I think there is some really beautiful music out there, and there is one band I know of that you can rely upon to produce deep, touching songs, songs that make you think, stop still and ponder life for a few moments. Well at least, that is the effect they have upn myself. The band I'm talking about is Elbow, Guy Garvey and co have in the last few years made some of the best songs I have ever heard.

To prove my point, you only need listen to arguably their best album Cast of Thousands, there are songs there that exemplify the beauty of their music.

Elbow - Ribcage
Typical of Elbow, build the song from an almost silent start to a crescendo of sound that is possibly the best album opener around.

Elbow - Grace Under Pressure
This is an anthem, Guy Garvey's vocals are simply stunning, the gospel choir backing helps to lift this and

Both of the above songs are just so touching, they can give me goosebumps.

Of course there are other songs in the world that hold a beauty, are musically beautiful works of art, though some can hold a mere beauty in the words, in the voice of the singer and the best examples of this are my most loved bands, Radiohead and Joy Division.

Radiohead - Idioteque
The lyrics are chilling, the music almost mechanical yet to me this song is beautiful, Thom Yorke's voice building the song with the beat and unique electronice sounds accompanying his amazingly talented voice.

Joy Division - Isolation
It's not the music that makes this special, it's solely Ian Curtis singing. It's indescribable how much this amongst the other Joy Division songs affects me, it's here there is an admittance of self loathing and his regret shines through, "Mother I tried please believe me/I'm doing the best that I can/I'm ashamed of the things I've been put through/I'm ashamed of the person I am" The music may sound a bit dated but still.

I've put the labels as happy and depressed because these songs bring forth both emotions I think, they're contemplative, making any listener really think I believe. These are no badly written pop rock songs to storm the charts, this is music of the highest calibre.