and Maynard's echoing vocals.. the real treat on record 2 is Thinking Of You, catchy as hell and heavy, chugging guitars.. seeing this live was a.. sweet revelation

Brena is slow to start, and then becomes a soaring, heavy ballad and lethargic and finally with the music box/piano/vocal, the album is Over (geddit?) There's also an alternative version of Over on the vinyl copy. It's not quite a 10/10, but so little to fault on Mer De Noms..

Maybe it takes itself a little seriously, but it's so good at what it does - serving up goth romance alt metal rock songs with fantastic instrumentation, arrangement and recording. Judith, 3 Libras, Thinking Of You are the pick of the songs for me, but... yeah, no bad songs.

Ok so number 37 - a huge change up! It's the soul-house-R&B vibes from @ToroyMoi 's 4th album "Anything In Return" from 2013. #needledrop "Harm In Change"

"Say That" is an absolute powerhouse of a song. Soulful and groovy, I remember seeing Toro Y Moi close with this at Glasto 2013 - I was dancing like there was no tomorrow...

I love this album because it's got a hell of a groove when it wants, but it can also be fragile and delicate. If you're a fan of the XX or similar, tracks like "Rose Quartz" will be right up your alley.

'Never Matter' just absolutely oozes swagger. A dark, sexy, groove with some lush synth sounds and 80s funk? Yes please!

And we round off the album with 'How's It Wrong?'. It's a great album - though it probably took me a few years too long to get last the excellent side A - 'Say That' is the immediate highlight on this album, but there are definitely treasures buried deeper as well..

So... finally.. record 38! And it's @Coheed - Good Apollo I'm Burning Star IV Vol 1 From Fear Through the eyes of madness. This is the album where they really broke through, I remember HMV sold out of this release on day 1. #needledrop on 'Keeping The Blade'

A slightly more subdued start to a Coheed & Cambria album than I was used to after Second Stage Turbine Blade and the excellent In Keep Secrets of Silent - Always and Never is a sweet acoustic ditty which is all very pleasant. Then. Welcome Home! Their most well known song?

The tempo is kept up on Ten Speed and this glorious chorus (chlorius?) from Crossing The Frame. There's a sense of restraint almost, a slight departure from the carefree ways of the first 2 records, but also a definite sense they have honed their craft. Triumphant.

The first disc manages to squeeze 9 songs on. Most for me are classics from 2005 and give me nothing but happy memories. The jump from ballad 'Wake Up' to emo night mainstay 'The Suffering' will never not be quite amusing. Both great tunes tho.

The second disk of my version (from Record Store Day... 2017 I think) is a beautiful black/red splatter. I must confess that I normally don't listen to The Willing Well suite. 4 7-minute songs is a bit much and bloats the album a little for me. Can't deny that the arrangements...

are absolutely stellar though. Really well recorded. And I imagine if you're into prog-rock they are really enjoyable. They're just not quite my cup of tea as much as the first disk (which houses 8 great songs and an epic intro). The inner artwork also very cool.

So overall for me, this album is not quite as good as their previous two. Coheed are still really unique though and always hovering on that periphery of serious musicianship. So many little gimmicks and Claudio's high voice and big frame did make them something of a source of...

..ridicule back in the day, but I thoroughly enjoy them. I wish I could get the first two albums on vinyl for sure, but Second Stage in particular is so expensive! I would say ..Silent Earth is the best intro to Coheed, and the best album. But this one is in the top 3 for sure!

"FOr sUrE"

Ahem

Anyway, record number 39 - it's the 4th album from @PLACEBOWORLD - Sleeping With Ghosts. I'm not sure how most Placebo fans feel about this record. It's certainly grown on me over the years, as multiple listens have revealed some belting tunes... #NeedleDrop 'Bulletproof Cupid'

After such a rocking start, the faltering drums that introduce the more electro polish sleaze sound of English Summer Rain is a bit disjointed, but the effects pile on and you do end up with a really great track. There was a hint of this sound on the previous album, they fully...

... lean in on Sleeping With Ghosts and, production-wise, it kinda works too. I've always loved the artwork for this album as well, the inner trifold is really nice... and the "ghostly" overlays look great.

Back to the music, and after ESR we have This Picture, a more "standard" Placebo track which would have fitted nicely on WYIN. The pace immediately drops for the title track. I used to skip this as a teen, but now all I hear is a glorious electronic ballad. The sound is so clean.

The outro to Sleeping with Ghosts is honestly not dissimilar to William Orbit type production. It's so good. But then Bitter End really blows the cobwebs away. One of my favourite Placebo singles.

It's been 17 years and I still don't "get" Something Rotten. Placebo at their most experimental I think. Plasticine by contrast is more recognisable as the band, but just falls a bit flat maybe. 'Special Needs' however, for me is in the top 5 Placebo songs of all time.

Hell the outro deserves it's own video. They used to open the shows for this tour with this piece of music then kick into Bulletproof Cupid. It was awesome.

I'll Be There is next up, a slow shuffle which I didn't used to like but again has grown on me. When it all feels a little ponderous, the cobwebs again are blown away by Second Sight. This one's really fun, daft lyrics, great guitars and tempo.

The album then closes with Protect Me From What I Want. It's not a bad song, I can just never really get on board with it. The insistent 6/8 and the repeating chorus - nah. And Centrefolds is a piano ballad which is a really nice song which I can never remember and rarely ...

... listen to unless I put the vinyl on. And I think that sums up my frustration with this album. There are too many songs where I'm waiting for the next amazing song. The first 5 tracks are blindingly good. But side B contains too many misses. But the new Placebo sound was ...

... born on this album and it's inevitable they wouldn't get everything right. I also think the sequence of the album doesn't help it show off it's best songs. So, for me, this album is a solid 7. And I like it a lot more than in 2003, so there's that.

OK, record number FORTY (40). It's the lovely purple shimmery remastered Kate Bush - Hounds Of Love. As you can see this one gives my needle quite the ride, so #NeedleDrop wasn't hugely possible. Anyway, here's Running Up That Hill, one of my all time favourites. Best 80s song?

Confession I heard the Futureheads version of 'Hounds Of Love' first and still regard it as the more enjoyable version. But, to be fair, they had Kate's original to crib notes from! The album goes from strength to strength with The Big Sky next..

Mother Stands For Comfort gives us a breather in a dark foreshadowing of the Ninth Wave... second side in terms of the music timbre and tone. Then... Cloudbusting occurs. What a joyous song.

And Dream Of Sheep kicks off "The Ninth Wave" on Side B. A Celtic/Gothic/80s suite of music that ranks amongst Bush's best work. It feels frozen, timeless, perfectly preserved "under ice". Seeing her live interpretation of this in 2014 was one of the best nights of my life

Under Ice and Waking The Witch are a little more intense. Watching You Without Me feels lighter than air though... the production on this album is just incredible and her songs seem more accessible too. I really like her earlier albums but this one just jumps ahead leaps & bounds

The album ends with a strong 3-song run, Jig Of Life with its folks violins, Hello Earth is a piano ballad with an extended outro of mystery. The Morning Fog is a lovely almagam of Cloudbusting and Watching You Without Me. There's parts of every song to be found here, a really..

..clever final track. This is probably my favourite Kate album (though Aerial would push it close), all the songs are so strong. A very definite 9 or 10. If you've been meaning to get into Kate Bush, I would say this is the best place to start.

Onto record 41, this is the second album from @mansunband - Six. This was part of the "weird albums of 1998" group, and quite a departure from their 1997 debut. #needledrop on the title track "Six".

Six gives you a little taster of what's to come - the guitar work, the unhurried unfolding of the song, tempo changes, rockier bits, more relaxed sections. And then for the second track we're switched to Negative, epic and soaring but paranoid and twitching, a great single.

Man, Negative is so good. Anyway, onto Shotgun. I count at least 5 separate 'sections' in this song. This is part of the theme of this album I think. It's more a collection of movements than songs in places.

Now I'm not gonna lie, Side B passes in a blur of songs. Again, little snippets pop out here and there, but these are part of a larger work. Mansun essentially made a prog album and sprinkled a couple of singles on top of it. There's a part with a Tchaikovsky sample. It works.

The video in the previous tweet was from 'Cancer'. It's a 9-minute song with at least 6 different discernible themes. It's insane that this is the same band that did Wide Open Space. And yet it isn't. The harmonies, the soaring Chad guitar sound, it's all still here.

Anyway onto the lead single for the album - Legacy. It's definitely the closest in tone and timbre to their debut album, and .. again... it's just bloody great! Also the back cover looks really great in combo with my target light. Really atmospheric.

And we finish off side D with the awesome Being A Girl. The single version of this was 2 minutes long. But here, it becomes an 8 minute rollercoaster, which resolves some of the previous musical motifs and rounds off the album nicely.

Fun fact, the video for the single was also the screen debut of one Danny Dyer...
And so ends Six. It's an intimidating listen in a way because there's so much going on. But it rewards over time. You hear new motifs every time. And it all makes sense in the end. Promise. 9/10.

Record number 42 comes courtesy of Animal Collective, their 2009 album "Merriweather Post Pavillion". This was their major breakthrough album of the back of a certain single.. #NeedleDrop on "In The Flowers"...

And this was the single. "My Girls" is, to this day, a weird and wonderful crossover of synths and rhythms vs Americana indie vibes. Absolutely love this song. Nuff said really.

Also Frightened is the same heady mix of synths, effects and rhythms. The vocals shine on this album, sudden moments of clarity breaking out of the kaleidoscope.
Summertime Clothes is a big tune, just a joyous chorus...

Much like the album cover, you sometimes just have to step back and relax and then you'll get the flow. Let this album wash over you... Bluish is a prime example...

Guys Eyes just has such an atmosphere about it. I was obsessed with this song for the whole of Glastonbury 2009 (though they clashed with Neil Young, so I didn't go see them live)...

Lion In A Coma is just ridiculous, from title to twanging sound effects. Then, inexplicably, No More Running just comes along and tugs at your heartstrings....

.. until the album plays out with the rousing/annoying (depending on your disposition) with Brother Sport.
As far as I'm concerned there are only a few songs that don't get 5 stars from me. This is a top, top album, lush and exciting and with a texture rare in music today. 9.5.

Record 43. So from a band's best album to another band's worst. NYC Ghosts and Flowers is the only "bad" Sonic Youth album. Pitchfork famously gave it a Zero. It does have one of my favourite songs (which is why i got the vinyl). And it's this -- #NeedleDrop on "Free City Rhymes"

The other good song on the album is the single "Nevermind" - when it gets going. Small Flowers Crack Concrete is part of the collection of songs I can't get my head round. The poetry set to musique concrete, distortion and FX, it just doesn't work.

I can't tell if I like the avant-garde StreamXSonik Subway where Thurston raps over guitar harmonics and shambling percussion. I wouldn't play it to anyone as an intro to Sonic Youth for sure. But... yeah....

The only track on side B, for me, which works is the title track. The poetic delivery works better when Lee Ranaldo does it - he's done it on previous albums too, and he also sings part of it as well. But I doubt I will listen to this side of vinyl again.

I think this album would have been better as a three song EP, or perhaps one of the self-released SYR label releases which lean to more experimental pieces. This album is a confusing mess with few highlights, but zero still seems a bit harsh! Lightnin' ends the album...

Record 44 is the second album from @pinkshinyband - Grandfeathered. Hot on the heels of their 2015 debut, the Russian band serve up more intricate, shoegaze flavoured indie. This one pushes the boat out a little further. #NeedleDrop on "Initial"...

OK that told you nothing, it kind of morphs into an almost trip-hop vibe by the end.

This was the lead single from the album, Kiddy Pool Dreams. I believe the video consists of footage of the band playing the song to people and them reacting. Not all the reactions were great so you gotta respect the honesty! It's a decent single, more form than the previous...

... tracks on the album. Speaking of the album, I absolutely love the colour palette in the artwork and the vinyl itself. Shoutout to @clubac30 who always get lovely pressings for the PSUB releases.

Onto side B. It's the stronger side for me - a little more uptempo, a little less abstract. Comet Marbles into Cherry Pit is just beautiful, a great change of pace and texture.

Then Mölkky and the title track complete the album. This one is a little slow to get going compared to their debut but they bring slightly heavier distortion and more variation as well. They still sound like their name. A Pink Shiny Ultra Blast. 7/10.

Album 45 is one of my favourite albums from last year (though I only caught up with it this year) - @LoJamMusic's "For You And I". A fantastic record on the always-reliable @Hyperdub label. #NeedleDrop on 'Glitch Bitch', a monster of an opener..

This album absolutely does not compromise. The beats, rhythms, bass and drum sounds are in your face - as in London Ting//Dark As Fuck, but there are some moments of vulnerability juxtaposed within this as well. My favourite track on the album is probably So Scared...

There's a rawness and a danger to the album, all the sounds are so exciting, despite being familiar. "Sensual" is not a million miles away from the vibe of Björk's Vespertine, but Loraine James makes her own stamp upon everything here. The title track is all juddery, 8-bit...

... game flashback but propelled firmly forward. My Future (the second Le3 Black feature on the record) has a carnival/3am/glitch vibe which reminds me of early Basement Jaxx. It culminates in the thrilling Vowel//Consonant.. which starts off in FabricLive50 mode....

... and ends up introducing these synths to introduce the closing credits of a really assured debut album. Really can't recommend this album enough to any fans of electronica, dubstep, glitch. A great listen from start to finish.

Record 46 is from @ToroyMoi - Outer Peace from 2019. Chaz Bundick tries different things on each album, which is why i love some of his records, and blow a little cold on others. This one is a top notch combination of R&B and house. #NeedleDrop on "Fading" - what an opener...

OK, back on this after a long break (my office was too hot to work in) so to continue, Toro Y Moi's Outer Peace stays uptempo and (ironically) perfect for those hot days. Laws Of The Universe has a hell of a wah wah chord. And also the line "James Murphy is playing at my house"

The closing of side focuses more on slower efforts. Miss Me and New House hit that auto-tuned R&B vibe nicely, and side 2 opens with Baby Drive It Down, with leisurely marimba the order of the day.

The end of the record is where Outer Peace shines though. Freelance stuttered vocal is the perfect prelude for house banger Who I Am...

Monte Carlo and 50-50 end the album in a more lowkey way, the minimal arrangement of the former and the gorgeous rewound piano motif of the latter are striking but not too ostentatious. Classy finish to a very brief (just 30 mins) but high quality record. Sometimes less is more.

Now for record 47, Godspeed You! Black Emperor's 2000 opus "Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven". This one was done as an impromptu listening party with @Carlyorama ... my vinyl for this one was bought at their Troxy gig in 2010. What a show! #Needledrop on Storm...

The disc labels on this record are very considered and oppressive. Always a fan of this kind of artwork.

A particularly suspenseful part of "Static". Each track on this album lasts around 20 minutes, and isn't a song so much a small piece.

GY!BE even provide a sound timeline of the album as the centrefold for the album. Which is really kind of them...

A particularly soaring section of "Sleep". The word 'epic' doesn't do this album justice really, it's a whole other level of carefully considered and executed movements and ideas. But, if you are into post rock a la Mogwai or Sigur Ros, this lot are right up your street...

And we finish with (kind of) the title track Antennas To Heaven. There are... so many amazing bits on the album. Really is a journey if you listen intently. But it's also a good album to have while you're working - which is how I also experienced it. 90 mins of focus.

Record 48 is the third album from PJ Harvey - To Bring You My Love. One of my favourite Peej albums - such an array of sounds, fantastic songs. #Needledrop on the title track - that creeping crescendo hits me every time. A live favourite also.

To Bring You My Love takes you on a dizzying blues rock journey, with a star vocal turn at the end. Meet Ze Monsta is a dirty stomping riff with a swampy distortion, before the murky bass of Workin For The Man comes in... everything in this song is so restrained and tense...

C'Mon Billy is up next, we all know how good that song is. Teclo sounds amazing, PJ never got closer to old style blues than this, and this one has a "Moonlight at the Bayou" vibe. So much longing in that guitar...

I had completely forgotten how good Long Snake Moan was... a much rockier number to kick off side 2. Sets us up nicely for Down By The Water (everyone knows that song as well... is it her most famous single?)

I Think I'm A Mother is kind of a companion piece to Working For The Man. PJ seethes but never shrieks and there is more power in the quiet slow insistence of the soft drums, bass and guitar than could have been achieved with loudness. Another one I didn't remember as much...

Now Send His Love To Me... a mirror image of the title track in some ways. Potentially my favourite PJ track - and definitely on this album. Again, yearning and longing, but saved from sadness by an awesome arrangement.

The drama of The Dancer closes the album with a more mournful slant. It's a masterful album from PJ Harvey. Probably the greatest range of timbres she's ever put on one album, and an enthralling listen. Cannot recommend enough.

Record 49! It's the debut solo album from @thomyorke - The Eraser. This was rarely out of my ears after its release in 2006, the year I also became fully enamoured with Radiohead. #NeedleDrop on the title track, and probably my favourite Thom song...

Analyse and Clock are opposite sides of the coin - Analyse builds like a Romantic motif, and Clock is built from jerky bass rhythms and bleeps. Then Black Swan enters in all its majesty. Floating but ominous, urgent but restful. And how amazing is the @StanleyDonwood artwork?

Skip Divided is probably the most minimal song on here and it closes out side A. Side B opens with 'Atoms For Peace', strongly reminiscent of Worrywort (B-Side from Amnesiac era Radiohead) and of sunshine poking through a raincloud in spring. A beautiful Yorke vocal too...

AFP then merges seamlessly into And It Rained All Night. This one reminds me so much of the game Limbo, and has such a deep bass track you can see the pattern on the vinyl, which is awesome...

... and then the song itself isn't bad either! If you were thinking "I know exactly who would do a remix of this justice", then yes, fear not, there is also a Burial remix...

Side B then continues its winning streak with Harrowdown Hill. It's a song tinged with wariness, mystery and sadness, and is a beautiful listen.

Cymbal Rush closes the 9 track album with a duality between splashing synth rhythms and a soft dark piano... (I do wish TE was longer sometimes, Jetstream or The Drunkk Machine off the Spitting Feathers EP would have slotted in beautifully). It's such a good album, relentlessly..

..monochrome like the artwork and, for fans who believe Radiohead's only good work was in the 90s a no-doubt final nail in the coffin. For those who loved Kid A etc. it was a great listen and lovely prep for In Rainbows one year later...

OK... RECORD NUMBER 50 KLAXON! By a lovely chance, it's the rarest record I own, and by someone I'm lucky enough to call a friend, @hinakoomori - Voyage. A two-track single, so a short one. #NeedleDrop on the title track, Voyage. An ambient array of synths...

Side B is my favourite of the two, Teleport. Similar vibe, but this time we also get a vocal as well. I listened to this a lot in the back end of 2019...
I also love the design of the vinyl label, this is part of the Ocean label, and their designs are always nautical themed!

Record 51 - the 1995 debut from Foo Fighters. One could maybe argue a Dave Grohl solo record? I think he recorded most of the parts himself [no citation]. #NeedleDrop on This Is A Call...

The first side is full of big songs. Big Me, I'll Stick Around and the gorgeous Floaty. The highlight is probably Good Grief (or maybe I just like the title because I am British), a joyous juggernaut which reminds me inexplicably of racing games...

Side B opens with the ridiculously titled but hugely fun Weenie Beenie. Grohl at his infectious best here. Nice bit of distorted screaming too...

I've been a bit distracted recently and haven't updated the thread as much, but I'm going to try and carry on - though progress may be a little slower.
To finish off Side B of FF, it's not quite as good as Side A but still really enjoyable. Especially X-Static...
Nice one Dave.

Record 52! Second LP from one of my favourite bands - @BlocParty A Weekend In The City. Ultimately, didn't quite live up to their debut but an engrossing listen nonetheless - lyrically much less abstract, and musically more polished.
#NeedleDrop - Song For Clay (Disappear Here)

That monster riff, followed the energetic, paranoid 'Hunting For Witches' (how well those lyrics hold up in 2020, sadly) open the album spectacularly. 'Waiting For The 7:18' is one of my favourite ever songs. I knew it from 2006 bootlegs, and the finished version is a triumph...

...used to throw myself into the mosh pit when that chorus goes off.. what a song. Then followed by massive single 'The Prayer'. I remember this debuting on a Zane Lowe show maybe? I replayed the same bit of the show until I had the lyrics down. Absolute filth, this...

Uniform is up next. A little stiff, but when it lets loose there's some great energy. Side A closes with the underrated On... I don't think I ever saw this live, but the "you make my tongue loose" refrain is one of my favourite Kele vocals...

'Where Is Home?' is the taut rage that Kele feels about his experience being Black in Britain. Incredibly powerful, especially in the wake of the Windrush scandal and the BLM movement, and this song has only got better for me over the years. Great Burial remix available too.

'Kreuzberg' is... nice. Doesn't do a lot for me and there are b-sides from this era which would have made a better impact for me, but it's not a bad song. 'I Still Remember' is a lyrically tender song where the production works very well with a song that can be a bit flat live..

Rounding off the album we have 'Sunday', a great track (and of course getting close to the end of the "weekend" concept). I love the buildup and solo in this song and it was a big live favourite. Those big drums at the beginning remind me of Radiohead's 'There There'...

... and then SRXT ends the album. Now I love a good closer but, sadly, I don't like this one all that much. It's OK, but much like 'Kreuzberg' I don't think it adds that much to the record. It's cathartic live for sure, but yeah.. just not a firm favourite. So I'd give AWITC...

... a good 8 out of 10. Overall there's more polish and a richer, more electronic influenced sound, but you can't help but feel that there's less urgency, less of that crisp, brittle sound from Silent Alarm. Taken on its own terms though, it's a strong follow up with great songs.

Record 53 is from earlier this year - a collab between @danielmarkavery and @blindoldfreak "Illusion Of Time". I've actually not listened to this one all the way through before so I'm excited... #needledrop on opener "Sun".

Title track "Illusion Of Time" giving some serious 80s vibes - bit early Aphex Twinnish... lovely stuff. This edition of the vinyl from Bleep is a clear vinyl so I also get a lovely view of my Metal Gear Solid slipmat that my good friend @Koz83 had made for me...

CC Pad and Space Channel drift along quite nicely, bit of a new age vibe. But on Inside The Ruins, things get a lot more intense, more of a post-apocalyptic Fallout-type bent.. would love to see this one live.

At First Sight kicks off side B, very reminiscent of Nine Inch Nails, and then a lovely BOC-esque short Interrupted By The Cloud Of Light is interrupted by Enter Exit...

Water is beautiful, it slowly undulates and, much like real water, varies in depth and sonic movement. It's a real highlight of a very good album and feels like the outro...

But then we have a lovely surprise ending with Stills... an airier timbre to return us to how the album started...
Really enjoyed this album, hugely relaxing, but with a few darker/more intense moments to keep things interesting.

Record 54 is an early @SmashingPumpkin single "Tristessa" - I believe my sis got me this from her trip to Japan ( @AnnMarieRayney ?) This version sounds a little slower than the Gish version maybe? (Or perhaps I've not listened in a while).. anyway #needledrop on Tristessa...

The B sides are differing - La Dolly Vita is kind of "polite goth" and probably how it ended up in Pisces Iscariot, is the lush acoustic guitar strums.. It's not my favourite Pumpkins song tho.

HONEYSPIDER however, is definitely one of my favourite Pumpkins 'rarities'. I discovered this song shortly after I heard Machina 2 and can see the goth metal high priest links here. Moral is, Pumpkins are more fun when Billy properly leans into it!

Record 55 - is the beautiful, autumnal Aerial by Kate Bush... a real slow burner of a record for me. I was lucky enough to find this in Fopp in Guildford for 20 quid back in 2006; how sought after it would become later! #NeedleDrop on the 1st single "King of the Mountain"

"Pi" appeals greatly to the maths nerd in me, KB actually recites the digits of pi while talking about a man obsessed with calculating the exact value of it, dreamy. "Bertie" follows, and sounds a little like a medieval take on Cloudbusting... an ode to her young son...

"Mrs Bartolozzi" follows and is probably the sweetest ballad I've ever heard revolving (get it?) around a washing machine. "How To Be Invisible" is a more upbeat track featuring some of my favourite Kate lyrics...

"Joanni" harks back to the Bush of 15 or 20 years previously, swirling, mysterious and plaintive. "The Coral Room" is just Kate + piano, maybe the most stripped back song on the album. And this closes out disk 1 - "A Sea of Honey". It's not as thick and saccharine as that sounds!