david bazan |

I’m a big fan of Edinburgh based Capitals’ material, in particular their new single ‘All These Years;. it’s upbeat and catchy without being too far into pop – makes you realise how wrong some bands go.

This is their suggestion…Headphones self titled album. I don’t always say this – sometimes I can take or leave what people send in – it is INCREDIBLE.

WHAT: The record I’ve chosen to talk about, simply titled ‘Headphones’, is one that’s stuck with me solidly for the last four years or so, and still manages to reveal new things after all this time.

WHY: In essence it’s the work of one man, David Bazan (of Pedro the Lion demi-fame). Unlike his other records, this is a beautifully bare bones electronic album comprised pretty much of one keyboard, one drum set and one incredible voice.

My personal favourite is I Never Wanted You, a song so brutally harsh and honest it makes you think Bazan must be a horrible bastard (it transpires the song was written about a friends marriage); but it’s this song that encapsulates Bazan’s total mastery of a simple lyric and a simple melody. Since becoming obsessed with Nick Drake as a teenager, the music that’s spoken to me most often comes from a kind of dark place of solitude, and this record represents a unique take on the old one-man-and-his-mic sort of approach. Buy it.