State of the (Blog) Union
Since the inception of this blog, the end of December has been the domain of those intrepid and deeply personal end of year lists. Albums, gigs, songs and even festival sets have been subject to objective analysis during a comprehensive review of the previous twelve months. The longest running accolade has been favourite gig of the year, which dates back to 2012 when the blog was first launched. Album of the year quickly followed, and both reflective posts enabled a countdown that each year picked an arbitrary number to effectively rank. Even in the curtailed gig years of 2020 and 2021 there was sufficient incentive to anoint a show that elevated to first among equals. However 2022 sees a sea change in impetus, and perhaps a tilt towards the idea that art does not necessarily need some sort of numerical analysis to asses its worth. Therefore despite generating an album listening list nearing a couple of hundred releases, they will be left in their original form of primary enjoymen...