Yay, a new year, a new chance to post an insanely interesting “best of 2010” - list. Also another chance to commit myself to actually write something here and then go “nah, screw it” after about a month. Brilliant.
There seemed to be an awful lot of great music coming out this year, enough so that even a somewhat more casual listener as myself could cough up a top 20 list. I made no attempt to put my choices in exact order, but placed them in 3 “tiers” which at least at the time of writing is not entirely inaccurate in depicting my preferences. Expressing myself convolutedly like that makes me feel clever. Uh, anyway; all I know is these are great records and you have no excuse for not obtaining and listening to them all.
Top 20
So, it’s a compilation of Plastikman’s best tracks, picked by Hawtin himself. No new material, and fans are likely to have most if not all tracks on their record shelf already. In most cases, such a compilation might not be that noteworthy in itself, but goddammit! these tracks are classics, groundbreakers, essentials and all that jazz, and putting them together on one record makes it one unmissable ride. One could argue (and many seem to already have) about whether some other tracks should have been included, but it is far better to just shut up and listen to this. Minimal, energetic and almost dangerously delirious acid and drum epicness, from the well-named drumfeist of Spastik to the surprisingly trancey Marbles… screw it, if someone really doesn’t now what Plastikman is about, stop reading and get this record now.
Check it: Spastik
I picked up this one not knowing that previously-unknown-to-me Demdike Stare already had released 2 other albums this year and this was the final part of a trilogy. The earlier releases are now top of my “must get” - list. Apparently some have coined the term “witch house” to try to describe their music. Starting with the Pan Sonic - like Black Sun, consisting only of one single electronic drone, we are suddenly thrust into some strange ritual with Hashshashin Chant, featuring sampled chants of unknown nature and frenetic drumming. Then back to dark ambience and drones which dominate the rest of the album and evoke feelings of general unease. This is not the record you want to put on when feeling depressed. Intense stuff.
Check it: Hashshashin Chant
Continuing in the “not-quite-like-anything-else” - vein, we arrive at Morgan Packard, who uses his own, self-made software to make his music. Here we have funky ambient house / dub techno rhythms couple with clicking, whirring and buzzing sounds. Before anyone bent on pigeonholing styles has the chance to say “so, microhouse?”, let’s also mention the use of piano, saxophone and an accordion. Yes, a goddamn accordion. This result in a strangely hypnotic blend of digital and acoustic, mechanic and organic. Shades of Steve Reich can be heard especially on Unveil in the beginning, but Packard clearly does his own thing here, and it’s a thing I won’t mind getting more of.
Check it: You can listen to Insist on his own website.
And so it goes on, with yet another album impossible to describe with genres or similar tags. Not because it’s “experimental”, but because Shed jumps from one style and genre to another making for an listening experience akin to listening to a compilation, with techno, dub and drum & bass being useful tags for giving at least a general idea of what place we have arrived to. There’s quite often a “retro” feel of UK techno from years past, you know, when people talked about “hardcore” which then became “jungle”. No Way! is a prime example of this. Atmo - Action has a early IDM - feel, like Hello Bleep, the mixture of beautiful sweeping synths and breakbeat rhythms bringing to mind the works of a certain Richard D James. Tracks like The Bot and The Traveller calms thing down and Leave Things aptly ends the album with a long arpeggiating (is that a word?) synth intro taking the listener to a heavy drum&bass place. The one thing that is consistent from one track to another is high quality.
Check it: Atmo - Action
Something a bit more straightforward for a change. I have quite the crush on Ancient Methods and go after anything they release; I haven’t been disappointed so far. Here we have an EP made together with likeminded Adam X, and what we get if of course thumping & stomping industrial techno that asks no questions and takes no prisoners. Love it or get the fuck out of the way. The two artists’ respective mixes of Proarrythmia set the dark industrial tone, Mital Regurgitation (Adam X Mix) tightens the beats and ups the pace and Ancient Method’s mix of the same culminates the proceedings with a uncompromising juggernaut of a track that has you reaching for the “repeat” button. Brutal and brilliant.
Check it: Mital Regurgitation (Ancient Methods Mix)
Autechre has been busy since Quaristice in 2008, releasing an album an this technically-an-EP-but-really-kinda-an-album in rapid succession this year. We’ll get to the other album later on; this is a companion release which has more beats and rhythms than Oversteps. After their explorations into quite abstract musical realms, this is a return to somewhat more easily approachable material. Of course, since this is Autechre we’re speaking of, it means it still firmly in it’s own realm of beats and alien melodies often on the verge of breaking down and losing coherence. Still, there’s a sense of funk and elements of hip-hop to the rhythms. The soundtrack to disjointed eccentric robots doing the B-boy dance in an warehouse designed by Escher.
Check it: pce freeze 2.8i
Mark Fell hadn’t released an album since 2004, an then suddenly two new albums appeared in November this year, forcing the electronic music scene to rearrange their “best of 2010” lists to make room for them. The label being Raster-Noton, minimalist experimentalism was to be expected, but this is pushing the envelope even for Raster-Noton. Staccato rhythm loops snake their way into your ears, mutating and changing tempo, accompanied by electronic twings and twangs and occasional snippets of melodies, with most tracks having a mutated sonic twin on the later half of the album (hence, “Multistability”). Mental images of CDs skipping in the player or your MP3-software lagging and freezing are not far off. Yet, much like Autechre, Fell manages to make his abstract and chaotic soundscape ultimately sound kind of funky and organic. Minimal glitch funk taken to the extreme, reprogramming your brain from WTF to OMG in 17 tracks.
Check it: Multistability 3 (but really, this album should be listened to as a whole)
Pantha Du Prince is generally considered to belong to the minimal techno camp, and as such does Black Noise tend to get labeled too. Which I find rather misleading: there are lots of lush, layered and beautiful melodies draped over beats that might be “minimal” on their own. There’s even a vocal track, which admittedly stands out from the rest and not to its favour. Thruought the album there seems to be an abundance of bell-like sounds of wide variety, tinkling, clanking and pinging here and there. There’s also the sense of every sound having been carefully thought out and crafted with care, giving the whole record a sense of being made with effortless mastery of the art. Whatever you might label this as, it would be hard to call it anything but beautiful.
Check it: Satellite Snyper
Starting to listen to a new Hardfloor album is rather like ordering “the usual” down at your corner restaurant; you know what you’re gonna get and you know you’re gonna like it. Hardfloor has been tweaking the knobs of their 303s for almost 20 years and 10 albums, constantly cranking out high-class acid house and exploring every last aspect of it. This is easily one of their finest albums since the classic TB Resuscitation back in 1993. Having long since completely mastered their sound and having no need to prove anything, there is an palpable air of two masters doing what they do best just for the fun of it. Tracks like One Flew Over The Silverbox bring to mind the glory days of hardtrance and Harthouse, while elsewhere there are dashes of electro and house added to the menu. Essential acid release and a reminder that you don’t always have to try to innovate and push the boundaries, if you’re just really damn good at what you do.
Check it: One Flew Over The Silverbox
Speaking of artists who have mastered their genre, heeeere’s Venetian Snares! For his newest album each individual tracks was composed and finished within the space of a day or two, with the intent of trying to capture whatever his mood and thoughts were at that particular moment. Hence the name of the album, and a certain showcase-like diversity to the tracks. Of course, the trademark intricate and aggressive breakcore drumpatterns meet you at every corner, and there’s plenty of oldschool rave / jungle sounds at loose. Listening to the vocal samples used on the tracks one can envision VSnares with a “I-don’t-give-a-fuck” - grin on his face; starting with a subtle sample “I fuckin’ hate you I’ll take your draws down and rape you”, later on a rant about retarded people (they want cake) followed by someone listing all the things you can insert or do in “your punani”. Classy as always. Those able to look past that might realize the amount of talent mr Snares has and which is poured into the production of this record. This is especially evident in the closing My So-Called Life. Venetian Snares apparently doesn’t like to leave anyone cold but forces you to love him or hate him. Like many others, I’m firmly in the former camp.
Check it: My So-Called Life
Top 10
Moving on then to the top 10 and records I chose to place on even slightly higher rung than those before.
Caribou: Swim
Caribou have been exploring different soundscapes during his career. Now he has taken his psychedelia-laden, jazzy framework and applied it to “dance music”, saying that he wants to make dance music that is “liquid”. Album opener Odessa goes relatively easy with danceable, club-fit beats and a soft vocal track. Next comes album highpoint and one of the tracks of the year, Sun, which lays on the psychedelia thick and nice, with the repeated chant of “Sun” and organ-like synth melody. The fuzzy sound and feel of psych-rock/pop holds on for the rest of the album. Instrumental Bowls is a trip to a forest filled with gongs and drums, while Leave House pumps up the bpm on some disco beats with Snaith softly singing melancholic lyrics. While all tracks fit together nicely and have the same feel they still feel different as the artist explores his vision from different angles. An excellent and very memorable record that leaves you wondering where Caribou will venture next in his sonic explorations.
Check it: Sun (official and pretty awesome video, btw)
These lists would be quicker to write if I chose records which were easier to describe. For this record, discogs.com lists its style as “Abstract, Future Jazz, Instrumental, IDM, Hip Hop, Downtempo, Experimental”. Well, that clears things up. Cosmogramma was probably one of the most eagerly awaited records on the IDM/experimental/electronic/beard-stroking-elitist scene. Could Steven Ellison aka Flying Lotus live up to the expectations set by the brilliant 2008 Los Angeles? Hellllll yeah! Genres and influences come flying at you from all corners as you let your ears wander and wonder through this cosmic map. The one red thread is probably jazz which seems present in some form in almost every track, otherwise the discogs definition given above really is about the best one can do. This is one of those records everyone just has to listen to for themselves. The tracks are mostly short and often quite busy, and especially on the first half of the record the tempo can get hectic. It can be an overwhelming experience at first; personally it took a couple of listens until my neurons had adjusted themselves to the same frequency, making one truly appreciative of the musical genius at work here
Check it: Do The Astral Plane
OK: this is minimal dub pop techno and it’s gorgeous. Any questions?
So, this is one of the surprises of the year, in the sense that this is the first album from this duo which I hadn’t noticed before. As I approached without any preconceptions or expectations, I was quite blown away by the quality and beauty of this release. Mostly this feels like a album of soft synthpop which someone has mixed up with dub techno rhythms. Seeing track names such as Montparnasse 2 A.M or California State Of Mind creates some vivid mental scenes of audio bliss beforehand, and the music manages to deliver on the promise. The first-mentioned track is one of the best on the album with its slowly intensifying synth wail and french female vocal sample, while the latter is blissful pop. Reggae sounds are never far away; The Price You Pay being a prime example. The whole album is a unfalteringly mellow, blissful and gorgeous affair, the perfect soundtrack for sitting and contemplating a scenic landscape in late afternoon summer sun. If you run into people insisting electronic music can’t be beautiful (I know I have), this record is the only counterargument you’ll need.
Check it: Montparnasse 2 A.M.
How do you pronounce Autechre anyway? (sorry, inside IDM joke). News of a new Autechre release is something that makes the whole IDM-or-such community come alive with a fervor only news about Aphex Twin can match. Having made music close to 20 years and being right in the middle of it all when “IDM” was “born” (meaning Artifical Intelligence - era), they hardly need introduction. Early Incunabula and Tri Repeate we’re hailed as masterpieces, but then their sound veered towards stark and abstract rhythm experiments devoid of melody, leaving fans arguing about whether they had reached new heights or just lost it. Quaristice in 2008 seemed to return towards territories where melodies and warmth existed, leaving everyone wondering what would come next. Well, Oversteps came, and once again everyone could start debating. On Oversteps, the chaotic robotic rhythms are gone and instead we have soft, warm tones forming melodies while the beats are in the background and almost conventional. Make no mistake, this is still Autechre; the melodies and sounds often seem on the verge of dissolving into chaos but holds themselves together by the skin of their teeth. This is Autechre returning to where they started but taking with them all they learned on the way. Whereas they used to coax an improbable funk from a seemingly aimless cacophony of beats, they now apply the same magic to the melodies. Autechre continue to move in their completely own sphere and perplexing their fans. And the fans honestly wouldn’t have it any other way. You know it’s true!
Check it: d-sho qub
Oh hey, a single amidst all albums. Not surprisingly, I had to include the latest Ancient Methods release on my list. As I said earlier, they are one of the few acts whose releases I buy on sight without feeling the need to sample the goods. Dark, brooding industrial techno is the name of the game, lost soundtracks to movies about epic robot wars. The untitled A-side is a 9 minute long techno monster which might be the second best AM track so far (I can’t get over track B2 from First Method). A buzzsaw-like melody gets a surprising companion from what sounds like medieval monks chanting. Halfway through, it all changes into a stomping ground for drum machines gone haywire with a cavernous bassline joining in. On the B-side, a vocal sample stating “Groovy” gets the air of a command when backed with stark march rhythms. Track B2 starts right off with a bass the seriously threatens the health of your speakers, layering on beats and metallic noises and suddenly throws a growling acid line on top to devastating effect. The B-side is top quality but even so feels slightly overshadowed by the sheer majesty of the A-side. Ancient Methods delivers like no-one else. You will listen. You will like it. Resistance is futile.
Check it: Untitled (A)
Mark Fell: UL8
Ok, so we already covered the Multistability, the other Mark fell record released this years scant weeks apart from this one. Here we are exploring similar territories of extreme minimal abstractism and take things maybe a notch farther. True story: first listening to a sample of this online, I had to stop and go find another place offering a sonic preview to ensure that the audio file hadn’t ben corrupted or some software was malfunctioning. This stuff is far out there, in a orbit-of-Pluto kinda scale. Here the tracks are collected into 3 distinct parts each spanning 5-7 tracks, each part taking one sonic idea and exploring it, gradually increasing tempo and intensity to levels threatening your sanity. Part 1 is most like Multistability, with a metallic staccato rhythm mutating and reaching an amazing culmination during Part 1. Part 2, Vortex Studies goes into Pan Sonic - like territories with an loop of electronix noise being analyzed, taken apart and explored in every detail. On part 3, Acids in the Style of Rian Trenor, acid squelching is pitching and changing accompanied by rhythm similar to Part 1, making for the most uncompromising listening experience of the 3 parts. The album surprisingly closes by standalone track Death of Loved One, where we suddenly have a beautiful sweeping synth line of angelic chords.
One has to marvel at how Fell manages to pus his sonic explorations so far and still stay very listenable, achieving something that Autechre arguably didn’t quite pull off. There is not really much to compare this to, so let’s just concur that this is one record and listening experience that you will not forget. The phrase “sonic wizardry” has seldom been more apt.
Check it: Part 1: The Occultation Of 3C 273 - 5, but really, listening to this in any other way than listening to the whole record from beginning to end (or at least the individual parts) is really missing the point.
Top 4
I was trying to end my list with a top 3, but there was no way of dropping one of the following records from my top tier. Here, then, are the 4 records which even amongst all other brilliant releases stood out as being especially close to sonic perfection.
This is Ferreyra’s first album, him having previously released 2 singles and 3 EPs. On paper, this album is far easier to pigeonhole than many others on my list; this is minimal, dub techno, straight up. The drum layers are soft, pulsating dubby affairs. They are backing up warm synth sweeps, pads and snippets of melody, with short vocal samples occasionally surfacing. The whole album evokes a feeling of chilling on the beach of some tropical paradise island and participating in a relaxed beach party. The sweeping disco string of Mil Y Una Noches open the album and set the mood perfectly. An organ melody floats over Los Domingos Vuelo A Casa. Towards the second half of the record the tempo ups somewhat and the beats creeps closer to the fore, as the island party gets really going. The stoned-out samples and slow horns of Acequia (Nos Salvamos) provides a slower moment. Cenote Trip and Coin Sainte Cath’ are perhaps more at home in the club then out on the beach but compliment the other tracks nicely. The best is saved for the very end, when El Comienzo De Todo Lo Demas throbs along with slowly building melody sweeps.
While it’s perhaps easy to describe the style of the record, it’s much more difficult to say wherein lies its almost hypnotic allure. On the surface and at first I thought this was simply really rather good. Then I found that whenever I was scrolling around in my digital audio library pondering what I would like to listen to, I found myself inexplicably drawn towards Ferreyra’s little paradise island party. Something in here just aligns perfectly with my mindset and eventually made me put this record in the very highest tier of the year. Glancing through other reviews, the “really rather good” - verdict seems to be common; for me, this went on to become “goddamn amazingly brilliant that I just can’t stop playing”.
Check it: El Comienzo de Todo Lo Demas
DeepChord Presents Echospace: Liumin
Back in 2007, Rod Modell and Steven Hitchell paired up as Echospace and released The Coldest Season, a series of dub techno tracks that felt like they were beamed to us across cold space from some far away tundra on another planet. These tracks were not half bad; actually, they were more or less sonic perfection and instantly earned classic status. Over 10 year after Basic Channel defined the sound and set the benchmark at an previously unattainable level, there was a worthy successor. So, when the new Echospace record arrived, one might say that expectations were pretty high.
For Liumin, Modell & Hitch recorded the sounds of Tokyo streets as a background. Seeing the tracklist containing names like Summer Haze, Float and Warm were the first signs that this might not be such a cold season anymore. The first tracks, In Echospace still has some remains of the predecessor, with static hisses and reverb, but Summer Haze is clearly in a different place with layers of rhythm and intertwined upbeat melody loops. Sub-Marine continues in the same vein. Burnt Sage chills out for a while, with ambient sounds like rain falling on different metallic surfaces while a bass loop plays somewhere off in the distance. Then we arrive at BCN Dub, and oh man… this is the track of the year, maybe several. A deep, deep dub bass line thumps steadily along, while a ghostly cut-up horn sample fading in and out as from a broken radio. This results in 12 minutes of stunningly hypnotic dub techno that gets right into your head and makes you drop anything else to just sit back and listen, goddammit, listen to this; this is one timeless classic you’re experiencing here and now. Firefly takes it easier again with a thick electronic hum over dubbed beats , while on Maglev the echoing swirls threaten to disorient you. The ethereal murmuring and pattering drum of Float makes the track do just that, and the beatless ambience of Warm ends the album just right.
Liumin raised some eyebrows at first from people expecting Coldest Season part 2. Seriously, though, get over it and recognize that Echospace have miraculously managed to follow up on one album of perfection with another of the same, if not even higher quality, simultaneously executing a steep change in style. Now how the hell are they ever going to follow up after this?
Check it: BCN Dub
The Black Dog just doesn’t ever disappoint. Ever since the seminal and unforgettable Bytes in ‘93, I have been getting every release of theirs I can get my hands on. During the years 2 of the trio left to form Plaid and Ken Downie was left to keep the Dog barking. After a relatively slow period the Black Dog suddenly returned, with Martin and Richard Dust joining in. Over the course of 3 albums the Dog sound veered from the earlier near eastern influence rhythms towards more western techno feel. But now the course has altered once more for a concept album which is a response to Brian Eno’s ambient landmark Music For Airports. As might be expected from The Black Dog, their take on the subject is not as positive and relaxing as Eno’s; actually, it’s pretty far from it. Having obviously spent a whole lot of time on airports themselves, this paints a bleak and distressing picture of the airport life. It’s also the best album of the “new” Dog and at least for me personally set to be another classic of Bytes status, although this trip is quite different.
M1 starts the journey with the sounds of entering a car and driving away, traffic noises soon mixing with an ambient drone. With a sample of “Welcome to East Midlands airport”, we move on to Terminal EMA where more drones and hums enter the scene. Arriving at the DISinformation Desk, slow beats starts rolling out like tension mounting. Next comes Passport Control where a drum like a heartbeat and breath-like maintains the feeling of tension or discomfort. And oh look, now we have to Wait Behind This Line. The deep bass and brooding synth starts out quite oppressive but the some strings join in and makes the atmosphere a bit lighter. This is one of the best tracks on the album. Empty Seat Calculation continues in a lighter vein. Halfway through the bass and skittering percussion is back. Strip Light Hate keeps the bass pulsing and the skittering of the drums increase to frenetic levels and almost get lost among reverb. Future Delay Thinking offers more tehcnoic beats underneath intensifying drones and whines and is another highpoint. After a brief field-recording visit to the Lounge, Delay 9 is a ambient track with beautiful synths and (obligatory?) piano sample reminiscent of Eno. Then we dive deep for Sleep Deprivation, with part 1 having deep, dubby beats and part 2 leaving the beats out altogether and relying on bass drone. The even deeper, short and mystic He Knows might imply we fell asleep for while, after all. Finally our journey comes to an end at Business Car Park 9, a beautiful and relaxed track where we finally leave the dark thoughts of the airport behind us and head off into the sun.
While each track here is very good on it’s own, this really has to be listened to from the beginning to the end to truly appreciate the whole journey. When you give your whole attention to the music, it becomes a very intense and emotional ride, making especially the final, relieving track seem larger than life (or death). Dark ambient dub techno something something whatever; again, just get this and listen to it, completely, no half measures. Quite incredible.
Check it: Future Delay Thinking, but do read the last sentence above, thanks.
Oh look, a Pan Sonic album, on my list, what a surprise…. not. I recall putting on Vakio for the first time back in 1995 and hearing the first track Alku, nothing but a pure electronic sine sound which ever so slowly starts to wobble and warble out of control, and realizing this was going to be something different. Pan Sonic’s (“Panasonic” up until 1999) sound is unique, with machines custom-made and modified to suit their need producing electronic sounds and noises resulting in music that doesn’t need conventional melodies or structures but celebrate the pureness of it’s own sound and exploring it thoroughly. The spectrum is still broad; occasionally the beats hit harder and faster than most aggressive industrial techno, sometimes the sound is very minimal and leaves you wonder whether the slow alteration you hear is actually there or just a construct of your mind. For an extreme example, witness the 1 hour long Säteily / Radiation on the 4th(!) disc of their album Kesto. All ground in between is also covered. Pan Sonic doesn’t leave you cold, you’ll have to unconditionally love them or hate them. I guess my position is clear.
I awaited Gravitoni with mixed feelings; a new Pan Sonic release is always cause for celebration, however, this is the last album they make, choosing to split up and pursue individual interests. Mika Vainio said Pan Sonic goes into “deep freeze”, which gives hope that there might be some thawing at some point. But for now, this is the grand finale.
This album nicely showcases the range of their music, from in-your-face to in-your-mind. Pan Sonic have never hold back on their audio assault but this time there is a feel of an all-out intensity for the final performance. Voltos Bolt open with something like a thunderbolt striking and wastes no time introducing heavy bass hits and menacing electronic growl which towards then end becomes and almost uncomfortable high-pitched whine. Wanyugo and Fermi keep things deep, dark but not hectic. Then all hell breaks loose: Corona assaults you with modulating noises growing in intensity until the beat kick in at around 200 bpm. Industrial noise gabber, a revolution at the military cyborg factory. Brutal. Radio Qurghonteppa dials the pace back with a heavy bassline not devoid of a strange robotic funk and ghostly samples of radio static with occasional snippets of human voices. Then comes Pan Sonic’s maybe greatest moment: Trepanaatio / Trepanation, which indeed drills into your brain with immensely deep, majestic and cavernous buzzing and droning and a slowly stuttering bass beat. Intense and dark as hell with several peaks within the track, as of the audio drill penetrating layers of your skull. Holy shit. Väinämöisen Uni gives a needed respite, showing another side of Pan Sonic with slow ambient hums and sweeps and eventually a sound like water dripping into an underground lake. Hades goes even deeper underground with a bass thumping somewhere deep within the bowels of the earth and more ambient electronics, this time with a hint of darkness or menace. Kaksoisvinokas brings back the dub to the bass and drones on top, with an surprising opera sample briefly appearing. The sounds keep panning and jumping from left to right in an disconcerting manner, especially if listening with headphones. And finally, the aptly named Pan Finale, suddenly employs upbeat, almost clubby beats. Before long a drone like a buzzsaw appears to keep things from getting too comfortable. Towards the end the buzzsaw fades into a single pure sinewave note that slowly starts modulating… yes, Pan Sonic last track ends in 2010 like the first started back in 1995. Full circle, ride over, Pan Sonic has left the house.
This is such an immensely powerful and intense record that trying to describe it silly and futile (but I just tried anyway? Welp). I already said Pan Sonic is a love-it-or-hate-it experience, and this final record certainly emphasizes that. I didn’t put my top 4 in any order this year, but if I absolutely had to choose one “record of the year” this would be it. An amazing end to and amazing career. Fuck. Yes.
Check it: Trepanointi / Trepanation
In conclusion
So there you have it, at quite a length. This list took me a considerable time to put together, mostly because as I intended to shortly describe each album I naturally listened to it and then started exploring similarities to other records in my collection, thus ending up spending a lot of time for each individual record. That alone is a great reason to write this stuff. In conclusion, I kept being amazed at how great beautiful each record here sounded in its own way. I might be able to give up a lot of things in my life not necessary for the immediate survival of me and my family, but never music. Now go listen to something, anything, that makes you happy. These made me.
Hear ye, hear ye! Noticed in 
