Pic by me, Dublin

There are few things better than going through a phase of listening to the same artist for a week after not listening to them for quite a long time. That immediate feeling when you put on the first track is like a restorative sigh – you can instantly relax into that blissful space where every note, every beat is deliciously familiar.

With that in mind, here’s some Arthur Russell for your ears. Thanks to his intense work ethic and ability to create music spanning a number of genres, you can listen to him if you’re in the mood for disco, if you’re feeling love-lorn, or if you just want to hear someone play cello like their heart depended on it.

(David Byrne plays guitar on that one)

(The video is gas, and the track is so… lusty)

Another band that I turn to for listening binges is Low, who helpfully have a brand new song out. Hurrah! Far from the darker sound of albums like Drums and Guns, this track hints at the band returning to the more upbeat, fuller sound of albums like The Great Destroyer, but still keeping things a bit restrained. What a voice Mimi Parker has, eh?

The Invisible Way is out on 19 March on Sub Pop. Fingers crossed we’ll see a live date here.

Lord Huron are new to me, but released their first LP late last year in the US. If there is a Fleet Foxes or Midlake-shaped hole in your life, Lonesome Dreams will fill it.

On to another of my most-played artists, Benoit Pioulard, and another reason why 2013 is shaping up to be a super one for new music. His fourth long player, called Hymnal, is due out in March also (on the incredible Kranky label), and here’s a little snippet of a track from it:

Hear the keys? Those, alongside the news that Kyle Bobby Dunn worked on strings for the record, has me incredibly excited to hear what the finished product will sound like. Hopefully the album will be available in a special edition, like its predecessor was – trust me, it’s worth it for all the goodies you get.

Here’s a new podcast featuring an interview with Rafel Anton Irisarri and Thomas Meluch (the man behind Pioulard) who together play under the name Orcas. (The link to download the podcast is at the bottom of the post).

Finally, if you have made it all the way down to here, you might be interested in the latest Community of Independents episode. You may also recognise the voice doing the voice-over during the Wolfbait interview…

In other news, my show Sweet Oblivion was supposed to be back this week, but it seems an old show went out instead. So I’ll see you next week for a new show on Wednesday at 11pm.

Finally, the Meteor Choice Prize nominations were announced this week – I’m a judge this year (very exciting) and it was really interesting to see which albums that I voted for made it through. I was sad not to see Katie Kim, Laura Sheeran and the Spook of the Thirteenth Lock in there, but I also don’t think that if albums didn’t make the award they’re not ‘deserving’ of one (that would be fairly nonsensical). If you don’t have any of those three albums, I’d highly recommend them.