Post I'm most likely to regret down the road

I spent about 13 hours on Saturday watching Live 8 on TV, and another couple yesterday filling in the gaps through AOL’s feed, so I could review it for today’s Post. So you’ll have to forgive me if I don’t much feel like talking about it anymore. If you’re desperate to know my take, buy the paper. (Look for the review in the front section, with the decidedly non-rock ‘n’ roll head furniture I try to keep away from my music stuff.) Or wait a couple of days, and it’ll turn up on here.

Anyway, on a moderately fresher note, I promised a few days ago to run through some of my favourite discs and shows from the first half of ’05. So very briefly, here it is.

On the canned music front, the one disc that I absolutely love so far this year is the Hold Steady’s Separation Sunday. It’s possible that by year’s end I’ll be sick of it, but for now it gets better with every listen. After that, and in no particular order, the ones that stand out off the top of my head are the Eels’ Blinking Lights and Other Revelations; Bright Eyes’ I’m Wide Awake It’s Morning; the Raveonettes’ Pretty In Black; Martha Wainwright’s self-titled debut, and Jason Collett’s Idols of Exile.

In terms of what I’ve seen live, the Arcade Fire’s Music Hall gig (the first of their three-night run) is pretty untouchable. After that would be the aforementioned Mando Diao at the Horseshoe – just a fantastic little rock show, even objectively; Razorlight at Lee’s Palace, with Johnny Borrell proving himself as charismatic a frontman as Britrock’s new generation has to offer; the insanely high-energy Kasabian at the Kool Haus; Rilo Kiley at the Opera House; and the Raveonettes at Lee’s.

Oh, and Montreal’s Lovely Feathers at NXNE – too brief to judge properly, but damn promising.

All this will probably change by New Year’s, or maybe just the next time I have a couple of beers, but it’s what comes to mind this minute.