BBC Album Reviews – why we cover what we cover when we cover it

Since I became album reviews editor for BBC Online in the summer of 2009, I’ve operated a fairly strict system for ‘qualifying’ new releases for review on the site. With a limited budget and 13 genres to cover, it’s essential that I don’t commission a stack of indie/rock releases just because they’re there (and we all know there are lots there, every single week) at the expense of covering one vitally important jazz album, or a reggae LP of significance. The simplest way I have found of ‘qualifying’ reviews is by questioning the teams at the shows playing music on the BBC – the recommenders.

Here, you can find all of the BBC Album Reviews’ current recommenders. Note that some are seasonal, and that some are for now defunct shows. Most regularly tick over, though.

I think (I hope!) this is fairly visible on the site. The vast majority of reviews (over 90% of them in the last three-month period I assessed) will carry a recommendation stamp, linking to other recommended releases by the recommender in question. Here is an example of how this appears on a review page (under ‘Featured On…’).

It’s not a perfect system. Sometimes a recommendation will be withdrawn – this is most common with the 6 Music Album of the Day, when events in the industry necessitate the reassessing of the schedule. Sometimes I will assume a forthcoming album will receive a recommendation, but then – due to poor/non-existent radio plugging, or purely because the album turns out to be a shocker – it falls between the network cracks and runs without a stamp. Just occasionally I’ll have an album covered that I know won’t connect with radio, but that I feel really warrants coverage, but in these situations I tend to write the piece(s) so as not to spend any of my freelancer budget.

But, mostly, the system works. And many a PR (those who I communicate with regularly) is on board with this set-up, and appreciates that for their current release to get covered on the BBC Music pages, it’s going to need somebody on radio liking it enough to put their name to it. This also promotes synergy between online and on-air coverage, and I hope that those who land on a review via a search might click through to see what else that recommender is playing on their show(s).

If you’re a PR and this had never quite clicked with you, I hope I’ve managed to clear things up. I know, I know: this album has got great reviews from The Fly, Rock Sound and NME. I know: Absolute Radio is going nuts for it. And I know: I owe it to myself to give it the coverage it deserves. But if World Routes isn’t saying yes to a review stamp, and it’s the only show playing the artist in question, we’re not going to get anywhere fast.

It should be stressed that this is my system. Another album reviews editor, he or she that fills my boots when I move along, may think differently. But right now this ensures we cover what the BBC music radio networks are promoting, expanding this enthusiasm from FM sounds to wi-fi receivers. I think it works quite splendidly, and (touch wood) there’s not really been a ‘big’ release we’ve missed in nearly three years. Jason Mraz? Yeah yeah, it’s on my desk…

Two minutes with Tyler, the Creator

(Okay, so it’s more like five minutes.)

“Shut UP!”

Tyler, the Creator, is addressing his fans – currently queuing around Brixton’s Academy – from a dressing room window. As soon as he leans out, over the street, plaster-cast arm dangling (he punched a friend – hard, evidently), a horde of camera phones shoot upwards. Girls scream; guys try to look tough. That many are wearing the lurid merch of Odd Future doesn’t do them many favours. This is remarkably close to the clips of Beatlemania we’ve all seen dozens of times; only it’s unfolding right here, right now, for a group whose lyrics include the to-the-point motif of “Kill people, burn shit, fuck school”. (You know they don’t mean it, yeah? Good, good.)

In a few hours, the assembled sold-out crowd – roughly 50/50 gangly lads and short-shorted girls, pre-doors, and largely aged between 14 and 18 (do these kids’ parents know where they are?) – will mosh it up to rap music delivered with a punk intensity, its assorted makers here to promote their OF Tape Vol. 2 (BBC review here). Tyler is the youthful LA crew’s ostensible leader – the main producer, and so far the one true breakout solo star with the XL-released Goblin under his belt; although the older (and rather smoother of soulful croon) Frank Ocean seems set to exceed his standalone successes. I’m meant to be interviewing him for a BBC Music piece, an Album Reviews Q&A. But we don’t get enough time to get anywhere near enough covered for that kind of piece – so here is the transcript from the five minutes I spent trying to get the man (at 21, he’s just about old enough to drink back home) to focus on answering a few questions. Window closed, recorder rolling…

It’s pretty hectic down there.
No, it’s not. That doesn’t count as hectic at all.

I heard you just did Newsnight… (video, below)
Nope. Well, yeah, and that was tight. That might be one of the greatest interviews they’ve ever had, but they’re not gonna use it because they’re some fuckin’ conservative fuck-asses. I’m a wild bitch.

Okay, so let’s cut to the chase, to the Tape…
I want you to sit on me…

Um… so, The OF Tape. I guess it’s nice to be touring with everyone, the whole Odd Future crew, rather than flying solo?
Oh hell yeah, it’s wild. It’s cool… but I’m not gonna lie, I already wanna go home, and eat a fat burger at Roscoe’s.

But you’ve not been in Europe long…
We got here two days ago.

I guess everyone experiences ups and downs when away from home – one minute you miss home, the next you’re glad to be away from it.
Yeah… I like New York a lot. London is like New York – it’s crowded, and there are a lot of one-way streets.

So how long did the OF Tape take to come together? There are a lot of tracks, a lot of voices…
We found time to do it – but I don’t know exactly how long it took. Everyone was working in their own time, so sometimes we’d all be in there together, and sometimes not. I don’t know how to explain it.

So are there tracks where two or three vocalists were never in the same room, at the same time, for that song?
Oh, no. Me and Frank (Ocean) were both there when we did our song; but Hodgy (Beats) wasn’t, because he wasn’t on that song. But then he was there without us to do his tracks. It was that sorta deal. When I did songs with other people, they were there, for sure.

This is a ‘proper’ release, as in I can pick it up in HMV. So is this an album, or a mixtape? As the first OF Tape was a free release…
Well, I’ve never considered the first OF Tape (Wikipedia) a mixtape. I consider it to be an album, as it’s all original productions. I treat everything like an album, expect for the real mixtape, the Radical mixtape (Wikipedia). I don’t know what people consider a mixtape these days – the OF Tape is a tape, not a mixtape.

Do you worry that people will take the ‘Tape’ releases less seriously than a ‘real’ album, due to the way they’re titled? Perhaps they’ll wonder: when is a ‘real’ album coming out?
Yeah, it’s pretty stupid. Someone asked me just recently when I was gonna have a new album out, the day after this new OF Tape came out. I was like, are you fucking serious? People can be stupid. It’s pretty retarded, cos they were at an album-release event, so they can’t ask that question.

Naturally, though, you’re still attracting fans, who might not be up to speed with the Odd Future ‘lore’, if you will, with all the releases…
It’s cool, as everybody starts somewhere. I can’t be mad at anyone for listening now, if they haven’t before.

And you’re addressing a very young audience – I mean, those really are kids queuing outside. Is that empowering, that your audience spans ages.
Our audience is a bit weird, as I see everyone from 14-year-olds to 40-year-olds. Seeing a 40-year-old getting wild in a pit, that’s something.

And there’s a real split, between guys and girls.
A lot of girls be coming to our shows and not giving a fuck… those girls are crazy.

(And it’s here that we’re wrapped up. Thanks for running over, Newsnight. Watch the video for Oldie, The OF Tape Vol.2′s closer, below.)

OddFuture.com
BBC Profile Page

Dates. For the diary. If you like.

Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar

That was hot. Now dig this.

My second Dive Slow night at Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar went particularly swimmingly on the Friday just gone. The setlist from the night is below. THE NEXT NIGHT – free entry, again at Sticky Mike’s, which is found on Middle Street, Brighton – takes place on April 20, 9pm-2am (ish). Come? I’ll make a Facebook event for it, I suppose, soon enough.

Songs played, in the order they were played in…

Lapalux – Moments
Burial – Ghost Hardware
Boards of Canada – The Beach at Redpoint
Robag Wruhme – Tupla Ovi
Lorn – Cherry Moon
Vondelpark – Camels
Halls – Lifeblood
Oneohtrix Point Never – Sleep Dealer
Radiohead – Bloom (Jamie xx remix)
Quakers – Fitta Happier
Main Attrakionz – Bossalinis
A$AP Rocky – Leaf
Blue Sky Black Death – I’m a Greek God
Paul White – Run Shit
Shabazz Palaces – Are You…
Dels – Trumpalump
Bonobo – Eyesdown (feat. Dels)
Ghostpoet – Us Against Whatever
Drake – Lord Knows (requested)
J Dilla – Baby
9th Wonder – Now I’m Being Cool
OutKast – Y’all Are Scared
Kanye West – Power
Tyler, the Creator – Yonkers
Hudson Mohawke – Overnight
Rustie – Ultra Thizz
Sepalcure – Pencil Pimp
SeabastiAn – Love in Motion
Jay-Z/Kanye West – Ni**as in Paris (requested)
M.I.A. – Boys (feat. Jay-Z)
Jay-Z/Jimi Hendrix – A Watchtower Problem
Pharoahe Monch – Simon Says
Notorious B.I.G. – Juicy
Biz Markie – Just a Friend
Beastie Boys – Make Some Noise
J Rocc – Stay Fresh
DJ Shadow – The Number Song
UNKLE – The Knock (feat. Mike D)
Mighty Underdogs – UFC Remix (feat. DJ Shadow)
JJ DOOM – Winter Blues
Dr Octagon – Blue Flowers
Prefuse 73 – Hide Ya Face (feat. Ghostface Killah, El-P)
Company Flow – 8 Steps to Perfection
El-P – EMG
Cannibal Ox – Vein
Madvillain – Accordion
The Pharcyde – Passing Me By
Dangerdoom – Old School Rules
De La Soul – A Roller Skating Jam Named “Saturdays” (yup, played at midnight)
EPMD – Gold Digger
Dr Dre – Still Dre
Snoop Dogg – Murder Was the Case
Snoop/Dre/Cream – White Episode
Kanye West/Nina Simone – Feeling Diamonds
Aphex Twin – Windowlicker
Radiohead – Idioteque
SBTRKT – Right Place
Radiohead – Lotus Flower (SBTRKT remix)
Flying Lotus – And the World Laughs With You (feat. Thom Yorke)
Flying Lotus – Parisian Goldfish
Hudson Mohawke – Thunder Bay
The Prodigy – Charly (Alley Cat mix)
Errors – Pleasure Palaces
Remember Remember – The Dancing

Get updates on this ‘ere thing on Twitter – follow my face.

Fly(er)

FACEBOOK EVENT THING

Diving Slow for a second night

The second of my free-entry Dive Slow nights at Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar, Brighton (INFO) takes place on Friday, March 16. I’ll be playing records from 9pm through until the upstairs bar closes; there’s likely to be something on downstairs at the same time if you fancy flitting between events.

If you’re wondering what the vibe is, here’s what was played last time out, in the order it was aired.

JJ – My Life
Patten – Blush Mosaic
Actress – Always Human
Instru:Mental – Waterfalls
Kuedo – Scissors
Zomby – Things Fall Apart
MANIK – Delorean Soho
Slugabed – Hex Flex
HEALTH – Die Slow (Tobacco mix)
Young Magic – Night in the Ocean
Breton – Ghost Note
Blacnk Mass – Chernobyl
J Rocc – Stay Fress
J Dilla – Baby
9th Wonder – Now I’m Being Cool
Main Attrakionz – Bossalinis
A$AP Rocky – Leaf
Lapalux – Moments
Bonobo – Eyesdown (feat. Dels)
Ghostpoet – Us Against Whatever
Clams Casino – Illest Alive
SBTRKT – Right Place
SBTRKT – Wildfire (Drake remix)
Darkstar – Videotape
Eluvium – After Nature
Emika – Drop the Other
Moderat – Slow Match
Apparat – Arcadia
Modeselektor – Berlin
Flying Lotus – Parisian Goldfish
Battles – Ice Cream
Errors – Pleasure Palaces
Scuba – Action
Notorious BIG – Hypnotize
Madvillain – Accordion
Dr Octagon – Blue Flowers
A Tribe Called Quest – Bonita Applebum
Nicolas Jaar – I Got A
Stumbledine – Kaleidoscope
Cloudboat – Lions on the Beach
Gil Scott-Heron & Jamie xx – I’ll Take Care of You
Adele – Rolling in the Deep (Jamie xx remix)
The xx – Basic Space (Pariah remix)
Radiohead – Bloom (Jamie xx remix)
Radiohead – Idioteque
Oneohtrix Point Never – Sleep Dealer
Gold Panda – Quitter’s Raga
El Guincho – Bombay
John Talabot – Destiny
The Appleseed Cast – View of a Burning City
Washed Out – Feel It All Around
Vondelpark – Camels
Drake – Crew Love
Kanye West – Power
Rick Ross – Hustlin’
MIA – Paper Planes (Diplo remix)
Jay-Z/Kanye West – Otis
Lil Wayne – Drop the World
Pharoahe Monch – Simon Says
Dr Dre – Still Dre
Snoop Dogg – Who Am I?
Snoop/Cream – A Watchtower Problem
Wu-Tang Clan – CREAM
Kelis/Old Dirty Bastard – New Money (remix)
Wiz Khalifa – Black & Yellow
Childish Gambino – LES
The Pharcyde – Passing Me By
Mobb Deep – Survival of the Fittest
Tyler, the Creator – Yonkers
Jay-Z – Dirt Off Your Shoulder
Busta Rhymes – Gimme Some More
NWA – Express Yourself
Stetasonic – Talkin’ All That Jazz
Eric B & Rakim – I Know You Got Soul
Run DMC – It’s Like That
Tim Hecker – No Drums
Michael Jackson – Beat It
Prince – Thunder
Max Richter – The Twins
The Weeknd – D.D.
D’Angelo – Devil’s Pie
Sebastian/Mayer Hawthorne – Love in Motion
James Blake – CMYK
Nedry – Violaceae
Gang Colours – Fancy Restaurant
Robert Glasper Experiment – Smells Like Teen Spirit
Jonsi & Alex – Daniell in the Sea
Jay-Z – Thank You

(phew)

Savage Pixels: the story so far

Some of you might know I write about video games when time allows. As I don’t have much time, I only get pen to paper once per month. But it keeps me happy. These columns, which I named Savage Pixels as it’s a play on the name I use to publish them, run on DrownedinSound.com. You can catch up with ‘em by following the links below. If you like.

Savage Pixels #1 – review of L.A. Noire, and some stuff about Monkey Island and Earthworm Jim.

Savage Pixels #2 – obscure/awful consoles listed in a lovely ‘top five’ fashion, and some news from E3.

Savage Pixels #3 – Gears of War 3 gets a lengthy preview, review-like words are written on Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Bodycount, El Shaddai and Dead Island, and some bargain buys get listed.

Savage Pixels #4 – a bumper preview special looking at the best of 2011′s games-to-come is followed by some gushing over GoW3, followed by further outpourings of acclaim for the month’s ‘Best. Game. Ever.’, Final Fantasy VII.

Savage Pixels #5 – Skyrim gets reviewed (love it, still), alongside Batman: Arkham City, and Polinski picks his favourite games of, like, ever before Streets of Rage 2 gets showered in its own Best. Game. Ever. glory.

Savage Pixels #6 – The top 10 multi-format games of 2011, featuring Portal 2, Dark Souls, Crysis 2 and other titles What Were Really Good last year.

Savage Pixels #7 – a number of sequels/threequels get previewed, including Mass Effect 3, Half-Life is the Best. Game. Ever., and Slimes chats games that he really likes.

Savage Pixels #8 – the PlayStation Vita gets road-tested… well, train-tested… plus there are reviews of Final Fantasy XIII-2, Catherine and The Darkness II, alongside a fantastic selection of personal faves from that there Johnny Foreigner band.

That Shit Crazy.

Jay-Z and Kanye West bring Watch the Throne to London on May 20. If I’m not there brawlin’, I’ll be somewhere bawlin’.

I mean. C’mon.

Deaf Club’s ‘Sunday’ – new single released today

Backed by ‘Mirrors’. Listen to both tracks on Soundcloud. Buy from iTunes/Amazon.

http://www.deafclubmusic.co.uk/
Tour dates on Facebook

Here ends this advertisement for something good.

February. A bit fantastic, actually.

There are a lot of new albums worthy of your money and time floating about right now, making February something of a wallet-stretching month (says the douche who, remarkably, gets these records for nothing). So, to save you searching amongst the bullshit that’s also out/forthcoming, here’s the cream of ‘em. Time-saving, it’s how one rolls.

Perfume Genius (pictured) – Put Your Back N 2 It
BBC Review
Music video: ‘Hood’

The Twilight Sad – No One Can Ever Know
BBC Review
Music video: ‘Another Bed’

Gang Colours – The Keychain Collection
BBC Review
Music video: ‘Fancy Restaurant’

Hooray for Earth – True Loves
BBC Review
Music video: ‘True Loves’

Young Magic – Melt
BBC Review
Music video: ‘Night in the Ocean’

Sharon Van Etten – Tramp
BBC Review
Not a music video: ‘Serpents’

Field Music – Plumb
BBC Review
A live session video: ‘(I Keep Thinking About) A New Thing’

Scuba – Personality
BBC Review
Music video: ‘The Hope’