New Records

How do you find out about new records? All too often it seems like I find out about them by accident and that can't be good. So I thought I'd share some of my new records with you. Firstly...

Buffy Sainte-Marie - 'Pathfinder: Buried Treasures'

Buffy's new collection only seems to be out in Canada at the moment but it will, no doubt, gradually spread. It's a re-packaging of her early/mid-'70s albums, 'Buffy', 'Changing Woman' and 'Sweet America', all of which were issued for the first time as a double CD a few years ago. They were the missing part of Buffy's catalogue so it was great to finally have them available. The track listing I've seen mixes up the albums and makes it an interesting journey through the songs, opening with the mighty 'Generation' and it's great chorus that ends with, 'I just want to dance with the Rosebud Sioux this summer'. That song stuck in my head for nearly 30 years until it was released on CD.

I hope this new compilation brings Buffy some new listeners.

Kylie - 'Aphrodite'

This is heralded as Kylie's 'return to form', a phrase I can't stand but there is something to it. The new record is Kylie at her dancetastic best, an album full of potential singles that will get your funky stuff shaking whether you want it to or not, a happy, smiling Kylie twirling away and luring us in. And the good thing is that they don't all sound the same (always a danger with dance records). I've only listened to it a couple of times but I'm enjoying it, no slow burners here, they're all immediate.

Eliza Carthy & Norma Waterson - 'Gift'

A record from Eliza and her mam, Norma. This is folk music that relies on the voices of the two women to carry it forward with only sparse musical backing by fiddle, piano and accordion, but it's the voices of Eliza and Norma that make it. I saw both Eliza and Norma a month or so back as part of Richard Thompson's Meltdown festival and there was no mention of this record so imagine my surprise when I saw it in HMV the other night - I grabbed it. I'd never heard Norma before and, as soon as she opened her mouth to sing, it was obvious where Eliza got her voice - the two voices work well together. It's not as immediate as Eliza's last album ('Dreams Of Breathing Underwater') but it grows with repeated listens and I'm pleased to have some Norma in my record collection at last.

One of the photos in the sleeve is of Norma, Eliza and Eliza's baby, so I suspect the title of the record is a gift to the next generation of Waterson-Carthys.

Devo - 'Something For Everybody'

This is another record that could be described as a 'return to form' and I first heard about it in an interview on Radio 4 with Mark Mothersbaugh. Although I loved the early Devo records back in the day, I wasn't sure about this album, but then heard a few tracks, downloaded it and decided it was excellent. There really is some great music on this album and the expected challenging and daft words to the songs. It has some '80s touches (such as the use of synths, just like on Prince's new record) but it sounds bang up to date - a 2010 record, not a piece of nostalgia. The production is rich and thick, multiple layers that produce a solid sound.

It won't be to everyone's taste, but if you liked Devo back in the day you'll love this. Give it a spin!