Stuck for a presie? We can suggest some perfect Christmas presies for BLOKES. Well, perfect if we can trust our random sample of drinking buddies. We have solutions for all budgets, from stocking fillers to a neat collection of the best albums of the year.

Let’s omit the obvious, he might have those albums already or they might wing their way under the Christmas tree from some other source. Below you find some choice selections that spell Good Taste.

We give you three selections based on how much you want to spend:

1. THE STOCKING FILLER
2. CHANGE FROM €50
3. PUSHING THE BOAT OUT (€100)

Within each selection, you can order albums on CD or, where available, on trendy Vinyl. If you feel a bit extravagant, why not buy the album(s) of your choice on MP3, then buy your loved one a nifty new MP3 player and load the tracks onto it? Now there’s an idea.

1. THE STOCKING FILLER

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds ‘Dig! Lazarus Dig!’

It’s back to sex and drugs and Rock’n'Roll for the Bad Seeds as they deliver a straight rock album without any experiments.

Cave famously introduced murder ballads into the pop mainstream in the 1990’s with ‘Where The Wild Roses Grow’ (with Kylie Minogue) and ‘Henry Lee’ (with PJ Harvey). He still writes edgy lyrics, only this time he sticks to more traditional Rock images.

‘Dig! Lazarus Dig!’ could have been made anytime between 1969 and 2008. Musically, the band takes a fresh look at its roots, from Dylan’s stream of consciousness rants to the buzz saw organ and guitar noise of Lou Reed and John Cale’s Velvet Underground. The Bad Seeds even have a decent stab at re-constructing the Velvet’s ‘Sweet Jane’ on the hypnotic album closer ‘More News From Nowhere’.

‘Dig! Lazarus Dig!’ is arguably the easiest Cave album to listen to in a long time. Cave and the Bad Seeds play seriously tight and show plenty of muscle without having to try too hard.

UK and Ireland readers candownload ‘Dig! Lazarus Dig!’ from the iTunes Store.

US Readers - Buy Nick Cave On CD Here!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy Nick Cave On CD Here!

2. CHANGE FROM €50

James Jackson Toth ‘Waiting In Vain’ - Cracking folky songs from a bloke you want to share a six pack with.
Emiliana Torrini ‘Me And Armini’ - Femme fatale with a voice that’s just addictive.
Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobious Pip ‘Angles’ - Yo, where’s the party?

James Jackson Toth ‘Waiting In Vain’
A top album that has a bit of everything: Trendy Folk sounds, dirty guitars and good songs. At times JJ sings with the sarcastic streak of John Lennon, at other times there’s a bit of Bob Dylan’s ranting and raving in the mix.

‘Waiting In Vain’ is way rockier than any decent singer-songwriter stuff you may come across this year. And that includes Micah P. Hinson.

Hinson’s music is darker and has that ’50s feel. Toth’s album is more like a slice of 70’s rock: Music for cruising. But JJ ain’t no jock and there is a dark streak running through the album that makes you sit up and listen carefully. Just check out the ever so slightly psycho video for the catchy ‘Doreen’. That’s his wife Roxy in the clip with him, by the way.

Watch JJ Toth Play ‘Doreen’

Sweet melodies and a touch of menace in the air - Highly addictive, but slightly scary stuff. JJ also manages the rare feat to knock out guitar riffs and solos that come close to seminal New York Punks Television.

Listen to JJ Toth’s new album here. US residents can also download tracks directly from the MP3 player below. UK and Ireland residents would need to jump to the iTunes link further down to buy the album.

Here’s the iTunes UK link for JJ’s album ‘Waiting In Vain’.

US Readers - Buy JJ Toth On CD Here!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy JJ Toth On CD Here!

Emiliana Torrini ‘Me And Armini’
The Icelandic singer has a voice that cuts straight through the crowd and talks to YOU. What Torrini has to say can be very, very nice, but when you get on her wrong side she sure is horrid. The lyrics here a very open and direct and musically Torrini packs a punch as well.

There are touches of raucous 1950s Rockabilly on ‘Jungle Drum’. There’s Torrini confessing an affair on the Funky ‘Heard It All Before’ and Torrini seizing up a neighbour on the dark ‘Gun’, all drenched in tremolo and reverb.

Pretty heavy stuff for an artist who previously co-penned a song for Kylie Minogue (’Slow’), contributed to the Lord Of The Rings soundtrack and has a solo career as a folky pop singer in her native Iceland.

Listen Here To Emiliana Torrini

Readers from the UK and Ireland, Click Here to download ‘Armini And Me’ from iTunes UK.

US Readers - Buy Emiliana Torrini On CD Here!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy Emiliana Torrini On CD Here!

Dan Le Sac Vs. Scroobious Pip ‘Angles’
Dan and Pip are two Essex boys cutting up some hip hop beats for a laugh, rapping in finest Estuary English. Just the album for your next party!

At first listen these blokes might come across as plain nutters, but check out the lyrics. There are scores of artists out there trying to sound streetwise in a local accent. ‘Angles’ leaves the competition behind when it comes to the lyrics.

Dan (the bloke with the beats) and Pip (the rapper) are a bit more brash, a bit more fun. Their music is mostly cut-and-paste laptop hip hop with a DIY attitude. If your taste in hip hop is US superstars, then you’ll find ‘Angels’ rather nervous and sketchy. Maybe start with the single ‘The Beat That My Heart Skipped’, which is catchy as hell, or ‘Development’ - Both relatively calm tracks. Check out the video for ‘The Beat’ below!

Video Corner: Dan Le Sac vs Scroobius Pip ‘The Beat That My Heart Skipped’

UK and Ireland readers can download ‘Angles’ here from iTunes.

US Readers - Buy ‘Angles’ On CD Here!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy ‘Angles’ On CD Here!

3. PUSHING THE BOAT OUT (€100)

Giant Sand ‘Provisions’ - The style’s called Americana: Alternative with a touch of Country.
Boris ‘Smile’ - Time to rock! These Japanese guys blast Metallica and AC/DC away any day.
Micah P. Hinson And The Red Empire Orchestra - Americana with a very dark edge, makes Leonard Cohen sound sweet and innocent.
Fleet Foxes ‘Fleet Foxes’ - It’s the year of Americana and Fleet Foxes rule.
David Byrne And Brian Eno ‘Everything That Happens Will Happen Today’ - Neat and angular, a very male thing somehow.
Lykke Li ‘Youth Novels’ - The best album of this year’s New Wave revival, bubblegum on ice.

Giant Sand ‘Provisions’
They are Alternative Rock’s favourite desert outlaws. Few play rock with a widescreen Western flavour with more credibility or style. This is music for endless cups of coffee at a late night diner.

Giant Sand are based in Tucson, Arizona. Maybe there’s something in the desert air out there. Giant Sand mastermind Howe Gelb and an ever changing line-up of fellow musicians have been making strangely spiritual, laid back Rock music for over two decades. Long before Country and US Folk influenced Rock became hip, Giant Sand developed the blueprint for what is now often referred to as Americana.

There is nothing rough or improvised about Gelb’s music. A professional into the last detail, he plays every bit as slick as, say, soft rocker Eric Clapton on ‘Live At Budokan’, yet there is a directness about ‘Provisions’ that screams ‘I am here now and I’m talking to YOU’.

What you get on ‘Provisions’ is very straight, honest music with one foot in Alternative Rock and the other stuck deep in all sorts of American roots music.

There are some straight Alternative moments (’Out There’), yet the majority of numbers here has an overwhelming feel of music for propping up late night diner counters (’Increment Of Love’, ‘Stranded Pearl’, ‘Without A Word’).

Fans of Micah P. Hinson, The Tindersticks, Bonnie Prince Billy, Lambchop, Wilco and Nick Cave should give ‘Provisions’ a listen. You might find a new favorite act in Giant Sand.

Readers from the UK and Ireland, download ‘Provisions’ here from iTunes UK.

US Readers - Buy Giant Sand On CD Here!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy Giant Sand On CD Here!

Micah P. Hinson And The Red Empire Orchestra
Like Tom Waits meeting Leonard Cohen in a roadside ale house, this album combines lust, rage and sadness with a taste for sleezy late night music. Micah is out in a league of his own.

The first half of the album is folky with a dark streak. Somber songs sung with an authority that makes you listen. Then Micah takes on a different personality, turning into a flamboyant storyteller who commands a string orchestra for added dramatic effect.

‘You Will Find Me’, ‘The Wishing Well And The Willow Tree’, ‘We Won’t Have To Be Lonesome’ - The second half of the album is full of drama and passion. There is more than a touch of Roy Orbison’s excess and the Big O’s ambivalence between laughter and tears in these songs. Micah performs his more outlandish material with sincerity. This is no kitschy 1950’s nostalgia but very powerful music.

‘The Red Empire Orchestra’ is as eclectic a mix of old and new music genres as you are likely to find. It figures that the bard from Texas has named The Cure, Patsy Cline and Donovan as a source of inspiration in interviews before.

Fans of Cohen, Waits, the Tindersticks, Nick Cave and Richard Hawley should definitely check Micah’s new album out.

UK and Ireland readers can download Micah P. Hinson here from iTunes UK.

US Readers - Buy Micah P. Hinson On CD Here!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy Micah P. Hinson On CD Here!

Fleet Foxes ‘Fleet Foxes’
Seattle band Fleet Foxes sit inbetween the darker side of the Beach Boys and the jangly folk rock of the Byrds. At their best, the Foxes make timeless surf pop songs full of towering vocal harmonies.

The harmonies and the echo-drenched drums expand songs like ‘White Winter Hymnal’ and ‘He Doesn’t Know Why’ into soundscapes as big and wide as a Pacific beach. Both tracks plus the quieter ‘Heard Them Stirring’ recall the more intense creations by Beach Boys’ mastermind Brian Wilson.

The three songs together form the heart of the Fleet Foxes’ selftitled album. The remainder of the album is made up of heavily Byrds-inspired folk rock tunes full of jangling guitars and introspective lyrics. Check out ‘Sun It Rises’, ‘Tiger Mountain Peasant Song’ and ‘Blue Ridge Mountains’.

The ex-Grunge Rockers among you may like to know that this five-piece hails from the suburbs of Grunge capital Seattle. Like the Grunge bands that came before them, the Fleet Foxes display a mellow, laid back vibe throughout the album. ‘Fleet Foxes’ never sounds busy or laboured.

If you are looking for sunny, laid back pop songs with an echo of the Beach Boys’ surfing symphonies then ‘Fleet Foxes’ is a sound choice.

UK and Ireland readers can download ‘Fleet Foxes’ here from the iTunes Store.

US Readers - Buy Fleet Foxes On CD Here!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy Fleet Foxes On CD Here!

Boris ‘Smile’
Japanese power trio Boris play Hard Rock with one sneaker planted firmly in the 1970s and the other in the Post-Punk world of Husker Du and Black Flag. But these guys don’t copy those who went before them. For starters, they mainly sing in Japanese. Boris walk their own way with a cocky swagger.

Start with the white heat of ‘Laser Beam’, take in the classic rocker ‘Buzz-In’ and sample the reverb-fest that is ‘Statement’. What I like about Boris’ music is that they use just the right number of chords - not too little and certainly not too much. Sheets of noise replace lead guitar trickery, yet Boris mold melodies out of white noise.

Like any self-respecting hard rocker, Boris also do ballads. There are two ballads on ‘Smile’: ‘My Neighbour Satan’ and the very cool ‘You Were Holding An Umbrella’. Even when they do their slow set, Boris sound powerful.

‘Smile’ is a great guitar record if you are looking for something slightly leftfield with plenty of ‘oomph’.

UK and Ireland readers can downoad ‘Smile’ here from iTunes.

US Readers - Buy ‘Smile’ On CD Here!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy ‘Smile’ On CD Here!

David Byrne And Brian Eno ‘Everything That Happens Will Happen Today’
This is an effortlessly elegant exercise in stylish Pop. Some might find it cold, but Byrne’s detached singing style and Eno’s understated and efficient backing tracks give the album character.

Former Talking Heads frontman Byrne describes the duo’s sound as ‘Folk-Electronic-Gospel’. Don’t expect shouts of ecstasy or thundering tales of brimstone and fire. Byrne and Eno’s brand of Gospel falls more into the gently life-affirming vein of soft spoken New England parishes.

It’s a tightrope walk between understatement and repetition. After a few listens, songs blend into each other and it’s the overall feel of the album that is the real winner. Just one massive slab of shimmering, sparkling sound.

Avantgarde composer Eno, a founding member of Roxy Music, and Byrne worked as a duo before, releasing the influential ‘My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts’ in 1981, the first cohesive album based on the use of samples and dance beats. ‘Everything That Happens’ does not push the envelope like its predecessor, but it has Byrne and Eno producing some timeless pop music.

Musically most out there is ‘Wanted For Life’ with its squashed metallic Beats and grinding electric organ. ‘Poor Boy’ is a surprisingly glitchy track held together by scratchy Afro Funk guitar and tight percussion.

‘Life Is Long’ and ‘My Big Nurse’ are the most immediately ‘poppy’ tracks with strong choruses and, in the case of ‘Life’, a snappy brass section. The remainder of the songs is more drawn out, either in a leisurely, funky way like ‘Strange Overtones’ or in a more somber fashion reminiscent of Icelandic mood merchants Sigur Ros.

UK and Ireland readers can downoad David Byrne and Brian Eno’s new album here from iTunes.

US Readers - Buy David Byrne & Brian Eno’s New Album Here On CD!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy David Byrne & Brian Eno’s New Album On CD Here!

Lykke Li ‘Youth Novels’
Like Nouvelle Vague with balls. The 22-year old Swede’s debut album ‘Youth Novels’ has an overall atmosphere of muted euphoria with a melancholic aftertaste. Very New Romantic, in a way.

You can hear the New Romantics influence on ‘Little Bit’ with it’s chorus like a stripped down, skeletal version of Spandau Ballet. ‘Youth Novels’ - even the title sounds like a New Romantic album - has definitely more to offer than the single ‘I’m Good I’m Gone’. That track alone is worth the price of the album, with its ‘Louie Louie’ piano intro and all.

At other times, Li sounds like a feistier version of Nouvelle Vague covering New Order or the Punk Pop of the Dead Boys on ‘Dance, Dance, Dance’ and ‘Melodies & Desires’ respectively.

UK and Ireland readers can download ‘Youth Novles’ here from iTunes.

US Readers - Buy ‘Youth Novels’ On CD Here!

UK And Ireland Readers - Buy ‘Youth Novels’ On CD Here!