To all the end of year top-list haters out there – there is one function of the year end list that is hard to deny the value of, and that’s that it gives us the ability to follow up on what everyone else liked from the year that one may have missed out on (so much music out there!). In such a vein, I was checking out the good folks at La Blogothèque’s year end lists (at least I think that that was what I was looking at – it was in French) and noticed the Forest Fires’ self titled album at the number one spot. Though it is too late for my own year end wrap up, I have been enjoying my first few listens of this group’s debut immensely. I wouldn’t put the Forest Fires above some of last year’s releases (Nick Cave, you are still my boy!), but I think it would be fair to say that they would definitely be in the top twenty had I known about them earlier. The standout track for me is “Slow Motion,” a dark, slow burning, indie-gothic jam. I hear a lot of Neutral Milk Hotel in the unorthodox arrangement, and even shades of Bill Callahan at times. Plus the cascading electric guitar is just lovely.

Forest Fire “Slow Down” (mp3)

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