Bon any nou! / ¡Feliz año nuevo! / Happy New Year!

My unusual holiday season continues. After spending Christmas in Chicago (thanks again, Andrew!), I'll be in Pittsburgh for New Year's Eve. I am still going to eat twelve grapes at midnight, however, in keeping with the popular Spanish tradition.
Of course, I cannot expect the networks to broadcast from the Puerta del Sol as the clock tolls 12, so I will use this instead. (There's also a different version for those who prefer to set their own pace --but really, where's the fun if you know you can't choke?).
For a good glimpse of what this whole thing is about, or just for a nostalgic trip back to late-eighties' Spain, click here.

Here's hoping 2005 brings you plenty of good moments to feel nostalgic about, someday...

No End-of-Year Best-of-2004 list in this blog!

Let's face it, what would be the point? It's not like there aren't enough lists out there already, and clearly there's no need to add further praise to the excellent records by Franz Ferdinand, The Streets, Scissor Sisters, Kanye West, Arcade Fire, Morrissey, Elliott Smith, and a few others which you must surely have heard by now... (and if you haven't, then you probably won't be coming back to this blog anyway).
Instead, let me just continue to point out a couple of albums or songs that might have been overlooked in those lists, and get started right away on interesting new releases in 2005.

Standstill

In my humble and very skewed (it has to be, from such a long distance) view of the alternative pop/rock scene in my home country, Standstill have easily (and arguably once again) produced the best album of the year. The competition was not negligible: Siwell, Antònia Font, Mus... all put out remarkable records deserving of such recognition. But Standstill outperformed themselves, as well as everyone else, by keeping the emotion, power and focus of their previous post-hardcore rock albums (most notably, The Ionic Spell (2001)) while finding a much more accessible, rich and textured sound. Enric Montefusco's haunting vocals adopt the Spanish language here for the first time, in the process gaining introspection and effectiveness by actually singing, even lulling at times (but hardly ever yelling anymore) much more complex, playful yet sad lyrics, often punctuated with rethorical questions, humorous puns and personal statements of despair, alienation and detachment.
Listening to Standstill is a moving and ultimately overwhelming experience. Take a listen to its opening track, the unusual recount of a birthday celebration that is 'Feliz en tu día'.

Athlete

In the first half of 2003, Deptfore foursome Athlete followed up a string of interesting, bright and catchy pop singles with their debut album, Vehicles and Animals. It got a fair amount of attention and even managed to snag a nomination for the prestigious Mercury Music Award --which should not really come as a surprise given their original indie-pop sound, full of instantly recognizable, almost-childish choruses, and insanely funny lyrics. After all, it was practically impossible not to like songs like 'Westside', with its chorus "Wherever you look, you can see / that everybody wants to be / part of the rock scene."
Fast forward to the present, and Athlete are gearing up for the always difficult release of their sophomore effort, which will be titled Tourist. Its first single comes out in three weeks and has little to do with what we'd come to expect from them: gone are the upbeat melodies and toyful lyrics; instead, they bring us a moving ballad about a newborn baby's struggle for survival. Warm piano line, heartfelt vocals, poignant lyrics, grandiloquent strings and an epic production: it's got all the ingredients to become their breakthrough hit and turn Athlete into a household name in 2005, at least in the UK. Check out the video for 'Wires'.

Bright Eyes

Omaha indie-rock wonder Conor Oberst is greeting the new year with the release of not one, but two brand-new albums. Reportedly, the two are very different, hence the decision to have not one, but two separate singles released as teasers. The sunny 'Take It Easy (Love Nothing)' is Bright Eyes' first attempt at bringing alternative rock and electronica together, suggesting that its parent album, Digital Ash in a Digital Urn, will be the more experimental of the two records.
By the same token, I'm Wide Awake It's Morning looks much more likely to match his past achievements in acoustic folk-rock: Its single 'Lua' is a true gem, a beatiful ballad about drug abuse and self-deception, with a heart-wrenching delivery that makes it sound even more true and personal.
Take a listen here.

The Sunday Drivers

This is one of the most pleasant surprises to come out of Spain this year. After two years of intensive touring, 2004 saw the release of the Sunday Drivers' second album (first for label Mushroom). Little Heart Attacks is an interesting collection of immediate, effective songs full of beatiful brit-pop melodies, classic-rock guitars, and a competent performances. The Toledo band shows remarkable skills at producing a catchy record while keeping their indie credibility intact, although they still have some way toward finding their own personal sound.
I have no idea how successful they've been over there, but one thing I know for sure --if they happened to be British or American (ok, and if their singing had a bit less of an accent), these two singles would have been big hits around the world: check out 'On My Mind' and 'Often', and see for yourself.

PS On a much more serious note, please consider helping out the earthquake and tsunami victims by contributing to one of the groups and organizations listed here.

Autour de Lucie

Quite an institution in the French alternative pop scene for the past ten years, Autour de Lucie have come back with an eponymous album full of soothing melodies and a luminous production. Without the aid of the band's former composer/bass player Fabrice Dumont, it was unclear whether singer Valérie Leulliot would manage to recreate the magic of past, but she delivers in spades, making this one of Autour de Lucie's best albums to date -if not the best. Enjoy the contagious enthusiasm of their delicious current single 'Personne n'est comme toi'.

What's that song?

Apologies for the slow posting, it's been a pretty rough last couple of weeks. I've got a bunch of new bands and records to post about, and will try to do so later today, but in the meanwhile you can play with this fun, silly little game that I discovered recently. Just switch it to your favorite band of the moment and enjoy!

No Cities Left

Such apocalyptic announcement is the title of The Dears' second album, which has recently become their first release in the US. Contributing since their 2001 debut to the efervescent Canadian indie scene, The Dears' influences are mainly and most notably British. Lead singer Murray A. Lightburn's affected vocals have an eerie resemblance to Blur's Damon Albarn, while the epic orchestration, emotional arrangements and dark, melodramatic lyrics evoke some of The Smiths' and Pulp's final albums. Mellow and introspective at times, aggressive sounding on occasion, No Cities Left ambitiously combines many diverse influences to produce an intense sound that may not be terribly original but is certainly never dull.

As an example, take a listen to their current UK single 'Lost in the Plot'. The powerful lyrics, majestic instrumentation and passionate delivery border on anthemic (especially the final minute) and make it one of the most memorable tracks in the album.