The The - slow emotion replay, 1993

"Slow Emotion Replay" was the 94th best-selling single in Iceland."

The Triffids - wide open road, 1986

"I just tried to keep it as blunt and direct as possible, even if the results made myself or the listener squirm"

Bones - rooting for you, 2024

"With its dreamy instrumentals and mesmerizing synths, this song is an absolute treat for the ears."

Jim James - here in spirit live, 2016

"It’s like God or the universe or whatever gave us this gift of a compass. We’ve all got this compass inside of us that says what we should really do, but we fucking ignore it so much of the time."

Car Seat Headrest - beach life-in-death, 2011

"a matryoshka doll of rock tropes: call-and-response vocals cave into winding guitar solos and narratives build and then collapse into desperate monologues"

Peter Bjorn And John - gut feeling, 2018

"There’s a guy throwing a stone on the water and it creates three rings on it. It represents us. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but all our titles are two words and three spellings."

Beirut - nantes live, 2019

"The much loved sound incorporating shades of gypsy dance rhythms, swaying romantic vocals, shockingly powerful horn blasts and the all important underlying indie vibe was interspersed with new songs that have built on the already multi-layered music with a more electronic, synthesised edginess."

Ride - last frontier, 2024

"New single ‘Last Frontier’ is out now, a bruising, direct return whose brutal low-end recalls post-punk greats such as Joy Division. There’s also a yearning for beauty, with Andy Bell taking lead vocal, using improvisatory takes to build up the melody."

The Wedding Present - kennedy, 1988

"Bizarro may be The Wedding Present’s defining album."

The Rubens – liquid gold, 2024

"At the core of ‘Liquid Gold’ lies a narrative of self-destruction, cleverly concealed beneath bright, sunny melodies."

Charlie Havenick - overture, 2023

"Longtime drummer and instrumentalist for several LA indie rock outfits, Charlie steps to the forefront in her own band. In the space between conducting and maudlin shoegazing, Havenick’s project is a force to be reckoned with."

Echo And The Bunnymen - bring on the dancing horses live, 2018

"Bring on the Dancing Horses has a dreamily catchy chorus and a nice melody"

The Mountain Goats - rain in soho, 2017

"The lyric "There's a club where you'd like to go / You could meet someone who's lost like you" is a reference to The Smith's song 'How Soon Is Now'. D. B. Cooper is an infamous, anonymous plane hijacker who stole $200,000 and has never been found. The Batcave was a nightclub in London, considered a birthplace of goth subculture. The line "No greater love than to lay my life down for a friend" is derived from John 15:13. The lines "Children piping in the main square / But no one’s dancing / No one’s dancing down there" and "We played for you but you would not sing" recall Matthew 11:16-17 (compare the lyrics of Matthew 11:14-19 from The Life of the World in Flux)."

Beirut - nantes, 2007

"I was listening to a lot of Jacques Brel and French chanson music—pop songs shrouded in big, glorious, over-the-top arrangements and all this drama—and that was in some sense unfamiliar territory to me. So I started buying new instruments and relying on things I wasn't necessarily comfortable with, like French horns and euphoniums, carrying these big, epic big brass parts that I used to do all on trumpets, and working with accordion and organ instead of all ukulele—very much throwing myself in the world of classical pop music, I guess you could say."

Kinnel - locked in heaven, 1990

"Various – This Is Manchester (14 Songs From The North West)"

Public Service Broadcasting - go, 2015

"Race is richly entertaining, immersive and evocative, orchestrated with fastidious care and feeling."

Lullatone - still feeling the waves when you go to bed, 2013

"Fun, fun, fun! This EP is for positive people, and for people who want to be positive. If you are a grouchy person who hates barbecues, prefers to stay inside all summer and doesn’t want to get wet, this music is not for you. You will hate it, and such cheerful music will only give you something else to be grouchy about."

LCD Soundsystem - all my friends, 2007

"The album was dedicated to "the memory of Dr. George Kamen (1942–2006), one of the great minds of his or any generation." The Bulgarian-born doctor was a pioneer of group therapy and had opened a practice in New York City. It is insinuated the loss of 'someone' in the track "Someone Great" is Kamen."

Wim Mertens - prudence, 1988

"Mertens' style has continually evolved during the course of his prolific career, starting from downright experimental and avant-garde, always gravitating around minimalism, usually, however, preserving a melodic foundation to the forays that he makes into the worlds that he is exploring."

Capital Hill - deep down, 1990

"Various – This Is Manchester (14 Songs From The North West)"

The Streets - weak become heroes, 2002

"The reference I made to Nicky Holloway, Danny Rampling and all that were because I was intelligent enough to find out that those were the guys that started it."

Tindersticks - this fire of autumn, 2012

"The Something Rain is a record full of mystery and intrigue that will keep you listening – and discovering new things each time – for a good while."

Jan Garbarek – places, 1978

"the music has plenty of space, is introspective, and often emphasizes long tones"

Pulse Park - antibody, 2022

"The song reminds of the good old early days of bands like Bloc Party and The Futureheads, with some sonic textures that feel very early 2000s (in a good way)."

Keith Jarrett - my song, 1978

"When Keith Jarrett left behind his highly esteemed American quartet for a new band of Norwegians, the jazz world was puzzled and a little bit skeptical."

Anna Prior - tech não, 2024

"On the surface, it’s about losing friends in the crowd, helplessness and vulnerability, but deep down, it’s about when the energy in the room starts to turn toward the unknown and you’re not sure if what you just saw was real."

Pat Metheny - have you heard, 1989

“Have You Heard” is a bright, spirit-lifting tune that masks its musical intricacy in a shuffling groove and swooping melody. In other words, it’s the perfect track to get you through the work day and roll you into the weekend."

Manuel Fúria E Os Náufragos - aquele grande rio, 2017

"a desire to go beyond the confines of their current reality, exploring new horizons and embracing the unknown together"

Charlie Haden - first song for ruth, 1988

"this Haden-penned ballad also shows him at his best. Like all great tenor players, his technical command allows him to weight each note in a phrase differently. That gives the first theme statement great emotional heft, Watts outlining the tune accompanied just by piano chords."

The Durutti Column - amigos em portugal, 1983

"The basic idea behind Durutti Column’s music is to break with whatever structure supports the foundations of musical formalism, in order to try and create a kind of music which really can belong to everyone."

Father John Misty - the suburbs cover, 2015

"It all works, of course, because the guy has the pipes to back it up, with a voice that leaps from sultry murmur to commanding howl at will, sucking rapt audiences along on whatever journey he’s selling, cultural snake oil or no."

Charlie Parker - summertime, 1957

"He was a virtuoso and introduced revolutionary rhythmic and harmonic ideas into jazz, including rapid passing chords, new variants of altered chords, and chord substitutions. Primarily a player of the alto saxophone, Parker's tone ranged from clean and penetrating to sweet and somber."