1 Millionth Post About Radiohead...

Yep, King Of Limbs is out. Im going to reserve my comments til Paul is back in the house. Ive heard he is morphing into a Thom Yorke/Jarvis Cocker hybrid - Jarvis Yorker? Thom Cock? Anyway, he's loving it. So watch Garth Jennings' vid for 'Lotus Flower' below... Its a bloody great video. Although the moves aren't original - I pull those suckers after enough tequila shots with a pint chaser down at the Duke Of Lonsdale...

Evolution Is A Lie

Liars continue to pursue world domination in order to turn us all into their adulatory slaves - and that seems fine to us. Their Proud Evolution EP starts off reaffirming the brilliance of their imagined Sisterworld, complete with Thom York's reinterpretation of the titular track and a vivid reworking of it live at Shepherds Bush Empire. All of this is superfluous to all true Liars fans - surely you own the first two and have seen them play it live, infinitely better than hearing a live track? No, its the three B-sides that are the true reason to grab this release, and its a very good reason. 'Come Now', 'Total Frown' and 'Strangers' are crawlers, stepping away from their stark post-punk and delving into their Gothic art pop, ratcheting up the tension heightened by lead Angus Andrew's low murmurs and haunting wails.

Liars are treating us with another visit in November too (the 6th, at Heaven), so you can become an acolyte to the Liars underworld too...

Liars - Strangers

Thom Yorke covers Joy Division's "Love will tear us apart"

Thom Yorke and his Atoms for Peace crew covered Ian Curtis and co's "Love Will Tear Us Apart" at their live show in Oakland last night...

Played and covered to death? Possibly. Still remains one of my top classic tracks though and having Yorke cover it simply doubles the pleasure of listening to it...

Here's the video!

The Glove Fits #3 - Wish You Were Here (literally)

This week's trip down memory lane has been hastily erected - my original piece was all set and ready to go, but a tragic event has taken precedence - the tragic suicide of singer songwriter Mark Linkous, more commonly known by his bedroom folk pop moniker Sparklehorse. He was found outside his friend's home in Tennessee on Saturday with a self inflicted shotgun wound in the chest. This news has sent tremors throughout the music world - Linkous has collaborated with some of the world's greatests producers and musicians, and has left behind a unique canon of music that was engaging, ethereal and hauntingly beautiful.

So whilst my thoughts are tainted with sadness, Im choosing a song that, whilst not written by him, has stuck with me ever since I heard it, and his version has epitomised everything that I hold dear.

I first heard Pink Floyd when I was a kid. My father never listened to music that often, but one of my favourite memories of my childhood was when it rained on the farm on weekends. Dad would down tools and spend the Sunday at home, hanging out with me and my sister, playing his records. He put me onto Fleetwood Mac, Dire Straits and Bruce Springsteen, my platform for my burgeoning love of music, but Pink Floyd wasnt his strong suit. Nevertheless, it was Dad who put me onto songs like Another Brick In The Wall, Comfortably Numb, and this one, Wish You Were Here.

And yet it wasnt until my first year of university that I truly embraced the song. I have my friend Hugh to thank. We used to sit around on a sunny hungover morning (and there were many) and sing along. These memories have always stuck with me, so that even when some two-bit busker or deluded cover artist is strangling it, I still hum along.

But my favourite version, for whatever reason, isnt the original. As Sparklehorse, Mark Linkous supported Radiohead on their OK Computer tour, where he became good friends with the band, particularly Jonny Greenwood, who spoke of Linkous' death on his blog:

"His first two records were very important to me, and I carried his music from the tour into my life, and my friends' lives too ... Mark wrote and played some beautiful music, and we're lucky to have it."

On that tour, Sparklehorse did an EP which featured Linkous and Thom Yorke doing a ghostly rendition of the song.

So I send out my condolences to all who have been touched by Linkous and his music, and endeavour to make sure his music lives on in our hearts.

RIP Mark Linkous (1962-2010) - wish you were here.

Sparklehorse (feat. Thom Yorke) - Wish You Were Here

Drop the Atom bomb on us, Thom!

Unless you've been living under a sound proofed gargantuan rock for some time, you would have heard of the 'supergroup' that Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke put together in order to play live his solo gear in a beefier fashion. The band - Yorke, Red Hot Chilli Peppers bassist extraordinaire Flea, Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich, REM/Beck/in demand everywhere skinsman Joey Waronker, and percussion man Mauro Refesco - finally have a moniker - Atoms For Peace. And they loved the performances back in October last year so much, they are touring again later this year. So far, only the US, ending with Coachella - but fingers crossed Thom drops the (Atom) bomb UK-side in the near future!