Festive Greetings from This Is Not Happening and welcome to our year-end, 2025 wrap-up episode. As always we split the pod into Part 1 and Part 2.

Part 1 features our Top 10 favourite albums of 2025. We use a proprietary algorithm to create our list our collective favourite albums, we're talking nascent data-science excellence! Every year it throws up some surprises as our tastes are so different (and in some ways so similar.

Part 2 features a festive Spin It or Bin It. We each bring a candidate for track of the year and ask the age old question 'Spin It or Bin It' ... will anyone really bin anyone elses Track of the Year? Probably.

To retain the tension, I won't share any spoilers here ... other than to share a 40 track playlist of some of our favourite 2025 tracks ... here.

Whatever you do at this time of year, who ever you do it with ... have a good one.

Please join us in January where we will go back to the usual format of Album of the Month + Spin It or Bin It.

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We are officially 62 months old. Welcome to the latest episode of This Is Not Happening, an album of the month podcast.

In Part 1, we review and Album of the Month. This month Guy brings back an artist that we first featured in early 2022, Joy Crookes. Joy is tackling the tricky 2nd album syndrome with her latest release 'Juniper'.

In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, we stick with theme of 'Joy' and ask each other to brings tracks that bring us joy and happiness.

                                ----- Part 1 | Joy Crookes | Juniper -----

In January 2022 we reviewed Joy's debut Skin. The consensus was that we loved it and it became a very important and deeply album for some of us. In terms of expectations, the bar was raised when Joy released the single 'Pass the Salt' in January of this year. 

So what did we get with this sophomore release? Well, a lot is the simple answer! Perhaps not a big leap stylistically but a massive long-jump forwards in terms of song writing and performance. Will that be enough for the pod ... have a listen and tell us what you think.

• Listen to the album ... HERE
• Watch some great videos ... HERE
• Watch a great reaction video from Jakar right ... HERE
• Read a great interview with Joy in Glamour magazine ... HERE
• Listen to a deeply personal and revealing interview ... HERE

                                  ----- Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'Joy' -----

Songs that bring us 'Joy and Happiness' sounds like a simple theme to find music for ... well, not for one of us who revels in the dark and miserable side of music. The selections are predictably brilliant!

• Nolan chose 'Jayou' by Jurassic 5.
• David chose 'Make Me Smile (Come up and see me)' by Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel.
• Joey chose 'Superstylin' by Groove Armada.
• Guy went mental and chose 'Josephine' by Chris Rea!

We all chose 4 tracks as a shortlist which we combine into a belter of a 16 track playlist, listen to that bad boy HERE.

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Another month, another pod. Welcome to Episode 53 of This is Not Happening (TINH), an Album of the Month (AOTM) Podcast. In Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, Guy hosts an interesting discussion on Father John Misty's (FJM) latest album, Mahashmashana. 50% of the Pod love FJM, 50% don't!

In Part 2, Spin It or Bin It, our theme this month is 'Location, Location, Location', or 'songs about places' and it's a belter!

Part 1 | Father John Misty | Mahashmashana

We often review artists that we all love. This month this is not the case. 2 of us love FJM, one of us gets very angry when listening to FJM and one of us doesn't really have an opinion. Can this album keep the fans happy and win over the angry and the non-plussed?

Given the above, this is a surprisingly well mannered and coherent conversation about FJMs latest album. There's only 8 tracks but they're all pretty long. We discuss songwriting, song length and album themes like ageing and the associated ego deaths that accompany it.

• Listen to the album ... HERE
• Watch some of the videos for the tracks discussed ...  HERE
• Watch the World Cafe interview that we reference on the pod ... HERE
• Watch a live performance of lead single 'She Cleans Up' ... HERE

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'Location, Location, Location'

Songs about places are really common. It's a theme explored by many (most?) artists at some point in their songwriting. This was a great chat and 4 great track selections.

• Guy chose Paris by Friendly Fires feat. Au Revioire Simone.
• Nolan chose New York State of Mind by Nas.
• Joey chose Welcome to Jamrock by Damien Marley.
• David chose Tobacco Road by Bobby Gentry.

Here is a 16 track playlist where we all contribute 4 Location, Location, Location themed tracks to an extended playlist.

Chapters: 

00:00:00 - Intro
00:02:10 - Album of the Month
00:06:26 - What Do You Expect and What Did You Get?
00:18:40 - Album style and themes
00:27:30 - The 'character' Father John Misty
00:38:56 - 

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

It's the end of the year and that means it's time for us decide on our individual Top 10 Favourite albums list. Once this is done, we hand this to David, who fires up the TINH algorithm and a collective Top 10 is created. Sometimes it's predictable, sometimes it's not, more often than not Guy feels like the TINH black-sheep but every year we tell him we love him and it all works out well.

Part 1 | TINH Collective Top 10 List.

We run down our top 10 list, introducing the albums and why they made it into our top 10. We always plan to be short and snapy. We always fail. But hopefully you enjoy it.

Part 2 | Spin It Or Bin It | Favourite Track of 2024.

We usually create a short list of 4 tracks each and pick a single track to represent the theme. With it being the end of the year, the theme is obvious, Favourite Track of the Year. But we each created a 10 track 'short' list this time.

The 40 track 'Favourite Tracks of 2024 is available here and it's a belter.

In Part 2 we each talk through our favourite track of the year and then ask the question ... Spin It or Bin It where we try to decide a track of the year.

We hope you enjoy this episode.

Chapters: 

00:00:00 - Intro
00:02:10 - Albums 10/9/8
00:11:58 - Albums 7/6/5
00:25:16 - Albums 4/3/2
00:44:50 - No.1 Album
00:53:24 - Spin It Or Bin It - Tracks of 2024
01:24:28 - Outro

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Another month, another pod. A very warm and most welcome to Episode 51 of This is Not Happening (TINH), an Album of the Month (AOTM) Podcast. In Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, Joey sits in the middle of a 'divisive discussion'  focused on Caribou's new album Honey. One of us think it's some of the best of Caribou's work, one of us thinks it's much less than that.

In Part 2, Spin It or Bin It, our theme this month is 'Basslines', for once we stipulated no other rules.

Part 1 | Caribou | 'Honey'

We all love Caribou. There are few artists that sit in the centre of the TINH venn diagram, but Caribou is one of them.  However, we all have different favourite Caribou albums and therefore have different expectations and hopes when it comes to a new Caribou album.

The debate is fierce. We cover many topics including how to be fair when an artist produces something we weren't expecting, can you remove the bias of your disappointment and critique the album without bias? Unfortunately, we also end up talking about AI and music too.

• Listen to the album ... HERE
• Watch some of the videos for the tracks discussed ...  HERE
• Watch this short of it going off when Dan drops Honey in a DJ set ... HERE
• Watch this short of Dan talking about 'Volume' ... HERE
• BBC Sounds interview with Dan Snaith from this month ... HERE

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'Basslines'

The best Spin It or Bin It's are often the simplest. This month, the theme is one word and no extra rules or exclusions, 'Basslines'. However you want to interpret it, it's cool.N

• Joey chose 'Walk on the Wildside' by Lou Reed
• Nolan chose 'Transitions'   by Dennis Ferrer
• Guy chose '...(nothing but) Flowers' by Talking Heads
• David chose 'Taxman' by the Beatle

Here is a 16 track playlist where we all contribute 4 'basslines' themed tracks to an extended playlist.

See you on Episode 52 ...

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We've hit the BIG 5-0 and we're still speaking to each other. It's delight to welcome to Episode 50 of This is Not Happening (TINH).  An Album of the Month (AOTM) Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, David introduces the latest album from one of my favourite obsession artists, 'My Method Actor' by Nilifur Yanya.

In Part 2, Spin It or Bin It, we return for our quarterly visit to the theme of 'New Music' ... anything released since August 1st.

Part 1 | Nilifur Yanya | My Method Actor

This is the third full length studio album from Yanya. She is a super interesting artist blending soul, jazz, indie and a bunch of other sounds and influences in there. This album is something of a departure for her following her last 2 albums that perhaps embraced the indie side of her influences. This album is a super smart melding of all of her influences, definitely leaning more towards the soul and jazz side of her music. It feels like a return to some of her earliest EP releases and I love it for that fact.

• Listen to the album ... HERE
• Watch a video of her performing a track from her 2nd EP back in 2017 on the BBC Introducing stage ...  HERE
• 2 Tracks from the new album get a very low-fi video, watch them both HERE and HERE
• The obligatory Jimmy Fallon performance link is ... HERE
• Interesting interview on 'The Talk.Com', this is a quick read and enlightening ... read it HERE

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | New Music

Super-simple, we all chose a track that we love from the last couple of months and ask each the simple binary question, Spin It or Bin It?

• Joey chose Wristwatch by MJ Lenderman
• Guy chose Zero Sum by The Smile
• Nolan chose Dafodil by Jamie XX and friends
• David chose Neon Signs by The Weather Station

See you on Episode 51 ...

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 49 of This is Not Happening (TINH).  An Album of the Month (AOTM) Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, Nolan goes back to his spiritual home, Hip Hop and has picked an album that the genre has been waiting decades for - Common and Pete Rock, The Auditorium Vol. 1.

In Part 2, Spin It or Bin It, the theme sounds simple but it turned out to be deceptively divisive. This month we delve into 'Power Ballads' ... but what actually is a Power Ballad?

Part 1 | Common & Pete Rock | The Auditorium Vol. 1

If you're age (old AF) and you like Hip Hop then you've probably been listening to these two legends for 30 odd years. Common is 52, Mr. Rock is 54. They've been at the top of their games for decades but does the combination deliver synergy or something a little less?

• Listen to the album HERE
• Watch some videos HEREand  HEREand HERE
• Guy references the performance of 'When the Sun Shines Again' on Jimmy Fallon.
• If you've got 4 hrs then watch this monster chat with the pair onDrinks Champs
• I reference a NY Time Popcast Episode discussing what 'What's an ageing rapper to do'
• Guy references 

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | Power Ballads.

So what is a Power Ballad? We all know the classics, but if we try and bring something a little different then first we have to have some sort of definition. We've picked 4 tracks that aren't on many Power Ballad playlists ... 

• Guy chose Nothing Compares 2U by Sinead O'Connor.
• David chose The Way That You Do It by Gerry Rafferty. 
• Joey chose Drivers License by Olivia Rodrigo.
• Nolan chose Roar by Katy Perry. 

See you on Episode 50 ... 

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 48 of This is Not Happening (TINH).  An Album of the Month (AOTM) Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, Guy has picked the an album that could not be further from last month's Charli XCX outing. He's also picked the best named TINH AOTM ever, Linda Thompson's Proxy Music.

In Part 2, Spin It or Bin It, the theme is simple ... 'Long Songs' no explanation of the theme required here apart from Guy's completely arbitrary suggestion that all tracks had to be over 8 minutes.

Part 1 | Linda Thompson | Proxy Music

English Folk musician legend Linda Thompson has lived enough life for several people. The good, the bad and everything in between. She's now a 72 year old songwriter force who has sadly lost her super-power to sing ... so she's written songs for other artists to perform. The album is an eclectic collection of songs and collaborators pulled together through the concept of performing through a proxy. The critics love it with a combined Metacritic Score of 86. There's a lot of love on the pod but not without a few reservations along the way.

• Listen to the album here.
• Watch Linda on Jools Holland back in 2011 videos here.
• Guy references a couple of articles in his introduction and conversation they're worth a look and can be found here and here.

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | Long Songs.

We love a long song. Even our resident (but absent on this episode) pop being loves a long song. Guy defines a long song as anything over 8 mins, who are we to argue with that kind of logic. So them's the rules. Who bought what to the table to judge in Spin It or Bin It?

• Guy chose ''Black Star' by David Bowie.
• Nolan chose'Dance Yrself Clean'   by LCD Soundsystem
• Joey chose 'Menneskekollectivet' by Lost Girls

See you on Episode 49 ... 

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 47 of This is Not Happening.  An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 2, Joey has picked the most obvious choice for 4 middle aged dads, Brat by Charli XCX. It is impossible to ignore the critical response for this album so we all dive headfirst into the first Charli album that any of us has experienced. And it's a belter ... but I am pretty sure it will also divide opinion.

This month, in Part 2, Spin It or Bin It, the theme is simple ... 'New Music' (tracks released since 01.05.24. However, one of us picked a 49 year old track. Take a listen to hear him justify this decision.

Part 1 | Charli XCX | Brat

With a whopping 95% score on Metacritic, this album has had a massive impact from critics right across the music press's broad spectrum of publications. It's 15 tracks with an average length well under 3 minutes. And it has some serious weight behind a savage combo of pure pop punches. But there is WAY WAY more to it that sugar-coated pop prettiness as we get stuck right into.

• Listen to the album here.
• Watch some videos here.
• Want to know what Charli means to the world of pop this podcast is gold.
• Want to know more about the making of the album, listen to this one. 
• And read this great article with Charli. 

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | New Tracks

Every 3 months (or so) we pick to do 'New Tracks' which we define as being released 2-3 months before our podcast record date (01.05.24). We've got 4 interesting tracks this month. We've got two very different female sole artist indie tracks, one undeniable piece of piano driven, laid back housey, post-club loveliness and of course something French from David.

• David chose 'Le Sud (Latin Version)' by Nino Ferrer, Guts, Patchworks.
• Guy chose 'Method Actor' by Nilifur Yanya.
• Nolan chose 'God gave me feet for dancing' by Ezra Collective fear. Yazmin Lacey.
• Joey chose 'My Name on a T-Shirt' by Odie Leigh.

See you on Episode 47 ... 

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 45 of This is Not Happening.  An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, David bravely returns to the scene a previous crime on our podcast. He brings the second St. Vincent album to a group of people who historically have not reacted well to St. Vincent. Wow. How might this one go? In all seriousness, this is a very different experience to 'Daddy's Home' and a really good chat about the good, the not so good and our collective love of Pop Reggae.

This month, in Part 2, Spin It or Bin It, the theme is 'Crying in Aldi' or 'music that makes you cry'. As the theme suggests, things got pretty emotional.

Part 1 | St. Vincent | All Born Screaming

I think the full continuum of emotions or lack of emotions is expressed in this review. David brings unconditional love for St. Vincent plus a thinly veiled threat that his wife might tell us off again if we say mean things. The rest of bring various thoughts and ideas to the table that range from the inquisitive to the annoyed.

• Listen to the album here.
• Watch some videos here, including the Jimmy Kimmel live performance.
• We reference the Tape Notes podcast (and also videos) which delve into the making of the album . This is seriously informative and entertaining discussion. Take a look at it here.

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'Crying in Aldi'

The most 'in' of 'in jokes' is that Joey often cries to sad songs while doing the big shop in Aldi. He's been banned from 3 stores now and is considering to switching to Lidl. In support of our brother, we've all been researching which songs make us cry and testing them out in various big-box supermarket chains.

• David chose - 'Already Dead' by Beck.
• Nolan chose -  'Basket' by Dan Mangan.
• Guy chose - 'Magnificent'  by Elbow.
• Joey chose - 'My Girls'   by Animal Collective.

See you on Episode 47 ... where 4 old guys talk about Charlie XCX. What could go wrong?

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 45 of This is Not Happening.  An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, we dive right into the deep-end of 'Only God Was Above Us' the new album from TINH favourite (at least 3 of us) Vampire Weekend.  This month we're in the capable hands of Nolan who has introduces the album and guides us through some key questions and an interesting conversation. In Part 2 we play Spin it or Bin It with songs that are all. 'a little bit country'.
Part 1 | Vampire Weekend | Only God Was Above Us

My god Vampire Weekend can write a song! And this album really proves that. We answer (or at least attempt to answer) some big questions - is this best Vampire Weekend album? How do you pick a favourite track when they're all so good and do such different things. 

• Listen to the album here.
• Watch some videos here.
• Awesome interview by John Kennedy that we reference constantly ... here
• Buy some stuff  or some tickets here.

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'A little bit country'

Country is massive in 2024 ... and Guy hates it. So, what other theme could we choose? The clue is in the title, the tracks only have to be 'a little bit country'. 4 Track playlist of our chosen tracks is here.

• Guy chose - 'Bittersweet, TN' by Kevin Morby and Erin Rae.
• Nolan chose -'Candle' by Buck Meek.
• Joey chose - 'One of these days'  by Bedouine
• David chose - 'Cant Let Go' by Lucinda Williams 

See you on Episode 46! 

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 44 of This is Not Happening.  An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, we wrestle with the 2nd album from Yard Act titled 'Where's My Utopia?'.  This month we're in the capable hands of Guy who has been a Yard Act fan for some time, choosing their debut album as his Album of the Year in 2022. 66.6% of the team agree with him but 33.3% of the team has found the album more of a struggle.

Part 1 | Yard Act | Where's My Utopia?

Yard act are an interesting proposition, they are perhaps the most knowingly Northern band since Oasis. They seem to be everywhere and it's tough to find someone who doesn't like them. They are very clearly 'Post Punk' but their definition of what this means has changed somewhat with this album. We ask the standard quesiton, what did you expect and what did you get plus questions about 

• Listen to the album here.
• Watch some videos here.
• Buy some stuff here.
• Buy some tickets to see them live here.
• Read some stuff here and listen to some pods here and here.

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'Spoken Word'

Given the AOTM is Yard Act, we chose to look at our favourite Spoken Word tracks. And 3 of us actually chose a Spoken Word track ... one of us chose something else but let's leave that and let us know if you agree with me that it was not Spoken Word. Our chosen 4 tracks can be found on a play list here. In order to chose a track we each shortlist 4 tracks each, a combined 16 track playlist can be found here.

• Nolan chose - 'SpottieOttieDopalicious' by Outkast.
• Guy chose -''The Revolution will not be Televised' by Gil Scott Heron.
• Joey chose - 'Loosing My Edge'  by LCD Soundsystem
• David chose - 'O Superman'  by Laurie Anderson

See you on Episode 44! 

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 61 of This Is Not Happening, a monthly music podcast.

In Part 1, we review and Album of the Month. This month it's Joey's choice and he's picked Essex Honey, the latest release from Blood Orange, UK born and raised, New York based creative force.

In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month the theme is 'Colours'  

                            ----- Part 1 | Blood Orange | Essex Honey  -----

Devonté Hynes, AKA Blood Orange, is a Grammy-nominated English singer, songwriter, record producer, composer, and director based in New York City. Devonté is a talented human being, playing multiple instruments, he is a consummate songwriter and an incredible producer. 

His latest album, Essex Honey is quite something. We all agree that this is very intelligent, impressive album created by a unique artist. But that doesn't mean that we all like it. We get stuck right into that in this episode. Have a listen and let us know what you think.    

• Listen to the album ... HERE
• Watch some great videos ... HERE
• Buy some stuff ... HERE

                           ----- Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'Colours' -----

Sometimes the simplest themes are the best, songs with colours in the title. The 4 tracks we chose and the 16 track playlist we created are belters!

• David chose - 'Grey Day' by Zoot Woman.
• Guy chose - 'Brown Paper Bag' by Roni Size.
• Joey chose - '99 Red Balloons' by Nena
• Nolan chose - 'Redbone' by Childish Gambio

We all chose 4 tracks as a shortlist which we combine into a belter of a 16 track playlist, listen to that bad boy HERE.

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 43 of This is Not Happening. An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, we embrace the truly beautiful, hynotic new album by Helado Negro, called 'Phasor'.  Joey (that's me) is running 'tings this month, at least one of the crew loves this album but the other two ... I'm not so sure.  In Part 2, the Spin it or Bin it theme is 'New Music' where we all chose a track from the last 2 months and ask the others 'Spin It or Bin It'?

Part 1 | Helado Negro | Phasor

This is right up my street. It's calming, beautiful, intriguing little gem of an album. It's instantly accessible and a rewarding listen but it is also a gift that keeps on giving. There is a surprsing complexity to the album if you want there to be. But the big questions is 'what on earth do we call it?' Guy suggests 'Cosmic Pop' and I think he's right. 

• Listen to the album here.
• Watch some videos here.
• Buy some stuff here.
• Follow him on Instagram here.

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'New Music (Jan, Feb, March '24)

The theme is nice and simple and always a fun one - new music. Pick a track, any track from the past 2-3 months. Our chosen 4 tracks can be found on a play list here. In order to chose a track we each shortlist 4 tracks each, a combined 16 track playlist can be found here.

• David chose -  'AA Bouquet for your 180 Face' by Saya Grey
• Guy chose -'Spare me the decision'   Nation of Language / Cutouts
• Joey chose - 'Right Back At It' by Waxahatchee / MJ Lenderman
• Nolan chose - 'Invulnerable'  by K-OS

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 42 of This is Not Happening. An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, we get stuck right into Integrated Tech Solutions by Aesop Rock. Nolan and I (Joey) think this is one of 2023's underrated albums and definitely a hidden hip hop gem. David is missing this month so we only have to convince Guy! In Part 2, the Spin it or Bin it theme is 'Technology' where we all chose a track that we think fits the theme and ask the others 'Spin It or Bin It'.

Part 1 | Aesop Rock | Integrated Tech Solutions.

This one's special (in my opinion). Nolan has always tried to sell Aesop Rock to me but there's so much music and so little time that I never quite got it. That changed in the Autumn when Mindful Solutionism, the lead single from this album dropped. I chose it as a Spin It or Bin It track and won that month. There's another 17 tracks on this album. It's dense, intelligent, socially conciuous, amusing, moving and thought provoking hip hop. Get stuck in if you haven't already.

• Listen to the album here.
• Watch some videos here.
• Buy some stuff here.
• Follow him on Instagram here.

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'Technology'

Taking inspiration from the album of the month, a really interesting theme of 'technology'. Interpretation was wide open on this one. Our chosen 4 tracks can be found on a play list here. In order to chose a track we each shortlist 4 tracks each, a combined 16 track playlist can be found here.

• Nolan chose - 'Robots' by Landhouse ft. Raddantze
• David chose -'Windpower'  by Thomas Dolby
• Guy chose - 'Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Part 1' by The Flaming Lips
• Joey chose -'(nothing but) Flowers' by Talking Heads

*** Enjoy the Episode ***

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 41 of This is Not Happening. An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, we go deep with Lana Del Ray for the first time on TINH. LDR is one of the industry major players: few move units or split opinions like her. Find out what we think. In Part 2, the Spin it or Bin it theme is 'A Song for January' where we all chose a track that we think fits the theme and ask the others 'Spin It or Bin It'.

Part 1 | Lana Del Rey | Did you know there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd.

This is album no.9 for LDR and its a whopper. It's got a lot to say and says it across 16 tracks. There are common LDR tropes and new twists on what you might expect. We think it contains some of the best music released in 2023 but is it all good? Can a 78 minute be brilliant from start to finish?

• Listen to the album here.
• Watch some videos here.
• Buy some stuff here.
• A really interesting interview on Billboard can be found here.

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'A song for January'

Well, that was an odd Episode of Spin It or Bin It! The usual structure goes to the wall this month and it all gets a bit loose. Nolan get's the hump, Joey gets all serious but thankfully David and Guy clean up the mess and no blood was spilled.

• Nolan chose - 'Let me calm down'by Nicki Manaj (Feat. J Cole).
• Joey chose - 'Vamos A Andar' by Silvio Rodriguez
• Guy chose - 'Cocktail Chez Madmoiselle (remix)' by Laurent Voulzy, Yuksek
• David chose - 'Utopia' by Goldfrapp

*** Enjoy the Episode ***

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 40 of This is Not Happening. An Album of the Month Podcast where we usually review an album in depth and play something called 'Spin It or Bin It' ... but not this month.

We're celebrating our big 4-0 in style. It's end of year review time. We select our top 10 albums of 2023 and each pick our Track of 2023.

Part 1 - 2023 Top 10 Albums

We all independently picked our top 10s. We run those choices through a series of deep learning models commonly known as 'Algo Dave' and we create a mathematically generated combined Top 10. We made our selections and recorded this pod WAAAAAY ahead of any body else's lists coming out so we are not influenced by the mainstream musical media (which is why our list looks SO different to everyone else's). We're super proud of our 10 and chuffed to bits that our No.1 is an album that we all love and one that we've loved since the start of the year. No recency bias here my friends.

Part 2- 2023 Tracks of the Year

We each select a track of the year. Simple as that. We explain why it's our track of 2023 and have a little critique of each others choices.

*** Enjoy the Episode ***

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 39 of This is Not Happening. An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

This month, in Part 1, we get stuck in TINH favourite, Sufjan Steven's latest release  'Javelin'. Wow. Is there a lot to talk about. I hope we do it justice. In Part 2, the Spin it or Bin it theme is 'Unconventional Love Songs' where we all chose a track that we think fits the theme and ask the others 'Spin It or Bin It'.

Part 1 | Sufjan Stevens | Javelin

It's David's choice this month and a record 3rd time that we've reviewed an album by the same artist. On one hand this Sufjan doing Sufjan things ... and then on the other, it's a heart breaking, gut punch of an album that takes you to beautifully uncomfortable places. It's genuinely spectacular. 

• Listen to the album here.
• Watch some videos here.
• Buy some stuff here.
• In the chat we reference Sufjan's Instagram, that can be found here.
• A rare and recent (ish) interview with Sufjan on his health condition is here.

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | Unconventional Love Songs

Who are we to judge what 'conventional' means, what 'love' means ... what a 'song' is? The interpretation of 'unconventional love songs' was left wide open this month.

We all chose a 4 track shortlist to chose our track, you can here all 16 tracks on this playlist here.

• Nolan chose - 'The Night' by Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
• Joey chose - 'Ms Fat Booty'   by Mos Def
• Guy chose - 'Chateau Lobby #4 (for 2 virgins)' by Father John Misty
• David chose - 'Where Dreams go to Die' by John Grant

*** Enjoy the Episode ***

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 38 of This is Not Happening. An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'? 

This month, we get stuck in Noname's latest release  'Sundial' in Part 1. It's a short album but there's a lot to talk about. In Part 2, the Spin it or Bin it theme is 'New Music' where we all chose a track released since 1st August 2023 and present it for judgement.

Part 1 | Noname | Sundial

It's Nolan's choice this month and he's chosen the new album from Noname, 'Sundial'. It's an interesting, uncompromising album with a challenging cover from an unapologetic, controversial artist.  It's only 30 mins long but packs a big punch and brings a lot to the party! 

• Check out Noname's Insta here  and her Twitter here 
• Listen to the album here or here 

Here are some links to check out if you want a little more background

• Check out the album's metacritic page here 
• Check out a few opinions on some Noname controversy here 

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | New Tracks

It's a simple theme this month. New Music. We all chose tracks that have been released since August 1st 2023. We all chose a track that fits the theme then ask the others a simple question 'spin it or bin it?'

We all chose a 4 track shortlist to chose our track, you can here all 16 tracks on this playlist here.

• Guy chose 'More' by Pale Blue Eyes - listen here.
• Nolan chose 'Glory Glory'  by Little Brother - listen here.
• David chose 'Annie Pick a Flower' by Saya Grey - listen here.
• Joey chose 'Mindful Solutionism' by Aesop Rock - listen here.

*** Enjoy the Episode ***

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 37 of This is Not Happening. An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'? This month, we get pretty emotional about Julie Byrne's latest album 'The Greater Wings' in Part 1. In Part 2, Spin it or Bin it theme is 'no human sounds'. All will be explained ...

Part 1 | Julie Byrne | The Greater Wings

It's Joey's choice this month and for the 2nd time in This is Not Happening history he chooses a beautiful album by Julie Byrne. We're in the indie-folk-ambience hinterlands from a stylist perspective. From an emotional perspective we're right at the intersection of beauty, grief, loss, hope and reflection. We talk about what this album is, how there's more than one way to experience it, our favourite tracks and what it means to us.

• Visit Julie Byrne's website here
• Listen to this stunning album here
• Buy some of Julie's stuff here

Here are a few links for some background;

• The Metacritic page for 'The Greater Wings'
• Marty's Music Talk interview with Julie is here 
• Another interview with Julie, this time on KEXP Podcasts

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'No Human Sounds'

This one was way harder than it sounded at first. The theme this month is 'No Human Sounds'. We started with no vocals, then decided no human sounds at all, then we added that it couldn't be 'dance music'. Joey suggested we define 'dance music', he got laughed at ... then we got into an argument about all of Guys choices being dance music. 

We all chose a track that fits the theme then ask the others a simple question 'spin it or bin it?'

• Guy chose Vision of Self by Rival Consoles
• Nolan chose Time is the Enemy by Quantic
• Joey chose Transitions by Beastie Boys
• David chose Speed of Life by David Bowie

In order to select our tracks we shortlist 4 each and create a 16 track playlist that can be found here.

*** Enjoy the Episode ***

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 36 of This is Not Happening. An Album of the Month Podcast where in Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  This is where we pick a theme and each select a song that represents that theme. We judge each others selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'? This month, we get stuck right into Creep Show's 'Yawning Abyss' in Part 1 and in Part 2 we play Spin It or Bin It with the theme 'Super-Producers'.

Part 1 | Album of the Month | Creep Show's 'Yawning Abyss'

It's Guy's choice this month and he choses a bleak little oddity by Creep Show called Yawning Abyss. Creep Show are a 'Super Group' of John Grant, Phil Winter (Tuung), Stephen Mallinder (Caberet Volataire) and Ben 'Benge' Edwards (Prolific Producer). This is their 2nd album as a collective and they channel the dark, the dystopian and the hopeless across 9 tracks and 40-ish minutes of music. There are elements of each individuals previous work but there is distinctive sound that the band capture themselves. 

• Listen to the album here or some tracks here.
• Visit their Bandcamp here.

Here are few links to provide a little background.

• Read a very short interview with Creep Show here and another here. 
• Watch Creep Show play 'Yawning Abyss' live at latitude here.
• The Metacritic album page can be found here.

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It? | Super-Producers

What is a Super-Producer? It turns out we all have a different definition, no surprises there I guess! But collectively we kind of agree that a Super-Producer is (i) successful (ii) prolific (iii) has had a significant impact on music (iv) spans numerous artists and perhaps genres.

• David chose 'I never loved a man' by Aretha Franklin (Jerry Wexler)
• Joey chose 'Gamma Ray' by Beck (Dangermouse)
• Nolan chose 'NY State of Mind' by Nas (DJ Premier)
• Guy chose 'Weird Fish / Arpeggi' by Radiohead (Nigel Godrich)

In order to select our tracks we shortlist 4 each and create a 16 track playlist that can be found here.

*** Enjoy the Episode ***

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

This month we're doing things a little differently. In this episode we are celebrating Hip Hop's 50th Birthday by each choosing our favourite Hip Hop album. We're not choosing 'the best' or 'the most important' we're choosing our personal favourites. We take it in turns to introduce our favourite album and discuss what everyone else thinks.

Listen Here - 16 track playlist, 4 tracks each from our 4 favourite Hip Hop albums.

Nolan's Favourite Hip Hop Album | ATLiens by Outkast
Straight out of the blocks is our resident Hip Hop expert Nolan's with his selection, Outkast's 2nd album, 1996's ATLiens.

• You can find an introduction to this album by Nolan on our blog - read it here.
• You can listen to the album - here.
• ATLiens 25th Anniversary You Tube page and videos can be found -here.

Joey's Favourite Hip Hop Album | Buhloone Mind State by De La Soul
Choosing a classic TINH album from the past, Joey counters with his favourite, going back 3 years and selecting De La Soul's 3rd album, release 30 years ago in 1993, Buhloone Mind State.

• You can find an introduction to this album by Joey on our blog - read it here.
• You can listen to this gem - here.
• Have a look here at De La Soul's You Tube account for videos - here.

David's Favourite Hip Hop Album | Reachin' by Digable Planets
This one was a real pleasure to be re-introduced too. We're staying in 1993 with David's selection Reachin' by Digable Planets. The 'most-David' Hip Hop album evs.

• You can find an introduction to this album by David on our blog - read it here.
• You can listen to this beauty - here.
• Watch the video to the track that kicked the whole thing off - here.

Guy's Favourite Hip Hop Album | Renaissance by Q Tip
After some deliberation, Guy chose an album that divided opinions at the time but has aged very well and is a lovely choice by Guy. 2008's Renaissance by Q Tip.

• You can find an introduction to this album by Guy on our blog - read it here.
• You can listen to this rediscovered gem - here.
• Watch Mr. Tip doing his thing - here.

So, these are our 4 favourite Hip Hop albums of all time. What do you think? Do you know these albums? What are your favourites? Hit us up, let us kno

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

In Part 1 we get to grips with the enchanting 'Wait Til I Get Over' by Durand Jones. We talk all things soul and share our opinions. In Part 2 we play a one-off version of Spin It or Bin It that we're calling 'Love/Hate'. We each pick a track that we love but we think the others will hate.

Part 1 | Album of the Month | Durand Jones | Wait Til I Get Over

It's David's choice this month and he's chosen an album by and artist that none of us have any history with or knowledge of. The album is very much a soul album in every way that you could possibly define that word.  If you want it to be, it's a very easy to listen to soul album that fits nicely into the sun we've been enjoying. But it's also a deeply personal and emotionally moving album if you go a little deeper.

• Go listen to the album - Here
• Go watch some videos - Here
• Go buy some of their stuff - Here

Some links that we reference and recommend; 

• 'The Show on the Road' this is a great interview! - Click Here
• 'Bedroom Beethovens' ... another interview - Click Here
• Sound and Vision interview that we reference - Click Here

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | Love/Hate

So. This is a new one. We all pick a track that we love and will defend to the hilt ... but that we think the other 3 of us will hate. It sounds easy, but it's actually not.

• Joey Chose - B.Y.O.B by System of a Down
• David chose - Come all Ye by Fairport Convention
• Guy chose -Army by Ben Folds Five
• Nolan chose - I'm still trying by Matthew Fowler

Here's a handy playlist of the 4 chosen Love/Hate tracks

In order to chose our tracks we create a long list, then a short list of 4 tracks each. Each of our 4x track short lists are collated here ... have a listen ... but approach with caution, this makes no sense whatsoever!

*** Enjoy the episode ***

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

TINH happening is officially 60 episodes old. Happy 60th to us.

We're missing a team member again this month. David is back and in the hot seat, Guy is off making beautiful memories with his family. 

In Part 1, we review and Album of the Month. This month it's Davide's choice and he's picked Moisturizer, the sophomore release from Wet Leg, British Post-Punk, Post-Pop band that were previously catapulted to fame by their break out single Chaise Longue. Tune in to find out what we all thought.

In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month the theme is 'English With An Accent'.  

                                   ----- Part 1 | Wet Leg | Moisturizer  -----

Wet Leg, AKA 'that Chaise Longue band' started their career with a bang. Their first single Chaise Longue became a global hit and created a massive amount of attention. Could they ever break the curse of being a novelty, one hit wonder band ... well, yes is the simple answer. Their first album proved that (partially) but this second album smashes that idea out the park. Listen to the episode for more detail but there's a lot of positivity about this one.

Listen to the album, listen to the pod, tell us what you think. Here are some links that we mention on the pod or think could be useful to explore;

• Listen to the album ... HERE
• Watch some great videos ... HERE
• Buy some stuff ... HERE

                     ----- Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'English With An Accent -----

The theme this month is English With An Accent. Simple. Artists singing in English but with an acent.

• Nolan chose - Hate To Say I Told You So by The Hives.
• David chose - Not Any Longer by The Lijadu Sisters.
• Guy chose - Music Sounds Better With You by Stardust.
• Joey chose - Keep The Streets Empty For Me by Fever Ray.

We all chose 4 tracks as a shortlist which we combine into a belter of a 16 track playlist, listen to that bad boy HERE.

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

In Part 1 we explore the new Everything But The Girl album Fuse,  and ask is it worth the 24 year wait? In Part 2 we play Spin It or Bin It? The theme this month is new music ... tracks that have been released since Feb 1st 2023.

Part 1 | Album of the Month | EBTG | Fuse

It's Nolan's choice this month and we go with the long awaited / not even expected 12th studio album from Tracey Thorn and Ben Watt. It's rare that we get to talk about an artist that we all have a significant relationship, but this is a great example. In January we got treated to the track Nothing Left to Loose but the album offers much more. It's got just about every type of EBTG track you can think of and some of their best tracks ever.

• Go listen to the album - Here
• Go watch some videos - Here
• Go buy some of their stuff - Here

Some links that we reference and recommend; 

• Pitchfork interview - Click Here
• BBC Radio 5 Live interview - Click Here
• EBTG in conversation at Rough Trade - Click Here

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | New Music

It's been a few months since we did new music so here we go. There's a definite whiff of summer in the air!

• Nolan chose - Amplify by Rodriguez Jr.
• David chose - Mo Se B'ola Tan by The Estuary 21 
• Joey chose - Sandrail Silhouette by Avalon Emerson 
• Guy chose - Everybody's Saying That by Girl Ray

In order to chose our tracks we create a long list, then a short list of 4 tracks each. Each of our 4x track short lists are collated here ... have a listen. 

*** Enjoy the episode ***

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

In Part 1 we explore the mesmerising (but opinion dividing) 2nd album by Kelela, 'Raven'.   In Part 2 we play 'Spin it or bin it?' ... but do we really? The theme this month is our favourite De La Soul tracks ... is anyone really going to bin a De La Soul track?

Part 1 | Album of the Month | Kelela | Raven

It's Joey's choice this month and we're focusing on an intriguing, vibe of an album called Raven by Ethopian-American artist Kelela. It's 15 tracks, over an hour and plays out like a late-90s, early-00's post club mix tape. There's lots of opinions on this album, in the critical sphere they're almost universally (really) positive, the album being on of the best reviewed albums of the year. However, its a 100%, unquestioning love-in on This Is Not Happening.

• Go listen to the album - Here
• Go watch some videos - Here
• Go buy some of their stuff - Here

A few 'Raven' that we highly recommend checking out;

• A really interesting review of the album by BPM - Here
• 'Unmistakably Black' interview with Mixmag - Here
• Live Jimmy Fallen performance of 'Enough for Love' - Here

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | De La Soul tribute

After the sad passing of Trugoy the Dove, we pay tribute to De La Soul. This is the 1st time that the question 'spin it or bin it' is completely redundant.

1. Nolan chose - Stakes is High
2. Guy chose - So No Go
3. David chose - Trying People
4. Joey chose - I am I be

Check out our 16 track De La Soul tribute playlist (4 tracks each) can be found - Here (this is a good one!)

Next Month

In part 1 Nolan brings 'Fuse' by Everything But the Girl as our Album of the Month, in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or bin it' with new tracks for the last 3 months.

We've been writing a blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

In Part 1 we speak in depth about Young Fathers latest album 'Heavy Heavy' and how it packs such a punch in 32 minutes.  In Part 2 we play 'Spin it or bin it?', the theme this month is the curious anomaly that is 'Post Genre'.

Part 1 | Album of the Month | Young Fathers | Heavy Heavy

It's Guy's choice this month and we return back to an artist that we spoke about 9 years ago when they released their debut 'Dead'. Across 3 previous releases, Young Fathers have secured near universal critical acclaim, yet little commercial success. Is Heavy Heavy the album that will change this. It looks like it. But that doesn't mean this is a collection of easy listening pop tunes. We discuss what this is, what we love and the live experience.  If you know them enjoy, if you don't dig in!

• Go listen to the album - Here 
• Go watch some videos - Here 
• Go buy some of their stuff - Here

A few Heavy Heavy things that we highly recommend checking out;

• Unmuted Unmastered Podcast - Here
• Line of Best Fit interview - Here
• Some live performances - Here and Hereand Here

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | Post Genre

What the hell is post genre? In this discussion we prove that we're really not sure!

1. Guy chose - Mantra by Charlotte Adigery and Bolis Pupul 
2. Nolan Chose - BTSTU by Jai Paul 
3. Joey chose - B.O.B. by Outkast 
4. David chose - L'Elephant by Tom Tom Club 

A 16 track Post Genre playlist (4 tracks each) can be found - Here (this is a good one!)

Next Month

Joey brings Kelela's  'Raven' for Album of the Month and we play 'Spin It or Bin It?' but what will be the theme?

We've been writing a blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

In Part 1 we speak in depth about Rozi Plain's new album 'Prize'. It's a curious, warming gem of an album that really needs to be talked about. In Part 2 we play 'Spin it or bin it?', the theme this month is Protest Music.

Part 1 | Album of the Month | Rozi Plain | Prize

David's choice this month is an artist that he has a long relationship with, Rozi Plain. Rozi was new to the rest of us so we were all playing catch up. I can't remember an album that needs to be talked about (in real life, with human beings) as Prize.  You will hear me processing what I actually feel about the album, live, while we discuss it. I think I probably come out of the discussion with a slightly different conclusion to the one that I had at the start. All good albums get better with more attention but this one absolutely demands it.

Please, please, please go and give it a listen. I think most people will find something that they love about this album.

• Go listen to the album - Here or Here
• Go watch some videos - Here or Here
• Go buy some of Rozi's stuff - Here

We mention a few things that we'd highly recommend checking out, so here are the links;

• The James McMahon podcast interview / chat with Rozi - Here
• Sophie Walker's Guardian album review - Here
• Pitchfork album review - Here
• Konstantinos Papis's interview for Our Culture - Here

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | Protest Music

We all pick a track based on a theme, present the track and ask the simple question, Spin it or Bin it? The theme this month is a simple one 'Protest Music'. There are no limitations or rules this month other than, as always, we try to bring new music or a new context to each other.

1. Guy chose - 'Take the Power Back' by Rage Against the Machine
2. David Chose - 'Ship Building' by Elvis Costello & the Attractions
3. Joey chose - 'Reagan' by Killer Mike
4. Nolan chose - 'Four Women' by Nina Simone

A 16 track Protest Music playlist (4 tracks each) can be found - Here

Next Month

Guy brings Young Fathers 'Heavy Heavy' for Album of the Month and we play 'Spin It or Bin It?' with Post-Genre tracks.

We've been writing a blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

• Go listen to the album - Here
• Go watch some videos - Here
• Go buy some merch - Here 

• YouTube interview with Charlamagne Tha God - Here
• GQ interview - Here
• Joey's alternative, 10 track playlist that focuses on the bangers - Here
• Guy's alternative, 11 track playlist that focuses on the narrative - Here

1. David chose - 'Nothing Left to Loose' by Everything But the Girl 
2. Nolan chose - 'Like a Heart Won't Beat' by Skinny Pelembe  
3. Joey chose - 'Let's Hold Our Hands Together' by Kito Jempere
4. David chose - 'Gorilla' by Little Simz

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

It's that time of year again, we dust off David's secret scoring algorithm for the end of year review. This is the one we look forward to and we hope you enjoy it.

This month, in Part 1 we run through our collective, This is Not Happening Top-10 albums. In Part 2 we all introduce our Track of the Year.

Part 1 | 2022 This is Not Happening Top 10 Albums

So, there's for of us. We all independently chose our Top 10 albums. This data is fed into deep learning algorithm that considers all of the knowns and most of the unknowns and create a singular, collective This is Not Happening Top 10. Its a controversial approach but its as fair as we can make it. 

This year only 2 albums were chosen by all 4 of us. Only 3 albums were chosen by 3 of us. However, the Top 10 feels more 'shared' than we've ever done. I think it's a really solid top 10 and we should be proud of it.

Our number one is an absolute belter! We can hold our heads high with this one.

Part 2 | Tracks of the Year

How do you sum up an entire year in one track? Is it even possible? Two, important  questions, to which our answers are; 'with difficulty' and 'yes'. We chose 4 tracks from 4 different genres. There's more than a whiff of melancholy that links our Top tracks but we think is kind of fitting for one of the oddest of years.

Next Month

If we're honest, we're not 100% sure what we'll be reviewing. Every year there are albums released later in the year that we miss or simply don't have the time to get our teeth into. So Nolan will pick one of these albums and we'll all spend the holidays getting stuck into that with our families (if it's vaguely appropriate for very young or very old ears).

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Guess who's back. Back again. TINH's back. Tell a friend.

This month, in Part 1 we go deep on this month's Album of the Month by Sudan Archives. In Part 2 we play 'Spin It or Bin It', where we choose a theme and each bring our choice of tracks. This month the theme is 'Our own personal entrance music'.

Part 1 | Album of the Month | Sudan Archives | Natural Brown Prom Queen

It's my (Joey's) choice this month and we've gone with a belter of a sophomore album by Sudan Archives that easily claims the best titled album of the year 'Natural Brown Prom Queen'  

If you've not heard it and this inspires you ... 

• Go listen to the album - Here
• Go watch some videos - Here
• Go buy some merch - here 

(personally I've got my eye on the 'I just wanna get my titties out' t-shirt - here)

As always we kick off with what we expected from the album and what we got. Then we explore favorite tracks, sequencing of the album, why 'OMG Britt' nearly ruined the whole thing for Guy', the creative process of making the album and the influences that we hear.

We mention a few things that we'd highly recommend checking out, so here are the links;

• A great interview with Fader  - 'The World's most confident introvert'
• Fader interview in Podcast form - here
• The AWESOME Song Exploder episode on 'Selfish Soul' - here
• And this incredible live performance - WOWZERS

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'Our own personal entrance music'

The theme for Spin It or Bin It is a bit different this month. We're choosing our 'Entrance Music' and describing the event or circumstances that we're entering. If that doesn't make too much sense, just listen to the episode!  This month, the 4 tracks were ...

1. David chose - Adriano Celentano | L'Unica Chance (plus David's blog post)
2. Joey chose - Joey Valance and Brae (Feat. Logic) | Tanaka 2 (plus Joey's blog post)
3. Guy chose - The Beastie Boys | Sabotage (plus Guy's blog post)
4. Nolan chose - Macklemore and Ryan Lewis | Can't Hold Us (plus Nolan's blog post)

Next Month

The big one! The end of year review. Hold on tight. We count down our 10 favourite albums of the year, featuring lots of moaning about David's album scoring algorithm. We also present our tracks of the year. Can you sum up the year musically in one

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We're back again this month with our usual format. In Part 1 we go deep on Hot Chip's latest album, in Part 2 we play 'Spin It or Bin It', where we choose a theme and each bring our choice of tracks. This month the theme is 'Dance-Pop'.

Part 1 | Album of the Month | Hot Chip | Freakout/Release

It's Guy's choice this month and he chooses the one of his favourite band's latest release. It's always interesting when one of us chooses a band that they love and have loads of history with. 

Listen to the album - Here

The chat focuses around our initial impressions, favourite tracks, the difficulty of maintaining relevance and engagement on your 8th album ... and we all have something to say on the sequencing of tracks on this album.

Guy has curated a 28 track playlist called 'Hot Chip's Hot Hits' - have a listen to it here

During the chat there were loads of references to Hot Chip side projects, here are a few links for you to check out;

• The 2 Bears - Click Here
• New Build - Click Here
• Alexis Taylor - Click Here

Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | We all choose a Dance-Pop Track

In tribute to Hot Chip, the theme for Spin It or Bin It this month is Dance-Pop. Over the course of the month we all create a play list of our favourite Dance-Pop, a shortlist of 4 tracks and then choose a track to delight (or in my case annoy) the team. This month, the 4 tracks were ...

1. Nolan chose - Robyn | Dancing On My Own
2. Guy chose - Cassius | The Sound of Violence
3. Joey chose - The Knife | Pass This On
4. David chose - Soulwax | NY Excuse 

The 16 track playlist of each of our 4 shortlisted tracks can be found here and it's a belter!

Next Month

I (Joey) will be running the show and hosting the discussion on Sudan Archive's 2nd album - Natural Brown Prom Queen

Other episodes of the pod and 10 years of the blog;

If you enjoyed this episode, please check out the others. If that's not enough for you then there's 10 years worth of music discussion on the blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. So check them out so to see what we like and where we clash, and comment if something catches your eye. We'd love to hear what you think. 

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

After a little summer break we're back! We get deep into our Album of the Month, Steve Lacy's Gemini Rights in Part 1. We dig a little deeper than most pods and make sure we've spent LOADS of time living with the album.  In Part 2 we have one of the best 'Spin It or Bin It' that I can remember - we each bring a track and ask each other 'Spin It or Bin It?'

Part 1: Album of the Month - Steve Lacy's 'Gemini Rights'

It's David's choice this month and he chooses the intriguing 'Gemini Rights'. Its a tight, punchy album which gave us loads to discuss: Tik Tok, the tension between joyous music and often bitter lyrics, the influence of gender and sexuality on this album and the age of massive change that we're living in.

The chat references loads of music and we highly recommend that you check out the following if you're not familiar already;

• Raphael Sadiq's 'Instant Vintage'  
•  Stevie Wonder's 'Innervisions' 
• Frank Ocean's 'Channel Orange'
• Prince's 'Purple Rain'
• ... and my big shout out - Serpentwithfeet's 'Deacon'

Part 2: Spin It or Bin It - New Music (tracks from June 2022 onwards)

In Part 2 we get into one of the best Spin It or Bin It? that we've had. We each bring a track that meets a different brief every month. This month is simple - 'New Music'. We then ask each other the binary question 'Spin It or Bin It?' and then choose a track of the month from the 4. Here's our choices ...

1.  Guy's choice is Romare's 'Quiet Corners of My Mind'
2. Nolan's choice is Danger Mouse and Black Thought's 'The Darkest Part'
3. Joey's choice is Ela Minus and DJ Python's 'Parajos en Verano'
4. David's choice is Sudan Archive's 'NBPQ (Topless)'

Next Month

Guy will be running the show and hosting the discussion on Hot Chip's 'Freakout Release'.

Other episodes of the pod and 10 years of the blog;

If you enjoyed this episode, please check out the others. If that's not enough for you then there's 10 years worth of music discussion on the blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. So check them out so to see what we like and where we clash, and comment if something catches your eye. We'd love to hear what you think. 

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Our last Album of the Month (AOTM) was the beautiful 'Life on Earth' by Hurray for the Riff Raff. This month the  This Is Not Happening crew tackle Kendrick Lamar's 'Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers'  head on! We get stuck right into this challenging album in Part 1 of the pod. In Part 2, we play 'Spin It or Bin It?' where we judge the tracks that we've chosen for this month's theme.

Part 1 - Album of the Month

This month it's Nolan's choice, Kendrick Lamar's 'Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers' . We discuss the album in length, favourite tracks and their impact on us and other music fans and if there is a missing track from this album. 

We want you to have access to great conversations about great music - here are some links to some of the best content on this album that we've consumed;

• A great 'explainer' article from Ambrosia for Heads  - read here
• NYT's Popcast Podcast Episode (this one is great for a Kendrick Sceptic view) - listen here
• Great Tempo Tribe Podcast conversation - listen here
• A shorter listen at 22 mins - the NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast - listen here

This was one of our toughest albums to think and to talk about ... but we hope you enjoy it.

Part 2 - Spin it or Bin It

In the second part of this episode we get stuck into 4 tracks representing this months theme - 'LA Tracks' - or favourite tracks from LA based artists. We all pick a track,  introduce our track and ask the others the painfully binary critical question; 'spin it' or 'bin it?' 

We try not to go super-obvious on our track selections each month ... this is what we chose to represent LA;

1. Joey's track selection is - 'Chum' by Earl Sweatshirt
2. David's track selection is - 'Twelve Thirty' by The Mamas and the Papas
3. Nolan's track selection is - 'Runners' by Evidence ft. Defari
4. Guy's track selection is - '86' by Truncate

Next Month

Episode #25 will be with you soon - Guy will be guiding us through 'We' by Arcade Fire one of is favourite artists ever ... what could go wrong? Have a listen to the album and  share some thoughts with us on the blog or on our Insta.

Other episodes of the pod and 10 years of the blog;

If you enjoyed this episode, please check out the others. If that's not enough for you then there's 10 years worth of music discussion on the blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. So check them out so to see what we like and where we clash, and comment if something catches your eye. We'd love to see what you think. 

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Episode 59 of This is Not Happening (TINH), an Album of the Month (AOTM) Podcast. We're missing a team-member this month as Davide is on an Anglo-French diplomatic mission. 

In Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  We pick a theme and each pick a song that represents that theme. We judge the selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

In Part 1, Nolan is in the seat. He brings Little Sim'z new album, Lotus. This was a reluctant choice when he made it. He thought it was an interesting album but he was far from loving it. Has that changed in a month?

In Part 2, we celebrate New Music. What are our favourite new tracks from the last couple of months?

                            ----- Part 1 | Little Simz | 'Lotus' -----

This is the 2nd Little Simz album we're reviewed as our little Album of the Month collective. Last time round was here debut album Grey Area which would all pretty much loved. I think our experience of her work since then has varied significantly. This album has been launched in a quite dramatic and controversial environment following the collapse of Simz' relationship with former collaborator Inflo. What does Simz sound like without Inflo? Let's find out.

Listen to the album, listen to the pod, tell us what you think. Here are some links that we mention on the pod or think could be useful to explore;

• Listen to the album ... HERE.
• We mention the great Louis Theroux podcast interview ... HERE.
• Watch the video for 'Young' ... HERE.
• Buy some stuff ... HERE.  

                          ----- Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'New Music' -----

The theme this month is New Music. Simple. What new tunes are we loving? There's LOADS of amazing music out but we also need to pick something that we think the rest of us will vote 'spin it' to.

• Joey chose 'Feisty' by Smerz.
• Nolan chose 'Next to You' by Erykah Badu and The Alchemist.
• David chose 'Tricky' by New Windows.
• Guy chose 'Lowly' by Young Fathers

We all chose 4 tracks as a shortlist which we combine into a belter of a 16 track playlist, listen to that bad boy HERE.

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Last month we shared our thoughts on 'Dragon New Mountain I Believe In You' by Big Thief.  This month This Is Not Happening stays in the broad genre of 'Indie' with Hurray for The Riff Raff's 'Life on Earth' which we get into a deep discussion about in Part 1. In Part 2, we play 'Spin It or Bin It?' where we judge the tracks that we've chosen for this month's theme.

Part 1 - Album of the Month

This month it's Joseph's choice, 'Life on Earth' by Hurray for the Riff Raff. We discuss the album in length, favourite tracks, what other artists's energy we can hear in this music ... and what has become the killer question for us; 'is the production engaging or disengaging ?' Big scenes on this pod guys!

There's some great bits to link you to this month too;

• The Metacritic review page is always a good start and can be found here
• Check out this live performance of some of the album's tracks here
• The following are podcasts that are really interesting to listen to if you like the album and want to hear more and/or other people's opinions on it;
  • Blind Tiger Record Club Podcast
  • Launch Left Podcast
  •  Radio Menea Podcast
  • Living in This Queer Body Podcast

In the second part of this episode we get stuck into 4 tracks representing this months theme - 'Minimalist Grooves'. We all pick a track,  introduce our track and ask the others the painfully binary critical question; 'spin it' or 'bin it?' 

After last month's Spin it or Bin It 'fiasco', this month is a little calmer and another great chat. It's a bit more of a love-in than last months with lots of 'Spin Its' but a couple of 'Bin Its' in there too.

1. Nolan's track selection is - 'In White Rooms' by Booka Shade
2. Joey's track selection is - 'Dance' by ESG
3. David's track selection is - 'Cranes in the Sky' by Solange
4. Guy's track selection is - 'Weak Become Heroes' by The Streets

Next Month

Episode #24 will be with you soon - Nolan will be guiding us through Mr. Morlae and the Big Steppers by Kendrick Lamar and WOW, there's a lot to talk about there! Have a listen and  share some thoughts with us on the blog or on our Insta. Its hard not to have an opinion on this one.

Other episodes of the pod and 10 years of the blog;

If you enjoyed this episode, please check out the others. If that's not enough for you then there's 10 years worth of music discussion on the blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. So check them out so to see what we like and where we clash, and comment if something catches your eye. We'd love to see wha

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Last month we shared our thoughts on Small World by Metronomy, all 9 tracks and 35 minutes worth. This month This Is Not Happening ups the ante with 'Dragon, New Mountain ...', all 20 tracks and 80 minutes worth.  In part 1, we deep dive into the density of Big Thief and Part 2 we play 'Spin It or Bin It?' where we judge the tracks that we've chosen for this month's theme.

Part 1 - Album of the Month

This month it's David's choice, 'Dragon...' by Big Thief. Three of us love Big Thief and have more than a passing relationship with the band ... whilst one of us is a Big Thief virgin. There was SO much written about this album as soon as it came out including a number of 100% reviews.  As always, we take a slower, more considered approach to criticism, living with this album for a couple of months and letting it really settle in before we reflect and share our views.

You don't have to look to far to find interviews, reviews and videos on Big Thief and this album but some of the content that we consumed and discussed in part 1 can be found below;

• The Metacritic review page is always a goo start and can be found here
• This is a great listen - 'Out On The Line' Podcast 
• Really insightful take on the album - 'Taking it Down' Podcast
• If you love them ... or not, this one's got you covered - 'NY Times' Podcast
• A great article in Vulture - read it here

Part 2 - 'Spin it' or 'Bin it?'

In the second part of this episode we get stuck into 4 tracks representing this months theme - 'Not on Spotify'. We all pick a track,  introduce our track and ask the others the painfully binary critical question; 'spin it' or 'bin it?' 

This month was a little more 'free form' than usual ... but an amusing listen none the less!

1. Guy's track selection is - Prassay - Krvsin
2. David's track selection is - Nick Drake - I Was Made to Love Magic
3. Nolan's track selection is - Pharoahe Monch - F You
4. Joey's track selection is - Joanna Newsome  - '81

Next Month

Episode #23 will be with you soon - Joey will be leading the discussion on 'Life on Earth' by Hurray for the Riff Raff. If you get the chance we'd love you to have a listen and perhaps share some thoughts with us on the blog or on our Insta. This album's getting a lot of positive attention and we think it's going to be in a few year end lists.

Other episodes of the pod and 10 years of the blog;

If you enjoyed this episode, please check out the others. If that's not enough for you then there's 10 years worth of music discussion on the blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. So check them out so to see what we like and where we clash, and comment if something c

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Following last months's Album Club #1, This Is Not Happening returns to our traditional format. In part 1, we deep dive into an album that one of us has selected. In Part 2 we play 'Spin It or Bin It?' where we judge each others track selections of great new music from 2022.

Part 1 - Album of the Month

This month it's Guy's choice, Small World the new album by Metronomy. Spoiler Alert - Metronomy are one of Guy's favourite bands.  We discuss our expectations, reactions, reflections, dynamics in the band and if every album being released at the moment is in some way a 'lockdown album'. 

Some interesting 'bits' to check out;

1. The Metacritic album review summary can be found here
2. An interesting interview with Joe Mount for DIY Mag can be found here
3. Joe Mount doing an Instagram Live Q&A can be found here

Part 2 - 'Spin it' or 'Bin it?'

In the second part of this episode we get stuck into the MASSIVE amount of great music that has been released in 2022. We all pick a track,  introduce our track and ask the others the critical question 'spin it' or 'bin it?' We then decide on a track of the month from the list of 4.

Nolan's track selection is - Pusha T - 'Diet Coke'
David's track selection is - Sasami - 'Call Me Home'
Joey's track selection is - Holodrum - 'Low Light'
Guy's track selection is - Ibibio Sound Machine - 'All That You Want'

A link to a mini-Spotify-playlist of these 4 tracks can be found here.

In order to make our selections, we all create a long list, then shortlist 4 tracks each. The 16 tracks that make up our track shortlists can be found here.

Next Month

Episode #22 will see us focus on Big Thief's latest release 'Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You' as David's selection for Album of the Month. The theme for Spin It or Bin It is 'Tracks that are not on Spotify'

Other episodes of the pod and 10 years of the blog;

If you enjoyed this episode, please check out the others. If that's not enough for you then there's 10 years worth of music discussion on the blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. So check them out so to see what we like and where we clash, and comment if something catches your eye. We'd love to see what you think.   

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

We usually pick a (relatively) new album release to focus on but this month we changed things up. The start of the year is a funny time for album releases and 2022 was no different. We decided that rather than spend a month and a podcast talking about something that we weren't too passionate about, we'd take a different path.  This month is the first TINH 'Album Club'.
 
The format for this podcast is simple. The four of us all (randomly) chose  someone from the Team-TINH to pick an album for. The album should be from the past 10 (ish) years and should represent something special that the recipient might have missed. A modern classic perhaps.

This episode was loads of fun to make. There's loads of agreement, a little bit of niggle, a fair chunk of nerdery ... something for everyone. The following are the albums that we discussed, who chose them, who they were chosen for and some links that take you to some of the things that popped up in the discussion.

First-up - Joey chose Deerhunter's 2010 'Halcyon Digest' for Guy;

You can listen to the album here on Spotify
... or catch it on YouTube here
The ethereal video for Helicopter can be watched here
... or watch them perform the poptastic 'Memory Boy' here

Next-up - Nolan chose Kanye West's 2016 'Life of Pablo' for David (what could go wrong?);

You can listen to the album here on Spotify
... or catch it on YouTube here
Nolan highly recommends NORE's podcast interview with Kanye here ...
... and if 2.5hrs of Kanye wasn't enough here's part 2

Next-up - David chose Wye Oak's 2011 'Civilian' for Joey;

You can listen to the album here on Spotify
... or catch it on YouTube here
Watch a live NPR Tiny Desk performance of 'Civilian' here

Finally - Guy chose Enny's 2021's 'Under 25' for Nolan;

You can listen to the album here on Spotify
... or catch it on YouTube here
Watch the video to 'I want' here
... and the video for 'Peng Black Girls' here

Next Up Episode #21 will see us dive deep into all 20 of the tracks on Big Thief's double album release 'Dragon New Mountain I Believe in You'. Have a listen here i

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Part 1 - Album of the Month

This Is Not Happening kicks off the New Year with a great album from the end of 2021, Joy Crookes' debut release 'Skin'. We discuss our expectations and reactions, similarities between this album and a certain other soul singer from London and get deep into our favourite tracks from the album. There's lovely point of pod-synergy when Nolan predicts with 100% accuracy Joey's favourite track and more impressively, the reason for this selection.

In the chat we reference 3  interviews that are worth looking into to get a rounder flavour of Joy. These gave us a better sense of some of the tracks, her background and a bit of old-fashioned entertainment ... she's a great interviewee;

1. 'This City - Podcast - With Clara Amfo - Feb. 2020
2. 'gal-dem' interview - Oct. 2021
3. 'Diffus' interview - Oct. 2021

Part 2 - 'Spin it' or 'Bin it'

In the second part of this episode we take inspiration from Joy's stomping ground and we all bring a track from South London that we love.  Each of us introduce our track and ask the others if they want to 'spin it' or 'bin it';

Joey's track selection is -  Ha ha by Ty
Guy's track selection is - Little More Love by A J Tracey
Nolan's track selection is - Sad Cowboy by Goat Girl
David's track selection is - You Look Certain (I'm not so sure) by Mount Kimbie

A link to a mini-Spotify-playlist of these 4 tracks can be found here.

Next Month

Episode #20 will see us take a slightly different approach to the podcast. January is often a flat month for releases, rather than choose something that we didn't have our hearts in, we're each going to chose an album from the last 10 years (ish) for another member of the team.

Other episodes of the pod and 10 years of the blog;

If you enjoyed this episode, please check out the others. If that's not enough for you then there's 10 years worth of music discussion on the blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. So check them out so to see what we like and where we clash, and comment if something catches your eye. We'd love to see what you think.   

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

This Is Not Happening's 2021 comes to an end with a look back at the many musical highs of a memorable 2021 and count down our top ten  albums of the year. Despite the many challenges musicians have been facing in making music in a pandemic, it's been a truly exceptional year,  from the likes of Wolf Alice, Japanese Breakfast, Arlo Parks, Billie Eilish, The Weather Station and many others, but there's only room for one winner - who's it going to be?

We'll also be nominating our tracks of the year, from a very tough long list of amazing records. Here are our our 4 monster fave tracks of 2021, one from each of us, below.

Guy: Feu! Chatteron - Écran Total
Nolan: Gheist - We Are Not Alone
David: Royce Wood Jr - Slush
Joey: Billie Eilish - Happier Than Ever

The full top 10s and playlists and all our music discussions over the last ten years can be found on the blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which will run alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. So check them out so to see what we like and where we clash, and comment if something catches your eye. We'd love to see what you think.  You can also find our longer tracks of the year here on Spotify.

Episode #19 will see us take on one of 2021's most underrated albums - Joy Crookes's incredible debut Skin -  and we'll be delving deep into it in January. The episode will land in the second half of January.

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Episode 17 of This Is Not Happening follows Billie Eilish's memorable new album with a slice of classy electronic music from Irishman Mano Le Tough. Dubliner turned Zurich resident Niall Mannion's third album At The Moment  saw him expand his musical horizons in lockdown, and we all got to stand back and say what it meant to us. Nolan was at the tiller this month.

In the second half of the episode, we go to the movies, picking out our favourites from original music in films, and it was a beautiful conversation blending our love for the silver screen with our love for music. Here's our shortlist, and longer lists from Guy and David.  It was an absolute joy doing this month. The tracks we chose were:

Nolan - Jose Gonzalez - Stay Alive (from The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty in 2013)
Joey - Public Enemy - Fight The Power (from Spike Lee’s Do The Right Thing in 1989)
Guy - Clint Mansell - Welcome To Lunar Industries (from Duncan Jones’ Moon in 2009)
David - Justin Hurwitz - City Of Stars / May Finally Come True - La La Land (2016)

November's album of the month and all our tracks, playlists, and chat from our last decade or more can be found on our blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and all sorts more. Head down there and hopefully you'll find more stuff to like. We'd love to hear from you on the socials (links below).

Episode #18 arrives with our favourite month of the year with of our review of 2021. We'll be picking out our favourite Top 10 albums, and tracks of the year. Not too long to wait!

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com
Reviews: www.ratethispodcast.com/thisisnothappening

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Episode 16 of This Is Not Happening goes as big as it gets with Billie Eilish's new album, Happier Than Ever.  Following angular synth and guitars of Lonelady in episode 15,  we take an album that's already one of the most talked-about of the year, and delve into what it means for us, and the music world. David is bringing us this album.

In the second half of the episode, we go for intros, and pick out some of our favourite opening tracks of the albums we love. It's a mighty list, and we've also had some cracking shortlists from Guy here. The tracks we chose were:

Joey - Bjork - Human Behaviour from Debut (1993)
Guy - Etienne De Crecy - Le Patron Est Devenou Fou! - from Super Discount (1996)
David - Bill Withers - Harlem - from Just As I am (1971)
Nolan - A Tribe Called Quest - Excursions - from The Low End Theory by Tribe (1991)

October's album of the month and all our new tracks, playlists, and chat from the past decade or more can be found on our blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. Head down there and hopefully you'll like what we're talking about and if you do, we'd love to hear from you on the socials (links below).

Episode #17 arrives with a nod to the dancefloor from Nolan, who picks Dublin artist Mano Le Tough's At The Moment. This next episode will be landing before the end of November ahead of our review of the year in December.

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com
Reviews: www.ratethispodcast.com/thisisnothappening

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Episode 15 of This Is Not Happening heads to the north west of England with Manchester artist Lonelady's third album, Former Things. After the heart-on-sleeve shogazey pop of Japanese Breakfast's Jubilee, Julie Campbell's solo guitar/drums/synth template brings 8 tracks of post-punk, electronic fusion, with Guy at the helm!

In the second half of the episode, we stay in Manchester, each bringing a track from the city's fabled music history to the table. Our shortlist is here, and Guy's longlist lives here. Stick around and see what we thought of the picks:

Guy  – Zoe Abalone - Vortex
David - Paris Angels - Perfume
Joey - Pip Milett - Hard Life
Nolan  - Mr Scruff v Cyberpunks - A Space Disco Remix

September's album of the month and all our new tracks, playlists, and chat from the past decade or more can be found on our blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. Head down there and hopefully you'll like what we're talking about and if you do, we'd love to hear from you on the socials (links below).

Episode #16 comes in the shape of Billie Eilish's new album Happier Than Ever as David bring his pop-beingness back to the fore. That next episode will be landing before the end of October.

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com
Reviews: www.ratethispodcast.com/thisisnothappening

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Episode 14 of This Is Not Happening heads from hip-hop to pop with Japanese Breakfast's Jubilee. The creation of Korean-American Michelle Zauner, this is her 3rd album and sees her move from a more shoegazey, loose style into the full pop universe. Joey comes at us with it, but do we feel the same way he does? Find out! 

In the second half of the episode, we head back to new music, with a favourite from us that's been released in the past three months. Our longlist is here, see what we thought of the picks:

Joey - CMAT - 2 Wrecked 2 Care
David - Wet Leg - Chaise Longue
Guy  – Public Service Broadcasting - People, Let's Dance
Nolan  - GHEIST - You

August's album of the month and all our new tracks, playlists, and chat from the past decade or more can be found on our blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. Head down there and hopefully you'll like what we're talking about and if you do, we'd love to hear from you on the socials (links below).

Episode #15 hangs onto the summer with LoneLady's Former Things. Guy's bringing this slice of modern Mancunian synth and guitars to the gang. That next episode will be landing before the end of September.

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com
Reviews: www.ratethispodcast.com/thisisnothappening

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

This month's podcast could be re-titled 'How to Disagree Nicely.  Welcome to Episode 58 of This is Not Happening (TINH), an Album of the Month (AOTM) Podcast. 

In Part 1 we deep dive into an Album that one of us has chosen and in Part 2 we play 'Spin it or Bin it'.  We pick a theme and each pick a song that represents that theme. We judge the selections by asking the question 'Spin It or Bin It'?

In Part 1, Guy is in the seat. He brings Lucy Dacus' new album, Forever is a Feeling for us to consider and discuss.

In Part 2, we celebrate the summer, it was hear, it has already gone. Nolan's specialist subject, the Summer Night track is our theme for Spin It or Bin It.

                            ----- Part 1 | Lucy Dacus | 'Forever is a Feeling' -----

We have varying levels of experience and history with Lucy Dacus but Guy has fallen for this album in a big way. It's Lucy's 4th solo album and sits alongside her work as part of Boygenius. The album is a really easy listen, it can sit with you on repeat for a significant chunk of time. The question that we explore is, can penetrate beyond a nice listen ... opinions vary but at least one of us has this in their album of the year list at this point in the year.

Listen to the album, listen to the pod, tell us what you think. Here are some links that we mention on the pod or think could be useful to explore;

• Listen to the album ... HERE.
• Listen to the the 'A Deeper Listen interview / podcast ... HERE.
• Watch some videos (particularly the live performances) ... HERE.
• Buy some stuff ... HERE.       

                          ----- Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | 'Summer Nights' -----

The theme this month is 'Summer Nights'. Which tracks give us big summer night vibes. Ever since I've known Nolan he has always immediately given songs a season, I've never known anyone think as 'seasonally' about music. So no pressure but we play Spin It or Bin it with his specialist subject!

• David chose 'Tropical Gangsters' by Kid Creole & the Coconuts.
• Nolan chose 'Thinking About You' by Saraga.
• Joey chose 'Tomas'   by Girl Ultra, Empress Of and  Chromeo.
• Guy chose 'Fly Life Xtra' by Basement Jaxx.

Here is a link to our 16 track playlist of religion-inspired tracks - with the first 4 tracks being our picks for this month.

 (and just for a laugh, here's the video of DC10 we talked about

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Episode 13 of This Is Not Happening stays in NYC with Skyzoo's new album All The Brilliant Things following up the 70s palette of  St Vincent: Daddy's Home.  The much-respected Brooklyn  MC's 7th album finds him  writing a paen to his changing city, gentrification and history. It's a beguiling work that Nolan brought to us get deep on as we move into season 2 of the podcast. There's playlists that run alongside the episode here. 

In the second half of the episode, we talk tracks of the summer, with a favourite from us that reminds of us the warm months. Our longlist is here, see what we thought of the picks:

David - The Millennium - To Claudia On Thursday
Joey - Clive Field Marshall - Island In The Sun
Guy  – Metronomy - The Bay
Nolan  - Black Sheep - Summa Tha Time

July's album of the month and all our new tracks, playlists, and chat from the past decade or more can be found on our blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. Head down there and hopefully you'll like what we're talking about and if you do, we'd love to hear from you on the socials (links below).

Episode #14 takes us into the summer and is Joey's chance to bring us a classic slice of modern pop with Japanese Breakfast's Jubilee. The next episode will be landing before the end of August.

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com
Reviews: www.ratethispodcast.com/thisisnothappening

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Welcome to Season 2 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast from four of us: Guy, Joey, Nolan and David. We choose an album: we digest it, we praise it, we question it. And we bring tracks to the table. Every month. And you get to listen. Think of this as a highlights package. 

A year into it, we've been lucky enough to cover some amazing albums, right from the start. From RTJ to Arlo Parks, Genesis Owusu to Sault, and the Weather Station to Jessie Ware. Rounding it off are Yves Tumor, Paul McCartney, Bicep, St Vincent and Sufjan Stevens. We've also covered a review of 2020 in ep6. 

We've loved every minute so thanks to everyone that's listened so far. We hope the next year will be just as enjoyable. We've got Skyzoo lined up next before the end of July and after that, Japanese Breakfast. After that? Who knows? That's the fun. 

For all the albums of the month and all our new tracks, playlists, and chat from the past decade or more head to our blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. Swing by and you'll hopefully enjoy what we're talking about and if you like it, we'd love to hear from you on the socials (links below).

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com
Reviews: www.ratethispodcast.com/thisisnothappening

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Episode 12 of This Is Not Happening strides from Genesis Owusu's Smiling With No Teeth to the much-anticipated new album from St Vincent: Daddy's Home. The New York art-rock darling has embraced the underbelly of the 1970s with a new persona and some eye-catching tracks. Megafan David tries to convince us why we should all love it. It's definitely a tug of war for an album that's found reactions at both extremes. We also put together a playlist of music that makes us lean to Annie Clark.

In the second half of the episode, we set the seemingly impossible task of convincing each other to like a song from artists that they hate. What were we thinking?! Our longlist is here, see what we thought of the picks:

David via Joey – Manic Street Preachers – You’re Tender And You’re Tired
Guy  via Nolan – The Weeknd – High For This
Nolan via David - Muse – Falling Down
Joey via Guy – Arcade Fire – Intervention

June's album of the month and all our new tracks, playlists, and chat from the past decade or more can be found on our blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. Swing by and you'll hopefully enjoy what we're talking about and if you like it, we'd love to hear from you on the socials (links below).

Episode #13 takes us into series 2 of the podcast, and sees Nolan bring some hip-hop to the table with Skyzoo's new album All The Brilliant Things. as the celebrated New Yorker takes us into his world.  Skyzoo will be coming to you before the end of July.

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com
Reviews: www.ratethispodcast.com/thisisnothappening

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/

Episode 11 of This Is Not Happening departs from the ethereal Weather Station to a debut album of rare and mighty impact from Genesis Owusu. Smiling With No Teeth comes from an Australian-Ghanaian whose melting-pot influences have created one of the most fascinating and memorable albums of the year for an artist capturing lived experience in the starkest and brutally honest way. Guy's at the controls to sing about it from the rooftops. We also went big on music that the album inspired us to dive into.

In the second half of the show, we tasked ourselves with finding a hidden gem we should already know. So much fun to do this, with a longlist here. The four we chose are:

David - Syreeta - Harmour Love
Joey - The Cars - A Dream Away
Guy - Herbie Hancock - The Twilight Clone
Nolan - Them Two - Am I A Good Man

May's album of the month and all our playlists, new music and discussions from the past decade or more can be found on our blog at www.thisisnothappening.net, which runs alongside the podcast choices and much, much more. Take a minute to dip in and you'll hopefully enjoy what we're talking about and if you like it, we'd love to hear from you on the socials (links below).

Episode #12 closes out our first year with David going mega-fan on St Vincent's new album Daddy's Home. The latest from the vaunted singer, guitarist and avant-garde musical shapeshifter will be coming to you before the end of May.

This Is Not Happening:
Created by Joey, Nolan, Guy and David.
Produced and Edited by Guy and Nolan.
Twitter: @thisisnothapng
Instagram: @thisisnothappeningpod
Email: thisisnothappeningpodcast@gmail.com
Reviews: www.ratethispodcast.com/thisisnothappening

We've been writing the blog for years come and have a look - https://thisisnothappening.net/