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Album of the Week: Peter Gabriel – I/O

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

Peter Gabriel last released an album of new material over 20 years ago, back in the days when there were CD shops. For this long gestating effort he has embraced an innovative release strategy, with a series of singles at each full moon over the past year along with an accompanying video. We’ve really loved his monthly treats and his insights.

Finally the finished product has arrived. Another innovation has been the multiple mixes of each song – bright side mixes (mixed by Mark ‘Spike’ Stent) and dark side mixes (from Tchad Blake) along with Inside Mixes which are immersive mixes in Dolby Atmos by Hans-Martin Buff. Its been a pleasure hearing the different characters of each of these numbers.

The album seems to have been well received thus far, The Guardian describing it as a “late career masterpiece”, The Telegraph as a “gentle sweeping epic”. We look forward to a wonderful week enjoying tracks from this album each morning.

Background on the making of the album (American Songwriter)

Atmos mixes (Peter Gabriel website)

Album of the Week: Winterbourne – Act of Disappearing

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

This band from Sydney came across our radar via the iTunes store this week. Its actually their second original album (they put out an acoustic version of their first album Echo of Youth in 2020 as well) and is a really polished set of performances with well written, melodic pop (that would probably be labelled as Indie or Alternative). These Beatlesque songs are memorable and indicative of a talented band. Mixdown mag describes it as “a musical journey replete with opulent synths and rousing, crowd-pleasing choruses reminiscent of the golden era of bands like The Verve and The Strokes”.

Album of the Week: Cold War Kids – Cold War Kids

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

Veteran Indie artists Cold War Kids have produced their 10th album. It doesn’t seem to have generated much buzz amongst the reviewers but its a solid set of alternative rock tracks from the Californian band, including a few toe tappers like “Run Away With Me”. Enjoy!

Album of the Week: The Beatles 1962-1966 (The Red Album)

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

We don’t usually feature compilation albums, especially one which has been re-released three times in my lifetime (CD in 2003, remaster in 2010 then Giles Martin’s new remix last Friday) however this one is special. I’m sure there must be many Beatles fans who explored the band’s music through this and its companion 1967-1970 album. It might have been allegedly compiled by the band’s arch-villainous manager Allen Klein but it is a superlative collection of the music in their early years. One great complement to the band was always in reviews of this collection which pointed out that despite filling two double albums with ‘greatest hits’ there were still some absolute crackers left off. That has now been rectified in this new release which now justifies two CDs in running time and has added some notable omissions such as “I Saw Her Standing There”, “Twist and Shout”, “Got to Get You Into My Life” and “Here, There and Everywhere”. Some of the others strike me as ‘political’ additions to increase the presence of George Harrison or correct a perceived lack of tracks from the Revolver album – as creative and revolutionary as it was I don’t feel “Tomorrow Never Knows” sits nicely on a greatest hits collection. But those are quibbles.

In any case the interesting thing isn’t the additional tracks, its the remixes. These aren’t just yawnworthy tweaks for uber fans (bringing the bass slightly forward in a song for example) but dramatic reworkings of songs whose stereo mixes suffered from early ideas of what a stereo mix should be. These were more designed to show off the novelty of the technology and featured quirks such as all the vocals being located far off to the right and the drums on the left. Additionally four early songs couldn’t be properly mixed in stereo due to their original multitrack tapes being lost. Giles Martin has now reworked these songs with lovely spacious mixes with much more ‘realistic’ soundstages, locating the vocals and drums near the centre and spreading other sounds around. It is quite a revelation and for me will be the definitive version going forward.

Enjoy these absolute classic songs with us this week and hear this incredible band develop in their early years.

Album of the Week: Angie McMahon – Light, Dark, Light Again

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

Melbournian Angie McMahon stimulated an interesting review by a Guardian author, who began by describing an anxiety attack resolved by a walk and listening to McMahon’s second album “Light, Dark, Light Again”. Although it may have therapeutic qualities the album is undoubtedly a musically accomplished set of contemporary singer-songwriter fare that bears repeated listening. Lyrically accomplished with great melodies and performance, McMahon is a real talent and we look forward to listening this week.

Album of the Week: The Rolling Stones – Hackney Diamonds

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

Its hard to believe that it is 18 years since the last album of original music from the Stones. What is astonishing is that a band which has been around for sixty years is releasing some of their best music in decades. It sounds like the Stones but also enjoys freshness. It also features a few other greats including Lady Gaga, Stevie Wonder and Sir Paul McCartney. We have had a few surprises from legacy artists such as Bob Dylan in the past few years (including Sir Paul) but this album is up there with the best of them. Relevant, eminently re-listenable and incredibly an album which can sit unshirking alongside the rest of their discography. “A bunch of hackneyed duds” – Sorry Pitchfork you’re completely off the mark.

Album of the Week: Ed Sheeran – Autumn Variations

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

This is pretty clearly a between albums clearout of material from an incredibly talented master musician (ala Carly Rae Jepson’s The Loveliest Time or The National’s Laugh Track) so its not bright and bumpy as The Guardian seemed to hope. This is a great selection of contemporary/timeless singer-songwriter material.

Album of the Week: The Paper Kites – At the Roadhouse

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

The Melbournians have come through with another fantastic collection of folk rock, genuine, warm, heartfelt and melodic. Clash rightly said that it “showcases a consistent and refined range in their musicality over a decade after their first release”. Enjoy this excellent live performance of “Black & Thunder” and other tracks from the album this week.

Album of the Week: Birdy – Portraits

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

“Irresistably melodic 80s nostalgic trip” – so The Guardian described British artist Birdy’s fifth album. Given its four out of five star rating we assume this is a compliment of sorts – and it should be. Although we welcome a broad palette of sounds at New Zealand Net Radio the synthy sound Birdy (and many other artists in the past few years) have been adopting is really enjoyable. Our bar for playback is that the music has to have a tune – this album easily surpasses that bar. A collection of really solid songs with a few standout tracks, Birdy continues to deliver.

Album of the Week: Hosier – Unreal Unearth

New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE or on the web player.

Hozier is back with a wonderful album revolving around isolation and death, informed by Dante’s Inferno. OK its not disco but its not as grim as it sounds either! The Telegraph described the album as “further evidence of an artist who takes pride in every aspect of his craft, concocting songs of emotional and philosophical depth in richly detailed sonic environments that push this venerable genre into thrilling new spaces”.