Here it Is The end of the year and the day after winter solstice

What A good year for music. In fact I caught up with many releases I had let fall away through out the decade. A perfect example would be Of Montral " Hissing Fauna Are You The Destroyer?" Which proves Kevin Barnes is a genius. It's like taking early David Bowie, Ray Davies, Neu and Kraftwerk to the moon and back again. THe Liars " Drums Not Dead" a record of great ideas and great "songs". Like an updated and contemporary SY " Bad Moon Rising". Gets into your head and flows out into your backbone and the rest of your nervous system. Prince Far I " Chapter 3" re release of his early 80's lp of the same name. The Slits, David Toop and Adrian Sherwood are all in the mix. Like all good dub records this one turns the room upside down and everything else is weightless.

What didn't make this list would be Mt. Eerie " Wind Poem" too fresh in my collection to make an impact. What I did like about my initial listens were the drones and lullaby melodies and a tribute to " Twin Peaks" tv show. Parts sound like The DEAD C jamming with Sunn O)))). A very dark and beautiful record for sure.

The count down...

2009 Best

10. WOEBOT / Woebot ( self released).

09. DOOM / Born Like This

08. Broadcast and The Focus Group Investigate Witch Cults Of The Radio Age

07. Antony and the Johnsons / Crying Light

06. 5 Years - Hyper Dub Compilation.

05 Warp 20 ( unheard)

04 Sight Below

03 Animal Collective / Merriweather Post Pavilion

02 Grizzly Bear / Veckatimest

01 Decemberists / Hazards Of Love

Reissues

01. The Beatles / Mono Box Set Remastered

02. Warp 20 ( chosen)

03. Every Mouth Must Be Fed

04. Abner Jay/ The Story Of Abner Jay

05. Tomorrow Come Someday OST

Singles and individual songs

Radiohead / These Are My Twisted Words

Thom Yorke/ Feeling Pulled Apart By Horses

Atlas Sound / Walkabout

Animal Collective/ " Brother Sport/ Bleed"

Burial and Four Tet " Wolf Cub/ Moth"

Woebot / Central One EP

Grizzly Bear / "Two Weeks"

Windfall Wood

http://www.trunkrecords.com/
http://www.resonancefm.com/
http://time-has-told-me.blogspot.com/2006/09/tomorrow-come-someday-uk-psych-folk.html

http://psychedelicfolk.homestead.com/PeterHowell.html


The month of March enlightend me as it tends to do from time to time with a folk artist I had previously never heard of before. I do not proclaim to be a expert or authority on " folk" but have dipped my toes into the genre from time to time. With wonderful and mixed results.
Which brings me to Pete Howell, a man with an all around musical legacy even with being hopelessly obscure to many. He derves your attention because his music seems ready for a re emergence. I first heard the man's music on Jonny Trunks radio program on resonance fm when Broadcast were his special guests.They brought along music not unlike some of the stuff they had previously streamed on there web site years earlier. One name that kept coming up was this Peter Howell and his envolvent with two records Alice Through The Looking Glass and Tomorrow Come Someday. Two long out of print even by reissue standards records of the most beautiful and curious music I had heard in a while. " Sitting On A Gate" was the weirdest tune about bartering I had or have ever heard. Hunting for Haddocks eyes ... I was hooked I needed to find this album and fast. " Tomorrow Come Someday" was more sorrowful but not any less appealing. SAd and meloncally music done right.
The more I searched using google the bits I found were refrences and want lists for these two titles and that Pete was also in a band called Ithaca and the Agincourt. He also collaberated with John Ferdinando. Then suddenly part of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop crew and appeared on some writing credits on a couple Doctor Who soundtrack lps. All his early works were done in pressings of less than 100. Some were in batches as small as 20. Given out to cast members and audience members. So we have the stuff of legends or at least to those select few.
If I had more to give you I would but Lost in thyme link above is a good place to start and the psychedelic folk homestead web address also has a good bio and a wonderful source of information.
If any of these recording become available again I won't hesitate to pick one up.