www.maptap.gg May 9 100🎯 99🎯 97🔥 100🎯 66😶 Final score: 891

The Cult - Love (1985) This feels like the soundtrack to an Eighties vampire film, full of mysticism and dramatic moonlight. I have no idea what Ian Astbury is talking about half the time but he sounds like he completely believes it, the band commits, and somehow it all works. #nowspinning #vinyl

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ @kneecapceol.bsky.social @heavenlyrecordings.bsky.social www.rte.ie/entertainmen...

For All Mankind is just GOING NONSTOP this season, I'm so stressed out!!!

Kneecap - Fenian (2026) If the early appeal of Kneecap was partly driven by the novelty of bilingual Republican rap, “Fenian” takes them beyond merely provocative to genuinely formidable. The themes are heavier, the production tighter and the music considerably more ambitious. #nowspinning #vinyl

The Who - Tommy (1969) I liked the single but an entire rock opera about a traumatised pinball messiah sounded exhausting. However, the scale works, allowing The Who room to develop recurring motifs and musical themes in a way most rock albums of the time simply didn’t attempt. #nowspinning #vinyl

Dawn of the Dickies (1979) Punk doesn’t have to be angry. It can be about speed, humour & the joy of making a glorious racket. This is fun punk, packed with sci-fi references, cartoon soundtrack melodies & a sense that the band are seconds away from collapsing into laughter. #nowspinning #vinyl

The Monochrome Set - Eligible Bachelors (1985) I love bands who make perfect pop music while gently mocking pop music. This is a witty, stylish mix of post-punk, jangle pop and spaghetti- western soundtrack with enough charm and melody to stop it becoming just a clever mess. #nowspinning #vinyl

Pixies - Bossanova (1990) Completing my Pixies collection. The opening run is great but then the album drifts a bit. I wonder how much is down to a reduced role for Kim Deal. It’s very much the Black Francis show. Not as raw as Surfer Rosa and less essential than Doolittle. #nowspinning #vinyl

Scarlet Fantastic - From Montreal to Rotherham (2026) A synth-pop group who had a Top 40 single in 1987 but I don’t remember it so I’m coming to this cold. The music is reflective and atmospheric but, with no standout moments, it’s difficult for a non-fan to latch onto it. #nowspinning #vinyl

Brontës (2026) A confident debut from a four-piece Glasgow indie pop band via @lnfg.bsky.social. I’m a sucker for jangly guitars, and the sunlit melodies and vocal harmonies remind me of The Thrills with that same sun-soaked California feel. Pressing sounds great too. #nowspinning #vinyl

Shima Enaga, also known as the Japanese Snow Fairy, which is a subspecies of the long-tailed tit

First shipment arrived from @lnfg.bsky.social That’s my bank holiday weekend listening sorted.

Supertramp - Breakfast in America (1979) Did they know how to make records in the 70s, or what? This is a great-sounding album. The production is perfect, every instrument carefully placed. Even the Wurlitzer electric piano & saxophone manage to avoid cliché and sound timeless. #nowspinning #vinyl

Van Morrison - No Guru, No Method, No Teacher (1986) Familiar territory for Van Morrison - longing, love, memory - carried by gentle melodies. Lovely, even if the gentleness sometimes blurs into background music and it rarely reaches the transcendent heights of Astral Weeks. #nowspinning #vinyl

Chris Rea - The Road to Hell (1989) Part I drifts in - spoken, ambient, hypnotic - before Part II snaps into that unmistakable groove. Rea’s husky, understated delivery creates the mood of late-night drives, sodium-lit roads, a sense of dislocation and distance from everything. #nowspinning #vinyl

John Prine (1971) Remarkable debut. The dry, slightly absurd humour is what drew me in, but it’s his precise observations that really hit home. There’s usually a line in songs like “Hello in There” that cuts deeper than expected and makes me lift the needle to listen again. #nowspinning #vinyl

Last of my #RSD purchases Pavement - Perfect Sound Forever (orig. 1991) Came to this cold, knowing nothing about the band. First reaction: “Is this finished?” It feels like I’ve walked in on them halfway through a rehearsal. I like the energy though. Will dig deeper. #nowspinning #vinyl

Willie Nelson - Red-headed Stranger (1975) At a time when country music was all about glossy orchestral arrangements, Nelson went the other way entirely. Minimal production, mainly guitar, occasional piano, & silence doing as much work as the notes. A minimalist masterpiece. #nowspinning #vinyl

Madra Salach - It’s a Hell of an Age (2026) Droning harmonium builds a brooding, cinematic sound. The standard “Spancil Hill” is brilliantly reimagined. New songs like “I Was Just a Boy” merge sound design and narrative to create something unique. This is the future of folk #nowspinning #vinyl

A Mouthful of the Mary Wallopers (orig 2019) #rsd This is authentic folk, with the right mixture of tradition and irreverent humour. Feels more like taking part in a locked-in session at a pub than listening to a studio recording. #nowspinning #vinyl

Virgin Prunes - Hérésie (1982) Next #rsd purchase. Hated it on first listen. Warmed to it on second listen. Playing it at right speed may have helped with that. ☺️ #nowspinning #vinyl

The Cure - Acoustic Hits (orig. 2001) Another #RSD purchase. Sparse arrangements with Robert Smith’s voice pushed right to the front. Interesting exercise but ultimately just goes to show how essential the chorus effects & synth layers were to the greatness of the originals. #nowspinning #vinyl

Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass - Whipped Cream & Other Delights (1965) On my wishlist for ages before I dug this up at the Record Exchange in Tunbridge Wells. It looked a bit rough but I took a chance. Sure enough, it sounds a bit rough. Still, the cover alone is worth it. #nowspinning #vinyl

The thing with Gen X and music is that yes we had grunge but we also had rock and funk and hip hop and rap and pop and house and trance and lounge and reggae and soul and Gregorian chants ffs.

Agami Herons.

Second of my #RSD purchases Meiko Kaji - Urami no Bushi/Shura no Hana (orig. 1972) Classic enka, the titles translate as “Song of Resentment” & “Flowers of Carnage”. Enka focuses on emotion & nostalgia and Kaji’s controlled delivery underlines the feeling of restrained fury. #nowspinning #vinyl

First of my #RSD haul. Tusk - Camper van Beethoven (orig. 2003) My favourite Fleetwood Mac album because, not in spite of, it being experimental & slightly unhinged. Camper Van Beethoven lean into the chaos, making the pop songs fragile & taking the odd songs off the rails. #nowspinning #vinyl

The queue for Record Store Day at Resident in Brighton stretched around the block. I was #435 so it took a while to get to the counter but the store staff managed the queue really well and the vibe was nice. Had a fun time chatting about music with strangers for almost 3 hours. #RSD

Robert Wyatt - Nothing Can Stop Us (1982) I got this for “Shipbuilding”, which is sublime. Wasn’t sure what else to expect, maybe Chumbawamba-lite? But the politics here isn’t shouted. Wyatt’s fragile voice makes the songs feel quieter and somehow more powerful because of it. #nowspinning #vinyl

The Incredible Shrinking Dickies (1979) Californian punk, with speed, humour and a strong pop instinct. There’s hooks, harmonies, even some hints of ska. It makes me think of Saturday morning TV for some reason - as if the Monkees made a punk album. I mean that as a compliment. #nowspinning #vinyl

I know it's corny, but For All Mankind continues to hit a part of my brain for a future that feels like it could have happened. I can have a little corniness as a treat.

I see the Artemis crew came back okay.

The internet peaked when we got the ability to look up what other movie or show an actor or actress in the movie we are currently watching was in before. Everything since then has been a mistake.

Stella Donnelly - Flood (2022) I loved the spark and wittiness of her debut, but this is a more introspective album, mixing her signature cheerful songs about sad situations with more reflective songs where the tempo matches the theme. Still very recognisably Stella Donnelly. #nowspinning #vinyl

Beware of the dogs - Stella Donnelly (2019) Stella Donnelly’s show at Alphabet was a revelation. The songs here are as much about about personality as songwriting, and that really comes across live. There’s something very disarming about the way she cheerfully sings sad songs. #nowspinning #vinyl

Pareidolia - Eiko Ishibashi and Jim O'Rourke (2025) Feels more like a film soundtrack or sound installation than a conventional album. The music unfolds gradually, with very little in the way of emotional peaks, more about mood. Going to take repeated listens to appreciate. #nowspinning #vinyl

Three more to go #vinyl

Ignore the cynics. SNL UK is actually v good and could become great. And SO brilliant to have some proper sketch comedy on TV again.

pulling all the clouds apart - Cypress, Mine! (2026) 4 decades after their debut. Ciarán Ó Tuama’s voice is a little shaky but his song writing remains solid, especially Safe Highway and Spellbinding which are based on poems by his father. On BlueSky @cypressmine.bsky.social #nowspinning #vinyl

Happy St. Patrick's Day, New York.

The plot of the harrowing 1984 nuclear war drama ‘Threads’ centres on a geopolitical flashpoint between the superpowers in Iran. This has crossed my mind very often recently.

Everything is terrible and horrible. So here is Ann-Margaret and Desi Arnez Jr. on the “Here’s Lucy” show in 1970 doing a dance number that’s been remixed to Prince’s “Kiss”. Ann-Margaret was hip AF! 🔥

What a kick in the teeth right at the end from Ramos! It seems a hollow consolation right now, but the Triple Crown isn't nothing. We'd practically have a parade in the streets for winning it back in the 80s. And we'd have taken it coming in to this tournament. Congrats France, that was some game…

I wonder who decided adults don't need pictures

Altar - NewDad (2025) First encounter with this band. Reviews suggested dream-pop, but Julie Dawson’s cool vocal riding over propulsive guitars and a driving rhythm feels closer to indie rock. As if Hope Sandoval from Mazzy Star was the singer with The Cranberries. Hazy rock? #nowspinning #vinyl

Irish Rock ’n Roll - The Mary Wallopers (2023) Not a reinvention along the lines of Lankum. This is traditional Irish folk, just played with punk energy. Rowdy, funny and politically charged, this is music to sing along to with a pint in hand. The natural heirs to The Pogues. #nowspinning #vinyl

Talk Talk - The Colour of Spring (1986) Never able to find a good original pressing of any Talk Talk albums, so I got the 2014 reissue instead. It’s low noise with a decent soundstage, which suits the quiet moments on this album, as it’s surprisingly meditative for the mid-80s. #nowspinning #vinyl