This summer we spent a week in Brittany in July and a fortnight in Menorca in August. Neither house has television or internet.

The area around Josselin in Brittany is perfect for lazy cycling: the Nantes-Brest canal has lovely towpaths: I saw an otter on one bike ride, and only about two metres away too. We stayed in a village in the middle of nowhere, without street lights or other light pollution sources. We had two cloudless nights and had as good a view of the Milky Way as we'd had in ages. Loads of shooting stars too.

The three of us sat in the car bound for La Rochelle, but still in Brittany. Our car has a cassette deck for which we have a flimsy shop-bought device that also plugs into an iPod. Said device (the 4th we've bought) failed as soon as we departed. What this meant is that we discovered FIP radio. A radio station that plays Bach, then Gillespie, then JAE, then some country, then some funky shit, then tons more jazz. It took me hours back home to work out what station we'd been listening to.

FIP was a revelation. It still is. I know that tons of other people knew about it (particularly in Brighton) and this might seem like saying "I've discovered that I like air!". Like it ought to, FIP provides good archives of its playlist. Which is mostly great. I'm working on having the station play permanently on this site. I think it's only fair that I inflict this on as many people as possible.

In Menorca, we connected an Android phone to some speakers we bought and listened to FIP online. I listened to the World Service as I read my le Carré. We also listened to some Miles Davis and Charlie Parker. I like jazz, but don't really know enough about it. I always love Coltrane, Davis, Bird, Ornette, and I adore the old-timey stuff you can find on Spotify.

We also listened to a fair bit of Magnetic Fields, tons of Talking Heads, and the odd Stones or Royal Trux song when in need of rock.

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Lineup 2011 (my picks in bold):

Aias (SPA)

Ainara LeGardon (SPA)

Animal Collective (US)

Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti (US)

Arto Lindsay (US)

Autolux (US)

Avi Buffalo (US)

Baths (US)

Battles (US)

Belle & Sebastian (UK)

Berlinetta (SPA)

Big Boi (US)

Blank Dogs (US)

BMX Bandits (UK)

Caribou (CAN)

Carte Blanche (FRA)

Caspa (UK)

Cloud Nothings (US)

Comet Gain (UK)

Connan Mockasin (NZL)

Cults (US)

Cuzo + Damo Suzuki (SPA/JAP)

Dan Melchior und Das Menace (UK)

Darkstar (UK)

Das Racist (US)

Deakin (US)

Dean Wareham plays Galaxie 500 (NZL)

Del Rey (US)

DJ Shadow (US)

DM Stith (US)

Ducktails (US)

Dúo Cobra (SPA)

Echo & The Bunnymen performing Heaven Up Here & Crocodiles (UK)

Einstürzende Neubauten (GER)

El Guincho (SPA)

El Mató A Un Policía Motorizado (ARG)

Emeralds (US)

Explosions In the Sky (US)

Factory Floor (UK)

Field Music (UK)

Fleet Foxes (US)

Ford & Lopatin (US)

Gang Gang Dance (US)

Girl Talk (US)

Glasser (US)

Glenn Branca Ensemble (US)

Gold Panda (UK)

Gonjasufi (US)

Grinderman (UK)

Half Japanese (US)

Holy Ghost! (US)

Incarnations (US)

Interpol (US)

Islet (UK)

James Blake (UK)

Jamie XX (UK)

John Cale & Band + BCN216 perform PARIS 1919 (UK)

John Talabot (SPA)

Julia Kent (CAN)

Julian Lynch (US)

Kode9 And The Space Ape + Kode9 Burial Set (UK)

Kokoshca (SPA)

Kurt Vile & The Violators (US)

La Célula Durmiente (SPA)

Las Robertas (CRC)

Les Aus (SPA)

Lichens (US)

Lindstrom (NOR)

Low (US)

Lüger (SPA)

M. Ward (US)

Male Bonding (UK)

Matthew Dear Live (US)

Me And The Bees (SPA)

Mercury Rev perform Deserter's Songs (US)

Mogwai (UK)

Money Mark (US)

My Teenage Stride (US)

Nisennenmondai (JAP)

Nosoträsh "Popemas" (SPA)

Odd Future (US)

Of Montreal (US)

Oneohtrix Point Never (US)

Ornamento Y Delito (SPA)

P.I.L. (Public Image Limited) (UK)

Papas Fritas (US)

Pere Ubu plays "The Annotated Modern Dance" (US)

Perfume Genius (US)

Phosphorescent (US)

Pissed Jeans (US)

PJ Harvey (UK)

Pulp (UK)

Rubik (FIN)

Salem (US)

Seefeel (UK)

Shellac (US)

Simian Mobile Disco (UK)

Sonny & The Sunsets (US)

Sufjan Stevens (US)

Suicide (US)

Suuns (CAN)

Swans (US)

Tennis (US)

The Album Leaf (US)

The Annuals (US)

The Black Angels (US)

The Fiery Furnaces (US)

The Flaming Lips (US)

The Fresh & Onlys (US)

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion (US)

The Monochrome Set (UK)

The National (US)

The Soft Moon (US)

The Suicide Of Western Culture (SPA)

The Tallest Man On Earth (SWE)

The Vaccines (UK)

The Walkmen (US)

Thelematicos (SPA)

Toundra (SPA)

Triángulo De Amor Bizarro (SPA)

tUnE-yArDs (US)

Twin Shadow (US)

Ty Segall (US)

Warpaint (US)

Wolf People (UK)

Yuck (UK)

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Following their hit debut, Oracular Spectacular, was always going to be difficult. And lots of people seemed to find Congratulations a let down. True, it's lighter on obvious hits than the last disc. But this album makes up for that by being an unabashed bit of hero worship. Every song is packed with musical and lyrical references to MGMT's influences, sometimes making it seem more like a covers album than anything else. But the more subdued songwriting and an over all more melancholy sound (notwithstanding some outstanding chorus explosions) led me to love Congratulations even more than Oracular Spectacular. And live, it was even better.

Janelle Monáe - The ArchAndroid (Suites II and III)

Janelle Monáe is really cool. Originally given the nod by Sean Combs because her MySpace videos showed no flesh, and because she 'sounded different', her music is a combination of soul, funk and hip-hop and it's 100% pop. She might be the new David Bowie. The ArchAndroid (Suites II and III) is effectively two EPs on one album, both smoothly combined as single compostions and packing an incredible number of great tunes, inventive rhythms and intriguing android-themed lyrics. The album is produced by Big Boi and there is definitely a pretty clear Outkast influence on its sound... with is always a good thing. She's playing live in Barcelona next February.

Wavves - King of the Beach

I don't know much about these guys but I gather they've divided opinion among their target hipster audience. King of the Beach is just a great collection of surf rock songs played in a psychedelic mode. The album is essentially about being a lazy bum who smokes weed at the beach all summer. If that sounds obnoxious and sad, you won't like this album. If, on the other hand, you think it reminds you of good times, and you like the idea of Beach Boys riffs played at quadruple speed with a ton of fuzz, you will like this album. The band is constantly shedding members (they had a disastrous on-stage meltdown in Barcelona in 2009), so I've no idea what they sound like currently. Either way, the record is cool. I might sneak a few tracks onto the New Year's Eve playlist.

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Click here to view the embedded video.

Rock Island Line contains some striking rhythmic devices, as well as including many themes later found in rock and roll.

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For guitar, I'm learning that Mississippi John Hurt is basically all you need to hear

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From a different genre, Rebirth Jazz Band of New Orleans provide the music that opens the TV show Treme's first episode. I Feel Like Funkin' It Up should get anyone dancing

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Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Click here to view the embedded video.

I make no apologies for the quality of the videos. It's about the songs, innit.

tombcn.com - my blog posts about travel, books, food and music

Click here to view the embedded video.

tombcn.com - my blog posts about travel, books, food and music

This is the line up so far. It's pretty much final, though a few more acts will likely be named. The big names so far appear to be The Charlatans, The Fall, Gary Numan, Orbital, Pet Shop Boys, Pixies, Wilco and Wire.

A Sunny Day In Glasgow
Apse
Atlas Sound
Beach House
Beak>
Ben Frost
Best Coast
Bigott
Bis
Biscuit
Black Lips
Black Math Horseman
Boy 8-Bit
Broken Social Scene
Built To Spill
Camaron, La Leyenda Del Tiempo
Circulatory System
CocoRosie
Cohete
Cold Cave
Condo Fucks
Crocodiles
Delorean
Diplo
Dr. Dog
Dum Dum Girls
Emilio José
Endless Boogie
Fake Blood
Florence + The Machine
Fuck Buttons
Ganglians
Gary Numan
Grizzly Bear
Half Foot Outside
HEALTH
Here We Go Magic
Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions
Japandroids
Jeffrey Lewis & The Junkyard
Joker featuring Nomad
Junip
Lee "Scratch" Perry
Les Savy Fav
Lidia Damunt
Liquid Liquid
Low performing "The Great Destroyer"
Major Lazer
Marc Almond
Matt & Kim
Mission Of Burma
Moderat
Monotonix
Mujeres
Nana Grizol
No Age
Nueva Vulcano
ODDSAC
Orbital
Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy)
Panda Bear
Pavement
Pet Shop Boys
Pixies
Polvo
Real Estate
Roddy Frame
Scout Niblett
Seefeel
Shellac
Sian Alice Group
Sic Alps
Sleigh Bells
Spoon
Standstill
Sunny Day Real Estate
Superchunk
Surfer Blood
The Almighty Defenders
The Antlers
The Big Pink
The Bloody Beetroots Death Crew 77
The Books
The Bundles
The Charlatans performing "Some Friendly"
The Clean
The Drums
The Fall
The Field
The King Khan & BBQ Show
The New Pornographers
The Psychic Paramount
The Slits
The Smith Westerns
The Wave Pictures
The XX
Thee Oh Sees
Titus Andronicus
Tortoise
Ui
Wilco
Wild Beasts
Wild Honey
Wire
Yeasayer

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For what it's worth, I don't like genre labels as they always end up being exclusive rather than inclusive. Here's hoping that the Anti-Folk Brigade don't get called out to tonight's Jeffrey Lewis gig in Barcelona.

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Click here to view the embedded video.

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My question to you is simple: which song would you pick if you had to pick just one song? Imagine yourself on a desert island, with only one song to accompany you... what would it be? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below... if you comment with a YouTube/similar link, I'll add the video to this post.

My choice: it was a difficult decision, but currently I lean in favour of I'll Be Your Mirror, by Lou Reed, performed by Nico and the Velvet Underground. It's a near-perfect love song with great guitar that still manages to pack some poetic punch. Here's a video, in case you didn't already know this fantastic piece of music.

Click here to view the embedded video.

From Sophie:

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From Than:

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From Algernon:

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From El Primo:

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From Mike:

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12 Crass Songs is a freaking amazing album. Buy it now and have your life improved. Lewis takes songs by the anarchist punk collective Crass and converts them into listenable, danceable pop masterpieces. Thanks to Chris and Joe for switching me on to this last year.

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At the same time, it really is a great song, wonderfully produced. Together with 'Teenie Weenie Boppie', 'Les Yeux Bleues' and 'Made In France' it cements Gall's '1968' album's status as both a pop classic and the rearguard action taken by writers like Gainsbourg against the threat of rebellious American rock'n'roll. This is a subject I intend to write more on soon, so I'll leave you with France et Maurice...

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Partly as a result of better behaviour, and partly because Gemma and I found it easier to strike out on our own, we saw more bands this year and certainly enjoyed more of what we saw. The new system for drinks tickets, which involved buying them drink by drink at vending machines was disatrous at the beginning of the festival, but ended up being simpler and more efficient. In contrast with Summercase (which won't happen this year), the Rock Delux stage faced the stepped amphitheatre it occupies, so while sat we didn't have to crane our necks to see the bands.

Anyway, here's my breakdown of the bands we saw - graded according to my patented binary review system.

Thursday

Spectrum - 1

The Vaselines - 1

Joe Crepusculo y los Destructores - 1 (a surprisingly good Spanish band)

My Bloody Valentine - 1

Yo La Tengo - 1

The Bug - 1 (an early highlight)

Aphex Twin - 1

Friday

Tokyo Sex Destruction feat. Gregg Foreman - 1

Spiritualized - 1

Carsick Cars - 1

Art Brut - 1

Sun O))) - 1

Throwing Muses - 1

The Mae Shi - 0

Jarvis Cocker - 1

Saint Etienne - 0

Saturday

Kitty, Daisy & Lewis - 1

Plants & Animals - 0

Herman Dune - 1

Neil Young - 0

Oneida - 0

Deerhunter - 0

Ghostface Killah - 1

Sonic Youth - 1

Black Lips - 1

You'll notice very few 0s in this review. I can't say why that is, but my hunch is that I had fewer must-sees on my list than in previous years, meaning I was free to enjoy plenty of bands I'd never heard much from. My main disagreement with how the festival was organised was the way Neil Young was billed. When he started, there was a block of over an hour when no one else played on any stage, meaning that we were effectively forced to watch his show. By all that's sane, I should probably be a bigger fan of Neil Young than I am. But the truth is that he leaves me just a little cold, and this episode of dedicating the entire early part of Saturday night to him (I suspect it was a contractual obligation), pissed me off. Plus, there was a terrible artist on stage all through his set, 'creating' a two-dimensional representation of the concert as Young and his band played. Half the time, it looked like nothing more than a turd.

Despite that, Primavera Sound 2009 was, for me, a great festival. We caught up with loads of old friends, made some new ones, and enjoyed some excellent concerts. Roll on Primavera 2010!

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If you've never been to an official penya (they exist for most football clubs but around here they're predominantly F.C. Barcelona-affiliated), these official supporters' clubs are often the finest places to watch a good football match, provided you back the penya's team. You need to make sure you get there early, though. For the second semi-final, I got there over an hour before kick-off and barely managed to snag a couple of stools in the non-smoking area (shock, horror!). For tomorrow's game, I've booked a table in the smoking area - three years ago, I did the same thing, and when I offered my name, the owner simply shook her head and said 'Els estrangers', 'the foreigners'. This time, she at least admitted she knew me and allowed 'Tom' to go on her bit of paper. We'll see how well this works out around 8 tomorrow evening.

I'll avoid predicting the outcome of the game because my hope that Barça will win is far greater than any knowledge I'd ever profess to having of the game. Suffice to say: I reckon it'll be hard for both clubs, and while Man U may be favourites, I do think that Barça can win it.

And if they do, it'll set off a great long weekend of celebrations. Because while I'll be in the office the next day, whatever happens, Thursday night sees the start of Primavera Sound - Barcelona's pop festival and officially the first party of the summer (well, that's what I always say). The lineup is pretty good, and this year I'll probably be aiming to take in a few newer bands I don't know so much about (any recommendations are welcomed). The festival runs until Saturday, but even better news is that Monday is 'second Easter', meaning we get another day off! Skill!

So it could be a brilliant few days or just a very good few days. And you can't say fairer than that.

Força Barça!

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Dijous 28 de maig, Jueves 28 de mayo, Thursday 28th of may
My Bloody Valentine, Aphex Twin, Yo La Tengo, The Jesus Lizard, Phoenix, Squarepusher, The Vaselines, Spectrum, Andrew Bird, Jay Reatard, Lightning Bolt, The Bats, Marnie Stern, Dead Meadow, Ponytail, Ebony Bones, Wooden Shjips, The Bug, Bowerbirds, Joe Crepúsculo y Los Destructores, Wavves, The Tallest Man On Earth, Women, Magik Markers, Veracruz, Girls, Cuzo, Meneo

Divendres 29 de maig, Viernes 29 de mayo, Friday 30th of may
My Bloody Valentine (Auditori), Bloc Party, Jarvis Cocker, Spiritualized, Throwing Muses, Saint Etienne, Shellac, Joe Henry, Art Brut, A Certain Ratio, Sunn O))), Magnolia Electric Co., Jason Lytle, The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, Michael Mayer, Dan Deacon Ensemble, Rhythm & Sound (Mark Ernestus), The Mae Shi, The Drones, Bat For Lashes, Damien Jurado, Fucked Up, Tokyo Sex Destruction, Crystal Stilts, Vivian Girls, Crystal Antlers, Uffie, Extra Life, Mahjongg, Carsick Cars, Sleepy Sun, Los Punsetes, Skatebård, Extraperlo, Rosvita

Dissabte 30 de maig, Sábado 30 de mayo, Saturday 30th of may
Neil Young, Sonic Youth, The Jayhawks, Michael Nyman, Ghostface Killah, The New Year, Liars, Herman Dune, Deerhunter, Black Lips, The Bad Plus, Gang Gang Dance, Oneida, Th' Faith Healers, DJ /rupture, Ariel Pink, El-P, Simian Mobile Disco, Jeremy Jay, A-Trak, Jesu, Alela Diane, Shearwater, Kitty, Daisy & Lewis, The Soft Pack, Chad VanGaalen, Plants & Animals, The Secret Society, Maika Makovski, Zombie Zombie, The Lions Constellation, Lemonade, Dj Mehdi

Bold denotes acts I'm looking forward to.

UPDATE: Recently announced additions include Neil Young and Jarvis Cocker. I do believe this could be the best festival ever.

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