Top 101 Songs of 2008

So this is my top songs of the year list. In an effort to keep things brief I'm not going to have any real introduction, nor will I be commenting on every song. This list will look a lot longer than it will read. The songs are in descending order, with the artists name first, followed by the song title. The title of the LP or EP that the song is on will be next to the song in parenthesis. Let' quit the foreplay and get right into the list.

101 The Legends - Seconds Away (Seconds Away Single): I love this band and this song, but who played “Loveless” for these guys? Sure now they'll expand their musical horizons, but I selfishly just wanted them to make pop music the rest of their career.

100 Aimee Mann - Freeway (@#%&*! Smilers)

99 Pacific! - Hot Lips (Pacific!)

98 The Tallest Man on Earth - Shallow Graves (Shallow Graves): If you can get by the voice, which requires more work than I usually care for, the payoff of TTMoE is really quite exceptional.

97 Dr. Dog - From (Fate)

96 The Morning Benders - I Was Wrong (Talking Through Tin Cans)

95 Wild Sweet Orange - Tilt (We Have Cause to Be Uneasy): No matter how much my musical tastes ‘grow and mature’, it's good to know that I'm still a sucker for a straight up emo rocker

94 Youth Group - Good Time (The Night is Ours)

93 This is Ivy League - The Richest Kids in Town (This is Ivy League): Belle and Sebastian have to be getting some sort of kickback for this song right? And while the
song is a blatant B & S rip, it doesn't try to hide it, which is why it’s so good.

92 The Republic of Tigers - Buildings and Mountains (Keep Color)

91 Young Jeezy - My President [feat. Nas] (The Recession): I like to think that the Commander and Chief to be was kinda of embarrassed by this song until the 3 minute mark hit and then Nas showed up and started wrecking sh*t. Then he was probably pretty ok with it and how a good deal of gratitude towards Young Jeezy and hip hop in general.

90 Sleeping States – Rivers (Old Vs. New)

89 Neil Halstead - Baby, I Grew You A Beard (Oh! Mighty Engine): Easily the best song title of the year, although I'm slightly biased.

88 Oh No! Oh My! - Go to Work (Dmitrij Dmitrij)

87 The Rosebuds - Bow to the Middle (Life Like)

86 Coldplay - Viva La Vida (): Violently overplayed? Yes. Still great despite the overplaying and Chris Martin's mildly-retarded dancing in the video? Yes

85 Throw Me the Statue - Lolita (Moonbeams)

84 The Killers - Losing Touch (Day and Age): You know I really don't care if this song is goofy and if the verses sound vaguely like a Huey Lewis and the News song. That's not gonna stop me from liking it and singing the chorus a little too passionately when listening to it while driving by myself.

83 T.I. - Live Your Life [feat. Rhiana] (Paper Trail): Pitchfork pretty much nailed this song in the write up they had for their best songs list. I'm still not sure how the Numa Numa sample doesn't completely discredit this song.

82 Eef Barzely - Apocalyptic Friend (Lose Big)

81 Jonathan Richman - Our Drab Ways (Because Her Beauty is Raw and Wild): Probably the best cultural send up of Christianity evah!

80 Estelle - American Boy [feat Kanye West] (Shine): This song is a disease. Anytime I hear a snippet of it or even if someone mentions it, it'll be stuck in my head for the rest of the day. Thankfully it's a terrific song, but like all addictions, such as nicotine, I have a feeling that the long-lasting effects could be hazardous to my health.

79 Josh Rouse - Easy Street (Bedroom Classics Vol. 3)

78 Solange - I Decided (Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams): I think that my love for this song officially makes me the Knowles sisters, or at least their handler's, b*tch.

77 Silver Jews - What Could Not But Could Be If (Look Out Mountain, Lookout Sea)

76 Chairlift - Bruises (Does You Inspire You): Also known as the song from the melting Ipod Nano commercial. Just be warned, the rest of this album is really, really bad.

75 The Submarines - You, Me and the Bourgeoisie (Honeysuckle Weeks): Also known as the song that's now in every Iphone commercial. Not only is the song slightly better then the one right above it, but the album it's on is actually quite good as well.

74 Kings of Leon - Sex on Fire (Only By Night): I love this song. It's so unironic that I actually think that's how it's ironic. Not that that really makes sense...

73 Gnarles Barkley - Who's Gonna Save My Soul (The Odd Couple): While the song is pretty great, it's mainly up this high on my list because of its amazing video.

72 Love as Laughter - Don't Worry (Holy)

71 Starflyer 59 - I Love You Like a Little Bird (Dial M): Jason Martin and Co have been writing the same 3 songs for their entire career, and I love those 3 songs! This one is in the vein of "Feel In Love at 22" and roughly 85% of "Leaving Here a Stranger"
70 Plants and Animals - New Kind of Love (Parc Avenue)

69 Manchester Orchestra - I Can Feel a Hot One (Let My Pride Be What's Left Behind EP): See the line I wrote about “Tilt” by Wild Sweet Orange and change the word rocker with ballad and you'll know why I like this song. Although it's probably more British than emo, not that there's a huge difference between the two.

68 Phantom Planet - Raise the Dead (Raise the Dead): I never thought Phantom Planet could write a song this good, nor did I think I'd ever have to take them seriously as a band, but this whole album was pretty good.

67 Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - Dead Right (Pershing): Not only is this the best, most surreal band name in sometime, but SSLYBY is also proficiently awesome.

66 Lil' Wayne - Mr. Carter [feat. Jay Z] (Carter III): When I present my semi-blasphemous case that Jay-Z is actually better as a guest rapper, this song will easily be my strongest argument.

65 Coner Oberst - NYC-Gone, Gone (Coner Oberst): I'm honestly a little disturbed by how much I liked about half of this album...

64 The National - Blank State (The Virginia EP)

63 Old 97's - No Baby I (Blame It On Gravity): Rhett Miller reasserts himself into my
Top 5 man crushes with this little diddy. And since it's Christmas time, check out the holiday single they put out last year "Here It Is, Christmas Time"

62 KaiserCartel - Dog Star (March Forth): One of my favorite things I did this year was listening to KaiserCartel's debut album and trying to count the number of times they blatantly ripped off other bands., I lost track about midway through the 3rd song. Who they’re ripping of here doesn’t mater because it’s really lovely all the way though.

61 I'm From Barcelona - Mingus (Who Killes Harry Houdini)

60 Margot and the Nuclear So and So's - Broadnipple is Burning (Not Animal)

59 Spiritualized - Baby I'm Just a Fool (Songs in A+E): Almost 8 minutes with no discernable tempo change and yet this song still grabs my attention every time.

58 Mirah - Lone Star (): Easily the best song making fun of Texas and its inhabitants written by a lesbian this year.

57 Tokyo Police Club - Graves (Elephant Shell): 2 LPs and 1 EP into their musical career and Tokyo Police Club has one song over the 3 minute mark (incidentally, it's not this one). Given their propensity for writing such short, catchy songs, I'm guessing they're gonna be the next 'break-through' indie band, since they write songs short enough that kids might actually listen to the whole thing. And by kids I mean me.

56 Okkervil River - Calling and Not Calling My Ex (Stand Ins)

55 James - Bubbles (Hey Ma): A surprisingly competent and underrated album from the first British band I ever gave my heart to. This opener is the highlight.

54 The Walkmen - Donde Esta La Playa (You and Me): Even though I lived 90 minutes from the border, I took French in high school because it was an easier class. So I don't know what this song's Spanish title is, although I'm pretty sure it's something like "Where is the beach". As far as I can tell, this song has absolutely nothing to do with the beach, nor does that really matter because this song is still great.

53 Mason Jennings - Going Back to New Orleans (In the Ever)

52 The Awkward Stage - Skeletal Blond (Slimming Mirrors, Flattering Lights): Not as good as his love song to “The Girls of Vivid Video”(that’s how he introduced the song when I saw him in concert): “Heaven is for Easy Girls”. But not a bad follow up either.

51 Hawksley Workman - Piano Blink [Los Manlicious Remix] (Between the Beautifuls)

50 Black Kids - I'm Making Eyes at You (Partie Traumatic): Best new song off the mildly disappointing Black Kids debut LP

49 Kanye West - Love Lockdown (808's and Heartbreaks): What more could possibly be said about this man and this song? Nothing. But do check out the mash-up of Love Lockdown and Radiohead’s Reckenor by DJ Earthworm


48 Say Hi - Zero to Love (The Wishes and the Glitch)

47 Okkervil River - Interview with Bruce Wayne Campbell... (The Stand Ins): If you ever think you’re having a sh*t day, Wikipedia the subject of this song. But do so cautiously

46 The Grand Archives - Sleep Driving (The Grand Archives)

45 Frighten Rabbits - Keep Yourself Warm (The Midnight Organ Fight): Frighten Rabbits sound like a combination of Coldplay and the Proclaimers. On paper this sounds atrocious. In actuality, I can’t stop listening to this album. Guess that’s why they play the games eh?

44 Cut Copy - Feel the Love (In Ghost Colours)

43 Fleet Foxes - White Winter Hymnal (Fleet Foxes)

42 Sigur Ros - Festival (Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust )

41 Murs - Better Than the Best (Better Than the Best Single): Mur’s mainstream debut album was very disappointing. And I still not sure why this song, his best since the entire “Murs 3:16: 9th Edition” album, wasn’t on that album

40 Blitzen Trapper - Furr (Furr): As you might have already noticed from this list, it was a big year for title tracks.

39 M83 - Kim & Jessie (Saturdays = Youth)

38 Jonathan Richman - Because Her Beauty is Raw and Wild (Because Her Beauty is
Raw and Wild): And now it's time for a list inside a list. Allow me to introduce to you: “The Problems with writing you 'best of' albums list on a e-mail at work” by Calvin Paradise:

1. The moral and ethical issues it raises and blah blah blah, etc.
2. Two sentences reviews for certain albums.
3. Nonsensical reviews that have little to do with the actual album.
4. You forget about Jonathan Richman's amazing album that was definitely ahead of at least 3-4 albums you actually put on your list.
5. Neck pain from constantly looking over your shoulder to make sure your boss isn't coming around the corner.
6. The terrible Christmas music they were playing while I wrote the list. Did you know there's a song about only wanting a Hippo for Christmas? As Christmas music wasn't painful and terrible enough...

37 Girl Talk - Still Here (Feed the Animals): While this album should be viewed as one, single unit, this was my favorite track, and I felt like “Feed the Animals” needed some representation on my top songs list.

36 Empire of the Sun - Walking on a Dream (Walking On a Dream): Sounds a lot like MGMT, minus the paint splattered everything and the scarves worn by them and their fans (MGMT that is).

35 The Notwists - Boneless (The Devil, You and Me)

34 Atmosphere - You (When Life Gives You Lemmons...): Still haven’t figured out how Atmosphere’s free album “Strictly Leakage” was miles better then the actually album he put out for sale this year. This song however is great.

33 French Kicks - Said So What (Swimming)

32 Albert Hammond Jr. - Feed Me Jack or How I Learned to Stop Caring and Love Peter
Sellers (Coma Te Llama?): 2nd best song title of the year

31 She & Him - Sentimental Heart (Volume 1)

30 The Killers - Human (Day and Age): Um, yeah

29 The Dodos - Undeclared (Visiter)

28 MGMT - Kids (Oracular Spectacular): I dare you to listen to this song and try not to dance. I effing dare you

27 Crooker Fingers - What Never Comes (Forfeit/Fortune)

26 Chad Van Gaalen - Willow Tree (Soft Airplane): At one point I thought this might be my favorite track of the year, then I played it daily for a few months straight and now I can’t listen to it anymore. So it’s safe to say I can’t accurately judge this song.

25 Hayden - The Van Song (In Fields and in Town)

24 The BPA - Toe Jam [feat. David Byrne and Dizzie Rascal] (Stanton Sessions, Vol. 3): Apparently BPA is the guy from Fat Boy Slim. I had no idea he could be part of song this awesome

23 Lil' Wayne - La La [feat. Brisco and David Banner] (Carter III): The best showcase for Weezy’s incredible lyrics.

22 Destroyer - Blue Flower/Blue Flame (Trouble in Dreams): He’s like the white, Canadian, Lil’ Wayne. Only with entirely different music and better lyrics…

21 David Byrne and Brian Eno - Life is Long (Everything That Happens Will Happen)

20 Stephen Malkamus - We Can't Help You Out (Real Emotional Trash): I really wish Malkamus would right more straight forward pop songs like this.

19 Cloud Cult - Love You All (Feel Good Ghosts): I kinda have a thing for vecoders

18 The Notwists - Good Lies (The Devil, You and Me)

17 Vampire Weekend - Walcott (Vampire Weekend): For all the hype, overplaying and general overexposure that plagued Vampire Weekend, this song somehow ceased to be affected by any of it. No matter how many times I listen to it I still get caught slightly off guard, and a little giddy, by the cursing in the songs bridge.

16 The Dodos - Winter (Visiter)

15 Crooked Fingers -Your Control [feat. Neko Case] (Forfeit/Fortune): Neko Case’s cameo steals this song, but it’s Eric Bachmann’s lyrics that make it so enjoyable upon further listens.

14 Blind Pilot - 3 Rounds and a Sound (3 Rounds and a Sound)

13 Devotchka - The Clockwise Witness (A Mad and Faithful Telling)

12 French Kicks - Abandon (Swimming): No matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to find a guitar riff better than the opening one on this song.

11 Spiritualized - Borrowed Your Gun (Songs in A+E): As far as unintentional anthems go, this one hits pretty close to home for me. The gun being a metaphorical one of course…

10 Magnetic Fields - Too Drunk to Dream (Distortion): I really didn’t care too much for the Stephen Merrit’s take on the Jesus and Mary Chain, nor do I care too much for the Jesus and Mary Chain, but that’s a story for another day (or never). This song however captures everything Merrit does so well as a song writer. It’s also perfect tongue and cheek and semi-moving.

09 Wolf Parade - Language City (At Mount Zoomer): The new Wolf Parade album was probably the biggest letdown of the year for me. It wasn’t necessarily a bad record; it just wasn’t nearly as good as I had hoped it would be. This song however, is everything I’d ever want in a Wolf Parade song.

08 MGMT - Time To Pretend (Oracular Spectacular): Two songs does not an album make, but this one and Kids sure come close to making Oracular Spectacular a terrific album.

07 Blind Pilot - Story I Heard (3 Rounds and a Sound): In my top albums list I talked about how I feel like Blind Pilot was created just for me. This song and the title track are what’s really driving home that notion in my head.

06 She & Him - Change is Hard (Volume #1): Every time I listen to this album I can’t help but think that this was all a publicity stunt by Mr. Ward and Ms. Deschanel. And in spite of that I can’t help but fall in love with this song every time. Just an amazing piece of music.

05 Bon Iver - Skinny Love (For Emma, Forever Ago): So there’s some debate about whether this album came out in ’07 or ’08. Apparently it was self-released in 2007, then Jagjaguwar signed him and distributed it this year. I wasn’t cool enough to hear this last year when it was self-released, so it makes my list this year.

04 Okkervil River - Lost Coastlines (The Stand Ins): An anti-sailing song that somehow further romanticizes the notion of sailing, the ocean, etc. I’m not sure how Will Sheff does it, but he’s real damn good at whatever it is he does.

03 Destroyer - Foam Hands (Trouble in Dreams): I first heard this song and December of last year and I played it constantly well into last May. I’m not sure which part I like better, the Kelly Clarkson reference or the whistling outro.

02 Fleet Foxes - So Long to the Headstrong (Sun Giant EP): One of the reasons the Fleet Foxes self-titled debut wasn’t high on my albums list is that eve though it’s very, very good, it never has a moment that touches this one. Pretty much just a perfect song.

01 Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago (For Emma, Forever Ago): I just recently learned that Emma was the middle name of Bon Iver, real name Justin Vernon, high school sweet heart who he never got over. I feel like that should somehow affect how I listen to this song, but it doesn’t. This song is beautiful through and through and officially makes 2008 the year of the title track.

Until We Meet Again

Top 15 Albums of 2008

I first started writing this blog because I wanted to be a journalist and I figured this would help me hone my writing skills. I no longer have any aspirations involving journalism, yet I keep writing for reasons mostly unknown and nonsensical. And anyone who actually read my blog back then knows that the only difference between then and now is that now I have a wider range of authors whose style I try and emulate. Likewise, I first started compiling 'best of' music lists to improve my writing and to show people how awesome my musical taste was. I now realize that I make people aware of my musical tastes whether or not they read my year end lists. Mainly because I'm a loud, obnoxious blowhard when it comes to music*. Yet I digress.

This year I made a conscious decision to be more analytical in my actual life and less analytical in the “arts” that I encounter. Why do this you ask, well I felt like there wasn't enough duality in my life. Actually that's not true, mainly I just figured that if I liked something I shouldn't have to justify it to myself. So for the first time ever this list is wholly made up of my favorite records of the year. In years past I'd allow my inner music critic to take over and I’d put albums I thought were better ahead of albums I liked more. So in turning over this new leaf I'll start with the honorable mentions and go from their.

Honorable Mention
Plants and Animals - Parc Avenue
Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - Pershing
Paavoharju - Laulu Laakson Kukista (Not a made up band or album, their just Finnish)
Crooked Fingers - Forfeit/Fortune

15. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend: A very solid album whose charm dissipates upon multiple listens. There are still some amazing highlights off this album though whose awesomeness haven’t weaned over time.

14. French Kicks - Swimming: I'm not sure why I like this French Kicks album better than there older stuff, perhaps it's because they sound more relax, more sure off themselves. It as if they're no longer concerned with trying to save the world by rocking and now they just wanna play good music. I actually can't explain why I like this album so much, but hopefully my ambiguity covered that up...

13. Hayden - In Field and Town: As I grow older I've found that my fantasies are becoming more and more grounded in reality. Where as a teenager I dreamed of being an me exceedingly rich multi-media celebrity which would allow me to bed any and every beautiful woman on the planet. Now my daydreams consist of a day off work where it's breezy and I have no responsibilities and can just sit and read in the shade. If such a day ever arrives, this album will be the soundtrack to it. Never did I imagine myself being this boring and neutered at the age of 23.

12. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes: This album/band answers the age old question of what it would sound like if Fleetwood Mac and the Beach Boys had a musical love child. The Answer: F*cking Awesome

11. The Notwists - The Devil You, and Me: I feel like this album is made a lot better by the fact that it's the Notwists first album in over 6 years. Such distance between records is sure to augment it one way or the other. Luckily for the Notwists, the break plays in there favor. And since I have nothing else to say I’ll allow avid reader and musical enthusiast Marko Wilson to give a one word review of this album:

“Catchier”

10.The Walkmen - You and Me: Anyone who read my blog back when I was living in Chicago knows how truly miserable I was during the 6 month long winter there. This album, oddly enough, makes me miss those winters. The whole thing sounds like a soundtrack to those dark, bleak and freezing months. If I were still living there I can guarantee this album would have been one of my 3 favorite to come out this year.

9. The Dodos - Visiter: Every so often I feel as if an album is made with me specifically in mind. This is one of those records. It's perfectly constructed alt. folk with a curveball thrown in, which pretty much describes anything I'd ever want in a record. What makes this record better so many similar ones, like the over-hyped Department of Eagles LP, is their use of percussion and harmonies. Considering the album is almost entirely acoustic, it's very unique and awesome to hear the drums and bass lines up so high in the mix.

8. Lil Wayne - Carter III: I've gone back in forth on this album all year. Sometimes it sounds like the most brilliant, enjoyable music that's ever been put out. Other times it's so painfully obnoxious it makes me what to punch someone in the face. As of the time of writing this, it's the former. I'm currently amazed how Lil' Weezy raps the way jazz musicians play music.

7. Sigur Ros - Med Sud I Eurune Vid Spilum Endalaust (With a Buzz in Our Ears We Play Endlessly): This was easily the biggest surprise of the year in my mind. No so much that the album was as good as it is, though it is Sigur Ros most complete record, but what surprised me the most was how the album was so good. The fact that a band that's famous for making atmospheric post-rock and signing in a made up language could write such brilliant pop songs is really quite astounding. The best song on the album, Festival, does sound like a classic Sigur Ros song, but good portions of this album are borderline twee-pop. Even typing this I'm still flabbergasted that it works as well as it does.


6. Blind Pilot - 3 Rounds and a Sound: Speaking of album's that seem like they were made exclusively for me, I present Blind Pilot's debut LP. Much the same way boy bands were created out of the dreams and wishes of teenagers girls and gay men over the age of 40, so Blind Pilot was created for me. It's like Pandora and the Itunes Genius function combined powers, look through my musical collection and then gave birth to Blind Pilot based on all that data. And if that wasn't enough, they biked to every venue on their first tour, which is incredible awesome. There's nothing about this band and their stunningly beautiful music that I don't love.

5. Destroyer - Trouble in Dreams: Another great album by Destroyer which I undersell because it came out only two years after Rubies. If you like Destroyer you'll love this album. If you don't like Destroyer then there is probably something wrong with you. I also question whether or not you have the ability to truly love anything.

4. Okkervil River - The Stand Ins: This probably would have been my album of the year if were just a 4 song EP featuring: Lost Coastlines, Blue Tulips**, Calling and Not Calling My Ex and Interview with Bruce Wayne Campbell. That's not to the say the other 4 non-instrumental songs on this album are bad, quite the opposite in fact. Those songs main problem is the fact that they're paired with the aforementioned 'Big 4'. I also probably would have had this album higher if I hadn't played it for a 2 months straight followed by other members of my family playing it for two more months straight. That's a pretty good recipe right there for how to OD on an album.

3. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago: I'm sure I've written or talked about this analogy before in regards to other albums, but I don't really care. Bon Iver's debut album reminds me of the Shaq-Kobe Lakers teams that were a mini-dynasty at the beginning of this decade. You've got two iconic superstars: Skinny Love and the title track. And there surrounded by a slew of great role players, who don't necessarily stand out on their own, but they compliment the two superstars perfectly. I feel like this is the best possible explanation for this great album. And for those of you wondering, Flume is obviously ‘Big Shot’ Bob Horry in this analogy.

2. Girl Talk - Feed the Animals: Some people might frown upon Girl Talk's inclusion on this list, since none of this album is original material, it's all mash-ups. My justification, not that I feel like I need one (see the 2^nd paragraph of this post), is that while all the songs Gregg Gillis is using were originally other people's, they now belong to him. Much the same way as when Johnny Cash covers a song, it then becomes one of his songs^. Hurt is no longer a Trent Reznor or NIN song, it's a Cash song. I feel the exact same way about the music in Feed the Animals, anytime I hear a song that’s on here out of the context of this mash-up it feels foreign and wrong. And that's why this album is on this list, because even though he's breaking multiple copyright laws and getting sued out the a$$, the songs on this album now belong to Mr. Gillis. And they're all pretty damned amazing.

1. Spiritualized - Songs in A+E: What can I say about this album that I haven't already written or forcefully told people who didn't want to hear about it? I've been playing this record at least once a week for the past 6 months and I've yet to tire of it. The sum of its whole is better than the individual parts, which is a marking of any great album. I don't want to be hyperbolic, but Songs in A+E is pretty much perfect.

Until We Meet Again
* Context probably not necessary...
** Be sure to hit up youtube and check out Bon Iver's cover of this son
^ With the exception of his covers of Bridge of Troubled Water and In My Life and maybe one or two other songs I'm currently forgetting

A Guide to Year-End Music Lists

Now that the holiday season is upon us the time has come for people to take a step back and examine the year that was. Magazines of all kinds will be coming out with their year end lists on music, films, tv shows, video games, etc. I'm a sucker for these types of lists, especially the music ones. So I've decided to create a guide to these year end music lists. I’ll start with the heavy hitters and work my way down the pedigree line, here goes:

Rolling Stone

Assumptions You Can Safely Make: Once the pinnacle of music magazines, Rolling Stones (RS) has declined significantly the past decade or so. The mag now seems more interested in politics and pop culture, music seems to have been put on the back burners. There list will be a great source of ridiculed by anyone who has an opinion on music.

Things You Can Say to Impress Your Hipsters Friends:
"RS is really out of touch with the musical world. That haven't been culturally relevant in years."
"I can't believe they put (insert any major label release that hasn't received acclaim from the likes of Pitchfork, Stereogum or Flux Blog) on their list. They don't know a damn thing about music."
"They obviously put (insert any indie album that'd made the cut) on there to try and up there street cred. Talk about pandering"

What the List Will Look Like: Any artist who was even remotely popular in the 60's, 70's or 80's that put out an album this year is pretty much assured to be on there. All sure fire top 40 hits (Britney Spears, Panic at the Disco!, etc.) will also make the list to show that they're not pretentious and can relate to the youth of America. Any pseduo-indie record that had any crossover success or received acclaim will be on there to show that they're still relevant. So pretty much all the pretentious sh*t people will say about this list will be true.

Pitchfork

Assumptions You Can Safely Make: The king of indie music and hipsterdom still has its crown, only now you'll be hard pressed to find anyone who admits to still reading this site. Their list is all but assured of being the most through and analytical of any on the market. It will also be the most condescending and pretentious list you could ever hope to find.

Things You Can Say to Impress Your Hipsters Friends:
"Man Pitchfork's writers are so pretentious and bitter. Who still reads that garbage?"
“This list was so heavy handed and preachy, reading it felt like going to church”
"They're all so caught in being trendsetters that they've forgotten why they liked music in the first place. Pretty much anything those guys write should be considered a conflict of interest" (If you say all this in order to any music snob they’ll enthusiastically nod their head in agreement and not question anything you say for at least 6 weeks)

What the List Will Look Like: The albums are subject to change, but their top 10 will included:

- Hard to listen to Noise-Rock band that tries too hard to sound like Sonic Youth and My Bloody Valentine, but doesn't have the pay off of either of those bands.
- Some sort of Euro-techno-dance pop
- Mainstream Hip-Hop to show how forward thinking they are (Most likely Lil' Wayne or Young Jeezy. Maybe both)
- TV on the Radio
- Any type of music that can be described as "an acquired taste"
- Absolutely no indie band that received any sort of crossover success, regardless of the album's merit.
- Some ambient, techno or trip-hop band with an obscenity in their title

Paste

Assumptions You Can Safely Make: Paste Magazine has always been like that friend of the opposite sex whom you grew up with and is madly in love with you. They're great as a friend, but you know that if you ever got seriously involved with them you'd be settling to the nth degree. Still that's not gonna stop you from hooking up with them when you're intoxicated at some holiday party, cause after all they're cute and unthreatening. As a critical magazine, Paste is cute, enjoyable and non-threatening, but not to be taken seriously. Paste's list will be very respectable, but it will also err on the safe side.

Things You Can Say to Impress Your Hipsters Friends:
"Paste had a pretty solid list, but I think they put (pick any album in their top 5 and you'll probably be safe) too high"

What the List Will Look Like: A whole lot like mine. The list will be safe and have every decent indie album that came out this year on it. And their top choice will be some sort of faux-controversial pick that no one will, you guessed it, take seriously.

Blender

Assumptions You Can Safely Make: This list will consist almost entirely of Billboard Top 40 music. The blurbs will be written by someone who’s either: moonlighting from Maxim or who's favorite song is "Iris" by the Goo Goo Dolls.

Things You Can Say to Impress Your Hipsters Friends: Nothing, people with any opinion on music don't acknowledge Blender's existence

What the List Will Look Like: Itunes Top Downloads list circa October of this year.

NME or another British Magazine

Assumptions You Can Safely Make: That the words bloke, bloody, joskin, daft, cracker, lad(s), etc., will be used unironically

Things You Can Say to Impress Your Hipsters Friends:
(If they dislike Brit Mags) “The list isn’t horrible, but (insert magazines name) is so obsessed with crowning the next Oasis that they overlook sooooo [overemphasized] much good music.”
(If they like Brit Mags) “Pretty good list. I wish American critics had this good of taste.”

What the List Will Look Like: These lists are sure to include: Any new band that sounds like Oasis. Oasis’ new album. And for reasons unknown, Kings of Leon will be in the top 5.

Until We Meet Again

Is it really too late to apologize? : The Top 100 Songs of 2007

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Right Here, Right Now: The Top 20 Albums of 2007

Probably my favorite writer Walker Percy is famous for writing a certain kind of novel. To a certain degree all his books tend to run together because they’ll all have pretty much the exact same lead character. This character is always male, always southern and always rather wealthy. This character always goes through some sort of life crisis in which he realize how monotonous and repetitive his everyday life has become. In other words these men are overcome by, as he best put it in “The Moviegoer”, the malaise of everyday life.

Now I’m not bringing this up because it has anything to do with the music that came out in 2007. Nor am I just trying to show some of my literary chops (well for the most part I’m not). But I bring this up because this is the general feeling I’ve encountered while trying to write my top albums of the year list. For a little over a month now I’ve been trying to write this and nothing seems to be sticking. It’s not quite writer’s bloc, I just never even remotely like the finished product. So instead of trying to rewrite this list for the umpteenth time, I’m just going give you the list in skin and bones, with none of the frills. Only one album has any sort of description by it, and that’s because I like and it’s short and concise. And for the record this is not an attempt for me to write a top albums list the way Thom Yorke writes lyrics: vague and non-descriptive so that everyone can take their own meaning from it. Nor am I expecting anyone to call me a genius for putting out my list this way. So let’s just get on with it.

Albums I like (or have hear good things about), but need to put more time into:
Spoon – Ga Ga Ga
Wu-Tang Clan – 8 Diagrams
Animal Collective – Strawberry Jam
Sunset Rubdown – Random Spirit Lover
Aesop Rock – None Shall Pass
Great Lake Swimmers – Ongiara
Jay Z – American Gangsta*

Album Everyone Else Seems to Love That I Just Don’t Get:
Battles – Mirrored: Maybe I just haven’t listened to it enough, but after a few runs through I feel like it’s just useless noise. Remember folks, just because something is difficult doesn’t mean it’s good. This applies to all walks of life, not just music.

Albums That Just Missed the Cut:
Ryan Adams – Easy Tiger
New Pornographers – Challengers
The Polyphonic Spree – The Fragile Army
Figurines – When the Deer Wore Blue
Shawn Lee – Voices and Choices
Pella Carlberg – In a Nutshell
Josh Rouse – Country Mouse, City House

Top 20 Albums of the Year:

20. Beirut – The Flying Cup Club + Long Island EP
19. Kevin Drew – Spirit If…
18. Modest Mouse – We Were Dead Before the Ship Sank
17. Wilco – Sky Blue Sky
16. Albert Hammonds Jr. – Yours to Keep
15. Band of Horses – Cease to Begin
14. Shout Out Louds – Our Ill Wills
13. Panda Bear – Person Pitch
12. Jens Lekman - Night Falls of Kortedala
11. Feist – The Reminder
10. Do Make Say Thing – You, You’re a History of Rust
09. Black Kids – Wizard of Ahhs EP
08. Iron & Wine – The Sheppard’s Dog
07. Josh Ritter – The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter
06. Kanye West - Graduation
05. Okkervil River – The Stage Names
04. The National – Boxer
03. Andrew Bird – Armchair Apocrpha
02. Radiohead – In Rainbows
01. The Arcade Fire – Neon Bible

Well that’s all for the list. If you want to know how I feel about these albums or why I had them ranked above others, etc., feel free to ask me. You can do so either in person, over the phone, via e-mail or really any possible form of communication. I’ll be more then happy to oblige you, since it’s the combination of two of my favorite subjects: Me and the music I listen to.

Interestingly enough, while I was unable to write my top albums of the year list, quite the opposite was true for my top songs of the year list. So by next week I should have that up, at least partially. So check back then?

Until We Meet Again
* I still haven’t seen the movie or listened to this album. I need to get my priorities in line.

The Top 55 Songs of 2006 : An Exercise in Moderation, Sort of

First let me start with a disclaimer. This list is entirely my own, no outside sources joined in the voting process*. This list is as complete as I could make it. Obviously with having a full time job and going to school full time I was unable to listen to every single song that came out this year, thus this list is a little bit incomplete. Within a few months I’ll definitely hear a song I’ll wish I’d put on this list or feel that I overrated and/or underrated certain songs, ect. But as of the time of writing/posting, this list is as complete as I can make it.

More then any year I can remember this was much more a year of great songs then of great albums. Not to say this year’s albums were bad, because there were quite a few spectacular ones. It’s just that after last year’s handful of amazing/epic albums, this year’s albums sort of paled in comparison. Yet overall this year’s crop of songs might be better then it’s ‘05 counterparts.

Anyways, I was going to do a long drawn out list in which I‘d do a short review every song, but I’m lazy and I kinda need to get this list out while it’s still semi-relevant. So instead I’m just going to give you my list as is, sans anecdotes. The albums in which these songs can be found is in parenthesis after the song title**. I realize how much of a cop-out it is to just list the songs and not saying anything about them, so if you want to know more about these songs or want to discuss this list then you can stop me in the streets and talk to me about it. Seriously that wouldn’t be weird at all… Ok it would annoy and creep the living sh*t out of me, but that’s the sacrifice I’m willing to make for the 3-5 people who read my blog. Anyhow here’s the list:

55.) Polyphonic Spree – Sonic Bloom (Wait EP)
54.) Rhett Miller – Meteor Shower (The Believer)
53.) Justin Timberlake – Lovestoned/I Think That She Knows (Future Sex/Love Sounds)
52.) Gym Class Hereos – Clothes Off! (As Cruel as School Children)
51.) Guster – One Man Wrecking Machine (Ganging Up on the Sun)
50.) Decemberists – Sons and Daughters (The Crane Wife)
49.) Badly Drawn Boy – Time of Times (Born in the UK)
48.) Hawksley Workman – When These Mountains Were the Seashore (Treeful of Starling)
47.) The Flaming Lips – The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song (At War with the Mystics)
46.) Figurines – Race You (Skeleton)
45.) Eric Bachmann – Man O’ War (To The Races)
44.) Ghostface Killah (Featuring Trife) – Be Easy (Fishscale)
43.) Grant Lee Phillips – Age of Consent (Ninteeneightes)
42.) Eef Barzlay – I Wasn’t Really Drunk (The Ballad of Bitter Honey)
41.) Band of Horses – St. Augustine (Everything All The Time)
40.) Willie Nelson – Songbird (Songbird)
39.) Calexico – Cruel (Garden Ruin)
38.) Angels and the Airwaves – The Adventure (We Don’t Need to Whisper)
37.) Beyonce – Irrpalceable (B-Day)
36.) Mewithoutyou – A Glass Can Only Spill What It Contains (Brother, Sister)
35.) The Killers – Read My Mind (Sam’s Town)
34.) Lily Allen – Smile (Alright, Still)
33.) Ben Kweller – Sundress (Ben Kweller)
32.) Lupe Fiasco – Sunshine (Food and Liquor)
31.) Casiotone for the Painfully Alone – New Years Kiss (Etiquette)
30.) Snow Patrol – You Could Be Happy (Eyes Open)
29.) Paris Hilton – Nothing in this World (Paris)
28.) Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Cheated Hearts (Gold Lion)
27.) Divine Comedy – A Lady of a Certain Age (Victory for the Comic Muse)
26.) Hellogoodbye – Here (In Your Arms). (Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs!)
25.) M. Ward – Chinese Translation (Post-War)
24.) The Sleepy Jackson – You Need More (Personality)
23.) Mason Jennings – To You (If You Need a Reason EP)
22.) Built to Spill – Going Against Your Mind (You In Reverse)
21.) The Walkmen – Louisiana (A Hundred Miles Off)
20.) Bruce Springsteen – Pay Me My Money Down(We Shall Overcome)
19.) Starflyer 59 – Ideas for the Talented (My Island)
18.) Josh Ritter – Thin Blue Flame (The Animal Years)
17.) The Strokes – You Only Live Once (First Impressions of Earth)
16.) Camera Obscura – Lloyd, I’m Ready to Be Heartbroken (Let’s Get Out of This Country)
15.) I’m From Barcelona – Barcelona Loves You (Let Me Introduce My Friends)
14.) Destroyer – European Oils (Destroyer’s Rubies)
13.) Sparklehorse – Shade and Honey (Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain)
12.) Annuals – Sway (Be He Me)
11.) Scissor Sisters – I Don’t Feel Like Dancing (Ta-Dah)
10.) Regina Spektor – Fidelity (Begin to Hope)
9.) Cat Power – Lived in Bars (The Greatest)
8.) TV on the Radio – I Was a Lover (Return to Cookie Mountain)
7.) M. Ward – Poison Cup (Post-War)
6.) Destroyer – Rubies (Destroyer’s Rubies)
5.) The Hold Steady – Citrus (Boys and Girls in America)
4.) Sunset Rubdown – Stadiums and Shrines II (Shut Up I Am Dreaming)
3.) Rogue Wave – Eyes (Publish My Love EP)
2.) Belle and Sebastian - Dress Up in You (The Life Pursuit)
1.) Josh Ritter – Girl in the War (The Animal Years)

Once again I listen to way too much music and I apologize for my laziness and not writing at least a little blurb about all these songs. Anyhow, hope you enjoyed it and check back next week, when there’s potential for multiple updates!!?!?!?!!?!?

Until We Meet Again


* Ok I lied, I don’t actually have a voting process. But if I did it would probably be similar to the BCS, only not entirely f*cked up.
** The lone exception to this is the Hellogoodbye song, which has parenthesis in the song’s title. I’ve placed the album name afterwards in parenthesis, hope that’s not too confusing.

It’s About That Time: The Top Albums of 2006

I’m a sham, a complete and utter sham. I sit here about to write my “Top Albums of the Year” post, and I’ve yet to listen to the album which I know is better than any that came out this year. That’s right, I’ve yet to listen to Bob Dylan’s newest effort Modern Times. I’m not sure why, but I just can’t bring myself to listen to it. Dylan is easily the most important person still making music, seeing as how he’s been putting out great records since the ‘60’s. And here I am about to write about the best albums of the year, when I haven’t even listened to the record put out by the best artist in said year. But the thing about artists like Dylan and Tom Waits – important musical figures who are still churning out amazing records* – is that their albums transcend “Best Of…” lists. Or at least that’s my excuse for why I haven’t listened to either of their albums yet. At any rate, these lists are more or less pointless, seeing as how I don’t have enough time to listen to enough music to make a fully comprehensive list. In fact, three of my favorite records from last year (all of which would have made my Top 10 list), I didn’t even hear until this year**. Anyhow, before we get started with this year’s list, there are a few mini-lists I need to preface things with.

Albums Which Garnered Critical Acclaim this Year That I’m Glad I Don’t ‘get’:

Joanna Newsom – Ys: Sure, the harp playing is beautiful, but her voice is truly one of the worst human-made sounds ever recorded.

Danielson – Ships: This band could put out an album on par with Doolittle, and I’d ignore it purely based on their song “That Dragon”, which is arguably the most obnoxious song ever made (in which Fergie was not involved, at least).

Rock Plaza Central - Are We Not Horses?: Listen, I love Neutral Milk Hotel and all, but some things just shouldn’t be emulated – especially this poorly.

Various – The World is Gone: It doesn’t help that I’m not a fan of the genre, but I’ve been to brothels that were less busy. (Well, I’ve actually never been to a brothel, but I’d imagine they’re rather busy places).

Albums I Liked, But Didn’t put Enough Time Into:

Ghostface Killah – Fishscale: I’m feeling confident that this is the best rap album of the year, but I’ve only listened to it all the way through twice – which is why it’s absent on this list.

Jarvis Cocker – Jarvis: The former Pulp front man’s solo album is immensely fun: it sounds like an updated Bowie record. I’m not sure if it would have landed in my Top 10, but at the very least warrants mentioning.


Sunset Rubdown – Shut Up, I’m Dreaming: A little odd sounding, had probably the best opening track off any record I heard this year. But in the end, I didn’t give it as much time as it deserved. I’ve already vowed to give it an extensive listen in the future.

TV on the Radio – Return to Cookie Mountain: Technically speaking, this is the most impressive album I heard all year. I’ve only listened to it once and it seems like it has epic potential. Yet another album which I need to listen to more.

(It should be noted that all the albums listed here would have made my Top 20, but I decided to put other albums in their spots instead).

Well, that’s it for the mini-lists. Here are the Top 20 Albums of the Year. It should go without saying, but this is all my opinion and this list shouldn’t be taken as anything more than a sign that I have too much time on my hands. Anyhow, I’ll give a quick rundown of albums 20-11 and then go further into detail on albums 10-1. Just a little warning, but this is probably going to be very long and overly pretentious; just thought I should warn you. It should also be noted that some of my explanations of things may come off as short and fragmented. That’s not because of poor writing (OK, it probably is), but has more to do with my desire to be short and concise because this list takes a long time to write (or in your case, read).

20.) Starflyer 59 – My Island: One of the best guitar rock bands of the last two decades turns out another solid album with incredible highlights, most notably “I Win” and “Ideas for the Talented”.

19.) The Killers – Sam’s Town: Not nearly as epic as they hoped, but this is still a very fun album. While most will knock this album for it’s similarities to “Hot Fuss”, I tend to respect a band that knows what it does well and sticks with it (see also: the first two Strokes albums). When bands that are successful at doing one type of music and then try to branch out, it usually ends poorly (see: the third Strokes album). Let’s hope that’s not the case with The Killers. I’d list top tracks, but they’ll all be singles eventually so just have patience.

18.) Regina Spektor - Fidelity: With her unusually charming vocals and mixture of folk and classical music, this was one of the most surprising and off-beat pop records I’ve heard this year. Top tracks include, but are not limited to, “Fidelity”, “On the Radio” and “20 Years of Snow”. It should also be noted that Regina has replaced Beth Orton as my newest indie crush.

17.) Decemberists – Crane Wife: Easily the band’s weakest album to date, but its hits far outweigh the misses, and even the misses are not so much misses as they are just not hits. I realize that doesn’t make any sense, so I’ll just list off some of the best tracks: “The Crane Wife pt. 1 and 2”, “O Valencia!”, and “Sons and Daughters”.

16.) Band of Horses – Everything All the Time: This band was overly-hyped, and therefore never judged fairly by me. I like this album, but half the songs tend to bleed together. If I had just discovered this band on my own, without having every musical outlet and indie friend I have singing its praises, I probably would have liked it more. Instead, my expectations were way too high, and I was a little under-whelmed. Still, a very good album. Top Tracks: “The Funeral”, “St. Augustine”, “First Song”.

15.) Mewithoutyou – Brother, Sister: This punk/grunge/hardcore/scremo band clearly studied up on their Fugazi, System of a Down, and Pixies before this album, and we’re all the beneficiaries of that. Also, it’s pretty damn good. Top tracks: “Messes of Men”, “A Glass Can Only Spill What It Contains”, “Wolf Am I! (And Shadow)”.

14.) Eef Barzlay – The Ballad of Bitter Honey: This album is more or less the anthems for lazy summer nights. Eef, Clem Snide’s front man, uses mostly just an acoustic guitar and piano for the instruments on this album. Despite Eef’s offbeat voice, the album is incredibly relaxing and soothing. Top Tracks: “Ballad of Bitter Honey”, “N.M.A.”, “I Wasn’t Really Drunk”, “Words That Escape Me”, “Joy to the World”.

13.) M. Ward – Post War: Yet another brilliant album by Ward, which everyone, myself included, is underrating. Part of the problem is that Ward underplays on his own album, meaning he holds back some of his amazing guitar work for his live shows. The other part of the problem is that the majority of this album sounds like it could just have easily been on all his other records. Now that doesn’t mean the songs are bad; they’re actually really, really good. It’s just that it dampens the songs’ quality, or more appropriately their impact, that it sounds like you’ve heard them before. Top Tracks: “Poison Cup”, “Chinese Translation”.

12.) Annuals – Be He Me: In the not too distant future, I will look back at this list and the Annuals’ album will stick out like a third nipple. Either I will have vastly overrated it or underrated it. At the present time, I’m not really sure where it fits. Part of me believes it should be in my top ten, as it continues to grow on me. Yet something in the back of my mind tells me that I’m probably overrating it. I stuck it at number 12, because I think that covers me either way. I have no idea how this will play out in the long run, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t the least bit intrigued. Top Tracks: “Brother”, “Ida My”, “Father”, “Sway”.

11.) Bruce Springsteen –We Shall Overcome: the Seeger Sessions: The Boss is always at his best when he’s doing country/folk songs (see “Waitin’ on a Sunny Day” or every song off Nebraska) and on this album he goes all-out bluegrass. I think the Coen Brothers probably could have used this as the soundtrack for O’ Brother Where Art Thou, as every song has that old-timey blues/folksy feel to it. And thank God that Bruce lacks the self-awareness to realize the joke of covering Pete Seeger songs as a form of war protest. Top Tracks: “Pay Me My Money Down”, “Jacob’s Ladder”, “Old Dan Tucker”, “O’ Mary Don’t You Weep”.

And now on to the Big 10***. The Top tracks for each album are in order of my opinion of their awesomeness (if that’s even a word). Here they are.

10.): Willie Nelson – Songbird:

Top Tracks: “Songbird”, “Blue Hotel”, “Amazing Grace”, “Sad Song” and “Waltzes”.

The Rundown: This album was produced by Ryan Adams, a longstanding man-crush of mine, and his band, The Cardinals, are the backing band on this album. At first it’s a bit of an odd mix. You have Willie’s timeless soft voice and The Cardinals bar country style seemingly butting heads. Not to mention several songs include a gospel choir singing in the background. On paper it all seems like a mess, especially when The Cardinals music sometimes over powers Nelson’s voice. But in somehow it all works out. It didn’t click for me a t first, but around my 3rd listen through I stopped questioning why Willie’s voice wasn’t higher in the mix, why there wasn’t more minimalist production, ect., and just starting enjoy the album. And despite it’s flaws this album is really enjoyable. Whether Willie is covering Fleetwood Mac, himself or singing new material it all sounds great.

9.) Casiotone for the Painfully Alone – Etiquette:

Top Tracks: “New Years Kiss”, “Cold White Christmas”, “Scattered Pearls”, “Bobby Malone Moves Home”.

The Rundown: I think the best way to describe this album is that it sounds like something Stephen Merrit (Magnetic Fields, Future Bible Hereos) would have made. This is pretty much pure electronica-pop, and it’s great. Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, which is one of the best band names ever, is mainly Owen Ashworth, as he writes all the lyrics and music. A few female singers pop-up on a couple songs, which is no surprise since Ashworth is more obsessed with Lesbians then I was at the age of 15. Every song has a fine mixture of sarcasm and genuineness. The only real downside to this record is Ashworth’s voice, which is fine, but if you’re not in the mood for a heavy dose monotone vocals then you’re in for a rough listen. But if you yearn for monotone then this is a CD for you.

8.) Figurines – Skeleton:

Top Tracks: “Race You”, “Ghost Town”, “Fiery Affair”, “Rivalry”

The Rundown: While this comparison greatly undermines the Figurines, the best way to describe their music is it sounds like the Flaming Lips covering Modest Mouse. The Figurines are a Danish band, which I why their front man, Christian Hjelm, has a peculiar sounding voice. The band is also heavily influenced by Built to Spill and Pavement, but who isn’t these days. Outside of the semi-mellow opener “Race You” this album is pure upbeat indie rock. None of the songs really jump out at you as overly amazing, but on the other hand there’s not a bad song on the CD. Suffice to say this album is well worth a listen to if you’re a fan of any of the above mentioned bands or good music.

7.) Tapes ‘n Tapes – The Loon:

Top Tracks: “Manitoba”, “Cowbell”, “Insistor”, “Jakov's Suite”.

The Rundown: This album is pretty much a blueprint for how to make and indie rock record. Tapes ‘n Tapes perfectly borrows from a wide variety of bands such as The Pixies, Modest Mouse, Pavement, Built to Spill and even a little Walkmen is mixed in there. This is the only album on this list that didn’t get a single track on my Best Songs of 2006 list and that’s not meant to be a knock on any of the tracks on this album. It’s just that these songs work far better as a collection then they do on their own. I think that makes Tapes ‘n Tapes the anti-Franz Ferdinand. If you’re a hipster in training or just want to get in the indie scene this would be a great album to start out with. It’s not a difficult listen and it steals so much from other bands that it’s kinda like and indie rock variety pack.

6.) Camera Obscura – Let’s Get Out of This Country:

Top Tracks: “Lloyd I’m Ready to Be Heartbroken”, “If Looks Could Kill”, “I Need All the Friends I Can Get”, “Tears for Affairs”.

The Rundown: This album is absolutely fantastic in just about every facet. Musically it sounds like and indie update of the 60’s psychedelic surf pop. Lyrically it’s practically the antithesis of the records upbeat music. Just about every song is about heartbreak, while the music is reminiscent of a sunny day at the beach. Every song also has an oldie, almost Motown, feel to it. The whole album is exceptional, especially the opener “Lloyd I’m Ready to Be Heartbroken”, which is a response to Lloyd Cole’s classic “Are You Ready to Be Heartbroken?”. I originally thought the song was about Say Anything’s protagonist Lloyd Dobbler. I’m actually unsure which of those explanations I would have liked better, but that’s neither here nor there.

5.) Oh No! Oh My! – Self-titled:

Top Tracks: “I Have No Sister”, “Reeks and Seeks”, “Lisa Make Love (It’s Okay!)”, “I Love You all the Time”, “Women Are Born in Love”.

The Rundown: If I were to write a one word review of this album the word would be: simplistic. This album is just straight forward indie pop. Some songs lyrics aren’t longer then a single sentence. If I were to add a second word to this albums review it would be charming. Whether it’s the head swaying, toe taping music or the subtly clever lyrics, you can’t help but smirk when listening to this record. Oh No! Oh My! sounds like a younger, americanized version of Belle and Sebastian. They show their cleverness not only in their lyrics, but also in this albums length and production. They self-released this album and it has incredible flow to it and it’s a shade under 35 minutes. Maybe I should have just said this album was short, sweet and charming and just moved on.

4.) I’m From Barcelona – Let Me Introduce My Friends:

Top Tracks: “Barcelona Loves You”, “Oversleeping”, “Chicken Pox”, “This Boy”, “Collection of Stamps”.

The Rundown: If Let Me Introduce My Friends was a sports team, it would be the 2006 Detroit Tigers. Top to bottom both their pitching staff and field players were great, but the Tigers lacked a superstar to put them over the top in both categories. The same is true for this album. Every song on it is great, but lacks the knock out song to truly make it an epic album. That said, while the highlights on Let Me Introduce My Friends aren’t as good as those on The Polyphonic Spree or Boy Least Likely albums, this is the best twee pop album I’ve heard. For a short while I thought this was going to be my album of the year, I was just waiting for a few of the songs to take it up a notch, but they never did so this album sits here at fourth. Still though this is by far the happiest album you’ll hear in this, or probably any other, year. It can’t help but put a hop in your step and make you want to dance, poorly in my case.

3.) The Hold Steady – Boys and Girls in America:

Top Tracks: “Citrus”, “Chips Ahoy!”, “Stuck Between Stations”, “Massive Nights”, “Southtown Girls”.

The Rundown: If it weren’t for Craig Finn’s, The Hold Steady’s front man, voice this would have been my album of the year. It’s not that Finn’s voice is bad, but at best it’s just neutral, neither adding nor subtracting anything from the music and lyrics. Musically this album’s impeccable, sounding like a mixture between Bruce Springsteen and a harder rocking version of the Counting Crows. And while ignorant mo-fos would assume the Counting Crows comparison is a knock, it’s not at all. No one in music writes better hooks then the Counting Crows, whether you like their music or not this is the truth. Lyrically this album is as good as it gets. Finn spends the majority of the record demeaning and degrading America’s youth. On the surface it appears he’s glorifying rampant party, drug use and alcoholism. But in reality he’s showing how destructive and depressing all of the above is. All in all this might be the most accurate and cruel take on American society I’ve ever heard.

2.) Josh Ritter – The Animal Years:

Top Tracks: “Girl in the War”, “Thin Blue Flame”, “Lilian, Egypt”, “One More Mouth”, “Here at the Right Time”.

The Rundown: Going back to the ‘if this album was a sports team’ gimmick, The Animal Years would be the Shaq-Kobe Lakers semi-dynasty. It has two nearly unmatched
Superstars (“Girl in the War” and “Thing Blue Flame”) and a host of gusty, terrific role players. The analogy falls apart a bit with The Animal Years lack of a third epic song, which in those Lakers team case was Big Shot Bob Horry. This is still an amazing album and the duo of “Girl in the War” and “Thin Blue Flame” is practically unmatched in any other record that came out this year. The rest of the album’s songs are all good and enjoyable, but its lack of a third blockbuster, which keeps it from being my album of the year. Still, what Ritter has done here is simply amazing. While his music has shades of folk and alt. country, at his heart Ritter is a singer/songwriter. And as anyone listening to mass amounts of music will tell you: No genre is more pretentious, melodramatic and underwhelming then the singer/songwriter genre. Ritter’s music is personal with out being egocentric; it’s passionate with out being emo. And even his lesser songs have an epic feel to them, or they act as set ups for his truly epic songs. Maybe he’s not a singer/songwriter after all.


1.) Destroyer – Destroyer’s Rubies: (A quick note to those of you who are unfamiliar with Destroyers music. Destroyer is an alias for musician Dan Bejar. Bejar does all the musical arrangements and lyrics and plays most of the instruments himself.)

Top Tracks: Rubies, European Oil, Looters Follies, Your Blood, A Dangerous Woman Up to a Point.

The Rundown: Whenever I try to describe Dan Bejar’s music I draw a blank. He combines elements of musical theatre, rock ‘n roll, psychedelic, classical and chamber pop in his works. It seems familiar while you’re listening to it, but you can’t quite peg it down to any single genre. This is my way of saying that while I know Rubies is the best album of the year (read: my favorite) I can’t really explain why it is. Well it’s not so much that I can’t explain it, it’s just that I wouldn’t be doing it justice. All I can say is that this albums is really, really good. I’m not saying everyone should own it, because it’s not for everyone, but if you like music at all you should at least listen to this album. Truth be told my descriptions probably did all of these bands a bit of injustice. This list is mainly my way of justifying the obscene amount of music I listen to. And really all any list can do is stir up an argument. And I like debating and I like music, so that’s really why I wrote this. Hope you enjoyed it.

Well that’s it for now. Thanks to those of you who actually read this all the way through, I’m sure it wasn’t always easy. Stay tuned next week for my two part series on the best songs of 2006. Or don’t…

Until We Meet Again

* Although I’ve never really cared for Wait’s music as much since he started singing every song as if he were Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster.
** The Albums are: Okkervil River – Black Sheep Boy, Animal Collective – Feels, Antony & The Johnsons – I Am a Bird Now.
*** This is not a reference to the MTV show or the athletic conference.

Top 35 Songs of 2005: Top 10 Songs

And now the moment you’ve all been waiting for. My unveiling of the top 10 songs of 2005. As always scroll down, the last to posts were songs 35-21 and 20-11. I apologize for the sleepless night most of you probably experienced waiting for the completion of this list. I’m sorry and here you go.

10. Iron & Wine( Feat. Calexico) - History of Lovers: When I first heard that Iron and Wine was making an EP with Calexico I was pretty nervous. For one Sam Bean had a great thing going on by himself and I remember listening to Calexico in High School and being completely under whelmed on just about every level. So when this EP came out my worries far exceeded my expectations. But as it turns outs, this EP was really good, and this particular song was the high light from it. I was both shocked and amazed that Bean’s voice could not only hold up but excel with a full band backing him. Maybe the most amazing part of this song is that Bean still maintains the whisperiness (to make up a word) of his voice despite the added musicians.

9. Of Montreal - Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games: Simply put this is the best neo-psychedelia song to come out this year. If you’re unaware of what neo-psychedelia is don’t worry, I have no idea either, but I’m pretty sure it applies to this song. In simpler language this is probably the best dance song of the year. Now dance pop usually gets a bad rap, and it usually deserves it. But this song is just a great song which makes you want to dance, even if you hate dancing. Of Montreal perfectly channels old-school New Order and Art Garfunkle’s I Shall Sing.

8. Matt Pond PA – Halloween: A general criticism of Matt Pond is that while his music is beautifully constructed and his lyrics are good, neither leaves a lasting impression. Generally speaking this criticism is spot on (although it should be noted I don’t think that’s a justifiable reason for disliking the band, but that’s neither here nor there.). With Halloween, that is not the case at all. While it seems Arcade Fire could sue them for plagiarism over the piano riff, the rest of the song is wholly Matt Pond PA (MPPA for short.). MMPA critics will still say this song doesn’t have enough of an edge, but really it doesn’t have to. It perfectly personifies the autumn season and moves beautifully. So finally MPPA have found a way for their music to leave an impression, give it a hint of sounding like someone else’s.

7. Sage Francis – Crumble: I truly believe this is one of the best break up songs I’ve ever heard. What’s even more amazing that it’s not even the most emotionally powerful song on Sage’s album. But that’s neither here nor there. The song starts with a slow Jon Brion esque piano then the final 30 seconds it moves to a techno/pseudo trance hop beat. For the longest time this musically switch pissed me off. However I now see that the switch is done to so that the music parallels itself to the breakdown of the character in the song*. So now the song is even more amazing. I’d tell you more but you should probably just listen to it yourself.

6. The Boy Least Likely To – Be Gentle with Me: On the first listen to the Boy Least Likely, you’d think you’d stumbled upon Kid Bop Volume 9, or something like that. Their music sounds, at first, like VBS music. But it eventually becomes just great pop music. And while the kiddish feel slightly diminishes the beauty of the music and lyrics, you should be able to get by it. Hopefully all of you can get by the fact that when you hear this song you feel like some middle aged house wife should be teaching you hand motions to it with one of the fakest smiles you’ve ever seen plastered to her face. Seriously, this is a really good song.

5. Sufjan Stevens – John Wayne Gacy, Jr.: If an artist writes a hauntingly beautiful** song about a serial killer, it’s probably going on my top 10 list. Since song starts out with Sufjan trying to view Gacy in a reasonable light. He looks at things from Gacy’s point of view and seems truly sympathetic for the man. Eventually so he’s overcome by the horrors of the murders Gacy committed. While all of this seems a little corny, Sufjan shows his genius by pulling this song off and not only making the listener take it seriously, but also creeping the hell out of them. Just a phenomenal song.

4. Andrew Bird - Tables and Chairs: It seems that Andrew Bird likes to take a cliché song ideas and put his own unique twist on it. Such was the case with Fake Palindromes (which ranked 21st on this distinguished list) where he took a love song viewed through the eyes of a psycho. With Tables and Chairs Bird takes the idea of Utopian society and tongue and cheekly names its attributes. After talking about all the benefits a society with no government or economic system Bird tells us that this utopia will also include snacks. Really I’m still not sure what to do with this song other then just enjoy it.

3. Gorillaz – Feel Good Inc.: Outside of the fact that the first verse is often mistaken for a Cake song, this song is amazing. Easily the best radio hit of the year, and the the best radio hit since Hey Ya. Some of you may wonder how an elitist such as myself can place a hit single so high, if at all, on my top songs list. To answer that question I’ll have to counter with another question: Have you heard this song? It’s unbef*ckinglievable. I really don’t care if elitist shone and blacklist me for liking this song, it’s that good.

2. Decemberists – Engine Driver: 8 short months ago I rated this song as one of my all-time favorites. I think I even put it as high as 12th, I really don’t remember. Clearly I jumped the gun, as this song is good but not that good. Still though, this is an amazing love song. Colin Meloy looks tells a love story from the vantage point of a writer. While I change my interpretation of the song on every listen, it’s still amazing. I find I’m out a loss of words now when trying to describe it. So I’ll stop trying to and just implore all of you who read this to go out and immediately listen to it.

1. Common – Be: One of the best rap songs I’ve ever heard. At first it sounds like an Al Green song, then Common comes in raping over the beat and you’re not really sure what to do with yourself. This is the type of song that makes you want to respond to it with more then just a head nod or fist pump. So you try countless things, but none of them seem satisfactory. So instead just sit back and let it sink in. Allow it to wash over you. Just enjoy it. Songs as great as this one don’t come along very often, so just be grateful that you found it, or more appropriately that Common found it***. This is a truly transcendent song, just allow it to effect you. Just listen to Common’s advice: The present is a gift, and I just want to be.

* It should be noted that the lyrics are pretty much indecipherable during the trance part, but after 100+ listens I finally figured out what he was saying, pretty good sh*t actually.
** I realize I’ve used beautiful or beauty far to many times when describing songs or albums, but ever since I enrolled in a community college I’ve found myself unable to use any adjectives I learned after 1st grade.
*** Regarding the song Tupelo Honey Bob Dylan said that it was always out there, Van Morrison was just the first one to find it. I feel the same way about this song.

Top 35 Songs of 2005: 20-11

This is the continuation of my top 35 songs of 2005 list. For songs 35-21 just scroll down one post. Here’s the songs 20-11, enjoy.

20. Sufjan Stevens – Chicago: Sufjan writes a brilliant song about how being in a big city makes us more susceptible to falling in love and regret. As someone who has felt these things just about every time I step foot in down town Chicago, I happen to particularly like/relate to this song. And so it makes my list.

19. Jason Collett – I’ll Bring the Sun: I first heard this song in the spring of 2004. I was at a Mason Jennings show in Chicago and some drunken cowboy who was somehow related to Broken Social Scene was the opening act. For the most part is his act was extremely forgettable and mildly humorous because he was obviously drunk off his ass. For his final song he played this then unreleased beauty. Since that concert I search high and low to find this song, and now it’s finally come out and I loved it now every bit as much as I did then. Just a great Alt. Country song, check it out.

18. Wolf Parade – Modern World: A song that upon first listen sounds like it should be off A Lonesome Crowded West or The Moon and Antarctica. In all honesty, if I wasn’t so lazy I’m not sure this song would be on here over “Dear Sons and Daughters of Hungry Ghost” or “I’ll believe in Anything”(both of these are also Wolf Parade songs in case you didn’t know.). But Instead I’ll just say that this song is still really damn good and has the best Modest Mouse esque harmony and rhythm line I’ve heard.

17. Kanye West(Feat. Adam Levine of Maroon 5) - Heard 'Em Say: This is yet another reason on the growing list of reasons to hate Kanye: He made me love a song that involved the lead singer of Maroon 5. And as good as the lyrics and Kanye’s rapping is on this song, Levine steals the song. In fact I love Levine’s harmony parts in this song, and that really pisses me off. In fact I’m not going to talk about it anymore.

16. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - The Skin Of My Yellow Country Teeth: Despite the fact that the lyrics are completely indiscernible for the first 10+ times you hear this song, it might be the catchiest song of the year. The guitar rift will stick in your head for days and hearing the song, even after the fact that you’ve discovered that they lyrics are semi-depressing, will put a hop in your step and makes you feel like dancing. And in case you were wondering, the fact that I just referenced Leo Sayer was unintentional.

15. Silver Jews - I'm Getting Back Into Getting Back Into You: This song easily has the best title of the year. It also does the classic Silver Jew’s thing at making you smirk at the cleverness of David Berman’s lyrics and then sing along whole heartedly to the chorus. We* here at Another West Coast Morning tip our hat to you Mr. Berman.

14. Josh Rouse – Sad Eyes: Some people see it as a fault that I have a soft spot for perfectly orchestrated pop music. These people try to convince me that men like Rouse just put out unoriginal, uninspired beautiful music. They seem to think this is some sort of knock on Rouse., but anytime the adjective of beauty is attached to anything with out being sarcastic, I fail to see how that is a knock. And I see no evidence that this song would be better if the drums were louder then the singing or if Rouse screamed into his guitars pick up or if there was a bunch of random sounds added that sort of blended into one another. Truthfully I don’t think any of these things would make this song better. Maybe I just like boring music, you decide.

13. Stereophonics – Dakota: As noted several times in the past** I have an unadulterated love for Brit Rock that even I can’t explain. And while Stereophonics has put out two very disappointing albums since Just Enough Education to Perform, this song is amazing. If you don’t like Brit Rock, stay away form this song, but if you do this is easily the best song out of that genre this year.

12. Sufjan Stevens - Decatur, or, Round of Applause for Your Step Mother!: Sufjan often writes his songs based on short stories that he’s written. Here he gives us a brief history of the state of Illinois from the view of a couple of kids whose step mother made them take a trip to learn about Illinois’s history. This song is equally clever and beautiful, not unlike Sufjan.***

11. Common (Feat. Kanye West) – The Food: If this song did nothing but teach us that slow motion is better then no motion, I would have put it on this list. But seriously, this song is amazing. It, like the rest of the album, vaguely feels like a ‘70’s soul song. And this song especially captures the bluesy almost gothic feel of Chicago. This song could probably double as the vest R&B song I’ve ever heard.

We’ll be back next week with the top 10 Songs of 2005. Get excited.

* I like to think of my self as multidimensional, this also leads be to believe that I’m not the only one writing for this overly pretentious, pedantic and all in all poorly written blog.
** And maybe even in this very post, I don’t know. As shocking as it may seem I rarely proof read anything I post.
*** Yeah I’m probably gay.