Whereas We Were Promised Jetpacks’ previous album In The Pit Of The Stomach, released in 2011, was good, albeit at times a little unfocused, their new album Unravelling shows a band fully reaching their potential and producing something very special indeed.
The whole album displays a confidence that was previously unseen and that, coupled with the addition of new member Stuart McGachan on guitar and keyboards, gives us a body of work that may just be destined to propel the band to the next level.
It’s perhaps an obvious comparison but We Were Promised Jetpacks' career does somewhat mirror that of Frightened Rabbit's. Like them, WWPJ are making headway in America, albeit under the radar somewhat, and like Frightened Rabbit's 2013 album Pedestrian Verse, Unravelling will ensure that progress continues. Where WWPJ differ from Frightened Rabbit however is sonically in that they offer a more polished sound and one that at times genuinely thrills which in places redolent of REM, Radiohead circa The Bends, and Nick Cave.
The band’s post-rock and punk influences have been given a fine tuning but haven’t been diminished; if anything the band are sounding better than they ever have done to the extent that they experiment with different styles and do so successfully.
Opener Safety In Numbers mixes precise math-rock with soundscaped post-rock whilst lead singer Adam Thompson drapes his distinctive vocals over the top, lamenting "There was a time I didn't feel right". Recent single I Keep It Composed a slower tempo number, controlled and focused the rhythm section doing exactly what the title suggested, whilst Thompson strains about keeping poised, staying together and keeping controlled. What keeps this track so exciting is the feeling that the band are aching with every sinew to let loose but just, just manage to keep it composed.
From the rest of the album Night Terrors and Disconnecting are the other standout tracks, the latter’s foreboding lead piano line and echo laden vocals bringing to mind Radiohead before Thom Yorke started mumbling and covering everything in bleeps.
The album’s penultimate track Peace Of Mind is an interesting and sonically experimental track with an extensive instrumental breakdown that at times brings to mind Mogwai, and harks back to the long building intro demonstrated on Keeping Warm from the band's first album. Showing the band are still keen to push the boundaries of their own music, it's a great finish to the album.
Unravelling is We Were Promised Jetpacks' strongest album to date and one with which they take a huge leap forward. Their ambition deserves reward.
- David McElroy
We Were Promised Jetpacks - Unravelling is out now via Fat Cat Records and is available from all good record shops and online music retailers as well as directly from the label here.
The Scottish Fiction Sessions continue as I welcomed Corrie from Pinact
into the studio for a chat and some live music. Sounding excellent on
the eve of the bands trip to New York, he treated us to three live
tracks, including a Weezer cover.
The show is also jam packed with new music from We Were Promised
Jetpacks, RM Hubbert, Stanley Odd, Conquering Animal Sound and more
more more.
I got snapped at Doune The Rabbit Hole putting my fine slimline athletic build to good use. Full of grace and poise I'm sure you'll agree! Included in this week's show is some chat about the festival along with a blinding reminder of how good Errors are. We also get our fill of new Scottish music with the returns of We Were Promised Jetpacks, The Twilight Sad and Pronto Mama.
Anyone who's ever seen We Were Promised Jetpacks live can pay testimony to the intensity and passion that burns within the band. On the stage is where Jetpacks thrive, so it's apt that the first new material we hear from the band is a live version of new track Peace Sign.
Taken from their forthcoming live album E Rey Live In Philadelphia, the track is a little fuzzier than you'd be used to from WWPJ's, albeit it is live. There's plenty of punch in however in the instrumental breaks, showing that the band haven't lost any of their potency. With hints of breakup and torment in the lyrics, and Adam's voice in fine form, all signs point towards album number three being something to look forward to.
Returning for its fifth year in Glasgow, Stag & Dagger 2013 boasted all the bravado and swagger of a really well run festival that knows how to have a good time. Perhaps there wasn’t the same calibre of international artists, which have played in previous years, (think Warpaint, White Denim, Milk Music) but don’t let that fool you into thinking the standards were anything other than outstanding.
As usual the festival spread its wares out over multiple venues in the
city centre, and with the owners of the now defunct Captain’s Rest
moving to the recently opened Broadcast, you could easily have
re-branded the day ‘The Sauchiehall Street Festival’. Along side
Broadcast, it’s neighbours Nice N Sleazy’s, The Art School, ABC1 & 2
and CCA, the
Renfield Lane
based Stereo completed the venue line up. Big tick for saving me
walking great distances. Shame about the rain though.
Opening up proceedings at the ABC2 were the endearing Kitty The Lion, who drew an impressive crowd eager to check out their brass laden
set. At the core of Kitty’s appeal is the feel good folk music that is
given a pop reboot, creating insanely catchy melodies and leaving the
crowd warmed in spirit and momentarily forgetting the dreich downpour
outside.
With a bit of downtime before Fake Major took to the stage at
the CCA, and with no desire to go back outside, there was time to check
out South Londoners Filthy Boy. It’s a tell-tale sign of my ageing
that the first, and lasting, thought I had was how young these lads
looked. Lead singer Paraic Morrissey, growled Nick Cave baked vocals,
whilst the band strained at the leash, treading that line between
keeping in check the dark ‘60’s rock and roll vibe and the feeling that
at any point they were going to let loose in a orgy of noise.
Over in the cultured setting of the CCA, Fake Major, duo Richard
Ferguson and David McGinty were justifying just why they had been named
on the 16 strong list for this year’s T-Break stage at T in the Park.
Their PR material bills them as a four armed singer-songwriter, and it’s
the most apt description one can give when trying to explain how linked
and connected their performance is. Every string strummed, every
harmony sung, is completely synced and complements the other perfectly.
My companion for the evening remarked they possessed the kind of
musical synchronicity last seen by a certain Messrs Simon and
Garfunkel. New tracks, such as ‘Little Researcher’, sit side by side
with Endor favourites such as ‘Chapel Doors’. “I said I loved you and
isn’t that enough?” muse the duo on the latter of those tracks,
displaying the kind of emotional yearning that sweep the crowd along,
hanging on each and every word.
‘Technical difficulties’ meant a much latter than billed stage time
for electro-pop trio Prides at The Art School. Hopefully that didn’t
lead to people missing them as along with Fake Major, they were the
undoubted standouts of the day. It’s not often that a band comes along
and so early on is able to deliver a complete package. Live show,
tightly worked instrumentation, and blistering vocal delivery wrapped up
in so much heart and belief, it was impossible not to be in awe. Now
some will rightly point out that Prides are themselves a rebirth of the
band Midnight Lion, so technically aren’t brand new. Fair enough, but
with this being only their third live set, and with most of the packed
venue singing back the choral hooks of set closure ‘Out Of The Blue’,
it’s evident that Prides have gone about things in the right way. With
a tip from CHVRCHES, and airplay across several BBC Radio One shows
already, (plus a certain community radio station too), you’ll be hearing
a lot more of their striking drums, shimmering synths and anthemic
electronica.
Returning to the venue they headlined back in December 2011, and also back in 2010 as part of that year’s Stag & Dagger festival, We Were Promised Jetpacks strode onto the stage at ABC1 hell bent on enjoying themselves. I’ve seen the band four times previously, witnessing their always impressive live set grow in stature. With no new material since last 2011’s sophomore effort ‘In The Pit Of The Stomach’ their set consisted of fan favourites played with unyielding fury and intensity. Mixing nerve-endingly raw emotions with maxed up guitars, it’s the perfect end to what has been a wonderful opportunity to revel in what Scotland does best. Music.
This year will be the first time in the last eight years that I
will not be up in Balado for Scotland's largest and premier festival T In The Park.
It's due to lack of money, a poorer-than-it's-rivals line-up and
boredom of the overcrowded festival scene. That said however, there is
still plenty of musical talent on show this weekend, and for those going
here is Scottish Fiction must-see picks!*
* I don't know stages and stage times for most bands. Sorry!
Friday
New Order
The choice of headliner has to be New Order. They might be
sans-Hooky, but with a back catalogue as diverse as theirs and hits such
as 'Crystal', 'Blue Monday' and 'True Faith', it's the best way to
close your Friday evening.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre
American psychedelic, folk, experimental group will be an interesting and entertaining performance.
Bwani Junction
Probably not quite as exciting as their gig played today on top of the Forth Rail Bridge, the boys will be bringing their Afro-Indie Rock to Balado. Check them out and do a dance to 'Two Bridges'
Saturday
The Stone Roses
A few things need to be made clear. I don't think The Stone Roses are
the greatest band ever. I don't think their debut album is the greatest
album ever. And I know that Ian Brown can't sing. But indulge
yourself in two hours of nostalgia and sing along to tracks such as 'She
Bangs The Drums' and 'Waterfall'.
We Were Promised Jetpacks
Fresh from a SAY Award nomination and playing Coachella earlier in the year, Jetpacks know how to put on a stormer of a live show. If you've never seen the rising stars of Scottish indie before, rectify this on Saturday.
Django Django
Do you want to dance? If they answer to that was yes, then you need to see Django Django at TITP. Their self titled debut is one of 2012's best so far and their tight playing on stage always impresses.
Hector Bizerk
Fancy some Scottish hip hop? That's right, Scottish hip hop. Guaranteed to open your eyes to the talent that exists in this particular genre and entertain, Hector Bizerk are worth a visit in the BBC Introducing stage.
United Fruit
Last year they played the T-Break stage, this year they are on the BBC Introducing stage. Noisy, frenzied, furious rock, United Fruit are not to be missed.
Randolph's Leap
Playing the T-Break stage, the folk pop of 8 piece Randolph's Leap will bring a smile to your afternoon, especially if it's raining! We had lead singer Adam live on the show last week so you can listen back to the podcast for a taste of what to expect!
The Machine Room
If the Stone Roses are your final destination on Saturday, then The Machine Room should be one of your pit stops along the way. Style and substance included.
Sunday
The Horrors
Eehh... I had to go down the lineup until the writing got really small for my first pick on Sunday. Sorry folks it's gonna be a tough day music wise. The Horrors will be good though so go see them.
Admiral Fallow
If the main stages disappoint, then head to the BBC Introducing stage, where Scottish indie-folk leaders Admiral Fallow will be showcasing material from their new album 'Tree Bursts In Snow'. They were great at RockNess so expect a good performance.
Miaoux Miaoux
Another one of 2012's finest albums, Miaoux Miaoux's 'Light Of The North' is an electronic-poptastic journey and translates perfectly onto the live stage. Expect Julian to be bounding from guitar to synth to keyboards like a Duracell bunny with purpose. 'Hey Sound!' is a particular live favourite. I cannot emphasise this strongly enough... GO SEE MIAOUX MIAOUX!
Beerjacket
Another Scottish Fiction favourite, Peter Kelly, a.k.a. Beerjacket, is finally getting a bigger audience. At times delicate, and at others playful, Beerjacket's set will be filled with tracks from his excellent 2011 album 'The White Feather Trail'. Again, a must see.
Whatever you get up to this weekend in Balado, enjoy!
Happening this weekend is another new music festival, proving that the appetite to organise small scale music events in places outwith the central belt is alive and well. This is the first year that Dirty Weekender has run, yet with SAMA's organiser Richy Muirhead on board, things have been well organised, promoted and they boast a line up that other more established events should be jealous of.
Kicking off on Friday 1st June and running over the full weekend, the festival is split between two venues, Bakers and Dirty Martinis. I'm not familiar with the town personally, but I'm informed that both venues are well known as good music enviroments.
Tickets are on sale now for the festival via Tickets Scotland in-store & online. Weekend passes are £25 Day Tickets £12 (Excluding Sunday £15) http://tickets-scotland.com or 0141 204 5151
The big name is of course We Were Promised Jetpacks who have only a few weeks again been amazing people at Coachella. Catching them in such a small setting should be a treat, and worth the Sunday ticket price alone. Other than that my tip would be to camp out in Dirty Martinis on Saturday 2nd June, where several of my favourite singer songwriter type chaps will be. Julia And The Doogans, Shambles Miller, Mike Nisbet. It'd be rude not too.
You the good public were invited to vote for your favourite album for The SAY Award longlist on Monday. The votes are now in, and the Shortlist of ten will be announced tomorrow. On Monday's show we played a track from our ten picks, as well as plenty of great new music from Plastic Animals, Satellite Dub, PAWS and more! There's also a track from Plum whose album we recently reviewed, a Peenko Friday Freebie and some previews of Stag & Dagger which takes place on Saturday. Enjoy!
It's been two weeks since The SAY Awards Long List was announced and hopefully you've been busy familiarising yourself with the unknown quantities that it threw up. As there's also now less than two weeks until the all important public vote, and with the winner of said vote guaranteed a place on the Short List of ten albums, there's a lot at stake (£10,000 to be precise!) As one of the 100 nominators for the SAY Awards, we were chuffed to see four of our five selections make the Long List. And we've decided to give you the low-down on each of these four albums.
That isn't to say that the other 16 albums are not worthy of your vote or being the overall winner. Indeed there's plenty of other worthy contenders in our eyes, and we'll come to them in due course. We all have our favourites and these four albums happen to be mine. That said the most important thing is to make up your own mind and you can do that over at the SAY Awards official site.
Without further ado, here's the first of our choices, 'In The Pit Of The Stomach' from We Were Promised Jetpacks.
'In The Pit Of The Stomach' is We Were Promised Jetpacks sophomore album, released on Fat Cat Records on 4th October 2011. It was probably one of the albums I was most anticipating last year. Opener 'Circles And Squares' has the same vibe as 'Quiet Little Voices', a favourite from debut 'These Four Walls'. Preview track 'Act On Impulse' (which you can still download for free on the band's website) hooked my interest with its simplistic beat and showing off the band's penchant for long intros. And the lead single 'Medicine' is as strong a song as the band have ever released.
The album continues in the same vein as debut 'These Four Walls', with Thompson's distinctive vocals often the power behind the songs. That listeners are in tune with the brogue and gritty Scottish accent is due, in part, to the success of Frightened Rabbit and The Twilight Sad, both of whom loom large over any Scottish indie output. While 'These Four Walls' carried with it the vigour of youth and the raw edge of transferring songs which has long lived in live performances onto record, 'In The Pit Of The Stomach' is much more assured and confident. 'Sore Thumb' is another stand out track, reminiscent of Explosions In The Sky with it's winding and epic intro and the excellent 'Pear Tree' closes things off in spectacular style. If 'In The Pit Of The Stomach' does anything, it shows that We Were Promised Jetpacks are here for the long haul.
Why should 'In The Pit Of The Stomach' win The SAY Award 2011?
This, ultimately, is the question that I had to ask myself when nominating the album, and one which you should ask when deciding to vote, or not vote, for it. The answer I feel is that We Were Promised Jetpacks represent one of the biggest talents in Scotland that is likely to be marketable and popular the world over. Can you image the next 'Biggest Band In The World' tag being attributed to these guys, and the impact that could have on the Scottish music community as a whole? That may sound ridiculous, being that The SAY Awards are not about sales figures, and believe me I think 'In The Pit Of The Stomach' critically holds up against everything else on the list, but there is that tingling of pride at the thought. I watched the highlights of We Were Promised Jetpacks playing Coachella and to see folk in California loving what these guys do, makes me want them to do it more, and to more people.
Finally, if all of the above isn't enough, we caught up with the band to pose a few questions about the whole proceedings to them. Special thanks to the guys for taking the time to answering. Have a read below.
Hi, how are you?
I am doing just great, thank you!
Congratulations on 'In The Pit Of The Stomach' being longlisted for The SAY Awards. How do you view The SAY Awards as a whole?
Thank you! It's nice to be nominated for any award let alone the Scottish Album of the Year! We've been on tour for the past few weeks and only recently found out we were nominated so haven't actually had a chance to fully have a look at the awards but of what I understand and who is on the panel it sounds great!
Scots are notoriously self deprecating. How important in your view is The SAY Awards in terms of highlighting the talent that spans across many genres here in Scotland?
After looking through the long list you can clearly see how different all of the albums are. It doesn't stick to just one genre which I think would be the easy option, there are so many indie and rock bands in Scotland nowadays that you could easily pick 20 just from that genre.
We have a tiny nation bursting with talent, yet not often do we shout about it. Do you think a lack of a sense of self-importance helps nurture better music?
No. I don't think that's true. I think musicians who work hard and genuinely enjoy playing music make better music than people who just 'want to be in a band.'
A lot of people, rightly or wrongly, don't see industry awards as a positive thing. As musicians how affirming is it to have your work recognised with nominations and awards such as this?
As I said before, being nominated for any award is always a nice thing. It shows that people are taking notice of what you are doing! We don't get nominated for awards very often!
'In The Pit Of The Stomach' is of course your second album as a band, what are the resounding positive memories you have from creating this album?
Hearing Sore Thumb back for the first time was great, it turned out a lot better than we thought it would. We never had plans for that song to make it on to the album and we recorded it with the idea of using it as a B-Side or a bonus track perhaps if it was good enough. But after hours of trying to work out exactly how long each section was, what parts should go where it was a great feeling hearing it in it's entirety.
Take yourself out of the running, who would be your choice for The SAY Award 2011?
To be honest, there's a lot of albums on the list that I've been meaning to listen to and haven't gotten round to it yet, so I'm gonna sit on the fence for the moment and reserve judgement until I've listened to them all! (In other words, I want us to win!)
As far as the future goes, what can we expect from We Were Promised Jetpacks?
We are currently in the latter stages of our US tour at the moment. When we get back we will be touring Scotland (for the first time ever!) It's strange, but we've never actually played a full tour of Scotland before, there's a lot of places we've never played before that we'll be visiting - Inverness, Dunfermline and Kilmarnock to name a few. There's also gigs in Stirling, Coatbridge, Dundee and Aberdeen! After that, hopefully a lot of sitting about!
Despite the mysterious looking tree up above, there's no mystery behind the music on this week's podcast. Featuring plenty of new Scottish music, including five tracks from artists nominated for The SAY Award. Listen back and enjoy!
A week ago The Scottish Album Of The Year Awards were announced unto the world. The SAY Awards as they have affectionately become known are the brainchild of the Scottish Music Industry Association led by Stewart Henderson, co-founder of one of Scotland's finest record labels, Chemikal Underground, and former bass player in The Delgado's.
The awards provide Scotland with something that a community as diverse and talented as ours has been missing for some time, an independent, respected and recognised award which will hopefully engage those outwith the community to listen to, enjoy and ultimately purchase the excellent bounty of albums produced and made by artists on our very doorstep.
The whole process is broken down into four main steps. Here's a brief breakdown of how things will transpire in the coming weeks:
Nominations
This is where the process begins, and this part has already been completed. The SAY Awards asked 100 impartial and independent people from all aspects of the music industry to nominate their top five albums released by a Scottish artist during 2011. These nominators include DJs, promoters, music retailers, journalists, radio producers, venue owners and bloggers. The team have taken great care to choose a extremely diverse and representative batch of people to ensure that The SAY Awards are not simply a old-boys-pat-on-the-back club, which is why people such as record label owners, band members and managers have been respectfully left off the list. With 100 different people choosing their top 5 albums, there's the potential for a up to 500 different albums to be represented at this stage. For a full list of who had their say have a look here. You may notice Scottish Fiction on there, but more about that later.
The Long List
Once the 100 nominators have submitted their choices, they are then scored as such. In order of preference a nominators first choice receives 10 points, second choice 8 points, third choice 6 points, and you get the idea. The top twenty scoring albums will be announced on Thursday at 9:30am as the official SAY Awards Long List. The Long List albums will be given special promotion via the SMIA, retailers and perhaps more importantly The SAY Awards App. The App lets you stream each album in full over the course of four weeks. You can recap on the weeks albums at the weekend, and stream all twenty on May 14th whilst you vote for your favourite. The App also lets you purchase each album via iTunes or directs you to your nearest music shop to buy it, plus lets you interact via Facebook and Twitter about your thoughts on each album. Never before has a Scottish music award been so interactive, engaging and highly supported by retailers.
The Short List
How do you get from a long list to a short list you ask? Well it's at this stage that the expertise and knowledgeable opinion of The SAY Award judges are called upon. The panel of 11 judges, again drawn from respected and impartial experts in their musical field, will consider the musical and artist merits of each Long List album and put their ten favourite through to the Short List. Sales, fan base and chart positions are of no consideration here, it's purely about the music. And to keep things as engaging as possible, the public are asked to vote for their favourite over the 24 hours of May 14th. If the album the public votes for is not included in the judges top ten, then the judges must make way for the public choice. Expect at this stage plenty of 'please vote for us' posts on Twitter and Facebook, as those battling for the £20,000 top prize look to get their way onto the Short List by hook or crook.
Winner
Whilst there can only be one winner, we have all seen the exposure that being a Mercury Nominated album gets an artist. Yes it's not all about money and album sales, but let's not pretend that those things do not matter a hell of a lot. One objective of The SAY Awards is to get Scottish music out to the ears and homes of more people. Each finalist will also receive a prize of £1,000 with the top album getting a whopping £20,000! The judges are called about once more to reveal who, from the Short List of ten, will be crowned Scottish Album Of The Year 2011. All of this will happen on June 19th at an awards ceremony held in Film City Glasgow. Be ready for plenty of disagreement, calling the judges stupid uncultured swines, and perhaps humble Oscar-esqe acceptance speeches.
The thing with ANY type of award ceremony is that there will always be naysayers and nit-pickers. The SAY Awards aren't perfect (to be fair I don't think they ever claimed they were) and won't suit all tastes, yet it's a real chance for the Scottish music community, bloggers, artists, record labels, journalists and retailers alike, to join behind the mantle of what could, and hopefully, will become a well respected mark of artistic credibility. For each person who listens to an album they may never have heard of before, then that is a small victory. For the winner, some real funding to let them produce more music against the unrelenting tide of financing music in a shark like economy. For us Joe public, the chance to debate, argue or agree with the records that made it, and those that didn't.
Scottish Fiction managed to catch Stewart Henderson for a few quick questions about The SAY Awards.
What makes the SAY Awards different to the Scottish award shows that have existed in the past?
Before going into any unique characteristics of the Scottish Album of the Year Award, we should be very clear that it has not been set up to be in competition with any other award in Scotland (or anywhere else for that matter). Taking The Scottsh Music Awards (Tartan Cleffs) as the highest profile event in Scotland at the moment, they have a well-established and successful ceremony that, year on year, raises tremendous amounts of money for Nordoff Robbins and delivers an entirely different 'prodcut' from the one we're proposing through The SAY Award. I think that for our industry to be truly representative of music fans up and down the country, we need the diversity of tone and style that defines our music to be reflected in our events as well.
We've been very fortunate with The SAY Awards in that we've been entrusted with significant resources to get it off the ground. That, and the contacts we've been able to tap into through the SMIA, has helped us pull something together that, I think, has a greater sense of scope and scale than anything attempted previously. By focusing solely on albums, we've been able to concentrate our efforts on (hopefully) delivering a diverse and progressive long list and, crucially, giving those albums a platform at media and retail that will materially benefit the artists. Having the unified support of independent retailers as well as front window displays in every HMV store in Scotland, racking in FOPP and online promotions through iTunes and Amazon is enormously important and will shine a light, not just on these albums, but on Scottish music in general. If that encourages music fans to reflect on the strength and diversity of our artists then the SAY Award will have done its job.
What would you say to those who question the use of a public vote as part of the shortlist selection process?
Read the format notes more carefully. I think we can all agree that an award that's decided exclusively by the public would be wide open to abuse and completely incapable of delivering the type of long lust we're after. That said, an award that excludes the public completely would be wide open to the criticism that it was an elitist closed order that marginalised (or worse, dismissed entirely) the opinions of thousands of articulate, open-minded music fans.
The long list is made up of the twenty highest scoring albums from 100 Nominators' Top 5s; the public, once they've listened to all twenty albums, can only vote for one of those albums; the most popular album from the long list (as voted for by the public) will be placed automatically on the short list; the judges may have placed that album on the short list already; if they haven't, then they'll have to demote one of their Top 10 choices to make way for the public favourite; the judges will ultimately decide on the winning album.
At Scottish Fiction we focus almost exclusively on Scottish music. As part of the SMIA, what is your view of the Scottish music culture?
I think the diversity and quality of music being released by Scottish artists at the moment is, frankly, extraordinary. Music plays such an important part in all our lives that it really shouldn't come as a surprise we're so self-assured and bold in the type of albums our artists are making.
There's some serious cash on offer for the winner, and with the app and the commissioned art prize, this all seems like a behemoth in terms of organisation. Is this a long term venture akin to the Mercury Music Prize?
The SAY Award is absolutely a long term venture. There's no way we're going to get everything right in our first year, far from it, but we'll hopefully be able to establish the name and format of the award moving forward and convince people that it's something worth supporting and, more than that, to be proud of.
Ultimately what would be the aim of the SAY award?
To establish, for the long-term, a credible platform from which Scotland's best music can be promoted and championed.
So to round things off I'd like to present the albums which Scottish Fiction put forward as our favourite from 2011. They may not all reach the Long List, although they should (it's started already!). But where ever these albums end up I think each of them are worthy of some more investigation from yourself if you have not already done so.
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