Best Songs of the Year 2017...so far

As promised, here’s our list with our best songs of 2017 to date! This year, as the "tune harvest" is excellent so far, we have had to expand the playlist from our usual 30 to 40. That is the only change, with the rest of the ‘rules’ remaining the same: alphabetical order, as the proper rank is in December, all songs released during 2017, and just one tune per group. You can enjoy all of them on the Spotify playlist below. Hope you like it, we believe it's a great soundtrack of this nearly past six months!

Afghan Whigs - Demon in Profile

Aldous Harding - Imagining my Man

Algiers - The Underside of Power

Amber Arcades - It changes

Big Thief - Shark Smile

Cayetana - Am I Dead Yet?

Chemtrails - Deranged

Cosmen Adelaida - Contra la Pared

Danny de la Matyr -Lines

Fazerdaze - Lucky girl

Filthy Friends - Any Kind of Crowd

Hater - Mental Haven

Hurray for the Riff Raff - Pa’lante

Jay Som - 1 Billion Dogs

Land of Talk - This Time

LCD Soundsystem - Call the Police

Los Planetas - Espíritu Olímpico

Lunch Ladies - Love Is Overrated

Marika Hackman - My Lover Cindy

Mark Lanegan -Beehive

Real Estate - Darling

Renaldo & Clara - Sense Voler

Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Julie’s Place

Rose Elinor Dougall - Colour of Water

Slowdive - Star Roving

Spinning Coin - Raining on Hope Street

The Bats - Rooftops

The Big Moon - Sucker

The Districts - If Before I Wake

The Luxembourg Signal - Laura Palmer

The Molochs - No More Cryin'

The National - The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness

The Orielles - Sugar Tastes Like Salt

The Popguns - So Long

The Stammer - Over & Over

The Stevens - Chancer

Tim Darcy - Tall Glass of Water

Vagabon - The Embers

We.the Pigs - Go Away

Zuzu - What You Want

And if you want to check the previous years, click on 2011,2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 selections!

Bloodbuzzed's Agenda of Concerts: Winter-Spring

As we did on Fall 2013, we have prepared a new Blog's agenda of concerts, listing the gigs and festivals that we are willing to attend until next May. You can imagine how anxious we are to see all these awesome bands and tell you all about it. Obviously, this isn't a closed agenda. On the contrary, it's an ongoing calendar, so the idea is that the marked dates will increase. Any proposal to expand it will be welcomed. Have a look (and hopefull, see you there)!

My Primavera Sound 2012 playlist!

Primavera Sound Festival 2012 is finally here! Music, music and more music, with some additional parallel activities starting today. With the format of a playlist, here's a little sneak of what I'm going (or at least expecting to) to hear during this week. See you around, I'll keep you informed!

1. Hey Jane- Spiritualized
2. Heartbreaker- The Walkmen
3. Turn On the Water- The Afghan Whigs
4. Waiting on a Dream- Lee Ranaldo
5. September Gurls- Big Star
6. Postcards from Italy- Beirut
7. Trellic- Baxter Dury
8. Fade Into You- Mazzy Star
9. Devil's Spoke- Laura Marling
10. Hollywood Forever Cemetey Sings- Father John Misty
11. Eleanor Put Your Boots On- Franz Ferdinand
12. Don't Do Me No Favours- James Hunter
13. Misread- Kings of Convenience
14. It's Real- Real Estate
15. Don't Fall- The Chameleons
16. Hoop of Love- Dominant Legs
17. Get Myself Into It- The Rapture
18. Love Song- The Cure
19. In the Aeroplane Over the Sea- Jeff Mangum
20. One Day- Sharon Van Etten
21. Starry Eyes- Veronica Falls
22. Hearts- I Break Horses
23. Tonight the Streets are Ours- Richard Hawley
24. Ahora Sabes- Odio París
25. Into the Black- Chromatics
26. Música para Cerrar las Discotecas- Doble Pletina

Primavera Sound 2012: a timetable's drama

The long awaited (and quite troubled) Primavera Sound 2012 timetables are here. Being honest, I expected some tough overlaps, but not to this extent. What a drama. Still pending on a couple of things, like the Primavera als Parcs or the Apolo bands on Wednesday night, but for the first attempt, this is what my PS 2012 looks like:

Wednesday, May 30th, Arc de Triomf
19:00 Jeremy Jay
20:00 The Wedding Present plays Seamonsters
21:20 The Walkmen
22.40 Black Lips
Pending on when will the shows at Apolo start, because I would like to see Chairlift. But very happy The Walkmen has been added to the line-up!

Thursday, May 31st, Parc del Fòrum
17:00 Doble Pletina (Vice stage)
18:20 Baxter Dury (San Miguel stage)
20:40 The Afghan Whigs (San Miguel)
21:50 Mazzy Star (Ray-Ban stage)
23:15 Beirut (Mini stage)
01:45 Franz Ferdinand (San Miguel stage)
First chapter of the "drama". Before The Afghan Whigs I don't have any "mandatory" band but then the headaches begin.Will have time to see the full show of The Afghan and be also on the first row for Mazzy Star? Wilco and Dominant Legs (maybe partially) will be sacrificed for Beirut, and I'm afraid I won't be able to watch Spiritualized because of Franz Ferdinand either...

Friday, June 1st, Parc del Fòrum
16:00 Nick Garrie (Auditori)
17:15 Laura Marling (Auditori)
18:50 The Chameleons (Ray-Ban)
20:30 I Break Horses (All Tomorrow's Parties)
21:45 Big Star's Third (Auditori)
02:00 The Rapture (San Miguel)
After Laura Marling, I won't have time for Jeff Mangum as I will go for The Chameleons, then I will have to decide between I Break Horses and Lower Dens (exactly the same hour). And then, major disaster: Christina Rosenvinge, The War on Drugs and half the show of The Cure will have to be sacrificed for Big Star's Third (can miss seeing R.E.M.'s Mike Mills again). Before The Rapture gig, I guess I will decide between M83 or Codeine.

Saturday, June 2nd, Parc del Fòrum
18.10 Sharon Van Etten (San Miguel)
20:30 Kings of Convenience (San Miguel)
22:00 Real Estate (Pitchfork)
23:15 Chromatics (Pitchfork)
00:45 Yo La Tengo (Mini)
I highly doubt I will be able to make for Jeff Mangum at 19:00 at the Auditorium, which would be the desired options, I guess I'll end watching Veronica Falls (which I was hoping to see at the Primavera al Parc). But the frustration will be nothing compared with the tragedy that follows: Real Estate or Beach House?

Sunday, June 3rd, Arc de Triomf
20:00 Nacho Vegas
21:10 Yann Tiersen
22:30 Richard Hawley
Probably be there before, but the fact I would rather die instead of hearing Joe Crepúsculo again makes me very very careful about it.

As I said, this is just a dramatic draft version. Allow me  to heal the wounds with "We Can't Be Beat", another mesmerizing tune from "Heaven", the forthcoming album of The Walkmen. Goosebumps.

Chickfactor's 20th Anniversary, an indie pop dream

Sorry folks, I know there are many bands reuniting this year to play live: The Stone Roses, Afghan Whigs, At the Drive-In, Refused... but the most amazing announcement has arrived today. The mythic indie magazine Chickfactor (online since 2002 and happily still alive and kicking) is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a very special series of shows. INCREDIBLY SPECIAL!!

Five nights of music (three in NY, two in Washington DC, places where the magazine was born) in April including Stevie Jackson (Belle & Sebastian), A Girl Called Eddy, the great Frankie Rose, among other exciting names, plus The Aislers Set (wow), the band of Chickfactor co-founder Pam Berry, BLACK TAMBOURINE (first show since 1991), and THE SOFTIES!! (first since 2000). I know, capital letters are absolutely in order! 

I would kill to watch both bands live, specially The Softies, live. More shows are in the works. Please, please, please, Primavera Sound Festival bring them to Barcelona! 

Primavera Sound 2012, or how Mazzy Star saved me from heavy metal

Since my last post about the Primavera Sound Festival 2012, the line-up has changed quite a lot, some major and controversial surprises have been announced, such as a big headliner like Franz Ferdinand, and a pretty dramatic cancellation occurred, as unfortunately Guided By Voices won't be in Barcelona/Oporto this spring.

Sure, I'm among the ones that were hugely disappointed by the addition of several bands that doesn't have anything to do with alternative music but with heavy metal (black and death metal being specific). It is just my opinion, but I can't see where they fit at PS (the same applies to the hip-hop and rap acts I'm fearing will be at PS again this year). To be honest, everything was starting to look pretty bad regarding the Festival, with so many artists miles away from my tastes... until Mazzy Star was announced (and then followed by the also exciting Afghan Whigs). Finally a name to make me smile and be anxious about.

I'm still worried about how the line-up is shaping, and some facts like The Beach Boys 50th Anniversary tour scare the hell out of me. But at the same time, other arstists like The Shins or Cat Power have showed up, so let's have some well deserved faith on the PS' organization and their music wisdom. Fadeeeeee into you/ Strange you never knew.....

CONFIRMED ARTISTS FOR SAN MIGUEL PRIMAVERA SOUND 2012

30th May – 3rd June, Barcelona

A$AP Rocky» A.A. Bondy» AraabMUZIK» Archers Of Loaf » Baxter Dury» Beach House» Björk» Buffy Sainte-Marie» Codeine» Death Cab For Cutie» Death In Vegas» Franz Ferdinand» Godflesh» Grimes» Harvey Milk» Jeff Mangum (Neutral Milk Hotel)» Josh T. Pearson» Justice» Lisabö» Liturgy» Mayhem» Mazzy Star» Melvins» Mudhoney» Napalm Death» Neon Indian» Numbers showcase: Jackmaster, Oneman, Deadboy, Spencer, Redinho» OFF!» Orthodox» Other Lives» Sandro Perri» SBTRKT» Shellac» Siskiyou»

Sleep» Spiritualized» The Afghan Whigs» The Dirty Three» The Drums» The Olivia Tremor Control» The XX» Veronica Falls» Washed Out» White Denim» Wilco» Wolves In The Throne Room» Yo La Tengo»

Green- Definetely seeing them. Absolute must
Orange- If there are no overlaps (in particular with the green ones), I'll be there for sure
Yellow- Curious about seeing the artist, or "on research mode"