We know we’ve been away for a few days, but we’ve had to come to terms with the New Year news. We knew it was going to come, but so soon? We’re afraid so. The final From The Basement broadcasts this Saturday (5^th Jan) at 9pm. Four acts will perform for your pleasure, in wonderful HD on Sky Arts, in the last show of the series.

The latest music video from Eels is a complete anathema compared to the current crop of high-end, polished multi-million pound efforts. Written (on a plane), filmed, sound-recorded and catered for by the singer, this ultra-low budget offering is where many of you will have seen E (front man Mark Everett) recently. Here he pops up to give a pared down performance of some Eels classics in glorious HD, an ultimate unplugged experience.

Autolux have taken a sound made popular in the late 90s – we’re talking 13-era Blur – and made it listenable. In bringing this sound from LA to the masses, Eugene, Greg and Carla have stayed very much in the left field. Where temptation must have come to commercialise the music it has been resisted. Tracks like Turnstile Blues are not the over-produced polished pieces they could be, retaining a raw edge that is garnering the band quite the following.

An Aussie 8-piece called Architecture In Helsinki? Please don’t tell me there’s a didgeridoo? Panic not, there’s no need for one in this indie-pop combo from Melbourne. With extremely catchy melodies and lyrics that will stick in your mind like that bit of sprout leaf that’s still between your back teeth, AIH promise to rock your socks off when they perform.

Damien Rice sprung onto our radar with his best-known hit to date ‘Blower’s Daughter’ (2001) and his acclaimed album O (2002), although he had previous musical success with Juniper before becoming disillusioned with commercialism and quitting to busk around Europe. Irish crooner Rice can best be described as a folky-ballady-rocky-type singer (OK, maybe not best described, but described nevertheless) whose performance on From The Basement will provide a fitting end to an excellent series.

Thanks to gregoryperez for the snap.