Heartland

I think I started one of these last year - simple concept, name your songs of 2007. Mine are a combination of new discoveries but mostly things I've known for ages and just listened to a hell of a lot this year... In no particular order -

Einstuerzende Neubauten - Stella Maris and Die Interimsliebenden... Been into them for a few years now but only got to hearing these tracks this year.

Chameleons - Shades

Suede - We Are The Pigs and So Young... both blasts from the past (I was a huge fan in my early teens, and never really stopped wanting to have Brett Anderson's high-cheekbones babies as I think I've covered elsewhere).

Diamanda Galas - Double Barrel Prayer and Let My People Go... been into her for a while now too but listened to her tons in 2007.

Eurythmics - Thorn In My Side

The Fall - Hit The North!

Public Enemy - Fight The Power

Rammstein - Du Hast

PiLPublic Image

Your turn!

Got more into weirdy Neofolk-type stuff, though it has been mainly Der Blutharsch. Has also been a fairly hardcore Laibach year too, got into Death In June a little bit but the only albums I've listened to so far are the ones with Der Blutharsch guesting on .

Also just a couple of songs I loved this year (from the John Barleycorn reborn compilation) -

The Horses of the Gods - John Barleycorn

The Story - The Wicker Man

http://www.myspace.com/johnbarleycornreborn

Not really individual ch00nz, but...

Main thing that's got me going is the sheer amount of Spacemen 3/Spiritualized live/rare material that's come into my possession this year. All of the "Acoustic Mainlines" takes on familiar (and some not-so-familiar) tunes, in particular, have been causes for genuine happiness.

The first 2 Iron Maiden LPs have been welcome returns to my collection.

Ennio Morricone's soundtrack to "For a Few Dollars More" is a third goodie - my local Italian takeaway coffee joint has been playing it fairly steadily over the past month or two.

Been listening to a lot of Killing Joke up until recently.

The only real new music that I've been exposing myself to has been that made by a few of our members - mainly rush and RobZombie, both of which I've enjoyed very much and look forward to more of.

mh wrote:
The first 2 Iron Maiden LPs have been welcome returns to my collection.

Though the first one is the best one!

Brideoffrankenstein wrote:

mh wrote:
The first 2 Iron Maiden LPs have been welcome returns to my collection.

Though the first one is the best one!

Lots of weird stuff

Mostly the discovery of Belgium's Tokamat and Antwerp-based Nudex.

That was normal stuff.

Then, the return of Aphex Twin as a regular in my cd-player. Also, Venetian Snares was played and highly appreciated chez IZ towers.

Then, I also discovered the sheer beauty of Explosions In The Sky, the Texan Post-Rockers, and stumbled upon the Pax Cecilia, a postrock-metal-pop-hardcore-emo hybrid that surprised me from minute one till the end of their CD "Blessed are the Bonds"... What's more, they give away this CD for FREE!

Finally re-discovered some cool Ambient pieces like Raison d"Etre, Shinjuku Thief and Karjalan Sissit. The new Desiderii Marginis was ace, as usual, and got some nice criticism here on HL as a result. Dutch dark Ambient collective Foundation Hope are also worth a mention.

FGG were pish. So was ARF. But we keep on hoping.

IZ.

I don't recall discussion of it on here, but oh my stars and garters the new Shriekback record--Glory Bumps--kicks ass and takes names.

I had two greater discoveries this year:
1, 2. (Selcetion is neither in temporary nor preferance order!) WOW!
Earlier this year Lots and lots of Talking Heads, old The Cure stuff, Ultravox-a flashback. Some inhabitant of the air stuffed The Swans down my ears, and I enjoyed it.
Lots of Nick Cave. Lots of Sisters. Lots of Fields, mainly Elizium. Quite a lot of The Nephilim as well.
Illdisposed had to do the dirty work of getting me into battle order quite often. Dunno how they felt 'bout it, I enjoyed every single time!
..and later this year I found out I could really listen to Meshuggah for fun, which I did yesterday for a couple of hours as well.

..Oh, and This here.
That's it, roughly speaking.

boudicca wrote:Suede - We Are The Pigs and So Young... both blasts from the past (I was a huge fan in my early teens, and never really stopped wanting to have Brett Anderson's high-cheekbones babies as I think I've covered elsewhere).

What? No Still Life?!

ARF: Take your pick really.

Porcupine Tree: Anethsetize

BRMC: Need Some Air

Some that have been on a regular rotation during the year.
The Cure (I know James. I need help ) Faith live at Budapest 1989 & any version of A Forest I can get my lug holes around.
Roger Waters: Perfect Sense
Porcupine Tree: Arriving Somewhere...., Strip The Soul, Radioactive Toy
The Donnas: It's on The Rocks
Juliette & The Licks: Killer
The Sissies: Neverland (full length), YCBTO, Crash & Burn (madrid version), Temple of Love (natch), Alice 83 (hated it first, but after schools out, can't fault it).
Joy Division; Shadowplay
The Chameleons: In Shreds
Skeletals: Promised Land

There's hundreds more, but these are the ones that immediately jump to mind.

Vitalic, Border Community, Kraftwerk, Green Velvet, 25men, and an ocean of beautiful electro, which at its very best is most assurdly g*** without the horror, the horror. Seem to have cottoned on quite late to Kraftwerk, but hey, better late than never.

Oh and The Editors! Bloody hell nearly forgot them!

i discovered nothing this years (only HL is what i could mention)....about music:
IRON MAIDEN - the clairvoyant
NEW ORDER - true faith
THE SISTERS - possession (live 85 version)
SEX GANG CHILDREN - arms of Cicero
CHRISTIAN DEATH - tales of innocence
THE NEPHS - psychonaut (couldn't i mention this song?)

My faves:
Devil's Eyes by Cobwebs
Peter Purves Regrets by Dave Boyfish and the Wheel
I just wanna play bass for Rod Stewart by Steven Cooper and the Charlies
Also anything of the latest NMA one and from last year, Show of Hands's "Witness" and Blyth Power's "Fall of Iron". Oh, and "Fire" by Pressgang. old, but only got my hands on a copy over the summer and it made me happy

My songs of the year are quite varied really;

I rediscovered the House of Love, especially Shine On

The Cure are now on my playlists (thanks to Eric's advice and the Mumbles cover)

and, to my shame, I must have aged 40 years overnight and really like Andrei Bocelli (I hope I've spelt it right)

as well as the usual amounts of Marillion, Genesis (thanks Blast!), Nephilim and Bob Dylan.

for my last year was a huge dug up an old- mainly '80s- sounds too much to name but i'll try. not quite a songs. but
Einstuerzende Neubauten (all)
PIL (metal box and first issue)
beatles ( white and revolver)
depeche mode (violator)
talikng heads
Republika -legendary polish new wave band ( so far "82-85")
the the (soul mining)
wire (154, pink flag -more 154)

but this are only examples

EDIT: and reissued FaLaA

eotunun wrote:Some inhabitant of the air stuffed The Swans down my ears, and I enjoyed it.

That reminds me - Killing For Company... oh my stars, what a track! *shiver*

nick the stripper wrote:What? No Still Life?

Actually, yes, that as well

I'm just going to name a few bands that come to mind now because I wouldn't know where to start if I would have to name tracks
Fleetwood mac; I started to adore them this year
MC5; last years gig was the start of a real journey for me.
Elvis; always known he was called the king but now I start to understand why

and last but not least; Neil Young our very own Joery has infected me with his virus

christophe wrote:
and last but not least; Neil Young our very own Joery has infected me with his virus

Same here! Also Willy Deville

Besides that many, many songs from popular eighties bands like the Cure, Simple Minds, Pink Floyd or Depeche Mode. Salvation I kind of rediscovered after many years. Many many old songs from mainly 80's and also 90's but also many new songs from bands like Editors, Porcupine Tree, Placebo and Johan.

Other great band I listen to a lot Madrugada.

Didn't I mention Never Summer Land?

Been a quiet year musically I think.

My highlights -
Every track from 'We Collide' by Mesh
Have also had 'Run' by Snow Patrol on permanent playlist since my wife got their last couple of CDs recently
Replaced my missing copy of Pink floyds 'Division Bell' and played 'coming back to life' far too much.

and re-discovered a number of old housemartin tunes.....enough said!


(has no-one mentioned the last m*****n cd yet? )

another one. listen to that bass line
http://youtube.com/watch?v=xyBhAglWZ9Q

Bartoszek wrote:another one. listen to that bass line
http://youtube.com/watch?v=xyBhAglWZ9Q

Awesome. \m/

SomeKindOfStranger wrote:(has no-one mentioned the last m*****n cd yet? )

I forgot all about that.
is it to late to edit my post?

Began the year listening obsessively to The Knife; if not for what transpired a couple of months later, "Silent Shout" very well could've been my nomination for song of the year. However, my psychological state at the time, coupled with an increasing distaste for the stale, hackneyed, and increasingly-pretentious state of the local electro/electroclash/industrial scenes caused me to swear off the whole mess altogether. I stopped going out, and instead listened wistfully to old New Wave faves on radioio’s 80s channel.

Via an online pal, I discovered the gorgeous and transcendent Isihia, which led me to rediscover the Bulgarian Voices and to become suddenly aware of (and to be subsequently blown away by) Huun-Huur-Tu. Thanks to a tip from a Chicago buddy around that time, I was turned on to The Editors and I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness, both of which were in heavy rotation on my iPod (wait, that’s actually impossible, innit? ) for a couple of months in early ’07.

And then, rather out of the blue, another Chi pal suggested that I take a listen to a new favorite band of his, which had been born from the ashes of the mighty Godflesh. So, rather overnight, Jesu became my band of the year (went to see ‘em every time they passed through ChiTown, and proceeded to snag everything they’d ever recorded). With that, I was completely sucked into the doom/drone/sludge metal vortex, and utterly new-to-me folks like Sunn O))), Boris, Pelican, Porcupine Tree, Devin Townsend, Isis, and others (and some “softer� similar stuff like Red Sparowes, Eluvium, and Explosions In The Sky) became de rigueur listening on a daily basis (and for several of ‘em, I have my fellow Heartlanders to thank profusely! ).

(Honorable mentions for mini-obsessions in 2007 go to Woven Hand, the Easy Star All-Stars’ “Radiodread� album, SPC ECO, A Place To Bury Strangers, The Sissies’ “Never Land – Full Length,� and Burial.)

Blip Festival 2007 in NYC kicked me square in the arse and right between the eyes, and wrenched my listening habits right out of the metal realm and jammed ‘em firmly back into electronic/industrial (again!), as I rediscovered old chiptune/8-bit faves (Bit Shifter and Nullsleep) and was gobsmacked by many new ones (including 8GB and Huoratron).

WOOOOOT! Here’s hoping ’08 will be similarly enlightening! \m/

Wire ~ Our Swimmer