Albums of the Decade - 51. Mark McGuire - Living With Yourself (2010)

51. MARK MCGUIRE - LIVING WITH YOURSELF (2010)

Mark McGuire probably didn't mean in the same vein as Freddie Mercury did with living on your own and not having any time for monkey business. The way I interpret the album title is by coming to terms with oneself, one can go on a diet of asparagus more comfortably for example.

Lavendar used to be a smell I didn't like so much, but last year I bought a bar of lavendar soap by mistake from the store, having not smelled it correctly, and at first I was a bit mortified. However, after some thorough application and perseverence, I managed to get aquainted to acquire the appreciation for this nice smell - and felt fortified.

This album and the strumming of acoustic guitars in an electronic coating feels like hushed layers of zzzzzs from another dimension, especialiy the mesmeric "Brain Storm (For Erin)" which strokes your hair, holds your earlobe and whispers  "Soak me up" after drenching itself in mouthwash, lavendar soap and other parfum. Though not a household name by any means, McGuire created a lost classic here that is an enveloping, frosty beauty. I do like.

records of 2011. 23. Mark McGuire - Get Lost

23. MARK MCGUIRE - GET LOST

When we say a man playing his guitar through effects pedals, you say "Oh" but we say "Whoa." Last year saw the release of his stunning debut Living With Yourself and he's already released another archived collection, the sprawling A Young Person's Guide to Mark McGuire.

So, what's this one like? Well, it's still perfect music to lay down on your bed and close your eyes to. You say "Oh right" and we say "Whoa. High Hive!" This body of work stands taller as one whole work and has less variation than his first effort. However, the beautiful scenery is still apparent at every left, right and straight ahead, like the squiggly 20 minute hypnosis of Firefly Constellations.

There's mounds of ambient and sonic material out there. Some of the blogs and music websites like witchtalkmedia will filter through it for you. For me, this artist is the very best of them and for someone so young and prolific, let's hope there'll be a lot more lying-down to come.

GO HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7S6bt_xaWW4

Records of 2010 - 5. Mark McGuire - Living With Yourself

Records of 2010 - 5. Mark McGuire - Living With Yourself

What a great year for Mark McGuire. The Emeralds guitarist released the space-age album of the year in "Does It Look Like I'm Here" allowing listeners to meditate to the moon and back. On this debut, solo release however, McGuire steps back, strips down his down and gives an acoustic, glistening album about memories of family and friends. The sounds he creates are grainy and mesmeric, hushed and intimate. The childhood dialogues he plays over make for some of the most nostalgic shit I've heard in an age. I feel I'll look back in a few years, savoring 2010, the first time I heard it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-GUSF-Y6As