Chorizo Garbanzo’s Favourite Things Of 2024

Aloha and welcome to my round-up of favourite things from the year that is coming to an end in just a few hours!

You can hear me playing some of my favourite songs from 2024 in podcast episode 127 right here!

Favourite albums

My favourite album of the year is Peanuts by Liz Lawrence. This came out in June and then was re-issued in November with the brilliant song “Yeti” added.

Here are more of my favourite new albums released this year …

Swaken – Bab L’Bluz
Zero Grace – Liam Bailey
St Anns – David Boulter
On The Intricate Inner Workings Of The System – The Bug Club
Wild God – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
Fear Of… – Cowtown
Songs From A Lost World – The Cure
Nobody Loves You More – Kim Deal

At Home – Dog Unit
Fuzzy Eggs, Please – The Eggmen, Whooooo!
El Magnifico – Ed Harcourt
100% Sahara Guitar – Etran De L’Air
Zeitgeist Impressions – Food Fight
Call A Doctor – Girl & Girl
Five Ways To Say Goodbye – Mick Harvey
A Firmer Hand – Hamish Hawk
New Internationale – Kit Sebastian

News Of The Universe – La Luz
Manning Fireworks – M.J. Lenderman
One More Thing – Lime Garden
Talkie Talkie – Los Bitchos
Eggsistentialism – The Lovely Eggs
Here – Mammoth Penguins
Funeral For Justice – Mdou Moctar

Back To The Clubhouse – John MOuse
Pop – Mik Artistik’s Ego Trip
Below A Massive Dark Land – Naima Bock
Weird Os – O.
Progression Imaginaires – Perilymph
Still Willing – Personal Trainer
Terrapath – Plantoid
Population 5 – Population 5
Hang In There With Me – Amy Rigby
Rooting For Love – Laetitia Sadier
Mild Peril – Silver Sun
Sounds From Inside The Racing Mind – Synthetic Villains
Soft Tissue – Tindersticks
Mount Elephant – Upupayama
Back To The Beginning – Worldcub

All in all, I’ve listened to well over 800 albums this year and I’ve shared them here.

Favourite EPs

Night Out – Murder Club
Affected Services – So Cow
Id’s My Party – Cameronoise
Butter – The Klittens

Favourite cover version

Connection (originally by The Rolling Stones) – Susannah Hoffs and Elvis Costello

Favourite re-issue

This is a new version of the first Cinerama album, re-recorded in 2023 with a full band plus a live album / DVD of a Brighton gig I was at.

Best gigs of the year

I’ve been to 43 gigs this year, too many to include here so I’ll stick those in a separate blog post.

Favourite fiction books

Not necessarily released in 2024, but that’s when I have read them.

The Three Body Problem (Cixin Liu) – mind-bending sci-fi packed full of genius ideas. Looking forward to reading the rest of the trilogy.

Walking On Glass (Iain Banks) – I’ve read nearly all of his books but never got round to this one until just recently. This one is certainly not a straightforward story but I still absolutely loved it.

We Sold Our Souls (Grady Hendrix) – my favourite new author discovery of the last few years. I have now read all of his books and I’d recommend every one of them. This one is the story of the fictional 90s rock band Dürt Würk and their great lost album Black Iron Mountain.

Worst. Person. Ever (Douglas Coupland) – Very funny. All the central characters here really are terrible people.

The Dispatcher trilogy (John Scalzi) – Film noir with a sci fi edge. The 3 books in the trilogy are The Dispatcher, Murder By Other Means and Travel By Bullet.

Self Help (Ben H. Winters) – an audiobook about an audiobook. Brilliant narration by Wil Wheaton & Ron Perlman

Favourite music books

Fingers Crossed (Miki Berenyi)

Rough Trade website selected it as their best book of 2022 saying this: “A revelatory and important statement on the sexism of the 90s music industry, growing up through parental neglect and the wild highs and lows of the Britpop years. The Lush star is a trailblazer and here to remind us that success means different things to different people and that perhaps the traditional definition ain’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

I bought this from Miki herself when she was doing a book signing at Bella Union in Brighton a while ago. It’s a truly remarkable read. Some musicians biographies can drag a bit when you’re reading about their early lives. You just want them to get to the bit where they start the band. That’s not the case here at all because Miki’s life before becoming a musician was already quite extraordinary. It’s an extremely honest and emotional book and highly recommended, regardless of whether you’re familiar with her music or not.

1967: How I Got There & Why I Never Left (Robyn Hitchcock)

Another musician who has a fabulous way with words. He really makes the music and his schooldays come alive here.

Elvis Is King: Costello’s My Aim Is True (Richard Crouse)

A in-depth examination of Elvis’ debut album, probably not a book for the casual fan but a fascinating read for Costellophiles like me.

In the summer, I also re-read Elvis’ brilliant autobiography Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink.

Favourite non-fiction books

Unruly (David Mitchell)
Berserker (Adrian Edmondson)

Favourite films

My favourite film I’ve seen this year is The Substance. It’s putting it mildly to say that this will not be everyone’s cup of tea but I thought it was amazing. It’s frequently genuinely disgusting but I’m not sure it’s even a horror film. It’s more like incredibly unsubtle social commentary and a satire of Hollywood’s treatment of women. Barbie meets Basket Case.

Other films I really liked this year:

Mandibles
Motherless Brooklyn
Bull
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person
Grudge Match
Re/Member
It’s What’s Inside
Elvis
Host
Madness In The Method
Late Night With The Devil
Ready Or Not
The Pig, The Snake & The Pigeon
Longlegs
Lady Bird

Favourite TV shows

Bodies (Netflix)
Brand New Cherry Flavor (Netflix)
Bodkin (Netflix)
Boat Story (BBC)
The Head Of Joaquin Murieta (Amazon)

Favourite music documentaries

The Greatest Night In Pop – about the making of We Are The World by USA For Africa. Yes, I know it’s a rubbish song but the event itself was incredible and so is this documentary
Mutiny In Heaven – very well-made documentary about The Birthday Party with contributions from all the major players
Stiv Bators – fascinating story of the Dead Boys / Lords Of The New Church frontman

Favourite non-music documentaries

My Old School
Hail To The Deadites
Higuita
Long Live Chainsaw
Society Of The Snow
Dejame Viver
Daley: Olympic Superstar

Favourite podcasts

Dangerous Amusements – podcast about the music of Elvis Costello hosted by the very knowledgeable Stu Arrowsmith. I’ve been a keen listener to this podcast since it started in 2020. Stu concluded the series this year with “70 @ 70” a countdown of his 70 favourite songs in the run-up to Elvis’ 70th birthday in August.
Black Gold (BBC) – documentary about the Stanlow oil refinery, former workplace of several of my relatives and a major landmark round my way
True Story of the Coward Brothers (Audible) – the quirkily amusing audiobook counterpart to the recent album by Elvis Costello & T-Bone Burnett. My favourite bits were when Howard Coward loses his temper and swears a lot!
Bowie in Berlin (BBC Sounds)
Shane MacGowan: The Old Main Drag (BBC Sounds)

Most exciting musical moments & life goals achieved!

Pilgrimage to Asbury Park, Freehold and Long Branch! Chorizo Junior and me did the “New Jersey Rock Tour” with our brilliant guide Stan Goldstein. The ultimate day out for any Springsteen fanatic!

Bruce’s former home in Long Branch where he wrote the “Born To Run” album

Meeting and chatting to my other biggest musical hero Elvis Costello after his gig in Leeds and then again after his gig in Buxton. He even signed my copy of “Ten Bloody Marys & Ten How’s Your Fathers.” This was the first Costello record I ever bought (from WH Smith in Guildford, circa 1984.) “Some good stuff on that one” said Elvis as he signed it.

Favourite football moment

Jimmy Dunne’s 92nd minute winner which essentially saved QPR from relegation and sent our opponents Birmingham City down. Have some of that!

Favourite “Quality Pints“

I’ve travelled around the country quite a bit this year visiting friends, going to gigs and football matches. In honour of The Bug Club’s brilliant song, here are the top 10 new places where I’ve enjoyed some quality pints in your town.

In no particular order:

Cafe Rene, Gloucester
Costellos, Altrincham
The Tankerton Arms, Whitstable
Stori, Bala
The Sportsman, Huddersfield
The Brondes Age, opposite Kilburn tube station
Swan With Two Nicks, Little Bollington
Tipsy Turtle, Stockton-on-Tees
The Alexandra Hotel, Derby
Beer Heroes, Chester

And a few international recommendations too…

Bastard Brew, Reykjavik
Sal’s Pizzeria, Wanaka, New Zealand
The Fat Brother, Rotorua, New Zealand
Alfie’s, 9th Avenue, New York
The Grey Dog, Carmine Street, New York
Dutch Freds, W 47th Street, New York

Worth checking out if you happen to be in any of those places.

Please help support all the wonderful musicians, filmmakers, writers and creative minds mentioned in the lists above by searching out their records, CDs, downloads, books etc and BUYING THEM!!!

Previous end of year podcasts: