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I& #39;m feeling reckless, folks. So it& #39;s *shuffle play night*. Expect random music-based raving and drooling.
First up: Alice In Chains, "Sickman". An absolute blinder, from what is still my favourite AiC album - not a duff track on it. AiC were always my favourite band from the so-called grunge scene - those beautiful, distorted harmonies... yum. #RIP Layne Staley.
Next up: Underworld, "Pearl& #39;s Girl (Tin There)". Frantic, just-as-you-think-it-can& #39;t-accelerate-any-more remix of the Underworld favourite, from one of the formats of the "Pearl& #39;s Girl" single. Praise be for that awesome Super Deluxe set, collecting this sort of stuff together.
#3: Pure Reason Revolution, "AVO". In which PRR go gloriously synthpop. I wasn& #39;t one of those people who particularly liked "The Dark Third", but I *adored* that second album. Sleek electronica with a rock punch & those wonderful harmonies. Beautiful.
#4: Lykke Li, "Love Me Like I& #39;m Not Made Of Stone". A skeletally sparse arrangement for one of Li& #39;s broken-hearted love songs. She& #39;s such a brave & honest lyricist - this is incredibly bleak but her songs are never maudlin.
#5: Banco De Gaia, "Mafich Arabi (Original Demo)". It& #39;s striking how similar this is to the finished article - testament to Toby Marks& #39;s exacting production work. The final track is punchier and the vocal samples are more smoothly blended, but this stands up just fine on its own.
#6: Ex Libris, "The Raid". Magnificent progressive metal re-telling of the story of Anne Frank (in part, anyway - it& #39;s from a three-track conceptual EP), topped off with the utterly extraordinary vocals of Dianne van Giersbergen. This Dutch band deserve a much larger audience.
#7: Genesis, "Dodo/Lurker". About which much need not be said. Masterful stuff - and my favourite track from "Abacab". The drumming is a masterclass, and that vocal is wondrous. Banks& #39;s one finger soloing on "Lurker" is a joy forever. (We all know the answer to the riddle, yes?)
#8: Jean-Michel Jarre, "Revolutions (Intro)". Studio collage intro from the "Destination Docklands" album. Not so much a song as a brief remix. 
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#9: Camel, "The Great Marsh" (Live). Beautifully atmospheric live take from the remastered deluxe edition of "The Snow Goose". But we& #39;ve all heard this, haven& #39;t we? What& #39;s that? We haven& #39;t? Well, get on it, man/woman! #Camelid4Lyfe
#10: Mediaeval Baebes, "Gaudete". Gorgeous choral reading of the old folk song. These ladies always serve up beautiful records, but I heartily recommend the rather more ribald live experience, which will likely make you a lifelong fan. It did me. https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="đ„°" title="Smiling face with 3 hearts" aria-label="Emoji: Smiling face with 3 hearts">
#11: Anna Phoebe, "Mostar". Gorgeous violin from the ridiculously talented Phoebe, allied to a prog-meets-world-music blowout full of unexpected peaks and troughs. The album this is taken from ("Between The Shadow And The Soul") is *stunning*.
#12: Cobalt Chapel, "Mountain". Otherwordly psychedelic folktronica from & #39;Ver Chapel& #39; - this is their "Autobahn", a longer track built on a titanic synth riff and motorik drums, Cecilia Fage& #39;s ethereal vocals singing you to your (final?) rest. Magical.
#13: The Chemical Brothers, "My Elastic Eye". Downright odd distorted drum& #39;n& #39;bass variant from the Chems. That buzzy synth lead will disappoint your neighbours pretty comprehensively when played via a subwoofer. Just saying. https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="đ" title="Winking face" aria-label="Emoji: Winking face">
#14: Tori Amos, "Broken Arrow". Just one of many highlights from Tori& #39;s most recent album, "Native Invader", which is her best for many years IMO. This one addresses inequality with powerful language, and that voice is as powerful & emotive as ever.
#15: Bat For Lashes, "Laura". Unspeakably beautiful, this one - one of my favourites from "The Haunted Man". Natasha Khan at her best, the sparse but haunting arrangement really showing off her spectacular voice and a deeply affecting lyric.
#16: Metallica, "The House Jack Built". One of a multitude of deeply under-appreciated tracks from the ever-controversial "Load". This is actually one of my favourites from this period, the twisted guitar, frankly disturbing lyric and multi-tracked vocals giving it a unique feel.
#17: Karnataka, "Crazy". Ur-Karnataka, from the band& #39;s first album, no less. One of my favourite songs from that early period, Jon& #39;s choral keyboard riff and Paul& #39;s extended guitar solo are a delight. It takes a wonderfully dark turn at the end, too!
#18: Enigma, "Why!..." Typical 90s fare from Michael Cretu& #39;s Enigma, built on virtually the same shuffling drumloop as "Sadeness". Formulaic they certainly have been, but I find Enigma strangely hard to dislike, even if "The Cross Of Changes" is still their best for me. https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="đ" title="Slightly smiling face" aria-label="Emoji: Slightly smiling face">
#19: Belinda Carlisle, "You& #39;re Nothing Without Me". Wonderfully vindictive rocker from the ex-Go Gos vocalist. That voice is still one of a kind, so powerful you feel sure she doesn& #39;t even need a microphone half the time. https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="đ" title="Smiling face with open mouth and smiling eyes" aria-label="Emoji: Smiling face with open mouth and smiling eyes">
#20: Mediaeval Baebes, "Lo, Here My Hert". Beautiful, minimalist reading of another mediaeval relic. You rarely hear these ladies cited as great vocalists, which strikes me as odd and more than a little unfair. This is gorgeous.
#21: Enya, "Even In The Shadows". A somewhat unconventional composition for Enya, despite the tubular bells and the extended choir of Enyas, built on a tumbling bass figure. Predictably lush and lovely, though.
#22: Rush, "Intro" (Live). From the "A Show Of Hands" album. A welcome little snippet of comedy. I can almost picture them wandering onstage. #RIP Neil Peart. It still hurts.
#23: The Corrs, "Toss The Feathers" (Live). From the "Unplugged" album. As has previously been discussed, I have a lot of time for the unpretentious nature & music of these siblings. This is utterly infectious (and not in a Covid-19 sort of way, before someone suggests it).
