If I'm ever summoned to see my bank manager to discuss my music expenditure one of my lines of mitigation will be "it's Brian's fault."
An example. His favourite albums of 2020 post had The Scenic Route by Edinburgh band Dropkick with the following description
They're a little bit country (early Jayhawks) and a little bit rock 'n' roll (Teenage Fanclub around 'Songs From Northern Britain') and have somehow improved upon 2018 album 'Longwave...' and that's saying a lot.
Now if that is not enough to have you reaching for the trigger I don't know what is. The Scenic Route was duly purchased within a matter of hours and Brian very kindly provided me with a copy of their previous album 2018's Longwave.
Both these albums had me wanting more but what to buy.? A bit of a dilemma given there were 16 previous albums available begging the question " how come I have never heard of them before?"
The band very kindly solved my dilemma by announcing the release of a double album The Best of Dropkick to celebrate their 20th anniversary of recording.
A total no brainer. It was ordered at the earliest opportunity and in addition to a lovely personalised note from the main man Andrew Taylor it also came with 2 CDs containing the 30 tracks from the album together with an additional 20 bonus tracks. Value for money or what?
Here are two from The Scenic Route and one from Longwave that appear on the album.
You know what to do
Dropkick - Feeling Never Goes Away
I only had the last couple albums, and this release was the perfect way to catch up with the early stuff I had never heard before. For a best-of album, this one was a very limited release and tough to get. There are a few vinyl copies available on discogs, but the price is already rising. As for Andrew's other band, the janglier Boys With the Perpetual Nervousness, they have a new one out on Sept. 9 via Madrid label Bobo Intergral. Can't wait.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe this band has been making records for 20 years, and I've never heard of them! This stuff is right up my alley (especially "Feeling Never Goes Away). Thanks (to both of you) for the introduction.
ReplyDeleteI'll take this opportunity to once again raise my hat in gratitude to both you and Brian for pointing me in the direction of these guys and, by extension, Boys With the Perpetual Nervousness. The quality and consistency of songwriting is off the scale, with the Songs From Northern Britain comparison being particularly on the nose.
ReplyDelete