VA — Uncut: Coming Up (October 2015)

          ^{VA — Uncut: Coming Up (October 2015)}
ζθ   Issue 221 — October 2015
ζθ   Uncut is the essential magazine about rock music, written by people who love that music as much as you do. Every month, it features the most comprehensive and trustworthy album reviews section in the world. There are in–depth interviews with the finest musicians of the past five decades, and with the exciting new artists who are following in their great tradition. Insightful, informative, passionate about extraordinary music — that’s Uncut.Location: United Kingdom
Album release: October 2015
Record Label: Uncut
Duration:     58:27
Tracks:
01. Craig Finn — Maggie I’ve Been Searching for Our Son     4:04
02. The Arcs — Stay in My Corner     3:19
03. Titus Andronicus — Dimed Out     2:59
04. HeCTA — Sympathy for the Auto Industry     5:29
05. Robert Forster — Let Me Imagine You     3:05
06. Public Image Ltd. — Bettie Page     3:23
07. James Elkington & Nathan Salsburg — Reel Around the Fountain    3:36
08. Phil Cook — Anybody Else     3:28
09. Wand — Stolen Footsteps     2:54
10. Elyse Weinberg — Houses     3:37
11. Dungen — Franks Kaktus     5:39
12. Bilal — Satellites     3:00
13. Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats — Waiting for Blood     4:53
14. Lou Barlow — Nerve     4:03
15. Low — No Comprende     4:58
TOP albums via Uncut:
ζθ   123 Wand — 1000 Days (Drag City)
ζθ   118 Dungen — Allas Sak (Smalltown Supersound)
ζθ   114 Wand — Golem (In The Red)
ζθ   103 The Arcs — Yours, Dreamily (Nonesuch)
ζθ   063 Lou Barlow — Brace The Wave (Domino)
ζθ   058 James Elkington & Nathan Salsburg — Ambsace (Paradise Of Bachelors)
ζθ   042 Low — Ones And Sixes (Sub Pop)
ζθ   025 Bilal — Another Life (BBE)
ζθ   013 Robert Forster – Songs To Play (Tapete)
ζθ   007 Phil Cook – Southland Mission (Thirty Tigers)
ζθ   Paul McCartney’s looking younger than usual on the cover of this issue of Uncut — but that’s very much in keeping with the magazine’s old school approach — followed up in articles on John Lydon, Keith Richards, Squeeze, David Bowie, The Sonic, Mercury Rev, and Bjork! There’s also a mountain of music reviews here — 40 pages that look at tons of new music and reissues — and the magazine also comes with a bonus CD of 15 “coming up” tracks by Wilco, Public Image Limited, The Arcs, Lou Barlow, Robert Forster, Low, and others!
ζθ   Below are two questions and answers, and the conclusion to the interview (by the way, the charming detail is included earlier that he has a Lennon calendar in his kitchen at Hog Mill Hill):
Q:  You appeared on 'All Those Years Ago’, George’s tribute to John. But did you think that people expected you to write a song about John?
A:  If you’re not stupid, that does cross your mind. The same thing happened after Linda died. I thought, 'I just want to make the greatest...’ But you’re not always capable of responding to that stimulus. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s too big a thing to deliver. I was probably waiting to see if something came, but I couldn’t just sit down and write a response song. Funnily enough, “Here Today” was written on this spot. When I first got this building, this used to be a series of little rooms, which I cleared out to make this big office. I sat on the bare floor — probably exactly here, it was this end of the room. The bareness of the room was very conducive to focusing my thoughts. I had nothing to look at. So I remember just getting the idea of, 'If you were here today in this very bare room, what would we say, would we talk about, what would you do?’ I announce it in shows as a conversation we never got to have. Which, to some degree, is true. Though it’s a song, not a psychiatric report. There’s one bit that I kinda disagree with when I sing it. “And you said, I really knew you well what would your answer be?/Well knowing you, you’d probably laugh and say that we were worlds apart”. He wouldn’t have said “We were worlds apart.” But anyway. It works in the song.
Q:  The song specifically references your early relationship with John. Was that how you tended to think about him in the aftermath of his death, as the young man you first knew?
A:  I think so. Often when you think about anyone, you go back to your formative years. They are core memories, your big movies. On my last album I wrote a song, “Early Days” — “There’s the two of us dressed in black from head to toe...” — because I’ve got those images burned into my brain. The other thing is, some of the times in the years before he died were painful, particularly around the breakup of The Beatles. Like anyone — sometimes unwittingly, sometimes wittingly — I block the s**t. I don’t particularly want to stay with it and wallow in it. So even now when I think of John I often think of us writing together. “A Day In A Life”. Stuff Like that. “...Mr Kite!”. Whatever. Actually, I was just shown the old original scribbled manuscripted lyrics for “I’ve Got A Feeling” [McCartney is referring to his previous meeting that day]. On my side it’s, “I’ve got a feeling, feeling deep inside/Oh yeah.” His lyrics are to the side of mine. “Everybody had a hard time, everybody had a wet dream.” Those moments are the most priceless for me. I can go to the others easily, if I’m required to, if we’re talking about the s**t. F**king Allen Klein, all that. But I prefer to stay with the good stuff. So “Here Today” and songs like that hark back to the better memories.
Then McCartney looks at his watch. We’re some way over our allotted time. “I could talk for ages,” he says, tantalisingly. But he has other projects to tend. He walks Uncut back downstairs, where he stops by the front door. He chats unhurriedly for another five minutes about seeing U2 play recently at Madison Square Garden, the proposed running time of his Lollapalooza set and the critical rehabilitation of McCartney II. He talks enthusiastically about his desire to perform a show where he is unshackled from playing “Hey Jude” and the big hits, and can instead focus on the lesser–known tracks from his catalogue. As he finally opens the front door to show Uncut out, he asks how we’re getting back to Rye station. One of his studio staff is kindly providing a lift. He nods, then stops us on the doorstep. “Have you got anything to eat on the journey?” he asks. Without waiting for an answer, he ducks back into the kitchen and returns with some fruit. “Here you go,” he says. “A banana and an orange for the train.” And then, with a wink, he shuts the front door.
Website: http://www.uncut.co.uk/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/uncutmagazine
Interview with Low:
Asks: Laura Snapes
ζθ   http://www.uncut.co.uk/reviews/album/low-ones-and-sixes
A very personal top 140:
ζθ   OK so I’ve decided I can’t wait any longer to let this go; here are my 140 favourite albums of 2015, more or less ranked.
ζθ   As ever, a few caveats. The ranking is predictably pretty arbitrary beyond the top 20 or so; Natural Snow Buildings, say, should certainly not feel aggrieved to be at Number 140, given they could have ended up somewhere inside the top 50 on another day. I know admissions of imprecision like this don’t do much to foster an impression of empirical truth and authority, but I figure it’s best to be honest about how ad hoc the construction of a personal chart can be.
ζθ   Nevertheless, there’s obviously a lot of sport and pleasure in ranking so many albums. I imagine plenty of you will be rather sceptical about there being 140 albums good enough to bother with from 2015, and while it’d be disingenuous of me to claim that every one here is to my mind an unimprovable classic, I’ve enjoyed them all and believe they all, without exception, deserve at the very least a few listens.
ζθ   I probably say this around this time at 12 month intervals, but I remain convinced that every year is a good one for music, if you have the time, energy and enthusiasm to dig deep. That’s why I always think it’s useful to compile lists of such excessive length rather than tight little top 20s, or whatever: I’d like a lot more people to listen to, for instance, Byron Westbrook’s “Precipice” on the Root Strata label, so if I can give a bunch of these things a platform, and contextualise them with a few more familiar albums, that seems like a good plan to me.
ζθ   I should say that for a much more democratic summary of the year’s music, we have a very fine Top 75 in the current issue of Uncut, compiled from the votes of 40-odd writers and staffers. If you’re concerned that Father John Misty and Jason Isbell’s albums are absent from my list, you’ll certainly find them there.
ζθ   I’m sure, though, that a few things have slipped my memory, and that you’ll be able to turn me on to some other records I may have missed, so please post your own favourites/charts/recommendations etc at the bottom of the page. Many thanks, in advance – and thanks for your indulgence in reading this…
ζθ   Follow me on Twitter @JohnRMulvey
ζθ   140 Natural Snow Buildings – Terror’s Horns (Ba Da Bing)
ζθ   139 !!! – As If (Warp)
ζθ   138 Saun & Starr – Look Closer (Daptone)
ζθ   137 Patrick Higgins – Bachanalia (Telegraph Harp)
ζθ   136 Alif – Aynama-Rtama (Nawa Recordings)
ζθ   135 Cat’s Eyes – The Duke Of Burgundy: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Caroline)
ζθ   134 The Unthanks – Mount The Air (Rabble Rouser)
ζθ   133 Beirut – No No No (4AD)
ζθ   132 Samba Toure – Gandadiko (Glitterbeat)
ζθ   131 Pops Staples – Don’t Lose This (Anti-)
ζθ   130 The Dead Weather – Dodge And Burn (Third Man)
ζθ   129 Cannibal Ox – Blade Of The Ronin (iHiphop)
ζθ   128 Lubomyr Melnyk – Rivers and Streams (Erased Tapes)
ζθ   127 Blond-ish – Welcome To The Present (Kompakt)
ζθ   126 Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe & Ariel Kalma – FRKWYS Vol. 12: We Know Each Other Somehow (RVNG INTL)
ζθ   125 Peacers – Peacers (Drag City)
ζθ   124 Panda Bear – Panda Bear Vs The Grim Reaper (Domino)
ζθ   123 Wand – 1000 Days (Drag City)
ζθ   122 Marry Waterson And David A. Jaycock – Two Wolves (One Little Indian)
ζθ   121 M Dwinell – Golden Ratio (Amish)
ζθ   120 Follakzoid – III (Sacred Bones)
ζθ   119 Duke Garwood – Heavy Love (Heavenly)
ζθ   118 Dungen – Allas Sak (Smalltown Supersound)
ζθ   117 Aye Aye – Aye Aye (Richie/Testoster Tunes)
ζθ   116 Tom Carter – Long Time Underground (Three Lobed Recordings)
ζθ   115 Chris Connolly – Alameda (Caldo Verde)
ζθ   114 Wand – Golem (In The Red)
ζθ   113 Master Musicians Of Bukkake – Further West Quad Cult (Important)
ζθ   112 Robert Glasper – Covered (Blue Note)
ζθ   111 Trembling Bells – The Sovereign Self (Tin Angel)
ζθ   110 Nick Cave & Warren Ellis – Loin Des Hommes: Original Motion Picture (Goliath Entertainment)
ζθ   109 Elephant Micah – Where In Our Woods (Western Vinyl)
ζθ   108 Matt Valentine – Midden Mound (Child Of Microtones)
ζθ   107 Leon Bridges – Coming Home (Columbia)
ζθ   106 Fraser A Gorman – Slow Gum (Milk!/Marathon Artists)
ζθ   105 Shye Ben Tzur, Jonny Greenwood And The Rajasthan Express – Junun (Nonesuch)
ζθ   104 Darts & Arrows – Altamira (Ears & Eyes)
ζθ   103 The Arcs – Yours, Dreamily (Nonesuch)
ζθ   102 Alasdair Roberts – Alastair Roberts (Drag City)
ζθ   101 Moon Duo – Shadow Of The Sun (Sacred Bones)
ζθ   100 Howlin Rain – Mansion Songs (Easy Sound Recording Co)
ζθ   099 Alela Diane & Ryan Francesconi – Cold Moon (Believe Recordings)
ζθ   098 Mbongwana Star – Kinshasa (World Circuit)
ζθ   097 The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – Freedom Tower – No Wave Dance Party (Bronzerat)
ζθ   096 Omar Souleyman – Bahdeni Nami (Monkeytown)
ζθ   095 Promised Land Sound – For Use And Delight (Paradise Of Bachelors)
ζθ   094 Thunderbitch – Thunderbitch (Blackfootwhitefoot)
ζθ   093 King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – Paper Mâché Dream Balloon (Heavenly)
ζθ   092 Gospelbeach – Pacific Surf Line! (Alive Naturalsound)
ζθ   091 Simon Scott – Insomni (Ash International)
ζθ   090 King Midas Sound/Fennesz – Editions 1 (Ninja Tune)
ζθ   089 Michael Chapman – Fish (Tompkins Square)
ζθ   088 Deradoorian – The Expanding Flower Planet (Anticon)
ζθ   087 Yo La Tengo – Stuff Like That There (Matador)
ζθ   086 Cath & Phil Tyler – The Song-Crowned King (Ferric Mordant)
ζθ   085 Arthur’s Landing – Second Thoughts (Buddhist Army)
ζθ   084 Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba – Ba Power (Glitterbeat)
ζθ   083 Rachel Grimes – The Clearing (Temporary Residence)
ζθ   082 Sonny Vincent And Rocket From The Crypt – Vintage Piss (Swami)
ζθ   081 Chilly Gonzales – Chambers (Gentle Threat)
ζθ   080 Crying Lion – The Golden Boat (Honest Jon’s)
ζθ   079 Todd Rundgren/ Emil Nikolaisen/Hans-Peter Lindstrøm – Runddans (Smalltown Supersound)
ζθ   078 Laurie Anderson – Heart Of A Dog (Nonesuch)
ζθ   077 Laura Marling – Short Movie (Virgin)
ζθ   076 The Cairo Gang – Goes Missing (God?)
ζθ   075 Hot Chip – Why Make Sense? (Domino)
ζθ   074 Colleen – Captain Of None (Thrill Jockey)
ζθ   073 Courtney Barnett – Sometimes I Just Sit And Think And Sometimes I Just Sit (Anxiety/Marathon)
ζθ   072 Byron Westbrook – Precipice (Root Strata)
ζθ   071 Circles Around The Sun – Interludes For The Dead (Rhino)
ζθ   070 Laura Cannell – Beneath Swooping Talons (Front And Follow)
ζθ   069 Blanck Mass – Dumb Flesh (Sacred Bones)
ζθ   068 United Bible Studies – The Ale’s What Cures Ye (MIE Music)
ζθ   067 Goran Kajfeš Subtropic Arkestra – The Reason Why Vol 2 (Headspin)
ζθ   066 Rhiannon Giddens – Tomorrow Is My Turn (Nonesuch)
ζθ   065 Liam Hayes – Slurrup (Fat Possum)
ζθ   064 Steve Hauschildt – Where All Is Fled (Kranky)
ζθ   063 Lou Barlow – Brace The Wave (Domino)
ζθ   062 Chris Forsyth & Koen Holtkamp – The Island (Trouble In Mind)
ζθ   061 William Basinski – Cascade (2062/Temporary Residence)
ζθ   060 Martin Courtney – Many Moons (Domino)
ζθ   059 Ballaké Sissoko & Vincent Segal – Musique De Nuit (No Format)
ζθ   058 James Elkington & Nathan Salsburg – Ambsace (Paradise Of Bachelors)
ζθ   057 Richard Thompson – Still (Proper)
ζθ   056 Sleater-Kinney – No Cities To Love (Sub Pop)
ζθ   055 Bill MacKay & Ryley Walker – Land Of Plenty (Whistler)
ζθ   054 Áine O’Dwyer – Music For Church Cleaners Vol. I & II (MIE)
ζθ   053 Wolfgang Voigt – Rückverzauberung 10 (Kompakt)
ζθ   052 Daniel Bachman – River (Three-Lobed)
ζθ   051 Kurt Vile – B’lieve I’m Goin Down (Matador)
ζθ   050 Sun Kil Moon – Universal Themes (Rough Trade)
ζθ   049 Dave Heumann – Here In The Deep (Thrill Jockey)
ζθ   048 Peaches – Rub (I U She Music)
ζθ   047 Sufjan Stevens – Carrie & Lowell (Asthmatic Kitty)
ζθ   046 Eleventh Dream Day – Works For Tomorrow (Thrill Jockey)
ζθ   045 Bop English – Constant Bop (Blood And Biscuits)
ζθ   044 Joan Shelley – Over And Even (No Quarter)
ζθ   043 Unknown Mortal Orchestra – Multi-Love (Jagjaguwar)
ζθ   042 Low – Ones And Sixes (Sub Pop)
ζθ   041 Kamasi Washington – The Epic (Brainfeeder)
ζθ   040 Rob St John – Surface Tension (Surface Tension)
ζθ   039 Necks – Vertigo (RER Megacorps/Northern Spy)
ζθ   038 Jessica Pratt – On Your Own Love Again (Drag City)
ζθ   037 Neil Young & The Promise Of The Real – The Monsanto Years (Reprise)
ζθ   036 Meg Baird – Don’t Weigh Down The Light (Wichita/Drag City)
ζθ   035 Dean McPhee – Fatima’s Hand (Hood Faire)
ζθ   034 Thee Oh Sees – Mutilator Defeated At Last (Castle Face)
ζθ   033 Houndstooth – No News From Home (No Quarter)
ζθ   032 Holly Herndon – Platform (4AD)
ζθ   031 Badbadnotgood & Ghostface Killah – Sour Soul (Lex)
ζθ   030 Dave Rawlings Machine – Nashville Obsolete (Acony)
ζθ   029 Kelley Stoltz – In Triangle Time (Castle Face)
ζθ   028 Bitchin Bajas – Transporteur (Hands In The Dark)
ζθ   027 Bjork – Vulnicura (One Little Indian)
ζθ   026 Sir Richard Bishop – Tangier Sessions (Drag City)
ζθ   025 Bilal – Another Life (BBE)
ζθ   024 Nadia Reid – Listen To Formation, Look For The Signs (Scissor Tail/Spunk)
ζθ   023 Soldiers Of Fortune – Early Risers (Mexican Summer)
ζθ   022 Steve Gunn & The Black Twig Pickers – Seasonal Hire (Thrill Jockey)
ζθ   021 Sam Lee & Friends – The Fade In Time (Nest Collective)
ζθ   020 Matthew E White – Fresh Blood (Spacebomb/Domino)
ζθ   019 Jamie xx – In Colour (Young Turks)
ζθ   018 Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress (Constellation)
ζθ   017 Floating Points – Elaenia (Pluto)
ζθ   016 Jim O’Rourke – Simple Songs (Drag City)
ζθ   015 Wilco – Star Wars (dBpm)
ζθ   014 Israel Nash – Israel Nash’s Silver Season (Loose/Thirty Tigers)
ζθ   013 Robert Forster – Songs To Play (Tapete)
ζθ   012 Julia Holter – Have You in My Wilderness (Domino)
ζθ   011 Four Tet – Morning/Evening (Text)
ζθ   010 Alabama Shakes – Sound &; Color (Rough Trade)
ζθ   009 Ryley Walker – Primrose Green (Dead Oceans)
ζθ   008 Duane Pitre – Bayou Electric (Important)
ζθ   007 Phil Cook – Southland Mission (Thirty Tigers)
ζθ   006 The Deslondes – The Deslondes (New West)
ζθ   005 Natalie Prass – Natalie Prass (Spacebomb)
ζθ   004 Natural Information Society & Bitchin Bajas – Autoimaginary (Drag City)
ζθ   003 The Weather Station – Loyalty (Paradise Of Bachelors)
ζθ   002 Joanna Newsom – Divers (Drag City)
ζθ   001 Kendrick Lamar – To Pimp A Butterfly (Top Dawg)
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VA — Uncut: Coming Up (October 2015)

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