A quick one, for it's a difficult week....

Not the best time to be doing a blog on new albums; this time of year is, as I have said before, full of re-issues, greatest hits and Christmas tat.

From this week's list I have therefore highlighted five albums that may be worth a listen, and two that should be avoided, if only on principle as they may be good but I'm just not giving them the opportunity.

I'll try not to be so lazy next week.

This week's releases:

Alfie Boe - Serenata 
Andy Stott - Faith in Strangers 
Ariel Pink - Pom Pom 
Armin van Buuren - Armin Anthems - Ultimate Singles Collected 
Bette Midler - It's The Girls 
Bloodbath - Grand Morbid Funeral 
Bo Street Runners - Never Say Goodbye - The Complete Recordings 1964-1966 
Bruce Springsteen - The Albums Collection Vol. 1 (1973-1984) [CD] 
Bryan Ferry - Avonmore 
Captain Beefheart - Sun Zoom Spark: 1970 To 1972 
Carcass - Surgical Remission- Surplus Steel 
Dame Shirley Bassey - Hello Like Before 
Daniel O'Donnell - Stand Beside Me 
David Bowie - Nothing Has Changed 
deadmau5 - 5 years of mau5 
Depeche Mode - Depeche Mode Live In Berlin 
Emigrate - Silent So Long 
Fugazi - First Demo 
Hans Zimmer - Interstellar (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) 
In This Moment - Black Widow 
Jeff Wayne - Highlights From Jeff Wayne's Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds - The New Generation 
Joris Voorn - Nobody Knows 
Katherine Jenkins - Home Sweet Home 
Kings Of The South Seas - Kings Of The South Seas 
Kristin Chenoweth - Coming Home 
Luther Vandross - The Greatest Hits 
Michael Ball - If Everyone Was Listening 
Nickelback - No Fixed Address 
Old Man Gloom - The Ape of God I 
One Direction - FOUR 
Pentatonix - That's Christmas To Me 
Robert Wyatt - Different Every Time 
Savages and Bo Ningen - Words To The Blind 
The Jam - Setting Sons 
The Kinks - The Anthology 1964 - 1971 
The New Basement Tapes - Lost On The River 
The Stranglers - Here and There: The Epic B-sides (1983-1991) 
Thompson - Family 
Trisha Yearwood - Prizefighter: Hit After Hit 
TV On The Radio - Seeds 
Various Artists - Christmas Words For You 
Various Artists - NOW That's What I Call The 90s 
Various Artists - 80s Mix 
Various Artists - The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Pt. 1 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) 
Various Artists - Anthems House 
Various Artists - Punk Goes Pop 6 
Various Artists - American Music Library (Hits of 1962) 
Various Artists and Bob Dylan - The Art Of McCartney (Amazon Deluxe Exclusive) 
Voices - London 
Whiskey Myers - Early Morning Shakes [UK Version] 
Within Temptation - Let Us Burn (Elements & Hydra Live In Concert) [2cd + Blu-Ray] 
Zac Brown Band - Greatest Hits So Far...

Two final albums, ever.

#1 daughter said to me the other day, "dad, stop comparing everything to Robyn", well this week I don't have to, for she's only on the last ever album by Röyksopp, called appropriately The Inevitable End - the Norwegian kings of electronic music have always been better live than on an album, but they are always, or maybe mostly, worth a listen. I'll miss them, but will always try and catch up with whatever they do next.

The other final ever album this week is from Pink Floyd. It's a lazy money making exercise of a collection of tracks that weren't deemed good enough to get onto The Division Bell, which was released over 20 years ago. Listen if you must, it's called The Endless River, which seems to describe a lot of their output.

Another big name with a new album this week is The Foo Fighters, with Sonic Highways. It's the poppy side of rock, and there's loads of guests on the album, but I like Dave Grohl, and he seems to be having fun, so why not carry on as before. Nothing new here.

If that lot doesn't tickle your fancy you could always try Christmas at Downton Abbey (seriously), Now That's What I Call Disney, or Cheryl's new album, Only Human.  In fact, here's a good game: listen to Cheryl's album, then search out a recording of Cheryl singing with no autotune, or production of any kind, and compare what you hear, then ponder the album title.

It's Tuesday

I had a busy day yesterday, and to be honest I was struggling to find a decent album to talk about from this week's releases. There's Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, Wings, The Doobie Brothers and a cover version of Sgt Pepper's by the Flaming Lips - all a bit 70s and beyond.

However....

I've found a gem: Run The Jewels 2 by Run The Jewels is filthy sweary hip hop and an absolute belter. I was listening to it on the train home last night (it was quite late) and sitting opposite me was a bloke wearing a Bath University sweatshirt, Beats Solos on his head and a pale blue iPhone 5c in his hand, and he probably thought he was cool as. What he didn't know was that the 50 something bloke opposite was listening to more hipster music than he was. I don't know that for sure, but I'd put good money on it. Make sure you listen to this one, but don't tell your mum it was me that recommended it.

Talking of hip hop, if you've not yet discovered Young Fathers please do so, they have just won the Mercury Music Prize with the wonderful Dead, and they are exciting, in a scary choreographed way, when they play live. Stars*.

Good, Scottish, hip hop <--- words that I never expected to see in the same sentence.



*Anne and I saw them live about 18 months ago, in a crowd of about 30, and we knew then they'd be stars. Take that cool dude in the Bath Uni sweatshirt.