Starting off this week's proceedings is probably the most surprisingly controversial album on the list...

My seventh favourite album of 2014 is Sonic Highways by Foo Fighters. I really went back on forth about whether to even include this or not. To be honest, even as I'm writing this I'm still not 100% sure whether it should take the spot but let's lay out the pros first...

Musically this album definitely left me wanting at points, but to me, this is one of the most important records of 2014. When I saw the trailer for the series that they wanted to attach to this album, immediately I was buzzing. To record 8 songs in 8 different cities across the USA, whilst conducting 100s of interviews and featuring several artists on tracks, to then release a record and a TV series along side each other?! What a huge, huge task! Foo Fighters managed to execute it pretty damn well.

In my opinion, it is absolutely imperative for musicians to be aware of musical influences and genres besides their own. This record is not only aware of them, but somehow includes them each in the record whilst still maintaining rock genre status. Watching the series, I don't remember the last time I was that inspired by something. If one of these episodes doesn't make you want to join a band or be involved in music, I don't know what will! Seeing people make it musically with almost no experience or even no real instruments, whilst we're sitting here in the 21st Century with all these resources and connections easily available to us.... We should be some of the best artists the world will ever see! I don't know, because of this project I am just full to the brim with ideas, and I don't even know where to start. It's like I always say, a great record will make you feel/do something, and if I'm going by that, then this is a pretty great record!

One of my favourite tracks on the album (and in 2014) is "Something From Nothing". So musically diverse and that breakdown transition (you know the one)! Genius! "Feast And The Famine", "In The Clear" and "Outside" are my other favourites on the album. Definitely not the best album of the year or even the best Foo Fighters album, but it's timeless in my eyes and I'm looking forward to hearing it played live at Wembley Stadium next year!

ALL RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSEEEEEEEE!!! Foo Fighters are most certainly back with a bang! I definitely think that this is the most excited that I've been for an album all year! Here's the first single from their upcoming eighth album - Sonic Highways.

FOO FIGHTERS - Something From Nothing

There have been quite a few unexpected outcomes in the music industry of late and I thought I'd highlight some of the ones that I personally found a little odd.

NUMBER ONE:
The first of these unexpected outcomes being NIN, QOTSA, Dave Grohl & Lindsey Buckingham's Grammy Performance. Literally even writing this I'm not sure if I just wrote that correctly. That combination of artists on a live stage performance is absolutely perfect. Trent Reznor a (somewhat controversial) musical chameleon, Josh Homme a beautiful, beautiful musician/riff-god, Dave Grohl one of the world's best drummers, frontmen and just all round people, Lindsey Buckingham guitar hero in the fabulous, Fleetwood Mac and to top it off, the youngest drummer ever to play Woodstock - Ilan Rubin! THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN CONSIDERED A BLESSING. Sadly, many people left during the performance leaving the arena more than half empty AND the TV network broadcasting it even cut the set short. I am still astounded at how such an injustice could have occurred. Either way, if you haven't yet watched the full thing, here it is...