Music

While a lot of my friends were attempting to convince themselves that In Utero was as good as Nevermind, I was mostly listening to this. Well, this and Orbital's Brown album and Underworld's Dubnobasswithmyheadman.

In my 90s musical hall of fame, Billy Corgan is right up there with Cobain, the Hartnoll brothers and Andrew Weatherall.

To get 2012 off to an uplifting start, here is the song that I heard more than any other during 2011. Before you ask, it's my daughter's favourite. And yes I am hoping that she grows out of it.

Feist, Jason Mraz and Andrea Bocelli are her other favourites. Sigh.

Three toe-tappers from Nottingham's finest: Bent.

The video for the new Orbital track reminded me of this old [1993] favourite by William Orbit.

Looking forward to hearing the album by this Londoner, reminds me of Lamb or Telepopmusik.

A bonus 'weekend starts around here' - since I missed a couple of weeks whilst moving house. This is Phillip Henry and Hannah Martin performing The Boy that Wouldn't Hoe Corn, from their superb album Singing the Bones.

I hadn't bought a PJ Harvey record since 'Rid of Me' back when I was at university, many moons ago. So I am somewhat surprised to report that 'Let England Shake' is one of my favourite albums for a long time. It's reminiscent of those folksy 60's protest singers, but manages to be modern and unpretentious - in short, it's an album that Billy Bragg would give his right testicle to have written. Let England Shake deserves to be listened to as an album, but if I had to choose standout tracks they would be The Glorious Land, England and, this one, On Battleship Hill.

I used to have Nitin Sawhney's Prophesy album, from which this comes, on dvd, but my brother stole it. At least he's a tea leaf with taste.

After Neil Young himself last week, this week a cover of a Neil Young song by an up and coming English indie band called St Etienne.

There are Masters of Work and Weatherall mixes of this track, but the Spliff mix is my favourite.

It's Canada Day - Yay!