Album of the Day 898 B12 - Electro-Soma Beautiful, melodic electronica/IDM (well it's from that era). Great start to the weekend.

Album of the Day 897 Blue Daisy - The Sunday Gift Wow, forgotten how good this sounds! Slow & dark, bringing to mind classic 90s electronica but with an interesting twist. Never heard any of his other albums(?), must go on a hunt ...

Album of the Day 896 The Metamorph - Exploded View Top stuff. Mellow soundscapes that just make the world around seem a little nicer.

Album of the Day 895 Biosphere - Angel’s Flight Sometimes this album is barely even there but it seems that you can do a lot with very little. Eerie, melancholy with a haunting sound that recalls past glories. Shares a feeling The Caretaker "Everywhere at the End of Time". Love them both.

Returned home from visiting (& learning a lot from) a lab in Singapore to find these gems. Big thanks to @ianboddy.bsky.social & @theblackdog.bsky.social (it must be noted that both Chiasmata by IB and Live at the ICA by tBD made excellent soundtracks to my evening wanders around Singapore).

Album of the Day 894 … And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead - Source Tags & Codes Slight pause as work took me overseas. Return to a bit of rock. Not my favourite AYWKUBTTOD album, but still very good & contains two of my favourite songs by them.

Album of the Day 893 Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here One of my favourite PF albums. Flows from start to finish with a wistful kind of magic.

Thanks to the good folk at Flying Nun Records, these two were waiting for me after work, The Beths "Straight Line Was A Lie" (ace new stuff) and Suicide "Surrender" (trying to fill some gaps in my knowledge/collection).

Album of the Day 892 Siouxsie & the Banshees - Juju What an awesome album. It is tense, dense & sinister yet there are memorable pop tunes in here as well. When 'Spellbound' is one of my least favourite songs on this album (& I love 'Spellbound') you know it is a strong offering!

Album of the Day 891 DJ Food - Kaleidoscope Listening to this for the first time in a while & I remember why I love DJ Food. It's fun, clever & relaxing stuff. Nice way to end the day.

Album of the Day 890 The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love A glorious, over-the-top, ambitious album. It is flawed but I still love it. I was going to say it has hints of prog but it doesn't ... it's full blown prog rock. I don't know much of their other stuff & don't want to

Album of the Day 889 The Police - Synchronicity Loved this album for years (heard from a friend's brother 83/84 but probably didn't buy it until 1986). When I was young it was side 1 that did it. Now it's side 2 (+ Synchronicity II) but the whole thing just flows wonderfully.

Album of the Day 888 Herbie Hancock - Head Hunters My way into jazz (& in all fairness I haven't got that far). I love the squelchy synths, I love the groove, it's just a wonderful record & perfect for a slow Sunday.

Album of the Day 887 Cluster - Zuckerzeit I love this album, it is almost pop krautrock/kosmische. Short electronic songs that are upbeat & fun. Some people seem to dislike for exactly that reason but I think it is perfect for a spring morning (even if it is raining).

Album of the Day 886 Wolf Alice - Visions of a Life A nice variety of styles that are held together by a dreamy pop vibe. There are some cracking moments on this album. I probably should listen to more of their music but there just isn't enough time to get through everything!

Finished reading "Steeped: The Chemistry of Tea" by Michelle Francl. Lovely book. Fascinating details on tea and tea making. Makes a surprisingly good (non-scary) intro to the wonderful world of organic chemistry as well. If I was still teaching, I'm sure I would have used examples from this book.

Album of the Day 885 Orbital - Orbital 2 (The Brown Album) Such a great album. Amazing to think it is over 30 years old. Still sounds amazing (or maybe it's just because I've enjoyed it for 30+ years that I think this ... but who cares as never fails to bring a smile to my face).

Album of the Day 884 FFS - FFS Continuing the pop theme with this fun, clever & eminently hummable album.

Just finished reading "The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer" by Neal Stephenson. Forgot how much I enjoyed this book. It's a fascinating world to visit.

Album of the Day 883 Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott - Wisdom, Laughter And Lines Some pop for Tuesday. I was a late convert to the joys of the Beautiful South (happy tunes, bitter lyrics, my favourite kind of pop). It's the lyrics & the interplay of their voices that makes this album.

Album of the Day 882 Killing Joke - Absolute Dissent Start the week with a bang (or kill Monday off as it was a bit of slog). One of KJ's finest in my opinion (if you ignore their debut). Heavy with a blistering anger running throughout yet still sneaking melody in here & there.

Album of the Day 881 Björk - Biophilia Hadn't listen to Björk for years. Used to love her albums, then I just stopped playing them. Not sure why. Clearly a mistake as this is wonderfully playful with intricate instrumentation. I guess I'll be listening to more Björk soon.

Album of the Day 880 The The - Hyena (Original Soundtrack) Never seen the film, but love the atmospheric soundtrack.

This weekend's listening is all lined with this little bundle waiting for me on the porch tonight. Big thanks to @castlesinspace.bsky.social @woodfordhalse.bsky.social and @campofwolves.bsky.social

Album of the Day 879 Stereolab - Electrically Possessed: Switched On, Vol. 4 Kicking Friday off with Stereolab. Even their odds & ends collections are better than most group's albums. THe music is just so joyous.

Album of the Day 878 Galya Bisengalieva - Polygon Stunning mixture of strings & electronics (& voices). Big widescreen cinematic feel. Another album I wish was longer.

Album of the Day 877 Kuma - Buy The Tools You Need With Time A very different record to yesterday. This is ethereal ambience. The music here is expansive yet somehow cocooning. Kuma uses very little (drones/wordless vocals) to build a wonderful world to escape into. Enjoy.

Album of the Day 876 Humanoid - 7 Songs (Bonus Edition) Acid madness for a Monday. While I love FSOL, sometimes you just want to switch your brain off & enjoy some fun, funky, bouncy/dancy/mayhem. This doesn't let up but neither does my smile while listening to it.

Album of the Day 875 Max de Wardener - Music for Detuned Pianos A hauntingly deft album that suited this morning's work. The music is somehow unsettling yet relaxing. Yet another album that rewards repeated listens.

Album of the Day 874 Paper Dollhouse - Empty-Rave Atmospheric electronica mixed with tripped out ambience. Traces of rave, the 80s, & an ominous undercurrent. One of those records that should have been more popular, it's rather good.

Album of the Day 873 Hipwell + Kasperkiewicz - Hemispheres A lovely album from earlier this year. The two longer tracks are the perfect blend of treated guitar & electronics. Yeah, there is kosmische feel to these pieces, which is undoubtedly why I like it!

Album of the Day 872 Yann Tiersen - 11 5 18 2 5 18 Different to most the other albums I have by YT, but all the better for that. It is fun, it is layered & rewards repeated listens. Much more electronic but retaining an organic feel. I really love this.

Album of the Day 871 Alva Noto + Ryuichi Sakamoto - Insen Sparse & starkly beautiful. The interplay of acoustic piano & delicate noise/glitch makes for a mesmerising listen. I've got three out of five and must buy the others.

Album of the Day 870 Low - C’mon There are no bad Low albums. This one is full of gorgeous moments such as 'Especially Me' & 'Nothing But Heart'. Not much else to say really. Listen to it.

Arrived yesterday. Big thanks to Colin @castlesinspace.bsky.social Going to be a good weekend.

Album of the Day 869 Bauhaus - Burning from the Inside More varied & less visceral than some of their albums but still great stuff. Loved this as a teenager & enjoy it every time it gets a play.

Album of the Day 868 Ian Boddy - Axiom Inspired by the Tangerine Dream-esque Berlin school (like yesterday's) but taken in a different direction. Beautiful stuff that sounds fresh & engaging. Sorry but this text doesn't do this CD justice. Listening to it reminds me that I still need Modulations IV

Album of the Day 867 Timothy Fife - Transcommunication Great little record. 35 mins of slightly sinister Tangerine Dream-esque synth-scapes. A lovely listen. I want more.

Album of the Day 866 The Sisters of Mercy - BBC Sessions 1982-1984 Like a mixtape I probably can't have the same band 2 days in a row but who cares. I love early Sisters. From the stunning skeletal Alice & Floorshow through to the bass throb on the cover of Emma, it's all good.

Album of the Day 865 The Sisters of Mercy - A Slight Case of Overbombing Shouldn't put 'best ofs' on this list but (a) this is a fun record & (b) it was all I listened to today.

Album of the Day 864 Qluster - Tasten Started the day with minimalist piano in the form of this gem. Amazing the trance-like music that can be generate from three pianos.

Album of the Day 863 Lyonel Bauchet - The Diver Stunning electronic album. Another great release from DiN. This one just drags you in. I don't understand why I haven't played it more (except there is so much good music & so little time), something that I will correct.

Album of the Day 862 Gwenno - Tresor Beautiful trippy psych-pop album. Perfect at the end of the day with the sun setting.

Album of the Day 861 New Model Army - Thunder and Consolation A fusion of the early anger with a folk & rock tinged sound. Like the earlier releases, memorable pop tunes support poetic lyrics. I've seen NMA (& The Cure) live more than any other band (& possibly Carter USM but that's another story).

Album of the Day 860 Telefon Tel Aviv - Dreams Are Not Enough Moody, inventive, there is something uplifting about this outwardly gloomy set of songs. Sound design is such that I hear something new every time I return to this record.

Album of the Day 859 The Black Dog - Live in Barcelona 25/03/22 All their live mixes are stunning. This one is no exception. Chilled & atmospheric. Put it on as I left the house & 50 mins later seem to be at work. No idea what happened in between, transported to another world.

Album of the Day 858 Skinny - The Weekend 90s clubbing concept album? More mellow pop for a Sunday. I've always enjoyed this album, the lyrics range from wryly amusing to melancholy while the music covers numerous bases. Sits well next to 'When We Were Young'. Enjoyable listen.

Just finished listening to the audiobook of "Zeroes" by Chuck Wendig. An interesting take on "AI" goes rogue. Kept me guessing, which is always good in a thriller. Fun characters & I look forward to reading/listening to the next in the series (which is surely a recommendation?)

Album of the Day 857 Einstürzende Neubauten - ½ Mensch A thunderous album for a damn cold Saturday. I loved this album as a younger man. Don't listen to it as much these days but when I do it never fails to hit the mark. Loud, percussive, aggressive, scary yet accessible.

Album of the Day 856 Global Communication - Pentamerous Metamorphosis Great album of otherworldly ambience. Not aware/never listened to the original Chapterhouse album, just love this for what it is. Moody melodies & atmospheric electronica. Great way to start the weekend.