Well…2008 is over, and almost a week later, here I am with my first post of the year.

I find this time of year is like a musical wasteland. You’ve got the remnants of 2008’s single releases still littering up the charts, and the promise of some new music over the coming weeks. Soon, the BBC will release their predictions for the hottest acts of the year in their Sound of 2009 poll. That’ll take some of the guesswork out of who to watch this year.

As for me, what have I been listening to over Christmas? Well, a very kind publicist sent me The Black Keys’ Attack And Release album, which has been on constant rotation for me lately. I really must sit down and do a proper review of it for you, because it’s excellent. Not the most immediate album in the world, but persevere with it and you’ll be rewarded.

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British rockers Keane have landed the number one spot in Q Magazine’s annual poll.

The trio’s LP, their first since 2005’s Under The Iron Sea, topped Britain’s Q Magazine and Q Radio’s best releases of the year (08) list.

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds came second, with U.K. electro-folk group Goldfrapp taking the third spot on the coveted poll.

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Record industry chiefs in the U.S. have pledged to quit taking legal action against music fans who illegally download songs.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) will cease launching lawsuits against the members of the public in favour of developing new technology to prevent music piracy on the internet.

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Glam rockers KISS have shot down rumours the band is retiring, by confirming they will be recording a new album.

Earlier this year it was reported the group was planning a reality TV show to audition replacement bandmembers, because founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons were getting too old to rock.

Frontman Stanley has now admitted that rumours about a new album are true, and they are currently back in the studio working on new tunes – and he’s promising a treat for fans of the band’s original 1970s sound.

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Back in the misty days of Autumn 2007, a brother and sister act rose to prominence on The X Factor. Sean and Sarah Smith frightened the life out of Simon Cowell, but not enough to put him off mentoring them all the way to the final with their High School Musical themed performances.

And a year later, Same Difference are making their first assaults on the charts with their kid-friendly brand of bubblegum pop. In a fit of marketing genius, they’ve called the album Pop, so it does exactly what it says on the tin.

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If you’re tired of hearing Young Folks by now, you’ll be pleased to hear that Peter Bjorn and John are working on their fifth studio album, due to be released next Spring.

The band have been recording all over the place: Stockholm, New York and Los Angeles. The band produced the record together with Lars Mårtén, who also had the control of the mixing dials.

A new single will shortly be circulating called Lay It Down.

The trio has also announced a series of live shows to debut their new material :

February

• 25 – Strand, Stockholm
• 26 – KB, Malmo
• 27 – Storan, Goteborg

March

• 05 – Scala, London
• 06 – Academy 2, Manchester
• 07 – The Button Factory, Dublin

I read somebody making an excellent point the other day about Guns N’ Roses needing to shift a serious number of copies of Chinese Democracy in order to match Appetite For Destruction.

Well, Blabbermouth are reporting that record sales for the new album, despite the initial strong sales, are plummeting.

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I’ve been watching something brewing in the Sugababes camp for a few days.

If my radar is correct, Keisha and chums are growing unhappy that Girls Aloud are beating them out in the popularity stakes.

A number of articles and interviews have cited the Sugababes girls as:

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Take That have smashed yet another record proving that things just aren’t slowing down for the UK’s sexiest man band.

The band’s new album The Circus has become the most pre-ordered album of all time. The boys are currently thrashing Britney Spears new album called just Circus, five to one.

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While I strongly doubt that Dr. Meaker is any sort of real doctor, he certainly knows how to knock out an album’s worth of amazing music.

Described as a blending of “Massive Attack’s progressive beats with Amy Winehouse’s soulful sounds”, Meaker’s debut album A Lesson from the Speaker – is an impressive fusion of funky drum n bass and sultry vocals. Check out the lead track, Moving & Grooving for proof.

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