Best CD I've heard so far 2011.........

Thanks Bongo, appreciate the encouragement. It's always been a joy to share music ideas with like minds, I enjoy your suggestions as well. I say it all the time here but this era is a special one for music. There is way more incredible stuff out there than I'll ever have the time to hear and even with the stuff I do, I post a pretty small segment of my faves. It's hard to gauge how far guys around here are willing to move off the mainstream. Heck, there are a bunch of great new rap albums I've been into lately but I don't think I have ever seen any rap recommended on this site. When it is brought up, sadly it's bashed and guys start to sound exactly like my Mom circa 1975!

Anyways...keep your recommendations coming and if you enjoy that Shackelton/Pinch record check out Shackelton's Fabric mix (I think it's Fabric 55 but not certain), his album titled 3EP's or the harder to find Soundboy Get's His Nut's Ground Up Proper EP (Skull Disco 3)...a personal fave. Another cool artist just a step beyond that is Senking, his album Pong being a good starting point (on Raster-Noton, a very interesting label). Senking gets much play in my home. If you do give them a go, let me know what you think.

Richard

Given your tastes in music, I suspect you are UK based? Correct?

I operate a variety of touring properties here in America and two clubs in SF and LA. I am always on the outlook for new talent before it breaks. We have a long history of showcasing artists who have gone on to become mainstream and music legends over 30 years. We have booked over 7,000 bands.

I really love the new music coming out of Manchester, North London and South London areas, especially artists like Burial and Laura Marling. These artists you highlighted are not on my radar. How did you come to them?

As for rap, I have already been flamed on this forum. My 30 year old daughter is a huge fan and I love her daily Youtube postings. I love the old school artists, especially Tribe Called Quest, which effortlessly merged jazz with hip hop.

Mike 60

Thanks. That means a lot. I also love the 6 CD acoustic box set by Paul Kelly called the A-Z Recordings. Amazingly recorded--just a voice and guitar. Hard to find, as it was issued only in Australia.

Dave Alvin has several great albums. I love West of the West, which was a collection of California-inspired songs by key Cali-based singer/song writers. Probably the best intro, but like heroin, you will keep coming back for more. :)

Bongo...much closer to the University of Kentucky than United Kingdom! I'm in Ohio. I pretty much spent the 70's and lord knows how long wasted digging through record bins looking for interesting music. It's just always been a passion and now I'm a grown as man with the same passion. Times have changed quite a bit and the internet has become the record bins to dig through. Instead of hanging out all weekend in record stores I jump on line after the wife goes to bed and listen away. There are endless amounts of blogs and music sites for every genre. Lately, I've really connected with the whole UK bass music stuff but that also has led me to German/Eastern European minimal and on and on. I still enjoy folk, americana and that whole thing but love me some variety.

That whole UK electronic scene is fascinating. It's really crossed over and now there is dubstep in a lot of the pop music being made in the US. Radiohead has been doing it longer than most mainstream artists and Thom Yorke is pretty much as much a part of UK bass music as he is indie rock. If you like Burial, he did some remixes and EP's with Thom Yorke as did a bunch of other guys from that scene. I think there is 8 or 9 EP's. Some from the last Radiohead record and some from Yorke's solo thing. There is also a single, Ego/Mirror, that's Burial/Thom Yorke/Four Tet on Hyperdub.

Gotta run but I could go on and on....

Richard

I saw his warm up dates with Atoms for Peace, his effort to peform his solo material live. Incredible. Flea from the PHCP plays bass. I heard they laid down some new tracks.