Said the Gramophone is still having some cause-unknown technical issues. I am waiting for Apple to reply to my three support queries. A couple people have come forward to very generously offer us temporary hosting (thank-you), and if things don't work out in the coming couple days we will act on that. In the meantime, Dan has set up a very-temporary hosting solution and so I offer you (again) these songs. The links work and you can download them. Unfortunately, all our older tracks remain unavailable for the time being. But please enjoy these and let us know what you think!

In the morning we will have a guest-post (yes, with mp3s) from one of Said the Gramophone's favourite musicians. (Hooray!)

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Emilie Simon - "To the Dancers on the Ice". The first time I listened to this, it was a nothing - a ring of synths, a mouse's precious voice. And the second time, too. But the third time I listened I realised that I was listening for a third time. And a fourth. And soon Emilie Simon's simple little song - a kinder Múm or Stina Nordenstam, a lovelier Cocorosie, a less peculiar Hanne Hukkelberg - was so dear to my ears that I couldn't ever turn it off. I just had to hear it through one more time; hear one more time that "my lover is gone", see the pirouetting ice-skaters, dream of cracks and the collapse of the pond.

Thanks, Audrey.

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Curtis Mayfield & The Impressions - "Only You Babe". only YOU, babe. .... only YOU bABe... How to transcribe this? I need a notational system that has room for sexy croon, for glad-silly swoons, for back-up singers who sound both like schoolyard chums and former lovers. I need to be able to indicate, with dots and lines, that a trace of 80s cheese is sometimes a lining of gold: i need to explain how a jazzy bump-and-swing has all the pleasures of a brisk afternoon in the mellowyellow sun.

[buy]
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You Ain't No Picasso's 12 Days of Mixmas continues with an mp3 mix from Bishop Allen's Christian Owens. Bishop Allen is one of the best bands in the world, but I am much less impressed with her song picks. It's cool that there are so many bands in the neighbourhood, but scene boosterism good music does not make... Anyway, that's just me: you will likely disagree!

The Kimmel Center in Philadelphia is having a Haiku Contest. Write a Haiku about a gig you saw this year and you could win a ticket to their Gary Burton/Brad Mehldau gig at the end of January.

Fluxblog's posted by favourite track from the upcoming Islands record (by Jaime and Nick & friends, formerly of The Unicorns). It cops a riff from my favourite Unicorns song ("Thunder and Lightening"), and I love the way the return of that thunder-crack chest-shaking sound splits the end of the song in two. Pop with thunderous guts.

Molars has put up pt. 1 of his favourite (50 or so, i guess) songs of the year. it's a mix, track-listed and all, with describing words (yes!) and downloads full. and a wide variety of good things, much of which i do not know.

Also elsewhere... many of you will remember Drew Heffron's guestblog here, where he illustrated songs by ELO and The B52s. The latter piece - The B52's "Trism", rendered in noisy-bumping colours and symmetry that isn't, - is now for sale at The Drama store, printed on vintage velvet cover stock! I do suggest you take advantage.

As of this writing, there also still remain prints from Tiny Showcase's last print of the year, a raucous doodlework by Ron Regé, Jr. (Oh, and somehow Drew's BBQ print is still available as well.) Great art for the price of a new CD...

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Like I said, we'll have more in the morning!