On The Record »

• The high profile absentees from the end-of-year lists

  January 17, 2012 @ 9:14 am | by Jim Carroll

  Now that 2011′s musical comings and goings have been settled (though we’re still waiting for the Irish record industry to let us know about sales for the year – they’re obviously too busy suing this plucky little outcrop of rock in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean to get the stats out as quickly as their UK and US peers), it’s interesting to have a look at some of the more high profile absentees from those end-of-year lists we were all fuming about a month ago. Yes, it was just a month ago.

  While there were some acts who dominated the lists, there were others who were oddly missing from the running. Our old friends Radiohead released an album in 2011, but this is something which could easily have escaped your attention when you were going through those best albums-of-the-year lists because “King Of Limbs” just didn’t feature as heavily as previous albums from Thom Yorke and friends. Oh, yes, I know that you could spot it here and there in the also-rans, but it didn’t light up the sharp end like PJ Harvey, Adele or, indeed, previous albums from the band in other years. While I’m sure the band are happy enough with how the album performed, it’s telling that the album didn’t quite capture the imagination beyond that of the dedicated core on this occasion. Perhaps the musical worm has turned here.

  Another act who didn’t quite dominate list proceedings as much as when she launched her current album was Florence & The Machine. “Ceremonials” is a decent album, but it’s no “Lungs”. The album release may have come with all the major label trimmings you’d expect like big ad campaigns and media coverage, but it didn’t quite last the pace to those end-of-year lists because all seemed a little tired of Ms Welch and her dramatics. If we wanted an album which was the same as a well-received debut but slightly different to justify the hype, we were going for Bon Iver or Fleet Foxes.

  Of course, it’s unlikely that either act will be unduly worried by their poor showing in those 2011 lists. Both acts are still capable of selling out big rooms and headlining festival stages so they haven’t suddenly lost their lustre and commercial appeal overnight. Yet it’s telling nonetheless about how album which are well-received by fans and critics – and albums which come with a well-executed marketing plan – doesn’t translate into stickability. Even applying caveats about the wisdom of a crowd (especially the perceived wisdom of a crowd of critics in many cases) and the fact that much better albums were released in 2011 than “King Of Limbs” and “Ceremonials”, their failure to strike it large is still telling about the disconnect between well-reviewed albums and how they play out a few months later.

• Listomania: The Ticket music writers’ lists of stuff from 2011

  December 12, 2011 @ 9:35 am | by Jim Carroll

  It’s the longest list post of the year, list fans. When Pope Gregory XIII came up with the aul’ Gregorgian calendar back in 1582, he didn’t realise we’d be using it centuries later to put a top and a tail on the albums, tracks and gigs released in a 12 month period. While there are some dissenters – Donald Clarke was huffing and puffing at the weekend about lists (though that didn’t stop him listing his own top 10 albums for 2011), while Laura Barton in the Guardian thinks we’re better off listening to bands covering the Stereophonics in a pub than making lists – we here at OTR think these lists are a fabulous idea, if only because it neatly ties the year together and we can get on with listening to new music again.

  After the jump, you will find my Top 30 albums for 2011. You will also find the tracks, Irish bands and breakthrough acts of 2011 as voted for by me and Ticket rock/pop writers Lauren Murphy, Tony Clayton-Lea, Sinead Gleeson, Brian Boyd and Ailbhe Malone. These selections were the basis for the shortlists for The Ticket Awards, which were voted on by readers and the results of which will be revealed in The Ticket next Friday (December 16).
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• Have you excercised your franchise in The Ticket Awards yet?

  December 9, 2011 @ 10:55 am | by Jim Carroll

  If not, you have until Sunday at midnight to vote in The Ticket Awards 2011. It’s your chance to have your say when it comes to music, movies and games in 2011 rather than just fuming, whinging and whining about it. Vote now, vote often etc. Results will be announced in The Ticket on Friday December 16. For those who can’t get enough lists at this time of th eyear, we’ll be running down The Ticket music writers’ albums, tracks, Irish acts and breakthrough acts of the year here on Monday morning. I’ll make the tea if you bring the almond croissants.

• Music’s lost and found department

  January 7, 2011 @ 10:00 am | by Jim Carroll

  Hats off to Krissi Murison. At a time of year when most publications got through the quiet news days of December by reviewing 2010 or previewing 2011 (or, indeed, doing both), the NME editor came up with a perfect wheeze to fill an entire edition. Best of all, she threw a list into the mix – and we all know how much readers love to argue about a list.

  The 100 Greatest Albums You’ve Never Heard was just that – a list of 100 great lost albums as selected by the NME’s journalists and a host of pop stars.

  You had Dave Grohl waxing lyrical about the amazing Bad Brains’ album “ROIR”, LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy making the case for Suicide’s 1980 album and Bobby Gillespie on the wonders of “John, The Wolfking of L.A.”, the solo record from Mamas & Papas’ dude John Phillips.

  As with all lists, it provoked numerous questions. Can such albums as the Cocteau Twins’ “Heaven Or Las Vegas”, Young Marble Giants’ “Colossal Youth” and Arthur Russell’s “Calling Out Of Context” compilation, all well received at the time of their release, really be considered “lost”?

  Given the volume of new releases these days, will we be compiling a list of 1,000 great lost albums in ten years’ time? And what are the chances that the NME readership will now check out Howlin’ Wolf, Serge Gainsbourg and The Go-Betweens instead of Brother, The Vaccines and Beady Eye?

  Of course, I’ve a few names to add to the list. There’s Pressure Drop’s daring and inventive beauty “Elusive”; the haunted blues and eerie soul of Talk Talk frontman Mark Hollis on his one and only solo album and Sweetback’s self-titled album, where Sade’s backing band provide slo-mo, sultry soundtracks for day-dreamers everywhere.

  So, which “lost” albums would you add to the list?

• Gong! Gong! Gong! OTR’s Gongs of 2010!

  December 23, 2010 @ 9:55 am | by Jim Carroll

  Gong! Gong! Gong! We end the year with OTR’s Gongs Of 2010, our set of beautifully designed awards presented to those who have served the rock’n’roll cause at home and away in the last 12 months. Please note that tongues are firmly in cheeks.

  Before we start handing out the gongs, a HUGE thanks to ALL our readers for a brilliant year on the blog. A round of applause and a standing ovation for every single one of you from me. I keep saying this because it’s true – OTR only works because of you lot reading it, commenting on it and tipping me off about stuff for it. It’s very humbling to see the reaction which posts here generate and it spurs me on to keep OTR at the very top of the game. Thanks so much for spending another 12 months reading, commenting and fuming on OTR. Have a fantastic Christmas break. Be safe on those roads if you’re travelling. And best wishes for the next 12 months. Normal service resumes on Wednesday January 5 with OTR’s 2011 preview.

  Now, the envelopes please. The winners of OTR’s Gongs of 2010 are….
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• Now that’s what we (The Ticket, OTR and you) call 2010

  December 10, 2010 @ 9:02 am | by Jim Carroll

  It’s the end-of-the-year music, movies and games round-up to beat all end-of-the-year music, movies and games round-ups. The Ticket reviews 2010 with music highlights, Top 10 album lists, the good, the bad and the ugly movie moments of 2010, Top 10 movie lists from Donald Clarke and Tara Brady and our gamers’ Top 10 games of the year.

  After the jump, you’ll find my Top 30 albums for 2010. For the first year in ages, I had way more contenders for the 30 slots which, to me anyway, is the sign that it was a very good year for new music releases at home and out foreign.

  Please feel free to list your own highlights below.

  Plug one: Team Ticket take on Team Day & Night in a no-holds-barred, no-quarter-spared live radio show quiz tomorrow morning. Repping the Ticket: Sinead Gleeson, Lauren Murphy and OTR. Repping for O’Reilly: John “Pretty Boy” Meagher, Niall “Nailler999″ Byrne and Eamon “Swench” Sweeney. The place: The Kiosk on Phantom 105.2 from 11am. The referee: Nadine O’Regan. The lass in the high heels who walks around the ring between rounds: Derek Byrne. To be in with a chance of winning a €200 gift voucher from Eason’s, text in during the show and correctly predict which team will win (clue: Team Ticket).

  Plug two: On the Record’s Christmas Extravaganza takes place at the Roisin Dubh, Galway next Thursday, December 16. On the bill: live sets in the main room from Squarehead, Cloud Castle Lake, Daithí Ó Drónaí and Hooray For Humans. Upstairs, it’s The Casanova Wave. Afterwards, Gugai and myself will be on the decks at Strange Brew until late. Admission is FREE and we’ll give an one-off OTR v Strange Brew mix-CD to the first 100 people who turn up.
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• The Best of British – the 50 Best British Acts Right Now

  September 23, 2010 @ 9:53 am | by Jim Carroll

  Oh yes, it’s another one of these list yokes which I know you OTR readers love so much.

  In The Ticket tomorrow, we will be counting down the 50 Best British Acts Right Now. The list was compiled by Lauren Murphy and myself and featured a couple of heated exchanges and some magnanimous concessions on both sides. I think it’s a cracking list, but I would say that, wouldn’t I?

  Anyway, as happened when we ran down the Best Irish Acts Right Now last year, there will be fun, games and fuming all round tomorrow so let’s get a head start on that by asking you, the readers of this blog, who you think will be at number one.

  (You can also use this post to tell me what I’ve missed since I was last in these parts. And yeah, I know all about our glorious leader and his grand night out)

• OTR’s albums of the year – and the decade

  December 11, 2009 @ 9:38 am | by Jim Carroll

  Yes, it’s another blooming list. And why not? We all love a list and there is no better time than the end of a year – and a decade – to go list crazy. My Top 20 for 2009 and my Top 20 for the decade that was after the jump.
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