Paolo Nutini

So five years on from his release of Sunny Side Up Paolo Nutini has finally blessed us with another album. Caustic Love is a very different style to any of Nutinis previous music, a bit of rock, a bit of a political statement (Iron Sky), a lot of sex! Long gone are the days of Candy and Last Request! Is it wrong of me to say I am relieved that he didn't bring us a Sunny Side Up part 2, I love the change, I can feel in the music the five years he took out, the years of new experiences, he was 20 when he rocked onto the music scene with These Streets and I feel that his music has grown with him! The reason I fell for his music the first time round was because of his gravely Scottish tones, thankfully he hasn't lost that, his music is still without doubt his- that is his strength- that man could sing anything and everyone would know it was him! What he as done is challenge his audiences loyalty by throwing a curve ball of an album. While some are dubious, I have fallen head over heels for Caustic Love and from the initial sales figures (it's set to be the biggest selling album of 2014 so far) I think that the UK has puts its faith in Nutini and I hope it gets the recognition it deserves as a stand alone album, rather than always being compared to Sunny Side Up. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Sunny Side up and it actually featured in my music of the moment post, but I just think that Caustic Love is more representative of Nutini's growth over the last 5 years and I think it's brilliant that he can go from the likes of Jenny Don't Be Hasty to Candy to Scream (Funk My Life Up) now if that's not musical diversity, I don't know what is! 

In regard to Caustic Love, some have criticized him for his lack of uniformity in regard to style of music, why is it, they ask, that he can't stick to one genre. Well, why should he! I love that within minutes you can be listening to two very different songs and despite this I feel that the album as a whole actually sits very well together and it is definitely one worth listening to in order. My favourites include:

Better Man, Let Me Down Easy, Bus Talk (this is actually an Interlude, and doesn't feature his voice, but its place on the album is absolute genius!), One Day (I heard in an interview that the song began more like a poem, with the focus on the words- I think this is what makes it so brilliant), Iron Sky (this is one of the best know so far, I love the snippet of Charlie Chaplin in Dictator) and Someone Like You. 

Have you listened to Paolo Nutini's new album? If so, what do you think of it?

Love 

Eilidh 

X

Music of the moment

Ok so I have to admit that I love love love filling out those Buzzfeed (or similar) quizzes that reveal which Frozen character you are or which Font you are...yes that is a real quiz! One of the questions I have found popping up in a couple of the quizzes I have taken is What's your favourite type of music- soft or loud? And it's a question that seems so simple but I find impossible to answer! See I absolutely love soft, soothing music but I also love to whack it up to full volume and blare it out for everyone to hear- so, does that count as soft or loud music- surely it is both! 

The perfect example of this is Ben Howard, one of my favourite singers! I saw him live in the summer and his music makes my skin tingle- one of his songs Gracious is a soft song if I ever heard one, but play it on full volume and it only gets better! 

Anyway, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to talk about my favourite music of the moment. Music is an amazing thing, it baffles me how something that often lasts only three or four minutes can make me feel so many emotions. So I sat down this morning and painstakingly picked out 9 of my top bands/singers of the moment! 

BEN HOWARD: Every Kingdom x

So if you hadn't guessed already, I'm a bit of a Ben Howard fan, I rarely go to music gigs because being surrounded by people I don't know and the feeling of not being able to escape kinda freaks me out, so I can tell you that it took a lot of courage to go to London Hammersmith Apollo to see Ben Howard and for me that is proof enough of my love for his music. His album is soothing- see Gracious and Old Pine but there are also some more punchy numbers- Keep Your Head Up.

NINA NESBITT: Peroxide x

Nina Nesbitt is hardly out of school, but she has released some crackers in the form of EPs and recently she released her first album Peroxide. Stay Out is definitely worth a listen!

OF MONSTERS AND MEN: My Head is an Animal x

As I'm sure is the case with a lot of people, I first heard of this band when their single Little Talks appeared on the charts, and for a long time it was the only song of theirs I knew, but recently I had another look at the album and it is full of some amazing songs. Dirty Paws and Love, Love, Love are two of my favourites!

PAOLO NUTINI: Sunny Side Up x

Ok, so I wasn't sure to go with Paolo Nutini's latest offering Caustic Love or his second album Sunny Side Up. Caustic Love was released today and while I love most of the songs, and the others are quickly growing on me, I felt that I hadn't listened to it long enough to be able to include it in my current favourites. Even though Sunny Side Up is hardly a new release, it had safely remained in the most played section of my iTunes for a long time, every single song on the album is amazing and I would struggle to choose a favourite. His gravely tones and Scottish accent is to die for and he gives the sort of soul and passion to his songs that someone three times his age would struggle with!

BASTILLE: All This Bad Blood x

Bastille re-released their album Bad Blood with an additional CD with some extra songs. As a classics student, I could hardly ignore a band who have produced songs such as Pompeii and Icarus and while that may have been my introduction to their music, I soon fell for the whole album. Favourites include Weight of Living pt.I, Daniel in the Den and Durban Skies. As with Ben Howard, these are one of the few bands I would push my anxiety aside and try and see live, as of yet I haven't been able to get hold of any tickets!

REGINA SPEKTOR: Far x

I feel that Regina Spektor could sing about pretty much anything and make it into an amazing song, I find that I can quite easily listen to her all day long, she had a lovely quirky voice and her songs are so unique. Human of the Year and Two Birds are my favourites!

TO KILL A KING: Cannibals with Cutlery x

I first heard about this band through Bastille as they have often been their support act, it didn't take me long to become completely obsessed with their music! Again this is an album where not one song dissapoints! 

VAMPIRE WEEKEND: Modern Vampires of the City x

I loved their album Contra and I thought about choosing that as a current favourite over their most recent offering, but there are a couple of songs on their most recent album that I would actually say are two of my all time favourite songs- Step and Diane Young.

DAUGHTER: The Wild Youth x

This EP has been a favourite of mine for quite a while, there aren't many songs on it but all of them are amazing, they are eerie and haunting- everything I want from a good song! 

So that brings an end to the list of my most loved music of the moment, I actually feel that sharing your favourite music is actually quite a personal thing, to show people what you listen to when you are at your saddest, happiest and most vulnerable. So there you go! 

Let me know who your favourite artist is at the moment or if you agree/disagree with any of my choices!

Love

Eilidh

X

PAOLO NUTINI IS BACK: EXCITEMENT OVERLOAD

Ah so this lovely photo was taken at my 16th Birthday party (4 years ago...it's hard to believe!) back then I was sporting a spur of the moment short do and I was also mid Paolo Nutini obsession. My lovely friends surprised me with his 'Sunny Side Up' album and it was played over and over again. But over the years Paolo seems to have slowly disappeared from the front line of music. This came as a bit of a disappointment to  me as I had grown accustomed to his Scottish, gravely tone and while his first two albums were amazing, I was ready for something new. But, it wasn't to be, at least, that was the case until a couple of weeks ago. One sunday I was reading the newspaper and what did I see? Only an article on how Paolo Nutini was making a comeback, a new album named 'Caustic Love' is to be released on the 14th Arpil (save the date) pre-order here and I for one will be first in line to pick it up.

The second wave of excitement occurred this morning as I opened up my laptop to find that he had released an Abbey Road Live Session of one of the songs 'Iron Sky' and what can I say, ITS BRILLIANT!! Head on over here to watch it. I have had a very good year in regard to music, Bastille, Haim, 1975, Kodaline, Ben Howard, To Kill a King and London Grammar all featuring heavily on my iPod, but Paolo Nutini's new album really will be the cherry on top of the cake, I have waited patiently for 4 years for this release, and finally it's here!

Are there any music releases that you are excited for? What are your views on Paolo Nutini

Love
Eilidh
x