Rufus Wainwright, All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu

By Alex Arnott

Listeners unfamiliar with Rufus Wainwright would probably be surprised to hear that this obliquely named, classically influenced, piano-driven album is in fact, one of his more understated works. This masterful musician, who has a penchant for impressively orchestrated pop songs, has a great deal of unusual achievements under his designer lederhosen. In the past three years, Rufus has accomplished two incredibly ambitious projects that your run-of-the-mill pop star would never dare to undertake.

First, he challenged himself to reproduce the legendary Judy Garland Concert at Carnegie Hall song for song, even recreating some of Judy’s banter. Many of the songs in Judy’s repertoire are quite dissimilar to Rufus’ usual style, yet he pulled it off with aplomb.
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Lost & Never Found Again: Badges And Plastic Babies

I had a pair of Sparks badges, Kimono My House-era, that I bought on Ebay when I first got into Sparks. (Yes, I was a latecomer). I loved them dearly and wore them on my green winter jacket. A few winters ago, I went on a trip to Amsterdam with my friend Zoe. When we got off the train from Schilpol to Amsterdam Centraal, there was naturally a huge group of people, and even as we were on the platform, I realized that I had lost my Ron badge, but it was too late. There was not going to be any searching around on the ground with such a massive hubbub. I like to think a Dutch Sparks fan found it and they lived happily ever after.
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Top Ten Holiday Tunes: By Alex Arnott

1. “Donna and Blitzen,” Badly Drawn Boy

I think it has everything. Lush orchestration, festive jangly bells, underrated reindeer, and more than a little bit of indie magic.
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Popshifter’s Best Of Lists

Pete Best

Most publications give you their “Best Of” and “Top Ten” lists in their December issues. But what about giving props to of all the great things you embraced in the penultimate month of the year?

That’s why Popshifter has decided to provide you with our favorites now, so that you can add them to your list of “Things To Check Out In 2009.”

In addition to the lists our staff compiled, we’ve also posted the lists from some very special guest contributors.

Enjoy!
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Sparks Spectacular: Propaganda

Propaganda, 1974

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Sparks Spectacular: 21 Miracles of the Modern Age

From May 16 through June 11 of 2008, Sparks played all 20 of their albums in a row, one per night, at Carling Academy Islington in London. This astounding series of shows, from a band who’s been around for 37 years, was followed by the live premiere of their twenty-first studio release, Exotic Creatures of the Deep, on June 13 at Shepherd’s Bush Empire. Fans from around the world submitted reviews for each night of the show to Popshifter, and we have published them in this issue.
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