Best TV of 2013

2013, it’s fair to say, has probably been a banner year for TV. Be that new shows making their way to our screens and into our hearts, or those we have loved dearly either getting better or beginning to wind down, 2013 was a year in which it’s been pretty easy to be excited by TV. Channel 4 decided to really get back to its rebellious roots as the ‘alternative’ by making some pretty risky moves, some of which paid of greatly (like airing the first fully subtitled drama on the Big 5 in The Returned or the fantastically beautiful Utopia which doesn't feature on this list but I loved greatly), some of which didn’t work at all, coming off more as a cheap stunt to raise controversy (let’s just forget the completely baffling Sex Box ever happened, OK?). 2013 also saw the rise and rise of Netflix, not just as an on-demand platform but as, in a way, its own little network, being the platform which aired David Fincher’s US remake of House of Cards when nobody else wanted it, as well as the fourth season of Arrested Development and the utterly fantastic Orange is the New Black. It also saw a number of fantastic sitcoms come to a close. 30 Rock and The Office finished their often sketchy but still brilliant runs on their own terms, wrapping up everything they could think of in ways that were pretty much perfect for those shows. Happy Endings and Bunheads, on the other hand, didn’t quite get the endings they deserved, particularly Bunheads which finally had the axe drop after months and months of waiting to hear news of whether or not it was to be renewed. Luckily, as those shows exit our screens, the likes of Brooklyn 99 are preparing to replace them on the throne in 2014. Without further ado, here are some of my highlights of TV in 2013, although I have taken some liberties here because I don’t follow no stinking rules!

10. Veep
Veep had a pretty good year by all accounts, in particular allowing Tony Hale to finally nab that Emmy he has been so deserving of for years. 2013 saw Vice President Selina Meyer and her staff thrown into the forefront of things. Whilst before she’s always been more of a figure than an actual presence in this fictional world of politics, too tangled up by bureaucracy to make an impact, here they're thrust right into scandals and front page news stories. This allowed Armando Iannucci to really let fly with the bewilderingly imaginative insults Veep and The Thick of It are so well known for while injecting a real burst of energy as the staff try to sort out these monumental fuck-ups. The season two finale, ‘DC’, sees the political winds changing every second, causing the entire staff to go into a frenzy, scrambling to find out what exactly is going on, in turn bringing the best out of this fantastic ensemble cast.

9. Orphan Black
Whilst BBC America is usually just a channel for airing BBC produced shows in the US, it does occasionally create its own original content. Orphan Black is the one that made a big splash in 2013, and it's all down to Tatiana Maslany in what is sure to be her breakout role/roles. The premise is utterly farfetched, there's no denying it, as outcast Sarah Manning discovers she is just one of many clones who are now being hunted down. Teaming up with the remaining clones, Sarah and herselves attempt to find out who is behind everything while trying to keep their own personal lives in tact. It's the performances of Maslany as every single clone that really sells Orphan Black, with each one having an entirely different persona: housewife, cop, science student, criminal. She manages to slip into each iteration with absolute ease, each one played with their little idiosyncrasies. Several of the best performances of the year all happen to come from one person in the same show. It becomes obvious that, without this central performance, Orphan Black could quite easily collapse in on itself as utterly cheesy. Thank goodness we have Tatiana Maslany then!

8. Hannibal
Bryan Fuller is no stranger to writing shows about death. His two biggest hits, Dead Like Me and Pushing Daises, tackled the issue of mortality in a light and often cartoonish way, to the point where the popping colours and fantastical set design of Pushing Daisies seem to be ripped straight from an actual Saturday morning cartoon. Hannibal, a prequel to the Hannibal Lecter stories set before his incarceration, is a lot, lot darker and yet it still retains that beauty, albeit a very morbid one. A disconcerting mood permeates even the most innocent-appearing scenes and everything is produced with such care and effort. With star performances from Hugh Dancy and Mads Mikkelsen, Hannibal is visually sumptuous and extraordinarily creepy, managing to avoid being a cheap cash-in for the franchise.

7. Dates
At the start of Summer, Channel 4 hosted the oddly named "Mating Season". A season of television based around the world of dating that, despite its awful name, it did manage to produce two of my favourite shows of 2013 (more on the other later). The first of these is Dates, created by Skins co-creator Bryan Elsley. Focusing on a series of dates set up on a online, Dates felt like the romantic equivalent of 1999's Tube Tales. Each episode saw a different couple go about their dates with, usually disastrous results, while the story of Oona Chaplin's Mia weaved its way through the series. The greatness of Dates is derived from both its realism, each one feels extremely naturalistic and not overly fantastical, and its super cast, made up of exciting and brilliant British and Irish actors, some well known and some up-and-coming. Each episode was superbly written with near perfect casting to compliment the characters; a masterpiece in original British drama which had that same freshness that Skins did when it was introduced to our screens way back in 2007.

6. Bob's Burgers
2013 was the year I discovered Bob's Burgers and I'm almost ashamed that it took me this long to get around to it. It feels like a nice replacement for those disappointed by the route The Simpsons has been taking in recent years. Despite its status as a cartoon, Bob's Burgers features one of the most realistic families on television today. Each character is so perfectly realised, doing away with the standard tropes you'd associate with each member of the family in your standard sitcom in order to actually tackle the struggles and dreams of each character rather deftly. The confusion and mixed emotions of being a teenager are wonderfully portrayed in Tina, the oldest child, who wants nothing more than to be seen as one of the adults while Louise, the youngest, tackles growing up and beginning to fancy boys. Though they often appear at one another's throats, the Belchers are a family who absolutely adore one another and, when the chips are down, protect each other with their lives. It's a heartwarming show that is constantly hilarious (one episode features Gene becoming friends with a talking toilet) with a wide array of brilliantly quirky characters, such as Teddy, that surprisingly never stray into the fantastical. It only seems to be getting better and better.

5. Fly on the wall documentaries
2013 managed to be a year packed full of really interesting fly on the wall documentaries that sound absolutely terrible on paper, most thanks to Channel 4. A one-off look at the day to day life in a Fried Chicken Shop that aired last year managed to get a full series this year and retained what made that one-off documentary so surprisingly good, taking a completely uncynical look at the vast array of characters that just really wanted some fried chicken and showing these often completely opposite people crossing paths and interacting which made for often extremely heartwarming viewing. Gogglebox, which features members of the ordinary public just watching TV is probably the worst sounding of the lot but, yet again, made for absolutely delightful viewing that often left me with a stupidly big grin on my face. It sounds cliched to say but, after a while, you begin to feel like you know these families and what makes them tick, to the point where watching retired teachers Leon and June, a couple that are clearly madly in love even if they're usually having a go at one another, discussing their own mortality brought tears to many eyes. It's probably also impossible to have got through 2013 without hearing someone talk about Educating Yorkshire, in particular that moment in which Mr Burton knicks an idea from The King's Speech to help Musharaf overcome his stammer. It really was one of those punching the air kind of moments which you'd only see in fiction. Yet here it was, occurring at a high school in Dewsbury. The whole show captured imaginations and raised public opinions of teachers and schools at a time when the education system is coming under fire.

4. Game of Thrones
Before you say anything, this is not just an excuse to use yet another photo of Oona Chaplin. Nope. Not at all. This year saw Game of Thrones tackling The Red Wedding, proof that George RR Martin really does like torturing both his characters and his audience. Any other author would place such a shockingly horrific twist at the end of the book. Not Martin, instead choosing to chuck it in when everything seemed to be going fine and dandy, with absolutely no warning of this horrifically violent wedding. HBO's adaptation deftly handled this scene which led to a whole other generation of Game of Thrones fans who hadn't read the books to have exactly the same shocked and beffudled reactions as those had read the books the first time they got to that chapter. While a lot of emphasis is placed on 'Rains of Castemere' as the stand out episode of this season, 2013 also saw Daenerys actually get to do something and become completely and utterly badass, and the almost buddy-comedy tales of Brienne and Jaime. With a lot more shocks in store for fans of the series, the year long wait between seasons wasn't exactly made easier by yet another stellar effort.

3. The Returned
Channel 4 took a hell of a risk this year in airing The Returned, a French drama about a town in which the dead start coming back to life. Subtitled dramas have always been the reserve of BBC4, aimed more at the high brow audiences who don't mind having to read along as they watch. It's fair to say that how well The Returned would do on a mainstream channel was anyone's guess. Luckily for us, The Returned is probably one of the most wonderfully intriguing shows to air this year. Focusing on how the families of the deceased react to the return of their beloveds, it became easy to forget this was, ultimately, a fantasy drama. The writing was on another level, deftly portraying the emotions of both the deceased and those alive as they tried to cope with what is happening. Even so, there was that fantasy element weaving its way in and out of the series which always remained intriguing, whether it was trying to figure out how these people had died, which were even dead in the first place, and why they were brought back. The finale brought us more questions than it did answers but I, for one, am extremely excited to see how the series progresses, if not just to hear more of the superb Mogwai soundtrack.

2. Breaking Bad
And with that, 2013 brought us the final few episodes of this superb drama and left us all in a slump once it was done. The final half season of Breaking Bad contained some of the best, most tightly written and directed episodes this show has ever produced, and, in some cases, some of the best episodes of television full stop. Each episode brought a new theory as to how Vince Gilligan et al were going to bring it to a close and each episode ramped things up even further, stand out 'Ozymandias' showing us that anything could happen and will happen, and that no-one is safe as Walter White's empire begins to truly fall apart. It has been an absolute treat watching Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul as Walter White and Jesse Pinkman transform both as their actors and as actors over the course of the show. While it might not have the extreme detail of The Wire, Breaking Bad still had some superb writing and acting that pushed it into the zenith of great TV. Emotionally dense, riveting, and often times absolutely stunning, Breaking Bad really made a mark on 2013 and probably on TV forever more. You might not want to marathon the final season, however. The tension of each episode on their own, with a week to calm down, was enough for me; I can't imagine how I might feel after watching them all in one go.

1. Orange Is The New Black
While House of Cards was riveting stuff, with a superb performance from Kevin Spacey, and the new episodes of Arrested Development were great when you got used to what Mitchell Hurwitz was actually trying to do, Orange Is The New Black is the one Netflix original series that made a real impression on me. Funny, emotional, and loaded with great characters, it was so easy to just fall down that "just one more episode" hole of on-demand TV. It is those great characters that really makes Orange Is The New Black the stand out show of the year. Each one is treated with such care that, although Piper Chapman is our window into the world of a women's federal prison, no character really seems to take centre stage, with the spotlight shone on each pretty equally. It feels a lot like The Wire in this sense in that even the smallest character is fleshed out remarkably well and with as much attention of the likes of Alex or Red. Orange Is The New Black is quite easily the most enjoyable, interesting, and exciting show of 2013; one that, upon finishing it in about 2 days, I wanted to jump straight back into.

Darkside - Psychic [4th October 2013 on The 405]

With every release, Nicolas Jaar appears to be not of this world. His debut solo release Space Is Only Noise felt like a bolt from the blue; a 2001: A Space Odyssey style monolith bringing, not technology, but a minimalist style to electronic music that instantly felt like it was going to revolutionise the game. Clearly not content with simply sticking to minimal electronic styles, Jaar has spread his wings in the form of Darkside, a project started in 2011 with multi-instrumentalist Dave Harrington. While 2011's debut EP felt like a bluesy, atmospheric piece, Psychic feels like a whole other beast, one that has evolved as Jaar and Harrington has sucked in more styles and influences into their musical black hole.

Psychic has had very little publicity surrounding it beyond a listening party in Brooklyn, yet it's this lack of anything, no overt campaigns, no graffiti, no teasing a release every other hour, that's made real intrigue as to what this release will be like. Something that Daft Punk could definitely learn from; less is more. It's an ethos that bleeds into the album itself. Everything is a shadow of what you might expect, giving the entire album a dreamlike, otherworldly minimalism that feels not too far from a Haruki Murakami novel.

Opening track, 'Golden Arrow' is an 11 minute long summation of what Psychic is about. Beginning with static noises, clicks, and beeps before transforming into this space-age beast as Harrington's whirling riffs combine with the striding beats; the start of your journey. The pounding march of 'Heart', a catchy trip that feels as if Brian Eno's Apollo got infested with Pink Floyd prog guitar riffs, gives way to 'Paper Trails', the latest single from the album, with its dark and mysterious vocals, and echoing blues guitar that feels like an homage to Chris Isaak's 'Wicked Games'; extraordinarily simple but hauntingly beautiful in equal measure.

'The Only Shrine I've Seen' takes you to what could quite easily be a ritual involving the Cult of Prince. Otherwordly vocals mix with ritual clapping and the jangling of wind chimes before leading into disco inspired riffs and Prince esque falsettos, all driven along by a confident minimal bassline.
Album closer, 'Metatron', feels like awakening from the weird and jarring dream that is everything that preceded this track. Your mind is still a jumble; a mix of the sounds of your air conditioner, voices on the radio as you tune it to find a station and the general hustle and bustle outside until it finally clears as the sleek guitars and sultry bassline kick in to deliver you safely back to a world that almost makes sense, but with memories of this dream still present albeit a blur, a shadow of what just happened. Like 'Golden Arrow' it feels like a microcosm of the album but, instead of preparing you to dive in to the album, 'Metatron' makes you want to jump right back in to relive those memories all over again.

Psychic is an album that isn't trying to please anyone but itself and, to many, this could be an instant turn off. There is pretension dripping through it - a sort of "look at what we can do" feeling - but it's a pretension you want to get involved with and embrace. It's an album that sounds as though it was conceived by a bunch of mad scientists, pouring in a dash of blues, some jazz, and some special Jaar minimal formula, while ripping up conventions into as many pieces as it can before strutting away with such confidence and swagger that it's hard not admire this confusing yet infectious creature.

Rating: 8/10

Milk It [2nd October 2013 on The Fly]

There are many songs that, we’re sure, bands have written, recorded and later realised were shit. We all make mistakes. That’s why these tracks get thrown into the deepest hole possible. Yet for some reason (can’t think why), bands and record labels like to dig into this pile of scraps in the hopes of finding a nice little diamond in there. Sometimes it works — and sometimes it doesn’t.

Last week, the long-awaited 70 track reissue of Nirvana’s ‘In Utero’ was released. Among those 70 tracks, there is, however, only one that’s “new”. Aptly named ‘Forgotten Tune’, it feels as though it was forgotten for a reason. It is literally nothing more than a rehearsal practice. When Krist Novoselic et al are wracking their brains to remember what exactly the track is and when it was recorded (sometime around 1988 is the rough estimation), unable to even give it a name, you know they are really scraping the barrel. ‘In Utero’ is a great album, no doubt, but why dig so deep as a rehearsal in hopes of enticing a few more fans to buy it?

Nirvana are not the only ones to have their bins rooted through in such undignified fashion, however. In 1995, 25 years after The Beatles broke up, the surviving members unearthed a home recording made by John Lennon in 1977, ‘Free As A Bird’. The rest of the band decided to release it with their own contributions added to it. It felt to many like a publicity gimmick, and it was. Released alongside a documentary about the band, ‘The Beatles Anthology’, it was the Fab Four’s first “new” single since 1970’s ‘The Long And Winding Road’. It was also a bit crap, meaning The Beatles ended not with a bang, but with a whimper set to an old, unreleased recording of John Lennon.

Re-recording half-done tracks is something of a recurring theme with posthumous releases. 

Sometimes, this can be a good thing — ‘(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay’, for instance, was released a month after Otis Redding’s death, with the signature whistling refrain which Redding had intended to replace with vocals at a later date. And we don’t want to imagine ‘(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay’ without the whistling. Other times, we have Drake getting his beastly paws all over an unreleased Aaliyah track, recorded before she died in 2001, and vomiting out his only contribution of an occasional “yo, what’s up” and a rap about Mario Balotelli. ‘Enough Said’, released last year, is not terrible —  the Aaliyah parts prove exactly why she was coined the “Princess of R&B”, and Noah ’40′ Shebib’s production is hazy and minimal. But then everyone’s favourite Degrassi star-turned-rapper (that list isn’t very long) decides to throw his own verse on top, which feels like he has chucked barbeque sauce all over a meticulously prepared chocolate dessert.


The same thing happened when meathead rapper 50 Cent – who was supposed to have quit music when he lost a bet to Kanye West – hopped into the studio in 2010 to record a verse on an unreleased Michael Jackson song. The result was ‘Monster’ which, unlike ‘Enough Said’, was not great in the first place… and only went downhill from there.

Of course, capitalising on an artist’s success occurs while they’re still alive. Decca Records have a lot to answer for with their decision to re-release David Bowie’s ‘The Laughing Gnome’ not once, but twice. This truly awful song was released as a novelty track in 1967 where it was panned by nearly everyone as the heavy-handed, cockney irritant it was. To get some idea of how astonishingly bad this song is, you’ll have to imagine Crazy Frog going onto carve himself a career as the most influential pop star of the early 21st century.

Luckily, this was before Bowie started making it big and we could class it as a little misstep on the way to greatness. Yet, in 1973, after Bowie had made his name, Decca re-released it and, somehow, it became certified silver in the UK. The only explanation I can think of for this tragic moment in music history is that the government were stockpiling copies to use as instruments of torture.  Then in 1982, tragedy struck again with a re-release designed to commemorate the track’s third decade of existence (and shore up Decca’s own flagging sales). Luckily, this time it flopped in the charts as people tried to scrub the idea that Bowie could be awful from their minds. Little did they know that Tin Machine lay just around the corner.

Nick Drake was not especially given to releasing singles, which was probably for the best given how many people paid attention to his career during his tragically cut-short lifetime. In 2004, he managed the nifty trick of releasing his first single some 30 years after his death, when ‘Magic’ was used to promote the ‘Made To Love Magic’ compilation. The track — which is a long way from being the best or worst thing he recorded, to be honest — was originally left off ‘Five Leaves Left’ recordings until it was exhumed to satisfy a burgeoning public appetite for unreleased Drake material which, in truth, was pretty thin on the ground. By the time another comp rolled around in the shape of 2007’s ‘Family Tree’, even Drake’s mum was being pressed into service in the hope of shoring up a few more quid.

In short: it’s nice to hear unreleased stuff from your favourite artists; whether it’s listening to John Coltrane mess about in the studio or hearing a rough cut of one of your favourite tracks to see how it has developed. You could even argue that, with the Aaliyah track, Drake was trying to bring her music to a generation that might not be aware of who she is, and that is commendable. But, really, if it was utter tripe or could become utter tripe with further messing about, just don’t bother. Burn it. Bury it. Throw it on a landfill in New Mexico. Leave it where you found it. Just don’t tarnish the reputation of artists we love for the sake of a quick buck!

Janelle Monae - The Electric Lady [9th September 2013 on The 405]

When Janelle Monáe made her official debut (after releasing a previous EP which she now tries to ignore as it wasn't from her fully formed self, this tuxedoed, quiffed star we see before us these days) in 2007 with the first part of her Metropolis series, Metropolis: Suite I (The Chase), she stayed somewhat under the radar.

Here was a pretty exciting new artist, inspired by Fritz Lang and Logan's Run mixing funk, soul, rock (every genre under the sun really) that didn't really make much of a splash. It wasn't until the continuation of the series, The ArchAndroid was released in 2010 that people started to sit up and take notice. Hints of John Barry orchestration here, touches of James Brown there, a healthy dose of Michael Jackson and David Bowie all over the place; she finally managed to capture the hearts of the public and critics with her story of a messianic android who defied the rules of Metropolis by falling in love with a human and, as a result, is sent back in time to stop a secret society from putting an end to freedom and love.

The story of Cindi Mayweather was not just a great example of Afrofuturism akin to that produced by the likes of Sun Ra and Parliament but thematically tackled notions of self-liberation, acceptance, and, as the disc jockey on 'Good Morning Midnight' preaches, "love, not hate."

The Electric Lady picks up where The ArchAndroid left off, with Mayweather taking up a position similar to that of Bokonon in Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle, an unseen rebel leader who is hunted by those in power and revered by everyone else though without the utterly confusing mantra of Bokonism of course. Stylistically, as well as thematically, The Electric Lady is similar to its predecessor, with Monáe using a vast array of genres to create some completely infectious tracks, like a chef with a well-stocked spice rack, where a pinch of electro-pop or 50s soul can completely change the feel of a track in an instant.

With guest appearances from the likes of Erykah Badu, Solange Knowles, Miguel, and even Prince, this is an album that is completely jam packed and never really seems to let go. There are 19 tracks here and not once does it really feel like it's stalling for time, even with radio skit interludes which give a nice little glimpse into the world of Metropolis, mainly tackling the idea of "the other" and "the acceptance of the other" with one caller, admittedly a bit too on the nose with his parody of anti-gay protesters, declaring cyborg love is just wrong. 'Look Into My Eyes' does at the start appear to be a carbon copy of a few of the slower tracks on The ArchAndroid but then transforms itself into a Roger Moore era Bond theme-esque beauty. Other than that one minor misstep, it becomes almost baffling that in its full run time it can be so packed with tune after tune.

Lead single from the album, 'Dance Apocalyptic', kicks off with a ukulele riff and pushes it up to 11 from there, making it impossible not to dance along to regardless of where you are. 'It's Code', although one of the weaker tracks, features psychedelic guitars, Vangelis-esque synths, and Monáe's beautifully soulful voice creating something that sounds as though Funkadelic ended up soundtracking a much more hopeful version of Blade Runner. It's this mix of the future and the past that makes Monáe so endearing; everything sounds like it belongs at the time of Cindi Mayweather but heavily rooted in pre-90s pop music. The recruitment of Prince on 'Givin Em What They Love' is testament to this and works well in realising this idea.

The main message throughout the album, and throughout the Metropolis series, is that of equality, particularly of female empowerment and The Electric Lady is loaded with tracks focused around this. 'Ghetto Woman' is one of the most interesting due to how personal it is, especially from a woman who tends to coat her messages in this sci-fi sheen. The track is a tribute to Monae's mother and allows us a glimpse into her life growing up in Kansas City while keeping things as funky as they have been throughout the album.

'The Electric Lady', featuring Solange, is perhaps one of the best "girl power" anthems of the year. Sometimes, the lyrics can get a bit too Hallmark such as on 'Victory', but it's never too overbearing to instil a sense of apathy in the listener; bored due to its unoriginality. In fact, lyrically, the album is extraordinarily strong from start to finish, the highlight, as mentioned earlier, being 'Ghetto Woman'.
Lyrics aside even, the production here is so strong; the classical interpretations of songs on the album in the overtures scattered throughout, the soft harp in 'Victory', the minimal synths giving a sort of Balearic feel to 'What An Experience'. Some may say the album is way too long, and it's unlikely that people will find the time to listen from start to finish so often, but there are so many highlights here that it's incredibly easy to dip your toes into the album at any point and still have a great time with it.
The Electric Lady features so many different styles yet each one is done near perfectly. Moving between genres is seamless and each track is so full of character as a result of this diversity, the exemplary arrangements and, of course, Monáe herself leading the way.

It's easy to see why almost every producer, artist, and critic is hailing Monae as something special. She is the Cindi Mayweather of pop, sent back in time to save us from the risk of banal chart gubbins - so let's follow The Electric Lady to this new land of whip-smart, exciting pop music and rejoice.

Rating: 9.5/10

Hot Natured - Different Sides of the Sun [2nd September 2013 at The 405]

Whatever era of house we're currently living is a far cry from that championed by the likes of Frankie Knuckles and the Hot Mix 5 DJ crew in 80s Chicago. Defining this current wave is extremely difficult; you just need to look at the tracklist for any "deep house" compilations on the shelves of your local supermarkets which features nearly every electronic artist currently somewhere in the charts.  The general consensus though is that it is generally mainstream friendly, with a hint of 90s R&B beats, a dash of modern pop, and some minimal techno to create something that could be played at nearly any point during a sunny BBQ, including long after the burgers have been eaten and the sun has gone down. Of course, the underground purists are none too happy with this move to the mainstream, with the likes of Disclosure and Duke Dumont on the firing line for those unhappy with the state of dance music today. 

Hot Natured are there too but, like Disclosure and Duke Dumont, they're not actively trying to destroy house music, simply take inspiration from the past and put their own modern, pop friendly spin on it, unleashing this world to your average Radio 1 listener. The "supergroup", consisting of Jamie Jones and Lee Foss, co-founders of the Hot Creations record label, as well as Ali Love and Luca C of Infinity Ink, have been one of the main proponents of this move to the mainstream, with sell out shows at Brixton Academy and a domination of radio airwaves over this past year. Their debut LP Different Sides of the Sun has all the tracks that soundtracked many a summer present and a few others that will definitely make an impact on dancefloors across the country but the rest of the album is disappointingly uninspired.

From the off - many of the first few tracks being the big singles - Different Sides of the Sun sounds like it was made by a bunch of guys enthusiastic for the old days of house as well as the new glossy sheen of the Balearic inspired house, which is always a great start. Latest single 'Isis' makes the first real impact which, oddly but intriguingly, sounds not too far from what a Bonobo/Metronomy collaboration might sound like. Sure, the lyrics aren't the most imaginative or exciting, but the beat and odd, punchy synths take you on its own carpet ride to the beaches of Ibiza.

'Reverse Skydiving', filled with Italo disco style synths and a catchy, yet minimalist groove continues this ride whilst hit single 'Benediction' takes things down a notch and settles you down by the pool for a more chilled out affair. It feels light and airy; lie back, close your eyes and feel the sea breeze and sun's rays wash over. Even the often neglected 'Forward Motion' makes such an impact in the context of the album, with its Detroit inspired repetitive pounding alongside those pop sensibilities, probably won't leave your head for a long while.

The problem is, once we get past those first few tracks that have been on every radio playlist under the sun albeit for good reason, there's not much else here. Apart from perhaps 'Detroit', which appears towards the end of the huge 15 track album with its down tempo, minimalist yet no less satisfying beat, nothing here sticks out.

Even a guest spot from electronic legend Roisin Murphy of Moloko fame doesn't really perk things up and we just get track after track of uninspiring house that all seems to bleed into one. It almost seems as though they thought they'd just ride it out with those big hits right at the start and hope the rest is OK, which makes it feel a tad lazy.

Disclosure's Settle suffered from the same problem but, luckily, that only lasted for a few tracks in the middle, picking up towards the end, whereas, here, it continues until the end from somewhere after the first third of the album. This isn't to say it's a bad album, it's just one that seems to rest on its laurels too much. The production is solid, as you would expect from a collective filled with such big names, but there's just not much new or exciting here to really make a big splash.

Rating: 6/10

Preview: Beacons Festival 2013

Leeds Festival is not the only festival to make a major scene in the Summer festival period. Entering its second year (third if we count the year it was cancelled due to floods which luckily didn’t spell the end as many of the artists set to perform held free gigs at Leeds’ Nation of Shopkeepers that weekend), Beacons Festival has made a big splash in the Summer festival circuit, despite some hiccups last year. But now it is back, with significant improvements and a line up to drool over. Mixing big name bands of the now with bands that are sure to make it big in the future, alongside some good old Yorkshire charm, it’s definitely worth paying attention to. Here are where you’ll probably find us over the weekend.

Friday:

Lulu James – Loud and Quiet, 18:50

North East newbie, Lulu James, has been well and truly blowing up in 2013. ‘Closer’ has been all over the radio airwaves, as has ‘Step By Step’. Bringing her soul/disco vocals that scream Donna Summer and Grace Jones attitude to club bangers that wouldn’t sound out of place on Newcastle’s Diamond Strip, this girl is most definitely worth a watch post-tea time.

Bonobo – Loud and Quiet, 22:45

You’ve lasted a whole day. You’ve probably eaten a lot. Drunk a lot. Not properly sat down for more than ten minutes while you wait for your mate to come back from the loo. What do you need? Bonobo. Yorkshire born and bred Ninja Tune legend will be on hand with his downbeat, chilled out tunes to give you a much needed break.

John Talabot – Resident Advisor, 00:00

After being thoroughly chilled out by Bonobo or ripped to shreds by Fucked Up, a choice I am admittedly still torn by despite recommending Bonobo, it’s clear that, come midnight there’s only one place you need to be to end the night. That place is in the hands of Spanish DJ and producer, John Talabot, set to bring his blend of Balearic house to the Yorkshire countryside, hopefully transforming the by then well trampled field into the beaches of Ibiza.

Saturday:

Wolf Alice – Loud and Quiet, 14:30

OK so Friday night was pretty heavy, especially staying up so late for John Talabot. You roll out of your tent, grab your breakfast of a pie or some BBQ food (because why not? You’re at a festival. Breakfast can mean anything here!) and sidle on over to Loud and Quiet. Wolf Alice will definitely blow away any cobwebs you have from the night before. Already making a name for themselves on the festival circuit, their ability to mix the loud and the quiet (making the stage they’re adorning all the more relevant) will wake you up but then give you a bit of time to gather your thoughts before barraging you once more. Just wake up already!

East India Youth – You Need To Hear This, 15:00

Music website The Quietus recently got in the record game. After trying to get labels to sign William Doyle AKA East India Youth after Doyle gave Quietus editor John Doran a copy of his CD at a Factory Floor gig, they thought “Let’s just do it ourselves!” set up The Quietus Phonographic Corporation and released Doyle’s debut EP Hostel. Exciting chilled out pop, it might be a bit of a punt if your timetable is full then but, hey, if The Quietus loves him, he must be at least half decent (NOTE: He’s very good!)

Wire – You Need To Hear This, 23:00

Wire have been going long before you were probably born. They’ve influenced everybody under the sun from REM to Sonic Youth to Elastica (who “borrowed” heavily from a number of Wire tracks) to Bloc Party to The Futureheads to…well….everyone. Now’s your chance to see what everyone has been banging on about for the past 30/40 years.

Sunday:

Sky Larkin – Loud and Quiet, 13:00

Another local band who, until a few months ago, seemed to drop off the map entirely. Already with two fantastic albums under their belt, they took a brief hiatus while lead guitarist and singer Katie Harkin went touring with Wild Beasts as their new keyboardist. A quick shimmy of the line-up, adding These Monsters’ Sam Pryor, and an announcement of a new album, they’re back with a fury and well worth rolling out of bed for.

Savages – You Need To Hear This, 21:00

You’ve probably heard enough about this lot this year. They’ve already proven themselves as an amazing band to smash up the tour circuit, blowing minds on every stage they walk upon. And with debut album Silence Yourself well and truly making waves, head to You Need To Hear This because you need to see this as well as hear this.

Django Django – Loud and Quiet, 21:40

Right, you’ve made it. The weekend is nearly over. Pissed as a fart and probably a little bit heavier (unless you took part in morning yoga to get rid of those burgers from the day before; if so, kudos, you’re a better person than me), you might as well go out with a good old boogie. Django Django will surely provide that with explosively danceable tunes filled with joy. Grab your new mates and just dance the night away.

Special Mention:

Hate the usual festival food? You’re in luck because Beacons have got a line-up of vendors which might just surpass the music on show, or at least it will when you’re stupidly hungry. From Leeds’ Red BBQ providing pulled pork and flame grilled meats to Skipton’s own Pie & Mash and some of the best fish and chips you might ever have at Fish& (operating out of a beach hut, I’ve only managed to catch them once but their chilli batter fish is unbelievable), this isn’t your standard noodles and burgers. To wash it all down, the fantastic Layne’s Espresso, based in Leeds, will be on hand to perk you up with some of the best coffee in Yorkshire. Or, if you’re leaning more towards the alcohol (if so, maybe find a bin to prop you up), Whitelock’s Real Alehouse is holding an ale festival with ales from all over the world. Let’s be real here. You’re probably just going to find me rolling around outside the food and drinks tents all weekend.

Televising Glastonbury is not going to "ruin the world"

At Glastonbury this year, NME interviewed Two Door Cinema Club about what they thought about the festival. In the interview, lead singer Alex Trimble declared that he believed the over 250 hours of live footage provided by the BBC of the festival was stopping Glastonbury from being “as special”. That isn’t quite that high on the “Wiley-o-meter of ridiculous things said during Glastonbury weekend”, but it’s certainly on there, making a significant mark.

In all disclosure, I did not go to Glastonbury this year. I was unable to get tickets because, when they went on sale, I was on a train going through the countryside trying to use what little 3G connection I could on my phone to give it a shot. Obviously, I failed, though I did surprise myself and get shockingly close. I did end up watching a lot of the coverage of the festival live and kudos must be given to the BBC for the sheer amount of coverage they managed to put out online, on the radio, on TV, and on the red button. Sure, the quality was often not too great, with glitches here and there, but on the whole the coverage was pretty great.

But now back to Trimble’s comments. I can sort of understand where he is coming from. Although he doesn’t explicitly mention this, it could be seen that it is unfair on those that have paid full price for a ticket to the festival to then have thousands sat at home also experiencing the same live performances they are but for the price of the TV license and the electric bill. But he misunderstands the whole ethos of a music festival; the togetherness and the memories created. He even discusses how festivals are an experience shared with the people around you, the friends you make and the memories you create, but then argues that those watching at home “poke their heads in”, seemingly as a distraction or a deterrent from making these memories. This is a comment I don’t quite understand. I can’t grasp how exactly a group of people you can neither see nor hear, whose presence is only marked by the existence of the BBC at the festival, can impact your enjoyment of a festival. They’re not getting involved in your memories. They didn’t experience that time your mate got mashed on pills and started dancing with a bunch of hippie folks in Stone Circle as the sun went up. They didn’t experience that time you lost everyone in Shangri-La and so hung out with some girl and her friends that you met by the pizza van earlier in the day that you bumped into.

There’s nothing like experiencing an event first hand. It feels like I’m stating the obvious here, but there’s a huge disconnect between experience an event and watching it on TV. Watching it on TV, for me, was about watching bands I really like perform fantastic sets, but I don’t get swept up in the atmosphere of the crowd. I can see that the crowd are having a great time but it doesn’t have the same effect on me at home as it would if I were there. I can create a bit of atmosphere myself by turning out the lights, whacking on a strobe and necking several bottles of gin over the course of the day but it wouldn’t be the same. For people watching it at home, the broadcast is about the performances themselves; seeing moments like R Kelly hopping on stage during Phoenix’s set at Coachella or Nile Rodgers and Chic doing every amazing number 1 hit he’s ever had his prints on. For those actually at the event, there’s a whole other dimension to it. It’s the meeting people, the food (sometimes horrible, sometimes great), the plethora of other things to do if there isn’t a band on you fancy watching.

It’s still special in spite of the ability to watch it on TV, same with any live show that is broadcast. I didn’t feel a connection to the artist or the audience during my viewing, something I know for sure I would’ve felt had I been there live. Broadcasting takes very little away from the performance, apart from there perhaps being more cameras around. It sure isn’t going to stop ticket sales as I, and many others, having watched the broadcasts are perhaps more keen to experience it for ourselves. It’s a gateway for people at home to see a world that they did not manage to gain access to. This has no bearing on the people at the actual festival. Sure, you might have people when you get back taking the piss because they had a nice warm bed with access to nice food and a good toilet, but did they really meet as many interesting people as you did, or really experience the performances how they were meant to? The answer is obviously no. Broadcasting, put simply, does not reduce anything about the festival experience for those that are there. And to say it’s “ruining the world” is just ridiculously hyperbolic.