Who bloggers think will be big this year…

BBC 6 MUSIC

That bastion for new music, BBC radio station 6 Music asked a bunch of music bloggers (including me) who they saw as being rising stars over the next twelve months. Click here to see the list it’s pretty interesting.

There’s also my annual Random List which was published just before the end of last year, you can take a look at that here.

This is BBC Radio 6 Music Live

That almighty bastion of British radio that champions the new and interesting, Radio 6 released a ‘Music Live’ double-CD compilation to celebrate ten years of live music at the station yesterday. I was planning on doing a quick review over the weekend but as the last four days have been sent from hell I’ve only managed to muster some energy to fully enjoy this now.

You just can’t beat a great band singing a classic song in somewhere as intimate as a radio booth. There’s entries on this compilation from established greats such as Elbow, Amy Winehouse, Beck, Goldfrapp, Friendly FiresGroove Armada and Manic Street Preachers. But there’s also an equally impressive selection of fresh new talent coming from the likes of Lana Del Rey, Foster The People, First Aid Kit and Michael Kiwanuka.

Overall the compilation blends effortlessly, and would have been ideal garden-listening had the weather been good. Highlights are of course Amy Winehouse’s live rendition of ‘Stronger Than Me’ and Friendly Fires’ ‘Paris’- two gorgeous songs that really stand their own in an intimate setting. Check out the album right here!