Sock Free Hideaway

 LESS CHITTER-CHATTERING, MORE MUSIC MATTERING : AN END OF YEAR  REVIEW

DESPITE BEING ecstatic the year has ended, I'm taking away a fair few positives. 

I no longer have to mither folk for mixes coz I've already reached my Mixcloud limit.  I no longer have to mither musicians coz I have no wish to promote. I'm basically freeing up time to listen more intently and maybe sell some things online. Cue relief stamped across the missus boat-race. 

Still locked into the majesty of Smiling C's American Dream Reserve, a masterclass in compiling records by Charles Bals and Henry Jones. So many long term wants ticked off and so many woozy hours in the horizontal with a look of sheer bliss stamped across my boat. Buy, beg,  or steal a copy, it's truly magnificent. Another honourable mention to pH whose comps were cherished by just about everybody. Well, everybody we know. 

 

Another LP of unparalleled languid beauty was The Zenmenn / John Moods Hidden Gem. Opener Out of My Mind is the best fully realized song, but the  whole set creates a wonderful atmosphere that thankfully slows life right down. A more intense, but no less wonderful, LP is Samana's All One Breath. Some breathtakingly fragile tunes that have both body and something more ethereal at play. Opener Melancholy Heat sets the tone wonderfully, but The Beach is the stunner on this very strong sophomore album. I do hope their digital only goodness Two Wrongs is getting a wax workout. It's even better. 

Like a lot of folk, I was excited by the return of DJH for about 5 minutes. I was much more excited by Jaz and Bertie's belated twelve on the buy on sight label Death on Wax. I first heard about John on the forum and Jesus Loves Lizzy Mercier Descloux is simply a brilliantly crisp cosmic delight. As good if a little groggier is DJ Absolutely Shit's Close Your Eyes, that also took an age to arrive. Completed with Howard Jones's Hide and Seek extended mix (Cheers Darren!) and the Mondays WFL Vince Clarke mix for a full sensory experience and maximum trance-dance joy.   

The good thing about year end round ups is they unearth some overlooked gems. One such gem is Dennis Bovells  Custard's Last Stand DUBfinity Version that marks the highlight of A Mountain of One's impressive return. Thanks again to Dr Rob for sharing The Disciples Spirit Of Shaka on Boom Shaka Laka. It's yummy and much mellower than the Thank You material I was aware of.  

On an altogether mellower trip still, Misha Panfilov's The Sea Will Outlive Us All LP showcases the multi-instrumentalist lost in dreamscape mode and is spell-blinding. I hear folk funk lolloping in a more discordant landscape and it works a treat. Play it all the way through, all day. With a nod to the future, Strata-Gemma's Radamato LP takes us to an even spacier side of lunar-jazz. Capitolium is a delightful amalgamation of sparse electronics and rich, textured instrumentation that drifts me off into the deep.   

A more conventional head melt comes in the form of Wax Machine's folksy jazz infused album Hermit's Grove. The trippy All I Can Do evokes prime-time Pentangle, with its shimmering hazy groove, but  the important ghostly messaging is unique and marks a quantum leap from their linear debut. Matthieu Beck's Here Alone LP is a wholly singular excursion to a sock free hideaway if ever there was. Closer Piano Fin shares a sublime oddness, that unsurprisingly, is reminiscent of Basso's finest growing bin treasure. It really feels pretty special to be horizontal without socks when playing it.   

There are sevens strewn about, but most are reissues. Must confess to loving Finders Keepers excavation E Tai Daotion by the Gary Sloan Ensemble. An Alaskan jazz voyage that builds brilliantly, then breaks into something even more beguiling. I also bought a necessary cassette by Tabi Tapes called Stockport, which has several moments . Cheers All Night Flight. 

Despite being ecstatic the year has ended, I'm definitely taking away a fair few positives.