PIAS 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: Alan Stivell (Breton for 'gushing spring'), born January 6, 1944, is a French singer songwriter and musician. He campaigns for the recognition of the Breton people with their language, culture, and territory. He is, above all, a multi-instrumentalist: mainly Celtic harp, but also piano and keyboards, Irish flute, bombard, Scottish bagpipes and even percussion. Since the 1950s, thanks to his father's work, Stivell has helped revive the Celtic harp in Brittany; Renaissance De La Harpe Celtique does what it says on the tin; a thoroughly mystical and atmospheric album, the long-player comes packed with Celtic pentatonics, dewey field recordings, and, above all, mellifluous harp, all of which segue together to form an implicit instrumental picture of a Breton people in harmony with nature and spirit, making for a benchmark project in the Celtic folk revival of the 1970s.

Review: Scottish band Texas have announced the release of their new album, The Muscle Shoals Sessions, which is a collaboration between Texas and American songwriter and pianist Spooner Oldham and was recorded at the renowned Fame Recording Studio in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. The album features 12 of Texas' greatest hits, reimagined with Oldham's delicate piano lines. The result is a stripped-back, timeless sound that allows each track to shine. The album also includes two covers: 'Would I Lie To You' by Charles and Eddie and 'Save The Last Dance' by The Drifters. Texas described the album as 'like nothing we've ever done before,' and it is sure to be a must-listen for fans of the band and lovers of classic songwriting.

Review: Australian alt rockers The Triffids were destined for greater things than their homeland realised at the time. While enjoying some success Down Under between the late-1970s and late-80s, it was in the UK and Scandinavia that they really seemed to resonate. A decade-long love affair defined by some very 1980s singles (in the best possible way - 'Wide Open Road', 'Bury Me Deep In Love'), long before all that they put out Treeless Plain, a record that nodded to their future but was a far more DIY sounding thing. Suffice to say, when it arrived in 1983 the record made an impact, critically if not necessarily in mainstream consciousness. Blending folk with an altogether edgier and artier guitar sound, the songwriting and structure are still commendable. Listening back now, 40 years on, the evidence is clear - here's a band we should always list among the best of Antipodean weird-pop.
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