Memory Tapes = 2005

Ok, for a while now I have been writing reviews and submitting playlists for the community driven, pioneering, and quite simply awesome, music and plyalist sharing site, Spotisfaction (http://www.spotisfaction.com/). After listening to individuals' playlists on there, I was inspired to create my own. As music has played a huge part in my life for many years now, I decided to create a playlist for every year since I first seriously got into music, in 2005. One interesting feature that this process highlights is the constant shifting in my musical preferences and styles from year to year, and even from month to month. This may seem obvious, but it is only when you lay it all out in front of you in this way, that you can truly see the journey's, moods, feelings and memories that have led you to where you are now. I strongly implore everyone to do this, and I also strongly implore everyone to visit the Spotisfaction (http://www.spotisfaction.com/) website and check out the playlists and reviews up there.
So, here's my 2005 playlist, more to follow.
Enjoy!

2005

1) Blur - Out Of Time
2) The Strokes - The Modern Age
3) Supergrass - Your Love
4) The Futureheads - Meantime
5) Kaiser Chiefs - Na Na Na Na Na
6) Franz Ferdinand - Jacqueline
7) Athlete - Tourist
8) Doves - Black And White Towns
9) Kubb - Somebody Else
10) Kanye West - Touch The Sky
11) Gorillaz - Feel Good Inc
12) Hal - Don't Come Running
13) Hard Fi - Tide Up Too Tight
14) The Subways - Mary
15) The Magic Numbers - I See You, You See Me
16) James Blunt - High
17) Coldplay - White Shadows
18) Maximo Park - Graffiti
19) Guns N' Roses - Paradise City
20) Turin Brakes - Asleep With The Fireflies
21) Mcfly - I Wanna Hold You
22) Foo Fighters - Up In Arms
23) Mylo - Need You Tonite
24) N.E.R.D. - Rock Star
25) Arctic Monkeys - I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor
26) Radiohead - Optimistic
27) Jack Johnson - Banana Pancakes
28) Faithless - Salva Mea
29) Ben Folds Five - Julianne

This is the soundtrack to my life = 2005

January - April
2005, in many ways, was the year that I started to seriously get into music, and started to touch my finger on the pulse of popular and contemporary music. I had been given Blur's Think Tank album for Christmas, so 'Out Of Time' marks the point where I put my core musical preferences to one side, and embraced new bands and sounds. This resulted with me acquiring Is This It? by The Strokes,  an album I'd been recommended by many, and with it 'The Modern Age' of my passion for music had dawned. I had also been given Supergrass' self titled album for Christmas, and the track 'Your Love' was on a playlist of mine while studying in my sixth form common room one cloudy January afternoon. Part of my new exploration into new music involved me subscribing to NME every week, so naturally, I quickly got into some of the fresh new exciting bands of the time, Kaiser Chiefs ('Na Na Na Na Na' featuring on an NME cover CD prior to the band's debut album release) and The Futureheads. I was a bit late to the party with Franz Ferdinand, only getting into their debut album whilst walking over Cleeve Hill, during the February half term. With both Athlete's Tourist and Doves' Some Cities being released in 2005 amidst my transition, my ears were quickly filled with these two inspiring albums, subsequently making both bands instant favourites.

April - July
After having seen Kubb on Top Of The Pops that year, I bought their album, based solely on the single 'Somebody Else'. I first heard an exclusive play of 'Feel Good Inc' on Radio 1 in the spring of 2005 whilst on an Archaeology feild trip, and it's light sound somehow fitted my head space at the time. Similarly, I heard Hal's debut album being played in HMV whilst browsing one day, and felt that it suited my taste and mood at the time quite well. Plus, it sounded different and unique in charm, and still does today. Hard Fi's Stars Of CCTV and The Subways' Young For Eternity both came out on the same day, and despite listening to both religiously that week, Hard Fi tended to have more of an affect. This happened to be the same week as the London bombings, so Hard Fi's gritty urban tales attitude made more sense in that moment in time. Having seen The Magic Numbers opening for Doves earlier in the year in Birmingham, I bought their debut album, and again, couldn't stop listening. I remember walking to work in mid July listening to James Blunt's first album, and enjoying the track 'High' more than the rest. The summer of 2005 also saw the release of X & Y by Coldplay; a album that had built soo much hype, especially to me, as I pre-ordered a copy, and then bought another copy on the day of release. When headlining the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury that year, during the performance of 'White Shadows', Coldplay seemed at the top of their game, and as a viewer, I had chills.

August - October
I spent the summer holidays of 2005 babysitting my parents house, Acrobat' and 'Grafitti' fast became my two favourite tracks on the collection, and many a summer's day was spent walking through the park listening to the album. My mate Rob had a house party whilst his parents were also away, so naturally, a bunch of us got immensely drunk and sang 'Paradise City' by Guns N' Roses at the tops of our voices until the neighbours turned up. Ahhhh, good times! The following morning's hangover was sound tracked by Turin Brakes' 'Asleep With The Fireflies', still a relaxing anti-headache tune to this day. Having been a fan of Mcfly's first album, I bought Wonderland on the day of it's release, and I remember buying a pair of black jeans, whilst listening to the album. Following my constant listening to Foo Fighters' In Your Honour album over the summer, I bought The Colour And The Shape, and quickly preferred it, and with it, 'Up In Arms'. Once back at college, I was listening to Mylo's Destroy Rock And Roll album a lot, and loved the slow groove of 'Need You Tonite'. I tended to listen to that album, and N.E.R.D.'s first two releases around this time, usually whilst playing marathons on Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Ahhhh, good times!

October - December
In a weird way, the half term at the end of October in 2005 marked another huge turning point in my life for the following reasons: my musical tastes and preferences were about to be changed forever, and I got my hair cut. On the Monday of that week, the 'I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor' single was released, and launched the Arctic Monkeys as one of the fastest selling and mos popular bands of all time. But it was the singles B-sides, 'Bigger Boys and Stolen Sweethearts' and 'Chun Li's Spinning Bird Kick' with their underrated charm that still stand out stronger for me. This single, and all of it's sounds mean allot to me as that Monday was the day I got my hair cut for the first time in 2 years. At the time, my new hair resembled Alex Turner's circa 'I Bet That You......', so the track itself also fast became a favourite. Another huge influence on my musical mind throughout 2005 was Radiohead. Prior to 2005, I always saw Radiohead as a diverse, pretentious and inaccessible band. However, after getting into The Bends, and then Ok Computer, and then Pablo Honey respectively, They fast became one of my favourite ever bands. During that now seminal half term week, I bought Kid A, and my whole perception of the band altered forever. The track 'Optimistic' always reminds me of that time as that was, and still is, my favourite track of the entire album. This period also marks my 18th birthday. Thus, started my fascination with dance music, but more on that in years to come. For my birthday, I was given Jack Johnson's album In Between Dreams, which I didn't listen to an awful lot, but tracks like 'Banana Pancakes' and 'Breakdown' stood out. A bunch of us went to see Faithless play at Birmingham NIA at the end of 2005, and as well as loving 'Salva Mea' live, it was also one of the most played as I listened to the Forever Faithless compilation during that time. And finally, the conclusion of 2005 was also a significant time for me as I got my first girlfriend, Lucy. Aside from all the usual mixed and confused feelings and thoughts that happen to a guy when they start going out with a girl, I quickly found that Lucy loved Ben Folds Five when I played them to her, therefore all the rest of that relationship insecurity crap flew out the window. Anyway, she loved the way Folds sang the lyric "Being awake never felt like this before" in 'Julianne'. Even to this day, that track and lyric always stand out, almost as a testament to that relationship, but also to my transition over the whole of 2005. My eyes had been opened, in more ways than one.
Nuff said!