What a crazy few weeks it’s been, what with the city being painted with that rose coloured tint only the Olympics can provide. Everything went well, Brazil proving itself a superb country to host an event of this magnitude; the streets felt safe, the city well organised and there was an atmosphere of peace and love as a heady mix of nationalities mingled harmoniously at the various sporting and cultural venues. There was palpable disappointment as the IOC’s Thomas Bach declared the games closed.

Musically speaking Brazil showed its chops in diverse style in the opening ceremony, featuring tropicalia stalwarts Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil alongside pop sensation Anitta, besides showcasing contemporary funk, samba, pagode and rap. It was however a classic which reigned supreme as Tom Jobim’s grandson sat at the piano and played a beautifully delicate rendition of ‘A Garota de Ipanema’ as Gisele cat walked across the Maracanã. What with family days out, work commitments and being glued to the TV in between – did you see the Andy Murray gold medal match?! – it’s been a stranger month than usual music wise, yet I have somehow found the time to fill my headspace with another winning selection of classy bangers, check em out.

For a while now I’ve been trying to put together a piece on classic thrash albums, but can’t seem to find the right angle, so have been listening to a lot of old school moshers. So what with the surprise release of new music from Metallica (reviewed here: https://hardpresseded.wordpress.com/2016/08/19/metallica-hardwired-review/) it seemed only fitting to pay ‘Master of Puppets’ another visit to remind myself why it’s still considered the greatest thing Metallica have ever committed to vinyl. Basically, it’s fucking awesome from beginning to end; it’s about as close as you can get to the perfect (thrash) metal album, Hetfield and co took the genre to a whole new level with the complexity of the compositions, yet despite its intricacies and the length of some of the tracks it remains highly listenable. Genius. Still a classic.

I had the privilege of reviewing the new Dinosaur Jr record for http://www.alreadyheard.com a couple of weeks ago and it was a pleasure to hear that J Mascis et al have still got it. ‘Give a Glimpse of What Yer Not’ is the sound of a band that has been honed to perfection. There are a host of tracks that neatly encapsulate their alternative rock formula of hard edged riffs, drawled indie pop melodies and shredding solos, besides a few left field numbers where they stretch their creative muscle out of their comfort zone in fine style. Top album, well worth repeated listens.

On a more relaxed vibe, I’ve also been giving a fair few plays to the lovely record from Slow Club, ‘One Day All of This Won’t Matter Anymore’. The English duo of Rebecca Taylor and Charles Watson have come up with a rich slice of laid back folk tinged indie bliss with more than a hint of darkness lurking beneath the surface. It makes for perfect journey home listening to smooth away the rough edges with barbed wire kisses – this one’s a keeper.