Todd is God

As usual I thought it was time to pick the 10 albums that have tickled my fancy most thus far in 2007. How many have the staying power to still be there come the end of the year? - Who knows. The following are in no order, but I must confess that The Grinderman and NIN albums are probably the two that have most impressed me thus far. 1. Grinderman - Grinderman: This really shouldn't be this good, and this enjoyable 2. Nine Inch Nails - Year Zero: Bit flat for me live, but this may just be Trent's best outing. 3. Mary Chapin Carpenter - The Calling: I had believed that MCC's best days were well and truly behind her, but this album has pleasingly proved me wrong. 4. Ryan Adams -  Lost Highway: Not his best, but his second best is better than most people's best. 5. Queens of the Stoneage - Era Vulgaris: I Just like it. 6. Jesse Malin - Glitter in the Gutter 7. Paul McCartney - Memory Almost Full: Obviously drinking Starbuck's Coffee has done the trick. 8. McQueen ...

The excellent Jill Sobule via Mydamnchannel (which has some nice stuff with Slash and Duff too). Downnload MP3 of the track and another track called 'Mom' here

This was the 4th time I have seen Aimee live, and whilst she was great once again, she has never been better than the first two times I saw her (esp the first time in 2000 with husband Michael Penn and comedian Patton Oswalt). Still, let's not look backwards. The gig started off with a nice little set by Jenny Owen Youngs (she remembered to tell us who she was just before she left the stage!). Her debut album is a mostly average singer-songwriter offering; but live she has a humour and a sense of fun that help raise some of the weaker songs above their recorded status. This is not to say she doesn't have a few great tunes: 'Drinking Song'; 'From Here' and 'Fuck I was' are all top draw. Add to this a very entertaining cover of Nelly's 'Hot in Herre' (to the tune of Oasis' Wonderwall) and I think it safe to say she made a number of new fans. She is a star in the making. Aimee was in a fun mood too - even if she wasn't sure whether or n...

The last time I saw the Scorpions live was 17 years ago. They were very good. Why the gap to seeing them again? I'm not sure: a general indifference to most of the material they have released since Savage Amusement most likely. Anyway, a few weeks ago on the spur of the moment I decided I needed a 'Heavy Metal' night out, so the Scorps fitted the bill. Things got more interesting when I read that Michael Schenker would also be on the bill as support with MSG. Cool. I little research this afternoon revealed that young Micky has been back to his getting smashed ways and this had even lead to a fight with older brother Rudy just a few days ago. I also learned that Uli Roth was on the road with the boys and joining them for a few classics in the middle of the set. An interesting night beckoned. And so to the gig. I arrived a bit late so had missed half the MSG set. This turned out to be a blessing. Michael Schenker was having enough problems standing up, never mind playing gu...