Chvrches (or CHVRCHES) is a synthpop trio out of Glasgow, Scotland that formed back in 2011. Ian Cook and Martin Doherty were university friends and had performed in a bunch of failed bands together over the years and were almost ready to call it quits and get ‘real jobs’. However, Cook had taken an interest in electronic music and was messing around with synthesizers around the same time that he was doing some production work for another band and he found that he liked the sound of their vocalist’s style. Lauren Mayberry was intrigued by Cook’s invitation to work together on some material and after some exploratory sessions, the three musicians realized they were clicking and might have something to build off of. They chose their name, not because of any religious connotations, but because they liked the sound of it and played with the spelling as a nod to a certain esoteric indie subgenre of music.
“Recover” is the group’s second proper single and appears on their debut album, “The bones of what you believe”. It is the first track that I ever heard by the group and though it hooked me immediately, I haven’t been a fan everything they’ve done over the years. They tiptoe quite precariously on the tightrope between indie pop and outright dance pop. I can only tolerate the latter sound for short periods but they do the former so well that I will never outright dismiss them. I also respect their integrity, the way all three members contribute equally, and how frontwoman Mayberry has never allowed big money music to focus on her and use her sex appeal to sell their music.
“I’ll give you one more chance to say we can change our old ways
And you take what you need, and you know you don’t need me”
“Recover” is a blast of energy, lasers streaming and confetti flying. It is dancing in a sweaty and crowded hall while the strobe lights transform reality and melt your ability to properly perceive space and time. You’re tired and all the bodies writhing around you are tired and it is way past midnight and still hours before the sun comes up but the music won’t let you and any of your friends rest. The synths play alternatively like washes, handclaps, backing vocals, distorted bass. It’s all very retro futuristic, like robots made from 80s muscle car parts. And all the while, Mayberry is your guide and ringmaster, breathless herself in her high octave, childlike voice, commanding though, demanding you to live and experience the moment fully.
Wow.
For the rest of the Best tunes of 2013 list, click here.
Looking back at my list so far, there’s a few bands making their first appearance on any of my end of year, best albums lists and a few of these still that are brand new to me, just hearing about them and listening to them for the first time this year. Gift is an example of this latter group.
They are a Brooklyn-based quintet that was hand-picked and pieced together by TJ Freda back in 2020, just before the onslaught of the worldwide pandemic. Much like for a number of other people, COVID threw a monkey wrench into Freda’s plans and the group was forced into a hiatus just as they were getting off the ground.
Gift still managed to record a debut album, “Momentary presence”, which was released to raves and acclaim back in 2022. However, much like I did with Wunderhorse, I completely missed out on this debut, but given how much I delight in last year’s “Illuminator”, it’s definitely going to be one that I go back to explore. Purportedly it is much more in line with and more faithful to their psych rock influences, evoking flashbacks to Spacemen 3 and Jason Pierce’s second band, Spiritualized, both bands that I love. And in truth, I do hear smacks of these on “Illuminator” and even some Dandy Warhols and The Liminanas, these are likely the result of Gift’s more collaborative approach here and wilful willingness to allow some pop leanings to creep into their sound.
“Illuminator” is the group’s first release on legendary indie label, Captured Tracks, the folks behind a number of excellent dream pop band releases over the last decade, as well as the vinyl reissue Luna’s first five albums in a box set. And well, it’s an album that definitely fits within Captured Tracks’ ethos as I understand it. There’s plenty of haze and dry ice oozing from these songs but there’s also lots of fun energy, a near perfect album for a Friday night*. The eleven tracks are all gigantic and audacious and should fill a lot of dance floors… if the kids are still doing such a thing, that is…
It was near impossible to select favourites but given that this is the tradition with these posts, I endeavoured and present the following three picks for you.
“Going in circles”: “You taught me to forget, when I watched my sky cave in.” This was the first track Freja wrote for the album, purportedly coming up with it while noodling around with his guitar. Inspired to get up immediately and put the sound to tape. Listening to these 3 minutes and 36 seconds of pure bliss, you can see and hear and feel where he must’ve been that night. “Going in circles” informed the direction of all 11 tracks – spacey and dance and not a little bit inspired by 90s UK rave culture. The drums crash and the synths bounce off the walls and the rumbling bass line simply begs for more smoke machine. It’s a song for dancing to like nobody’s watching, even if everyone is.
“Glow“: Track nine is another rager. Smacking slightly of a post-reunion Ride track that I can’t quite put my finger on right now, but this isn’t a comparison that anyone should be ashamed of. The track name perfectly encapsulates the mood. An explosion of ecstasy, writhing bodies shuttled down from space, strobes and lasers, sweat and pheromones. The drum beat has no intention of quitting and the guitars and bass shuttle along, climbing up and down your spine. The synths wash through, building force to Freda’s gauzy delivery. The party ramps up and just begs for more dancing.
“Wish me away”: “Will they remember me just in time to bury me?” The opening number has words like this that feel like a downer, the inability to hold on to happiness or anything, and just general inconstancy, but the mood of the music, just like everywhere else, is pure joy. The guitars and drums feel like they’re in a race to the finish line, each jumping ahead of their other at different points. The synths flit about like a laser pointer drawing one hundred cats in its wake. These five young musicians/magicians are adept at accelerating neurons to the point where you’re forgetting all your problems and joining them on the dance floor, like psychedelic pied pipers draining the anxiety away.
*The timing of this post is impeccable. You’re welcome.
Onwards, we march. We’ll be at album #2 in a few days hence. In the meantime, here are the previous albums in this list:
Just a few days ago, I shared my first post in months, a reintroduction of sorts, and I offered a hint at the medical struggles with which I closed out the year. But if I am being honest, 2024 wasn’t all bad. Indeed, there was lots to like about the year.
Before everything went steeply downhill at the end, I got away for a few weekends away, spent some quality time with my lovely wife, enjoyed some biking and some hiking, and got to see some great live music. Indeed, music was a constant for me last year, much as it is every year, even if I wasn’t writing about it as prolifically as I normally do.
Yes, great music was released, so much, in fact, that I spent a lot of the year in catch-up mode, listening to albums for the first time long after their initial release date. In this way, I discovered a lot of exceptional new artists and reacquainted myself with many old friends during the last six months of the year (and a little into the new year). Some of these were represented in the post I shared a few days ago of seven excellent albums that didn’t quite make the cut.
When I first set out to make this year’s top albums list, I was expecting it to be mostly comprised of the old reliables but while some of these are certainly there, I for one was surprised at which albums and which bands made the final ten spots. I will be starting to share these today, with this post marking the start of my top ten countdown in earnest, kicking it all off with albums #10 through #6. Then, I plan to share my favourite five in five posts over the next few weeks.
With all the excellent releases in 2024, I am sure I missed out on one or two. So as we go through my own ten favourite albums, I welcome your comments and thoughts and perhaps even your own top ten favourites in the comments spaces provided.
Let’s do this.
#10 Quivers “Oyster cuts”
We begin with an album that just snuck itself into my top ten favourites at the last moment. Quivers originally formed in 2015 in Hobart, Tasmania but I only discovered them six years later, in 2021, with the release of their sophomore album “Golden doubt”. By this time, the quartet had relocated to Melbourne, Australia and were attracting attention the world over for their take on jangle pop in the key of The Smiths and R.E.M. They signed with Merge Records in 2022* and this third album, “Oyster cuts”, is the first to be released there. It’s ten earworms that dig further into you with each listen, expanding their palette beyond the jangle to develop their own sound, all held together by an equal sharing of vocal duties and obvious passion for the music they all make together.
#9 The Jesus And Mary Chain “Glasgow eyes”
The Reid brothers, Jim and William, released this, their eighth studio album**, in the year following their 40th anniversary in a band together. Much like most of their previous albums, “Glasgow eyes” was written and mostly recorded by the brothers, who by their own admission share a form of ‘telepathy’ working in the studio together, with the sound augmented by session and guest musicians. And well, the album is awesome. It’s very much recognizable as a JAMC record and at the same time, it isn’t same old, same old. It has its noisy hallmarks and Jim Reid’s all-too-cool vocals but it also shows the brothers reinvigorated and charged electronically. If I’m being completely honest here, though, I didn’t expect to enjoy this album half as much as I do. It’s just so much fun.
#8 The Last Dinner Party “Prelude to ecstasy”
I first heard the growing buzz surrounding London, England-based, The Last Dinner Party, back in the summer of 2023. I finally got around to sampling their sounds when I was in Toronto visiting my friend Tim for the Slowdive show there in September of that same year. We were going back and forth sharing YouTube videos but for some reason*** on that night, neither of us were really impressed. However, after continuing to see their name and images splashed all over social media, I gave them another chance just before Christmas 2023 and found myself reformed. By the time “Prelude to ecstasy”, the all-female quintet’s eagerly awaited debut, was released at the beginning of February 2024, I was finding myself ordering a copy for my vinyl collection. The comparisons to Kate Bush and Florence Welch for all their baroque drama and melodrama are apt but I would also throw Annie Lennox or Siouxsie Sioux into the mix for fun. However, all is not sunshine and rainbows. Indeed, there’s lots of punk angst and attitude here as well. My only hope is that it is not tamed or toned down at all by big music as time goes on.
#7 Vampire Weekend “Only god was above us”
I first got into New York City’s Vampire Weekend with their self-titled debut album in 2008, loving their energy, their blend of various world music styles with an indie rock mindset, and their often humorous song subject matter and lyrics. From there, I continued to the follow the group and loved each of their first three records. Something changed for me, however, with their fourth album, 2019’s “Father of the bride”, something I could never put my finger on, but I was never able to properly connect with the double album****. Happily, “Only god was above us” feels like a return to form. It’s a solid record that exhibits everything that I enjoyed about the group previously and there’s not one skippable track in the bunch.
#6 Real Estate “Daniel”
Ok. I think I am finally ready to call it. I am officially a Real Estate fan. And I don’t even know why I’ve been fighting it for so long. I’ve been following the New Jersey-based indie rock band since they released their third album, “Atlas”, in 2014 and on that release then, and each since, I have found much to like in their easy-going jangle pop, seeing similarities between them and Glasgow’s Teenage Fanclub, another of my favourites. But it’s this year’s offering that’s really done it for me. It’s a moody and atmospheric piece of work that never fails to catch my attention whenever I turn it on and has me tapping my toes, my fingers, and nodding my head along through all its eleven tracks.
*A perfect home for them, if you asked me.
**And second since re-forming in 2007.
***Maybe it was too many IPAs.
****And I am fully aware that I may be one of the few who didn’t appreciate it as much as the others.
Stay tuned for album #5 on this list. In the meantime, you can check out my Best Albums page here if you’re interested in my other favourite albums lists.
Looking back at my list so far, there’s a few bands making their first appearance on any of my end of year, best albums lists and a few of these still that are brand new to me, just hearing about them and listening to them for the first time this year. Gift is an example of this latter group.
Hello again!
My (life in) music lists 