I completely forgot to mention of the air today about my 1,000th post. That's a crazy amount of writing. I started this contraption in March 2005 and look at me now. I have to scratch my head on the hours I pour into this thing and still have to plenty of time to be a productive member of society.
I would like to thank the mainstream media outlets for not doing their job on reporting on good music. That's why blogs exists, because there's opinion and bands not being written about. I would like to thank the countless bands and artists making great music in an industry that's destroying creativity. I would like to thank Google for driving traffic to my site. Finally, I would like to thank you, because you have good taste in music.
Let's get to the obligatory Top 10 Albums list I revealed on y-rock today. I realized that I listen to a lot of music this year and there was a lot to choose from. I started with a list of 20 and eliminated them one by one last week. My thought was, "Which albums will I be listening to five years from now?" I looked at other year-end list just to remind myself what was put out, but didn't pay attention to who had what. I feel I have a solid list.
10. Monkey Swallows the Universe, The Casket Letters -- This album snuck up on me. I bought it in England and when I first listen to it when I got home, I was pleasantly surprised how imaginative it was. I had to listen to a few demos from the band, then was glad to see how great they sound with a proper studio production. Then I was driving and I had it on and just fell in love with it. They will remind you of Belle & Sebastian, Camera Obscura, Ivy and Kings of Convenience. Unfortunately, the band is on "haitus" meaning halfway to calling it a day and seeing what happens. You can purchase this album on itunes.
9. Dr. Dog, We All Belong -- With their fourth album, this Philadelphia band shows why they are the beloved leaders of the new Philly indie rock scene. With odes to The Beach Boys and The Beatles, they perfected that odd ramshackle, troubadour sound and style that I've seen a lot of these days. The album won't satisfy jam banders or psychedelics, but those who appreciate a freaky fun and "throw anything you can into the mix" approach to southern and indie rock will fawn over this album.
8. Bat for Lashes, Fur and Gold -- What do you get when you combine Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound," fairy tale imagery, haunting vocals and a heavy beat? Well, an album that you can re-discover after every listening. At the heart is "What's a Girl to Do?" with Khan narrating like she's in a dream state. Just watch out for those BMX bikes and Donnie Darko masks.
7. Justice, †: If you don't bang your head at any of the tracks on this album, you need to reconsider your musical tastes. Even if you think they are Daft Punk clones or the beats jar with you the wrong way, you need to acknowledge the energy and rawness that these Parisians put into their work.
6. Of Montreal, Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? -- This year was a graduation for a few artists. With Kevin Barnes and company, they are no longer the obscure, "name-dropping to impress your friends" band. They played their largest shows to date this year, in support of a weird, wild and woolly album of extreme pop music. It's their most "Of Montreal" sounding album where they perfected their glam rock style and, more importantly, the flamboyant pageantry of their live show.
5. Kate Nash, Made Of Bricks -- Yeah, yeah. She's probably the act I've written about the most this year. Can you blame me? When you get the album next month, tell me what you think. Did it leaving feeling happy? Tapping your toes? You might not get into it, but you can't deny that she's creating expert songs that are so completely her. I've talked about the odd genre of music I call kid's music for adults. She's leading the pack with this album. Songs like "Merry Happy," "Mariella" and "Skeleton Song" come from a child-like perspective on the world.
4. Arcade Fire, Neon Bible -- These canucks were all over the place in 2007. Win Butler would take a dump in the woods and Pitchfork would make a news item out of it. In any event, Neon Bible is very much an album about the times we are living in, darkness all around us, but like with Funeral, their is hope in the world. Even though it's a "heavy" album, there's a sense of joy in the music, as shown by their live shows where it's part rock concert, part religious revival.
3. Bruce Springsteen, Magic -- Oh no! A mainstream rock album on this list. The horror! Yes, being a Jersey resident for the majority of my life, you get fed a steady dose of Springsteen. Luckily, I spit out the Bon Jovi servings. Magic is his best work since Born in the U.S.A. and it relies heavily on his classic E Street Band sound from the 70s. It's done on purpose. The theme that runs through the album is "What the hell is going on?" and it always seems that the past was better. Magic is where the E Street Band really takes center stage with the songs having a lot of classic Springsteen flavor.
2. Rilo Kiley, Under the Blacklight -- Jenny Lewis was second on my list last year as well. Some day, she'll be No. 1 on my list. Rilo's first major label produced album is their most different. It's as if the others have been dress rehearsals for this one. It's an ode to the Laurel Canyon sound of the 70s where Fleetwood Mac hung out with Linda Ronstadt and The Eagles. It's also the sexiest album of the year, with Lewis and Sennett wondering where all the love has gone.
1. M.I.A., Kala -- As I said today, Kala is the It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back of our times. This was an album born out of frustration and anger. M.I.A. was poised to make it in the U.S. with Timbaland, until her work visa was denied, forcing her to rethink new material. The result is an album made about the ghettos and dance halls of third world countries. While their are so many stories about Iraq, Iran and other global conflicts in the headlines, M.I.A. sheds light on long-ignored cultures. Like many great pseudo-political albums, it can be looked at as not a politic album at all. It's a dance hall, hip-hop, head-banging booty-shaking, get your freak on type of album. At first listen, you're blown away by the insane beats and samples. Second listen, you dig deep into how M.I.A. has made a sexually liberated album. When she came out with Arular in 2005, she had this cutesy, little girl presence. Now, when you see the album, she looks like the Salt 'n' Pepa, Queen Latifah and MC Lyte back in the day -- defiant and confident.
Later on this week -- the best of the rest. Cheers.
