Kicker of Elves’ Favourite Things from 2024

Another year, another blog post starting with my favourite SONG OF THE YEAR – a full run down of all my favourite songs can be heard on the first of our two end of the year podcasts, but this year’s winner is this:

A song I saw Scott perform live in Liverpool, where he encouraged the audience to singalogacustard. Reader – they did.

Top 25 Albums

1 Andrew Wasylyk & Tommy Perman – Ash Grey And The Gull Glides On

The album I have played the most this year. The first time in these blogs that an instrumental album has come out on top (OK, the final song features him out of off of Arab Strap, but still). A wonderful wonderful record.

2 The Lovely Eggs – Eggsistentialism

A brilliant album that made me fall back in love with The Eggs. It was near impossible to choose a favourite track for the podcast – so many hits!

3 The The – Ensoulment

A quarter of a century waiting for this, and it did not disappoint. At all. Let’s hope the next will follow a bit quicker. Favourite line: the William Blake twisting “this greedy unpleasant land…”

4 The Cure – Songs Of A Lost World

5 Scott Lavene – Disneyland In Dagenham

6 Biz Turkey – Biz Turkey

7 The Revolutionary Army of The Infant Jesus – The Dream We Carry

8 William Doyle – Springs Eternal

9 The Eggmen Whoooooo! – Fuzzy Eggs, Please

10 Guided By Voices – Strut Of Kings

11 Gruff Rhys – Sadness Sets Me Free

12 Brother Of Monday – Humdinger

13 Mount Eerie – Night Palace

14 epic45 – You’ll Only See Us When The Light Has Gone

15 Spencer Segelov & Great Paintings – You’re A Lighthouse, I’m At Sea

16 Godspeed You! Black Emperor – No Title As Of 13 February 2024 28,340 Dead

17 Wussy – Cincinnati Ohio

18 Neutrals – New Town Dream

19 Cleaners From Venus – Lilli Bolero

20 Kim Deal – Nobody Loves You More

21 The Kitchen Cynics / The Phoenix Cube – The Great Filter

22 Craven Faults – Bounds

23 Billy Reeves – Steve – A Weekend In Egham, 1966

24 Tai Haf Heb Drigolyn – Ein Albwm Cyntaf Ni

25 Adam Geoffrey Cole & Trappist Afterland – Evergreen – Walk To Paradise Garden

…. and making up a top 50 albums, all of which you should own, are, in alphabetical order, 25 more:

The Bevis Frond – Focus On Nature , The Bug Club – On The Intricate Inner Workings Of The System, Euros Childs – Beehive Beach, Crumbs – You’re Just Jealous, The Declining Winter – Last April, Derrero – Breezing Up, Ducks Ltd – Harm’s Way, The Hanging Stars – On A Golden Shore, Mick Harvey – Five Ways To Say Goodbye, Jon Langford & The Bright Shiners – Where It Really Starts, The Muldoons – We Saw The View, My Best Unbeaten Brother – Pessimistic Pizza, Mythical Motors – Upside Down World, Personal Trainer – Still Willing, Picturebox – Mobile Disco, Pye Corner Audio – The Endless Echo, The Reds, Pinks & Purples – Unwishing Well, Amy Rigby – Hang In There With Me, Tapir!- The Pilgrim, Their God and The King Of My Decrepit Mountain, Lou Terry – Building A Case, Trans Charger Metropolis – More Meat & Potatoes, The Umbrellas – Fairweather Friend, Warrington-Runcorn New Town Development Plan – Your Community Hub, Wildly -Wildly, Worldcub – Back To The Beginning

Top 5 Compilations

1 Shit Off Cock Ass (Soundtrack to The Bits: A Collection of Essays & Anecdotes by the Late, Truly Great Mel Daley)

Featuring the likes of Euros Childs, Derrero and Cate Le Bon covering Pink Assassin and Mandy songs. A delight from beginning to end, as is the book itself. Well worth hunting down here.

2 Landnotes 1 (Wayside & Woodland Recordings)

3 Undulating Waters 8 (Woodford Halse)

4 Under The Bridge 2 (Skep Wax)

5 Watch Out For Joker Bob: A Birthday Tribute For Robert Pollard (Unmarketed Products)

Top 5 EPs

1 Rip Van Winkle – The Grand Rapids

The most psychedelic Robert Pollard release for years. Possibly even better than the lone Guided By Voices album released this year. A real treat.

2 Getdown Services – Your Medal’s In The Post

3 E.L. Heath – Cambrian

4 Birds In The Brickwork – Suburb Study #1

5 Shit Present – Acting Tough

Top 5 Reissues / Re-pressings / Remixes / Not Strictly Speaking New Stuff

1 Spare Snare – Mix Up

Featuring re-imaginings of tracks from the most recent The Brutal album by the likes of Hi-Fi Sean, Scanner, Bis and assorted Spare Snare band members, this, unlike many remix albums, is all killer and no filler. A must have.

2 Neil Young – Archives Vol. III (1976-1987)

3 The Go-Betweens – G Is For Go-Betweens Volume 3

4 Melys – BBC Sessions Vol 1 (John Peel Sessions & Other Selected Rarities)

5 Ahmed Malek – Musique Originale De Films (Volumes 1, 2 & 3)

Top 5 Live Albums

1 Les Rallizes Dénudés – YaneUra Oct. ’80

A remarkably clear soundboard recording of the best live band ever.

2 Craven Faults – Thwaite Watermill

3 Babybird – Astoria, London, 1997

4 Dexys – The Feminine Devine plus Dexys Classics: Live!

5 Babybird – Threepiece Live, May, 2024

The Robert Pollard Annual Output Roundup

A pretty quiet year for releases as far the Guided By Voices family goes, but one full of high quality stuff nonetheless. In terms of new releases we had just the one Guided By Voices album, the fantastic Strut of Kings, but also a surprise reworking of classic songs on a 7″ from the current line up with the double A side commemorating the 30th anniversary of Bee Thousand with I Am A Scientist / Tractor Rape Chain. We also had the first release on Pollard’s new label, Splendid Research Records, with the Rip Van Winkle – The Grand Rapids EP. This features a band made up of Joe Patterson (Joseph Airport), Jason Short (Snake Oil), Bob Penry (Joseph Airport) with Uncle Bob in full-on weird mode on vocals. A great record. The label also put out a second release with Doug Gillard’s teen project Children’s Crusade – A Duty-Dance With Death appearing on vinyl and CD for the first time. Tobin Sprout packaged the 2 EPs – Waxnails/Sentimental Stations – on vinyl for the first time too, both having previously only been available on CD. There were also two tribute albums released: Collapse The Collectors, a fourth collection on The Bert Dax Cavalcade Of Stars label, and Watch Out For Joker Bob: A Birthday Tribute For Robert Pollard on Unmarketed Products. Both Guided By Voices – Same Place The Fly Got Smashed and Tonics & Twisted Chasers were re-released by Scat in various different colours of vinyl – the former in pink and red, the latter in orange and black. We were also treated to another volume of Bob’s collage art with Eat 20. And, slightly further afield (and missing from the picture – sorry) we had a very Circus Devils sounding release from Todd Tobias – First Man On The Rock, which, in my opinion is just crying out for a Phantom Tollbooth type rework from Bob. Maybe next year.

The Stephen Jones One Man Domination Of Record Shelf Space Award

Just the 168 tracks released by Stephen Jones this year under various guises:

Babybird – The Idiot In The Mirror (The Demos); Astoria, 1997; Eurockéennes de Belfort,1999; The Idiot In The Mirror (The Demos Part 2); I Don’t Want To Be Like One Of Those People- But I Am (Unfinished Demo Edits);Plastic Ivory (4CD); I Don’t Want To Be One Of Those People (5CD); 2009; Threepiece Live May, 2024; I Love You More Than Christmas

Stephen Jones – The Greatest Song Writer You’ve Never Heard Of

N.B. Two further very late arrivals this year (20 December) will be considered as 2025 releases under the Strummer Rule.

Top 5 Music Related Books (Read This Year)

1 Robyn Hitchcock – 1967: How I Got There And Why I Never Left

A remarkable tale of the teenage Hitchcock discovering music, including a meeting with Brian Eno. If only all autobiographies were so easy to read.

2 Steve Pringle – You Must Get Them All: The Fall On Record

3 Mel Daley – The Bits

4 Luke Haines – Freaks Out! Weirdos, Misfits and Deviants – The Rise and Fall of Righteous Rock ’n’ Roll

5 Stuart Braithwaite – Spaceships Over Glasgow: Mogwai, Mayhem, and Misspent Youth

Other books I have read (including a number in Welsh) this year were:

Aran Jones – Some Sex And A Hill**, Ian Passey – A New Cure For Insomnia**, David Keenan – For The Good Times**, Fern Brady – Strong Female Character***, Jane Savidge – This Is Hardcore**, Adam Biles – Beasts Of England***, Scott Lavene – Bits And Bobs Vol. 1**, Lois Arnold – Cysgod Yn Y Coed*, Phil Hay – Leeds United From Darkness Into White**, Magnus Mills – The Forensic Records Society**, Gaynor Madgwick – Aberfan***, Willy Vlautin – The Horse***, Mark Watson – Mortification**, Roald Dahl – Charlie A’r Ffatri Siocled*, Franz Kafka – Metamorffosis**, Herge – Anturiaethau Tintin: Yr Ynys Ddu**

Top 5 Music Films Seen (But Not Necessarily Released) This Year

1 Steve Van Zandt: Disciple

A gripping telling of Miami Steve’s move from the E Street Band and back again. Made me go and put Men Without Women on again.

2 The Story Of Microdisney: The Clock Comes Down The Stairs

3 The Jangling Man: The Martin Newell Story

4 Ffa Coffi Pawb (S4C Documentary)

5 The Glasgow School: A Postcard Records Oral History

Top 10 Gigs

1 The The – O2 Apollo, Manchester, 30 September

A very special gig. I discovered, or rather was forced to discover, The The at university when I met my friend Balloon Man in halls of residence back in 1986. He was already an uber-fan of the band and the album Infected had just been released. He played it to me constantly. I naturally became a fan and, of course, went back to discover Soul Mining, which I instantly loved. Mind Bomb came out at a time I was hospitalised and I was given a tape by BM, which I played over and over while lying in traction. We lost touch for decades when I was travelling the world, but found each other on social media about 10 years ago. To see a rejuvenated The The play with the friend who had introduced them to me made it extra special. The fact they played a ‘hits’ set with every song I really wanted to hear just sealed the deal. Gig of the year by a mile.

2 The Revolutionary Army Of The Infant Jesus + Trappist Afterland – Philharmonic Music Room, Liverpool, 29 June

3 The Cleaners From Venus – Belgrave Music Hall, Leeds, 30 March

4 Euros Childs – Future Yard, Birkenhead, 9 October

5 The Reds, Pinks & Purples – The Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, 20 June

6 Spare Snare + Divorce Finance – Quarry, Liverpool, 9 August

7 Mick Harvey – Omeara, London, 26 May

8 Scott Lavene – Kazimier Stockroom, Liverpool, 2 June

9 Gruff Rhys + Pys Melyn – Arts Club, Liverpool, 17 February

10 The Necks – The Tuung Auditorium, Liverpool, 9 April

Favourite Music Related Moments (Outside of Everything Above)

This was the year I got dragged into the Spotify Music Leagues – you can read about how right here – and to say that I have become obsessed might be understating things. You can find the 5 leagues I have set up below and find the all-important spreadsheet (IYKYK) of all the songs our players have submitted below that.

https://app.musicleague.com/l/4c31722ce47c489b891a98f1083c7645/

https://app.musicleague.com/l/59ef9519ecd6480999e7ad0d3e4434fb/

https://app.musicleague.com/l/892e0008fd3b4e40a2252510ec4db49a/

https://app.musicleague.com/l/02f29f01a6704533b8a71cbb8b575829/

https://app.musicleague.com/l/8766f78e2d194542a3c8206e417c08be/

The songs: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BmnwD7Sn-lNUT_xaO24hldZfx-TuFXVw/edit?usp=drive_link&ouid=109499387671212696262&rtpof=true&sd=true

Please help support all the wonderful musicians mentioned in the lists above by searching out their records, CDs, tapes and downloads and BUYING THEM!!!

Previous end of year podcasts: