Tyler The Creator- Goblin

Is this guy serious? Tyler the Creative? Tyler the Masturbator? For someone who makes as many jokes as Tyler, Goblin could not be more of a contrasting rap masterpiece. In behind the incessant insulting of vulnerable social groups and joking about Chris Brown beating up Rihanna, lies a revolutionary who has experienced way beyond his 19 years. Tyler has developed a new romantic side and slightly impersonates Drake in 'Analog' alongside Hodgy Beats, both voices sound equally smooth and sexual with the pitch changed. Although this is one of the slower points of Goblin, the line 'could you meet me by the lake?' is weirdly infectious and forms one of the overriding phrases on the album. Other recurring phrases on the album are most noticeable on 'Bitch Suck Dick' and 'Radicals', with the unforgetable catchphrase 'kill people, burn shit, fuck school' which is inevitably going to be recited by every teenager who's been sucked into the Odd Future hype these past few months. Tyler has certainly moved from strength to strength and as questioned in 'Goblin', 'Bastard intro, how the fuck I'm gonna top that?' the answer to your question Tyler is 'Goblin', a perfect synopsis of Tyler's career and his life story in just under 7 minutes. The closest to accessible is 'She' which features Frank Ocean, the most smooth talking member of OFWGKTA and a renowned ladies man, 'She' is somewhere in between a Drake and an N.E.R.D song. Goblin' has arrived and it's safe to say that Tyler has shown an incredible amount of life experience for a '19 year old fucking emotional coaster with pipe dreams'.

The English Riviera - Metronomy

As the sound of seagulls and soothing violins provide a fitting 37 second introduction to an equally smooth and well produced album, it's obvious that Metronomy have grown up since Nights Out (2008) and have ditched the heavily synth featured songs for a more chilled out feel. Unmistakably, on first listen, I was impressed with new band member Anna Prior's singing on Everything Goes My Way until it was revealed in the album booklet that in fact Roxanne Clifford from Veronica Falls provided the vocals. her sultry, sexy tone makes the song a clear favourite and the minimal use of instruments makes her voice stand out more. While quietly edging away from his trademark sound, Joe Mount has made a smooth transition between albums and has gone from strengh to strengh. He proves that a band can change their sound without being criticised for being too different. Anna Prior and Gbenga Adelakan have already comfortably settled into the band and at a recent Rough Trade in store, all band members seemed very close and turned around to each other to make eye contact every so often. Joe Mount is a multi-talented performing artist and without finding out how much work he does, you could be fooled that the tasks are shared out equally when Joe Mount plays 90% of the instruments and sings on most songs. An incredibly sleek and sexy third album from Metronomy, the album is almost fautless and you'l be hard pressed to find a person who won't enjoy listening to The English Riviera while sitting by the seaside this summer.

The Vaccines, Oxford Circus HMV, 14 March 2011

The frequently annoying thing about HMV is that they usually choose to play their favourite songs from the newest album released on a loop on the HMV soundsystem. Luckily, before The Vaccines played their short but sweet set, they had other, even more annoying songs playing. As it got to 6pm, half of The Vaccines had been spotted in the venue but an announcement notifies us that something has happened and there will be a delay. By 6:20, the monotonous task of shuffling from one foot to another has spread throughout HMV, losing patience as the band still have not taken to the stage. At 6:30, The Vaccines finally start their set of 6 songs and the soundsystem glitches slightly at the start of Wolf Pack but it only goes from strength to strength. Justin is charasmatic and has one heck of a voice and it's not hard to understand why he's the main focus of female attention. At only 1 minute 22 seconds, The Vaccines speed through Wreckin' Bar (Ra Ra Ra) as people are looking their most enthusiastic. They finish with Norgaard which looks set to be a future hit and is only 16 seconds longer than Wreckin' Bar (Ra Ra Ra), their speciality lying in cramming the catchiest, most energetic songs into a slot of under 2 minutes. At this point, it's hard to believe that this band are only on their debut album, they posess all the traits of a guitar band who have been making music for years and they look genuinely happy to be playing and signing their debut album. There is an aura of naivety and when meeting The Vaccines, it's obvious that their new found fame has not hit them yet and they are more interested in being happy with the music they've made and not being consumed by the hype as expressed in this week's NME article. The Vaccines are paving out the future of guitar music but not everyone is won over yet.

Out Getting Ribs- Zoo Kid

One of the newest talents to emerge from South East London, Zoo Kid could easily trick you into thinking he is an electro inspired, La Roux copy (especially from his haircut). His image successfully manages to deceive you into a pleasant surprise when you listen to the music. With guitars reminiscent of The Maccabees and early Foals, it's hard to believe that Zoo Kid (Archie Marshall) is only 16. His voice evokes emotion and reels you in, wanting to hear more and complimenting his cleverly layered guitars. This is definitely one to watch for 2011.

Ritual- White Lies

After the highly acclaimed and gloomy debut To Lose My Life, there was a lot of pressure on White Lies' shoulders to exceed expectations with their sophomore attempt. Harry's vocals are even more haunting and powerful, subtly making a further transition into their Joy Division influenced sound. Bringing their sound into more epic proportions, they have ditched heavily guitar featured songs for synths, trying to recreate their well known sound while taking a new approach towards their music. Opener for Ritual, Is Love, is tinged in arpeggiated synths and has the best lyrics from the album, "Scarlet as a papercut and jewelled as the orion, she never wore that jewellery as a girl".

The religious references are scattered throughout the album and these hint to the trip that was taken to Tibet in which Charles Cave got some of his inspiration for the lyrics on Ritual. Some may argue that White Lies have taken their ambition too far and have left some of their old fans behind in a bid to become more successful and from interviews, this looks as if this is their actual intention. Although the songs work better as individual songs and do not flow properly as an album, every song is very careful constructed and thoroughly thought out.

8/10

Band to look out for #1

Trophy Wife

After seeing them supporting Bombay Bicycle Club last night at Troxy, I find them a lot more interesting than I did when I first heard Microlite. I believe a new Oxford scene is on its way with bands alike to Foals coming back, which is a good thing. This band is the proof that there is some hope in new music again and to not give up hope after the swarm of pretentious indie bands managing to worm their way into important lists for 2011. Trophy Wife have a lot of potential and they deserve to be heard. They're also really energetic live and I would say their sound transfers better to live than it does on record.

Top 10 Albums of 2010!

1. Bombay Bicycle Club- Flaws































2. Crystal Castles- Crystal Castles (II)



































3. Salem- King Night

4. LCD Soundsystem- This Is Happening

5. Arcade Fire- The Suburbs






























6. Sleigh Bells- Treats



























7. Perfume Genius- Learning






























8. Best Coast- Crazy For You

































9. Darwin Deez- S/T




























10. Everything Everything- Man Alive