As promised, I’ve compiled my favorite albums of the “noughties” or whatever the powers that be have decided to call this decade. The original compact I had with my friends specified that each of us come up with a top 20 of the decade. Really, this was an incredibly hard exercise, so I had to start somewhere. So, obviously, I’ve erred on the side of caution, mostly because leaving so many worthy albums out just felt wrong to me. Thus, I’ve listed my top 50 for the decade by year, leaving aside the rankings of the top 10 or 20 for another post, which I hope to post with some reasoning behind my selections in the coming days (providing thoughts on 50 albums is even to time consuming for someone currently on stay-cation).
In retrospect, this last decade has been an incredibly fertile one for the type of music that I enjoy most. I know that this list should probably have some hip hop on it, notably Kanye West and Outkast (among others), but as I’m only a casual listener to the genre, I don’t feel qualified to judge.
2000
Kid A – Radiohead
Heartbreaker – Ryan Adams
2001
Is This It? – The Strokes
White Blood Cells – White Stripes
The Tyranny of Distance – Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
Microphones – The Glow Pt 2
Gorillaz – Gorillaz
2002
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot – Wilco
Turn on the Bright Lights – Interpol
Kill the Moonlight – Spoon
Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots – The Flaming Lips
Source Tags and Codes – …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead
2003
Transcendentalism – Death Cab for Cutie
You Forgot It in People – Broken Social Scene
Meadowlands – The Wrens
Give Up – The Postal Service
Mass Romantic – The New Pornographers
Decoration Day – Drive-by Truckers
Fever to Tell – Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Chutes to Narrow – The Shins
2004
Funeral – Arcade Fire
Bows & Arrows – The Walkmen
Our Endless Numbered Days – Iron & Wine
The Tigers Have Spoken – Neko Case
2005
Set Yourself On Fire – Stars
The Decline of British Sea Power – British Sea Power
Separation Sunday – The Hold Steady
Silent Alarm – Bloc Party
Takk – Sigur Ros
Apologies to the Queen Mary – Wolf Parade
C’mon Feel the Illinoise - Sufjan Stevens
The Woods – Sleater Kinney
Z – My Morning Jacket
Picaresque – The Decemberists
2006
Alligator – The National
Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not – Arctic Monkeys
Return to Cookie Mountain – TV on the Radio
Boys and Girls in America – The Hold Steady
2007
Person Pitch – Panda Bear
Sound of Silver – LCD Soundsystem
The Flying Club Cup – Beirut
Boxer – The National
Neon Bible – Arcade Fire
All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone – Explosions in the Sky
2008
In Rainbows – Radiohead
For Emma, Forever Ago – Bon Iver
2009
Middle Cyclone – Neko Case
Meriwether Post Pavilion – Animal Collective
Vecktamist – Grizzly Bear
Rated O – Oneida
Once I had dropped each album into yearly buckets, some patterns began to emerge. Some confirmed some ideas I had before I came into this exercise (2005 and 2009 were great years for music). Others surprised me (I didn’t think 2003 and 2007 would stack up so well).
The sharp-eyed among you will notice quite a bit of jostling from my original yearly rankings, which I’ve been doing for half of the decade. All I can say to that is, well, things change at every moment you think of things in this way. Looking at it now, I seriously underestimated Neko Case’s album from this year(!), not to mention my original ranking of In Rainbows.
Well the base list is out there. While you're waiting with baited breath on the actual rankings of the top 10 or 20, what do you think? What have I gotten totally wrong? What albums have I missed?
It's the end of the year again--the end of a fabulous year in music. While I think the lower end of this list probably could stand some tweaking, time is running out. There are five more albums that I think could fit on this list; particularly the albums put out by The Low Anthem, St. Vincent, Passion Pit, Micachu & the Shapes, and Bat for Lashes. [Ed. Note: That was a sneaky way of getting them in there anyway.]
But the deal this year was 20 albums, so here goes. The write-ups this year will be briefer than normal, since I'm also spending a good bit of time ranking the best 40 albums of the noughties, which is a tremendously difficult task. Look for a post or a series of posts to drop sometime next week on that one.
Obviously, this list reflects my own personal tastes and opinions. For example, I don't listen to a lot of hip hop, so it naturally wouldn't make it into this list (though it has in the past).
When the Animal Collective album came out in January, I said then that it would probably be my album of the year, and lo and behold, that distinction held. There's not a weak track on the album, and "My Girls" could be a candidate for song of the year.
Update: Massive senior moment alert. I totally forgot Reservoir by Fanfarlo. This would certainly make my top 20, but at which album's expense? Let's just say I'll call it tied at 19th or 20th.
2010 looks to be a good year as well, with new albums from Arcade Fire, Spoon, Liars, TV on the Radio, Interpol, Wolf Parade, and Magnetic Fields all in the works.
The 2008 version of Pazz and Jop, the annual best-of list produced by The Village Voice has been published. In this version, they continue their love of the Drive-by-Truckers, and surprisingly place R.E.M. at #25. So I guess this means I wasn't crazy listing Accelerate in my own honorable mentions. Nice to have the guys from Athens sounding relevant (and rocking) again.
Bon Iver: For Emma, Forever Ago This definitely reflects my predilections this year: a preference for mellow, low-key recordings. The songs are gentle and reflective, and I kept returning to the album again and again throughout the year.
Shearwater: Rook OK, so I’m in the tank for these guys. Something about music from Austin right now really speaks to me (see #9). I’m sure an Explosions in the Sky album would have ranked quite highly this year as well. This album is perfect for commuting on the train.
Frightened Rabbit: Midnight Organ Fight Departing from the norm a bit here, in that its harder edged than my other top picks. This one has been rocking my iPod since it came out.
Wolf Parade: At Mount Zoomer This album took a couple of listens, but when I got it, I dug it. Perhaps the concert helped (Thanks for finally coming to Atlanta!). “Kissing the Beehive” alone is worth the price of admission.
TV on the Radio: Dear Science The more I think of it, the more TV on the Radio are charting the course for the next great rock band for the new millennium. Consistently smart and catchy at the same time, these guys can seemingly do no wrong.
The Walkmen: You & Me The surprise of the year for me. I didn’t expect this album to be this good. I expected a middling effort, but this is the best they’ve sounded in years. The only thing keeping this outside of the top 5 is the absence of a song like “The Rat.”
Sigur Rós: Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust Wow. Their most commercial sounding effort to date, they didn’t skimp on the beauty and majesty one would expect from Sigur Rós. If I had any musical talent, I think I would like to live in Iceland since it seems such fertile musical ground.
Okkervil River: The Stand Ins Last year’s The Stage Names raced up my list, and Will Sheff and company followed it up well with what sounds a lot like a companion album. It’s almost the reverse side of the sentiments expressed in The Stage Names.
Fleet Foxes: Fleet Foxes A lot of people had this as their best album of the year. It was good. Really good. “White Winter Hymnal” may be in my top two or three songs of the year. Unfortunately, the rest of the album doesn’t fit to that standard, even as good as it is.
Silver Jews: Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea Another new find. This album evokes Nick Cave and Johnny Cash in equal regards.
Elbow: The Seldom Seen Kid
The Mountain Goats: Heretic Pride
Deerhunter: Microcastle
Ra Ra Riot: Rhumb Line
The Raveonettes: Lust Lust Lust
My Morning Jacket: Evil Urges
The Hold Steady – Stay Positive
The Dodos – Visiter
She and Him: Volume One
Vampire Weekend: Vampire Weekend
Honorable mentions: R.E.M. - Accelerate (the fact that I'd even consider an R.E.M. album speaks volumes), Yeahsayer - All Hours Cymbals, Atlas Sound - Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel.
“It’s All Gonna Break”: Broken Social Scene + Land of Talk
Variety Playhouse, November 19, 2008
It seems like it’s been far too long since I attended a show of any sort, but what a perfect occasion to get back in the habit—Broken Social Scene at the Variety Playhouse. (The tickets may have been the most creative wedding gift we received.)
We arrived shortly after the opening act, Land of Talk, took the stage. I had heard of Land of Talk, a three-piece from Montreal, from a sample song played on the “All Songs Considered” podcast. I liked what I heard then, but was unable to locate the album on e-music (and it’s still not there as of today). So, when I got to the show and saw they were the opening act, I was pleasantly surprised.
I definitely enjoyed their set. The music at times was reminiscent of Guided by Voices, while the vocals reminded me a bit of Bettie Serveert, though both these comparisons are based on an immediate gut check—I have no idea how valid they actually are. I’d need to spend more time with the band’s music first. And that’s something I intend to do, as soon as I can get my hands on a copy of their latest (I did pick up their EP, which was available on e-music, today). I’d say that’s pretty high praise for an opening band coming from me.
After a quick smoke and short wait, Broken Social Scene, in all their masses took the stage. I had not seen them play live before, so I had no idea exactly what to expect, but I was definitely looking forward to the show. For last night’s show, the band consisted of anywhere between three and eight members at various times.
For the first few songs, the entire group took the stage (without Feist who is a little busy with other things I’d imagine—like the Colbert Christmas Special). Elizabeth Powell, the singer/guitarist from Land of Talk, however, picked up the slack quite nicely. To be honest, I was a bit concerned during the first song. With so many members on stage, they seemed to have a hard time getting in sync. This didn’t last though. By mid-way through the second song, just when they would have to really get together, they did. And how. And it was like this for the rest of the night. They were a beautiful, shambolic, chaotic, creative, powerful mess. Therein lies the power of their music. Though it was interesting to see as many as seven people looking as if they were wandering aimlessly about the stage, even though, in retrospect, it was a highly choreographed exercise, since they barely put one note wrong the entire night.
This was also a learning experience. Many times I wondered when listening to their songs, just where something had come from—seemingly from the blue as I listened. Well, now I know. At various points last night, during the middle of a song, another band member would wander out from backstage, grab an instrument, and seamlessly bring a whole new sound to the party. I’m really terrible about remembering and dictating set lists, but I heard everything song I could think of by them that I really wanted to hear, from “Place=Time” , to “Stars and Sons”, to an incredibly energetic and, at times, frenetic “It’s All Gonna Break”.
What else can I say? This has to be one of the more memorable shows I’ve seen in the last few years.
Long-time readers of this blog will recognize Matt Harding, the proprietor of Wherethehellismatt.com. His latest goofy dance moves are featured in a new video.
While I'm in the musical mood, I thought it would be interesting to look back at the albums I rated highly last year at this time and see how they've held up over a year of listening. I fully expect to be red-faced on some of these, so here goes (I've only commented on those that I would beg to differ with myself):
Neko Case: Fox Confessor Brings the Flood - I probably wouldn't rate this album as highly today. It is still a great album, but I found myself listening to it less and less.
TV on the Radio: Return to Cookie Mountain - This probably should have been number one, but since I still listen to Boys and Girls in America so much, we can call it a tie.
Gnarls Barkley: St. Elsewhere - Boy, did I fall for the hype here. I don't think I've listened to this album at all in the last four or five months.
Snowden: Anti-Anti -I would rate this one much higher today, moving it out of the honorable mention category and into the top 10 "Like Bullets".
All in all, I don't think I did too badly. NP: "Skyscapers" - Close Lobsters
After all the thought and the effort put into this year's list, there really could be only one album that would occupy this slot. Sure, various drafts had other albums here, but at the end of the day (or year), I simply listened to this album more than any other album, and that has to count for something, right? This was one of the most anticipated albums of the year, and to deliver so well on it's promise so well (even more so than The National and Arcade Fire) made it a dead lock. On Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, Spoon departs from it's usually sparse arrangements to incredible effect on "I've Got Yr. Cherry Bomb" and "The Underdog", while retaining it to great effect on songs like "My Little Japanese Cigarette Case". I've been a fan of Britt Daniel and company for quite a while, but this may be their finest effort yet.
Various versions of this list had this album at the number one spot. I didn't expect this level of excellence from this album, even as much as I liked Black Sheep Boy. Okkervil River made "the leap" this year, stepping it up to another level. Not a note goes astray on this album. While they lost some of the twang (and Lord knows I like me some twang), the album is better for it. "Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe" would also have to be in contention for song of the year if I were detail oriented enough to make such a list.
To quote my friend Craig, Panda Bear changed the way I listen to music. Person Pitch was so different, so genre deconstructing that I'm still not even sure how to categorize it. Jumping off from Brian Wilson, this album went places that I didn't even know existed. It's no surprise that it's ranked so highly on so many year-end lists.
The perfect commute album. Again, an album that a couple of years ago I would have been surprised if I'd rated it so highly. "Atlas" would have to be considered in any song of the year lists. The craftsmanship of the artists here is masterful, but that doesn't take away from the actual songs. They are at once catchy and challenging, leading to a very rewarding experience during listening.
You just knew an Atlanta band would have to show up somewhere in the list--and this year I didn't have to stretch even. This year saw Deerhunter release a fantastic full length CD, Cryptograms, as well as a very underrated EP, Fluorescent Gray, which essentially represents a third side to Cryptograms, evoking the traditional LP structure. It's been an eventful year for Deerhunter, including garnering critical acclaim and suffering an armed robbery (in my own neighborhood no less). Never straightforward, the tracks on Cryptograms veer from ambient interludes that served to separate the most disparate tracks to seamlessly move into songs that are both addictive while challenging to the listener. Not to mention, this album may have one of the best covers of the year.
I have a confession to make. I've never really understood the whole fascination with Radiohead. Don't get me wrong, The Bends and OK Computer are both fantastic albums that I totally appreciate, but that I've never been able to love. So this may be a surprise entrant, even though many critics probably have this as their top album of the year. So with this entry, that old impasse may finally have been broached with In Rainbows. I love this album. I can't get its songs out of my head after listening, something I've never been able to say before. Equally interesting is how Radiohead saw fit to deliver this album, as a pay-as-much-as-you-want download from their website. I have no idea how much money they actually received per copy on average, but we know that money goes directly to the artists, not some set of suits, and anything that turns the RIAA on its ear gets kudos from me.
When talking about Explosions in the Sky, I must first give a considerable tip of the cap to Dilettante in Distress, who first alerted me to this incredible Austin band. Listening to All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone is equally evocative of the wide, desolate landscapes of Texas (her words again) as it is of a mundane train commute to work. What the band lacks in lyrics is more than made up by inspired instrumentation and haunting sounds. More often than not at work, I find myself playing this album to metaphorically get outside and wander around.
The last we heard from The National, there were landing at the number 2 spot on my 2005 list with Alligator. So, what's changed since then? Very little in terms of quality. In fact, I've seen Boxer listed more often at the top spot across the music blogs than probably any other album. That's not to say Matt Berninger and company didn't evolve. Boxer is a much more introspective album than Alligator, and the sound suits them. They eschew the harder edged rockers that I found so distinctive on Alligator ("Mr. November, "Abel") for a much quieter sound that paints a vivid picture of the malaise of 21st century life (though much differently than Bloc Party's Weekend in the City or The Good the Bad and the Queen approach a similar subject).
Next up, albums 2, 3, and 4. NP: "Joyless, Joyless" - Minus Story
Now that I've returned from my holiday travels, the list of my favorite albums can continue. In this installment, I'll countdown albums 13 through 9, with the top eight coming in future posts. (Hey, I still have four days yet!)
From this point on, any of these are worthy of that top spot on a given day--there is really that little separating them. It's been a great year for music as these selections will attest.
The Arcade Fire's second album may have been one of the most highly anticipated albums of the year, mainly because of the quality of Funeral. Since its release, the critical mood has been all over the map--from disappointment to praise to backlash and back again. I may be a heretic here, but on the whole, I think Neon Bible actually works a bit better as a whole than Funeral. It never truly reaches the highs of their first effort, but there is not a bad song on Neon Bible, maybe the reaction is a bit of familiarity breeding a slight bit of contempt (not that it's that strong mind you). In a lot of years, this could easily have been my top pick (heck, ask me in a month and it may be yet).
This album is just fun. Sometimes those of us who listen to a lot of music and think about it about it even more tend to overthink things and forget to just enjoy it for what it is. I'm not really sure what else draws me to Strawberry Jam, aside from this sense of fun. I could point out the obvious things like how well the music, even with the unconventional arrangements, is made and how everything fits just so, even though you might think it would totally miss, but wouldn't that be overthinking it all over again. I certainly wasn't surprised to see this on a lot of year end lists (including my own).
A dance part for adults. I can't recall where I read that (and I don't intend to steal anyone's thunder), but I think that perfectly encapsulates LCD Soundsystem. Adding incredibly infectious sounds and energy to highly articulate and clever lyrics, The Sound of Silver is a recipe for success. Just listening to "North American Scum" or "New York, I Love You, but You're Brining Me Down," is an exercise in itself in leaving preconceptions at the door (since I don't usually like anything that has a whiff of dance music about it).
This year's list is quickly becoming an exercise in seeing how my musical tastes are expanding. Of course, I can't take too much credit for that. Instead, I'll credit the amount of good music that is recommended to me (by reading blogs, by friends, what have you). I doubt anyone who knows me well would have expected to find Menomena on this list, since I usually go for the tighter melodies and more straightforward sounds. Friend and Foe, however, is a great ride from start to finish, mixing moods and expectations more often than James Bond's bartender mixed martinis.
"A Sunday Smile," the third track on The Flying Club Cup, along would merit this album's inclusion on this list. Even beyond that, this album is one that I could see myself living with for years to come. Add an excellent January EP (Lon Gisland) to Beirut's output this year, and it becomes certainty. I love the inclusions of the Balkan rhythms in Beirut's sounds. The inclusion of these sounds definitely does not make the music seem provincial, or worse, like world music. Instead, they meld seamlessly into an overall aesthetic that has a lot in common with many Elephant 6 acts. At times, the music on The Flying Club Cup eerily reminds me of Neutral Milk Hotel, without ever sounding like it or evoking it directly. It's just a feeling I get.
More of my favorites to come in the coming days. And I promise that this list will be finished by New Year's Eve.
Now on to my favorites. I'll be counting down from 25 to my favorite album of the year over a series of posts in the coming days. Some of these will merit more description than others (meaning that I have reasons for inclusion over and above listening to something a helluva lot).
I know that I'll probably get some flack for this one, since Bloc Party is no longer the critics' darling, but you know what, this is a damn fine album. True. It didn't hit me in the gut quite as immediately as Silent Alarm. However, if they made that same album again, I'd been very disappointed (see Interpol). This album shows growth, and even though I wasn't intially all that excited about this effort, time has been very kind. "Waiting for the 7:18" especially captures something that resonates with me.
I don't know anyone that knows me that would think I would enjoy music best, or most famously categorized as psychedelic folk, but what do you know, I really enjoyed this album (or EP depending on the review). While this wasn't on my sought after music as often as other albums on this list, it's appearance on shuffle on the train ride to work was never unwelcome (which is high praise indeed).
Paul Simonen meets Damon Albarn? Clash meets Blur meets Gorillaz? 'Nuff said. Really, those opening questions pretty much characterize it. Does this sound the least bit like The Clash. No. But to see Paul Simonen return to making music is something to get a bit excited about. I actually found this album a bit more accessible than the previous Gorillaz efforts, even though I enjoyed them a lot as well. And hey, they play live!
hile nothing on this album stands out quite as much as his cover of "Love Will Tear Us Apart", nothing could be said to be so derivative. For better or better, there's no coat-tails here. I don't know that I could sing a single verse off this album, but then again, it's not that kind of album. I often find myself looking for this one when I'm working.
Wow, so much of what I said about Jose Gonzalez could be said about this. Only I'd have to add drums for once. You'd think their presence would seem odd on an Iron & Wine album. You'd be wrong. That collaboration with Calexico is starting to bear unexpected but delicious fruit.
It's been a very good year for the Besnard Lakes. They go from being nobodies to being on a lot of top 20 lists for the year. So does this make me a bandwagon jumper. Perhaps. I did enjoy this album quite a bit though, and listened to it a bit more than anything that goes before except maybe the Bloc Party (which dropped early in the year).
I'll admit it, this is a late addition to the list. My first listens to Blitzen Trapper (through some dubiously obtained samples) didn't really get me too excited. It was only upon hearing them featured on All Songs Considered recently that I actually sought out this album. I wish I had before then. While it's not my usual taste, it is incredibly "interesting" (in a good way). I don't get all halfway comparisons to the Grateful Dead either (that would be a non-starter in my mind).
Two Feist albums. Two appearances on my end of year lists. And the first one was even before I found out I worked (albeit remotely) with her brother (Hi Ben, if you ever read this!). And you know what? This ranking is even more appropriate than they last. Of course, a little help from Apple never hurt anyone (and in this case, it was deserved), so hopefully she'll make more of these lists this year.
This album caught me totally by surprise. It was the first time I had even heard of The Twilight Sad to be honest (hey, something always slips through the cracks). I especially like how some of their songs seamlessly navigate the space between quiet and loud, and they build in such a way that when they do reach their full sound, it takes you by surprise.
A side project of one of the dynamic duo from Wolf Parade, Dan Boeckner, Handsome Furs has often been compared to Bruce Springsteen, and I think that comparison is somewhat relevant. The music here is much more direct than that of Wolf Parade, and I like its earnest straightforwardness quite a bit.
I've know about Great Lake Swimmers for some time. I think I discovered them last year some time (a song here, a song there), and while I enjoyed their music, I would never have thought that they would make a end of year list I was preparing. Even though the band is from Canada, their music has an essentially American feel to it, almost like some alt-country acts, though I would never put them in that category directly. Their MySpace page describes their sound as ambient folk, but I don't think that label applies either--I find my toe tapping or head bobbing to their music way too much for it to be ambient in any way.
It's been a good year for the members of Wolf Parade (see Handsome Furs above). The other half of that dynamic duo is Spencer Krug, who forms the core of Sunset Rubdown. Unlike Handsome Furs, however, Sunset Rubdown captures the pure energy that inhabits most Wolf Parade tunes, but with a verve and urgency that sometimes gets lost in the pure driving force of Wolf Parade. It doesn't hurt that two of the best live shows I've seen over the last 14 months were Sunset Rubdown shows.
2007 Music Review: Honorable Mentions and Disappointments
I know it's been rather quiet around here lately (looking around sheepishly), but it's that time of the year--the time for me to foist my barely-coherent opinions upon the Interweb at large and decree my favorite albums of the year.
Even though I haven't been around all that much, I would like to document these, if for no other reason than to expose myself to ridicule right now by the public at large and at some yet-to-be determined point in the future when I will probably view some of these with shock and incredulity.
First, there were a number of recordings that I'd like to mention in one way or the other, even though they didn't merit inclusion in the main list. Here are the honorable mentions:
Shearwater - Palo Santo: Extended Edition I loved this album, but since it's a reissue of a 2006 recording, I couldn't bring myself to put it on the list proper (given different criteria, it would have made it with a bullet). However, it is a fantastic album, and the bonus materials and re-mastering really take the album to the next level.
Vampire Weekend - Various No full album, but great promise indeed! Here's a very promising newcomer. I wouldn't put a collection of heard songs (maybe an EP worth) on my list, and I've only just started listening to them, but boy-howdy, am I listening to their songs a helluva lot lately. Put them down as one to watch in 2008.
Next up, the disappointments:
Wilco - Sky Blue Sky I love Wilco, I do. I'm usually among their most tenacious defenders and I proselytize for them among non fans repeated, taking peach-heads to the Fox to enjoy a live show. But you know what, they lost me on this one. While Pitchfork's description of the album as "Dad Rock" seems a bit harsh to me, I certainly think the album is too introspective, too lacking in that Wilco-ish quality to be anything other than a disappointment to me. There are good songs here though ("Impossible Germany"), but the whole does not cohere.
Interpol - Our Love to Admire Where do I start with Interpol? First album, top 1o of the year (loved it). Second album? mildly disappointed. I thought Editors debut sounded like what Antics should have. And now a third. And no growth. No change. The only positive is the improvement of the cover art. Are there good songs here. Perhaps. But my disappointment is grounded in what Interpol could have, no should have, been. Instead they've stagnated. Every band deserves an off note. But two in a row show that they've not insinuating themselves into my ear for much longer.
I'll be counting down my favorites in succeeding posts in the coming days. NP: "Rock and Roll" - Spiritualized
Last week was another week of light listening for me, so I can't do a proper top 10. With that in mind, here's the abbreviated list of artists I heard more than twice last week:
Bloc Party - 15 tracks
Arcade Fire - 12 tracks
Spoon - 11 tracks
Ride - 4 tracks
The National - 3 tracks
R.E.M., The Killing Joke, and The Beastie Boys - 2 tracks each
As always, you can keep tabs on my listening over time (at least when I'm connected to the Interweb) over at my Last.fm profile.
I. A nuke fell on fair London town I'd like it if you could come down Fake Fab Fours have vanished The grain is all famished And I really don't want to drown.
Some of them are quite inspired. Anyone up for Sandinista?
Thanks to my schedule allowing my car to stay at home last week while I rode the train to work, I listened to more music last week in quite a while. I listened to the following artists the most:
Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros - 26 tracks
Elf Power - 16 tracks
Bloc Party - 14 tracks
Editors - 11 tracks
Arcade Fire - 10 tracks
The 101er's - 4 tracks
Bettie Serveert - 3 tracks
Death Cab for Cutie - 3 tracks
The Delgados - 3 tracks
Matt Pond PA - 3 tracks
Why all that Joe Strummer you may ask? I received a copy of Redemption Song: The Ballad of Joe Strummer for my birthday, and reading it influenced my listening choices a bit. Thus far, it's a good read, though at this point in the story, the cracks are just starting to appear in the Clash. I'll write up my full reaction when I finish the book.
As usual, you can follow my listening habits day to day by visiting my Last.fm profile.
There's not enough data this week for a full top ten. The only artist I listened a lot last week was Spoon (20 tracks, or twice through Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga). Based on this, I can heartily recommend it.
In fact the only other artists I heard more than twice last week were Elvis Costello (4) and The Arcade Fire (3).
I listened to the following music the most over the last week:
Spoon - 12 tracks
50 Foot Wave - 9 tracks
The Wedding Present - 5 tracks
Pulp - 4 tracks
Let's Active - 4 tracks
Swervedriver - 4 tracks
Pavement - 4 tracks
The Mekons - 4 tracks
Shout Out Louds - 3 tracks
Bettie Serveert - 3 tracks The Mekons - 3 tracks
Yes, that's Let's Active in the list. Perhaps I was feeling a bit nostalgic for the 80s. In any case, you can keep up with my current listening at my Last.fm profile page.
On a side note, the new Spoon album, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, is very good, despite the silly name.
This should be the last week where I totally rely on my Last.fm profile for this report. I replaced my iPod so we should return to normal next week. According to Last.fm, I listened to the following music the most last week:
Stereophonics
The Arcade Fire
Interpol
Moes Haven
Air
Stereolab
The Cure
Badly Drawn Boy
The Strokes
The Charlatans U.K. Hot Hot Heat The National Bloc Party
Alas, this week I have to rely on my Last.fm profile to report which music I listened to the most last week, even though it doesn't count those songs that were played while I wasn't connected to the Interweb. Why do you ask? My iPod gave up the ghost on Saturday (though it has a appointment in the shop today). In any case, here are the most played artists recorded last week by Last.fm:
Snowden
The National
Simple Minds
Beulah
Afghan Whigs
The Hold Steady
Echo & the Bunnymen
Superchunk
Pavement
Garbage
With any luck, the regular, more accurate music report will return next week--either with a fixed iPod or a new one (even though I'm not really ready to drop that kind of cash, it has become almost indispensable).
UPDATE: It appears that the site with these fonts is not Peter Saville's official site (you can find that here--definitely have a look around). So these fonts probably don't have any connection to Mr. Saville, but they're still neat fonts, even without the connection. And that certainly looks like the font used on Closer.
During the last week, I listened to the following music the most (ending Sunday):
The National - 7 tracks
Camera Obscura - 6 tracks
Echo & the Bunnymen - 6 tracks
Arcade Fire - 5 tracks
...And You Will Now Us by the Trail of Dead - 5 Tracks
British Sea Power - 4 tracks
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - 4 tracks
Afghan Whigs - 4 tracks
The Futureheads - 4 tracks
4 artists with 3 tracks (Hüsker Dü, Kasabian, Sparklehorse, Stephen Malkmus)
I've had a relatively light listening week as I only listened to 254 unique songs. As always, you can keep up with my current listening habits over at my Last.fm profile. NP: "Delicious" - The Catherine Wheel
Ahhh, back to normal posting. I listened to the following music the most last week:
Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins - 13 tracks
The Arcade Fire - 12 tracks
The Stone Roses -12 tracks
The National - 8 tracks
The Wedding Present - 8 tracks
Game Theory - 5 tracks
Pulp - 5 tracks
R.E.M. - 5 tracks
The Replacements - 5 tracks
The Mendoza Line - 5 tracks
As usual, a lot of artists only got one or two listens. Over the last week, I listened to 255 total songs, which means a lot of diversity. If you want to peek in on what I'm listening to at any time, visit my Last.fm profile.
This may interest my Atlanta readers. This year Corndogorama is moving from East Atlanta to Lenny's Bar just around the corner from my loft. Lenny's is actually the third closest bar to my place of residence (and you know that I keep track of such things). The annual celebration of the South's favorite carnival food is happening between July 12 - 15.
Snowden will be headlining that Saturday night. Other notable acts include local favorites such as Magnapop, The Liverhearts, The Preakness, and The Selmanaires (full schedule). So if y'all don't have anything happening that weekend, come on down to the 'hood for some music and corndogs!
Memorial Day travelling has delayed this a couple of days, but the stats are still good. According to my new methodology, I listened to the following music the most last week:
Shearwater - 16 tracks
Elf Power - 8 tracks
Pavement - 5 tracks
Smashing Pumpkins - 4 tracks
Afghan Whigs - 3 tracks
Hoodoo Gurus - 3 tracks
Iron & Wine - 3 tracks
Pulp - 3 tracks
R.E.M. - 3 tracks
Replacements - 3 tracks
Over the course of last week, I listened to a grand total of 138 songs (and a couple of podcasts). My Last.fm profile has more details about what I'm listening too (at least while connected to the Internet).
In other news, Last.fm has been bought by CBS. I'm not sure what this means for the service, but I'm glad they got a payday.
Over the last week or so, I realized that my Last.fm profile only captures those songs I listen to while I'm connected to the Internet (you can still use this to see what I'm listening to during the day). This misses a large chunk of my listening time—in the car or on the train to work for example. So, I've decided to do a true top ten (made possible with a little work from the iTunes smart playlist. With only minimal math, I've determined I listened to the following artists the most last week:
Sufjan Stevens - 24 songs
Wilco - 14
Catherine Wheel - 5
Charlatans U.K. - 5
The Pogues - 4
Spoon - 4
Swervedriver - 4
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead - 3
Feist - 3
Wire -3
Overall, I listened to 228 songs last week, so I had a lot of artists that I only heard one or two times. It's good to have a varied library.
As part of the promised changes, the weekly music report is now moving to Monday, since Last.fm publishes the data from the previous week on Sunday. And Music Monday is alliterative to boot! I plan to use Mondays now to write music themed posts (other themes should emerge as I nail down an editorial calendar I can live with and blog to more regularly).
So, without further ado, I listened to the following music the most last week according to my Last.fm profile:
According the my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music last week:
Beethoven
Afghan Whigs
The Woodentops
The Pixies
Ivy
Robyn Hitchcock & the Egyptians
The Charlatans U.K.
The Soundtrack of Our Lives
The Microphones
Catherine Wheel
This list probably mis-represents my listening a little bit last week. I listened to a couple of Beethoven Symphonies while working one day, but since each movement counts as a track, he gets top honors.
In other music news, the Arcade Fire show in Atlanta is sold out. I guess that makes up my mind for me. In retrospect I can now say that there was no way I was going to pay about $40 dollars for a ticket to a show at the Civic Center (thanks Ticketbastard and crappy venue).
I still haven't been listening to much music at work lately (most of my listening these days happens on the train), but at least there isn't a 10 way tie for first this week at one song per artist. Here's what my Last.fm profile says I listened to the most last week:
The Arcade Fire
Bloc Party
Stereophonics
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
The Futureheads
The American Analog Set
Stereolab
The Hold Steady
Thievery Corporation
Stephen Malkmus
In other music news, I'm just waiting for some new albums by Wilco and The National to drop, and looking forward to shows by The Arcade Fire, Ted Leo, Clap You Hands Say Yeah! and The National.
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music last week:
The Arcade Fire
Pulp
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
The Mekons
R.E.M.
Swervedriver
The Wedding Present
Broken Social Scene
Pavement
Joy Division
Also according to form. A few words about last week's number one (it will likely be this week's as well). I've been previewing Neon Bible, The Arcade Fire album that will be available March 6. I don't usually use imperative statements on this space, but this one merits it: buy this album. Don't hesitate. Don't worry about a sophomore slump. Just buy it.
Some surprises there for sure--both for me and for my readers who know me as well. Oh well, what shuffle sometimes reveals about a music library can be surprising. The two that surprise me the most are Kanye West and Led Zeppelin, because I certainly didn't seek them out, nor can I remember hearing them that much (though I can remember hearing "When the Levee Breaks" at a very opportune moment last week).
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week:
X
The Wrens
R.E.M.
Echo & the Bunnymen
Radiohead
Blur
My Bloody Valentine
The Clash
Guided by Voices
Autolux
Also, I apologize for the dearth of posts lately. Even though there's been a lot to talk about recently (especially the cluelessness of a certain New England city when it comes to Lite-Brites), I've been pretty busy at work. Hopefully, normal posting will resume soon. At the very least, music reports will continue.
NP: "Rock and Roll (Instrumental)" - Spiritualized
Wow, this is a first. According to my Last.fm profile, I didn't listen to any particular artists more than twice last week. Maybe my music library has reached critical mass for a music report like this powered by shuffle. On second thought, that's probably not very likely since I heard two consecutive Echo & the Bunnymen songs while on shuffle yesterday.
In reality, I was too busy at work last week to listen to much music while editing proposal after proposal [Ed. note: get this boy on a project quick]. For those of you keeping track though, here are the artists I heard more than once last week:
Idlewild
Wilco
The Posies
I don't know if I could pick more disparate bands from my collection. Well maybe throwing Loretta Lynne in there would make it more eclectic. Now, for a preview of next week. Based on a comment from the Dilettante in Distress on my last music report, I've been listening to a lot of the Wrens. Could they turn up in the next report. Tune in next week to find out, and perhaps I'll even drop a long distance dedication on you.
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week:
R.E.M.
Game Theory
Billie Holiday
Wilco
Crowded House
The Connells
Interpol
Echo & The Bunnymen
The Waterboys
Swervedriver
Of course, this doesn't account for the music that I hear on the train going back and forth to work. I'm not sure how that would affect these rankings. If anyone knows how to get this information easily from an iPod, just let me know.
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music last week:
The Pogues
R.E.M.
Pixies
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
Swervedriver
The Wedding Present
Wilco
Nada Surf
Matt Pond PA
Spiritualized
That's definitely an old-school, early-90s type of list there. I'm pretty surprised since I have some new Bloc Party and The Shins to evaluate. Perhaps next week.
What can I say? It’s the year of The Hold Steady. It’s pretty amazing that last year’s Separation Sunday made my top five and now, Boys and Girls in America is my best album of 2006 (questionable cover art aside). All my minor quibbles with the last album have been addressed. Boys and Girls in America, named for a Jack Kerouac quote, is much tighter than any album the band has made to date, but it still keeps its expansive flavor. Epic rock songs if you will.
From the rocking "Stuck Between Stations," a song that seems to depict many 30 somethings I Know all too well, to the more conventional closing number, "Southtown Girls," there’s not a single dud on this album. And all the songs seem to go back to the source of the albums name: “boys and girls in America have such a sad time together.”
When everyone else seems to be looking at the 80’s as their inspiration, The Hold Steady unapologetically gets their chops straight from the mid-70’s. And it works very well. There ain’t no keyboards here—just an organ. I really can’t say enough about this album.
Of course, their tremendous live show helped their cause. Unfortunately, I didn’t heed Craig Finn’s advice and call in sick the next day.
This is where this list gets really, really tough. In almost any other year, this would easily be the top album of the year for me. Not that settling in at number two is such a bad thing. Although this album came out early in the year, it has constantly stayed in my rotation.
On Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, Neko Case sings more abstract songs than she has in the past, but the songs don't suffer at all. In fact, they are more suited to her unique vocal talents. You don't get distracted too much trying to discern some sort of narrative to the song. Instead you get caught up in the pure power of her voice and the music itself.
Neko case is today's Patsy Cline. You can't listen to her music without being utterly captivated by The Voice. Why Nashville, caught in its own navel-gazing, doesn't notice stumps me.
When I saw her live earlier this year, a friend of mine was attending her first Neko Case show. I could literally see her break out in goosebumps when Neko belted out her first notes supporting Kelly Hogan. This album showcases that voice at its best. I certainly hope that she doesn't totally abandon The New Pornographers, but I still look forward to many other albums from her like this.
NP: "This is Our Emergency" - Pretty Girls Make Graves
The second album by Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Show Your Bones, was released with what seemed like little fanfare, at least compared to their previous effort. I'm not sure why. Maybe it was because the first single, "Gold Lion," seemed like such a departure from their earlier work. While this is only anecdotal, many of my friends didn't care much for that song when they first heard it.
Of course, this lack of fanfare was an absolute shame, because this really is an outstanding rock record. This time out, the band really showcases Karen O's vocal talents—I wonder if Siouxsie Sioux is getting royalty checks from the band. All the songs here are definite departures from their biggest song to date, the plaintive "Maps." These are more confident and energetic, which really is the sweet spot vocally for Karen O. In my opinion, the album peaks with "Phenomena" and "Honeybear", midway through the album. I hope the band continues to build on the foundation they've built on this recording, and I look forward to more from them in the future.
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week.
The Charlatans U.K.
Joy Division
Pixies
Preston School of Industry
Catherine Wheel
Prefab Sprout
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
Swervedriver
Wilco
My Bloody Valentine
I've decided to do away with the random 10 I've been experimenting with over the last couple of months; it doesn't seem to add anything and doesn't show anything about my actual listening activities. Of course, if anyone feels strongly that it should stick around, just let me know in the comments.
#4 – Sunset Rubdown:Shut Up I Am Dreaming Last year, my list was very heavy with Canadian bands, but thus far this year, there are notable only by their relative absence. Finally, Here are some Canadians for you. Sunset Rubdown is a side project by Wolf Parade's Spencer Krug. Though, it's one of the more satisfying feeling "side projects" that I've run across, since it feels more fully formed than a lot of primary projects one will find out there these days.
I originally had this album even higher on this list. That is until I listened to it again last week. That doesn't mean that I don't love this album, and I definitely rate it as top five, but the memory of seeing Sunset Rubdown live had elevated even beyond what the album presents. While he album loses a little of the raw energy that is ever-present in the live show, it's still Mr. Krug at his foot-stomping, yelping best.
Now to the top 5 albums of 2006 with an album per post. I will wrap the list up by the end of the week. In this spot we have Seattle’s Band of Horses release, Everything All the Time. This album has much going for it. It fulfills the promise shown by their earlier EPs, as well as an unexpected maturation of their sound. This record taps the same roots of inspiration as My Morning Jacket, with soaring guitars and epic sounds—sounds that flirt with being bombastic, only on this record, they work. The songwriting at times evokes R.E.M.’s obscure phases, but when something sounds so good, it’s just silly to quibble over storylines or narrative from the lyrics.
Nobody will call Band of Horses pioneers in this sound—that distinction belongs to bands like Wilco and My Morning Jacket—but they have discovered a way to make a damn listenable album nonetheless. Sometimes the firstest isn’t always the bestest.
#12 – Jim Noir: Tower of Love I first became acquainted with Jim Noir during the World Cup; the song "Eanie Meany" was featured very prominently in Adidas's ads during the competition. That song got stuck in my head and I had to find out more. The rest of the album is the same. Jim Noir draws more inspiration from the Beach Boys than either The Beatles or Rolling Stones, and it makes for a perfect background soundtrack for just hanging around or entertaining.
#11 – The Raconteurs: Broken Boy Soldiers No we know what The White Stripes would sound like if they weren't just half a band (i.e., had a bass line somewhere lurking in their songs). A lot of people thought this was a rather light-weight effort considering the star power lent to it by Jack White and Brendon Benson, but I thought it worked very well. "Steady as She Goes," is a fantastic, straightforward rock and roll tune that will roll around in your head for weeks if you aren't careful.
#10 – Gnarls Barkley: St. Elsewhere Fun. Pure fun. I would never have guessed that any album that prominently features Cee-lo would end up in one of my year end lists (just not my bag generally), but here it is nonetheless. I defy anyone to listen to this album, especially "Crazy", and not find themselves moving in time with the music.
It's been out for quite a while now, but it still sounds as fresh to me as it did when I first heard it.
#9 – Lucero: Rebels, Rogues & Sworn Brothers I'm sure that this album's inclusion on my year-end list will surprise very few of you who know my listening tastes well. I guess I had to get some southern rock on the list since I was a little disappointed with the Drive-By Trucker's last album (at least compared to their previous two). Well, Lucero certainly fits the bill. They get better and better with each album.
#8 – We Are Scientists: With Love and Squalor When I first made up my draft list for the year, this album wasn't on the list. It's not because I don't love the album (I do), but because it came out early in the year. It had already assimilated itself into my more permanent rotation. I'm really disappointed that I missed their show at the Roxy in October.
#7 – Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins: Rabbit Fur Coat If you had asked me last December what I thought would be on my year-end list for 2006, I think this is the only album that I would have put on that list, even though I had only heard a single song at that point, the outstanding "Rise Up with Fists". Well, the rest of the album is just as strong, including a nice cover of the Traveling Wilbury's "Handle with Care." Adding the Watson Twins was a masterstroke for Jenny Lewis. Their sound matches the songs she has written here perfectly.
#6 – TV on the Radio: Return to Cookie Mountain A lot of year-end lists have this as their top album of the year. While I'm also enthusiastic about this, I'm not quite that enthusiastic. I'm not sure really how to describe TV on the Radio's sound. All I can say for sure is that they make really interesting and literate music that challenges me at every listen without becoming an dreary exercise. Besides, they have the best 'fros in the business.
Now that I've listed my favorite shows of the year and showed the albums I actually listened to the most in 2006, it's time to get to my favorite albums of the year. This is not meant to be an "end-all, be-all" list, since there are a lot of worthy albums that I didn't listen to for whatever reason. This list merely reflects my taste and my listening habits. Some of you may find it valuable, some of you may not. At the very least, I'd like this list to make you think or respond or call me a raving lunatic (well maybe not that last one). Or even do your own list!
But before I can get to the list proper (and there are 12 items on it this year), I thought I should highlight a few albums that for one reason or other didn't make the list. Call this introduction to the list the honorable mentions.
Whatever the weird timing of its release, I still like this album quite a bit, even though I'm not sure it would make it into the top 12 (10 is too few) albums of 2006 though. Last year I was working with a much larger list—too large for my current schedule. In any case, if you have a chance to see these guys live, do so. Even if they don't have the material to support a long set, what time they play, they rock hard. Honorable Mention #2: Snowden – Anti-Anti I've only begun listening to this album lately, even though it came out in August. It has been mesmerizing me over the last few weeks though. I call it out for special attention now for a couple of reasons: 1) I've been listening to it a lot and 2) It's the first time since I've been doing this that an Atlanta band has merited any kind of consideration in the year-end kudos.
I haven't had the chance to see Snowden live yet, but I certainly hope to remedy that situation early in the new year. They've been touring constantly, most recently with Forward Russia!
Honorable Mention #3: Bishop Allen – 12 EPs They make the list for releasing an EP a month over the course of the year. I don't even know what image to link to for this one. I'm certainly not going to included 12 separate images, so this one will have to suffice. You have to admire a band that stretches it's creativity so, putting out so much original material in one calendar year.
And the funny thing is, a whole lot of it is damn entertaining. Some of it is even captivating. Hopefully, they will be able to cull some of this material down, add a few more songs, and then make a full length album. Then relax a little bit. They've certainly earned it.
I'm not going to list all the albums that I considered for my list this way, but I thought these two deserved a little extra attention for the reasons stated above. Now, before I begin the list proper (hopefully tomorrow), I thought I'd list those albums that I considered for the list that didn't quite make the cut. I'm not going to say anything about any of these individually (I'm not Pitchfork after all), but I did enjoy them all, just not quite as much as the ones to follow:
I'm sure once I get through my top dozen, there will be others you think should be represented, but I'll deal with them then. NP: "Memorial" – Explosions in the Sky
I didn't attend as many shows this year as I did last year, but the shows I did see were all very good. I'm just lucky that way I guess. Since it's the time of year to reflect, here are the five best shows that I was able to take in this year. Click the links below to see my original reviews.
Ordering this list was darn difficult, and there weren't appreciable differences between any of these shows. Harder still was leaving shows off the list. Daniel Lanois springs immediately to mind here.
It's December, so everyone who is anyone in the blogsphere is doing their end of lists. Even though I'm not an A-List music blogger [Ed. Note: More like the J-List], I'm no exception.
Unlike last year, however, I'm not going to just throw out what I thought were the best albums of the year. In keeping with the spirit of my Friday Music Report, I thought I would start with those albums that I actually listened to the most over the last year (all stats by Last.fm). So without further ado, here are the albums I listened to the most over the last year:
The numbers in parentheses indicate where I had these albums ranked in my year-end list last year. Wow, I would never have guessed I listened to Elvis Costello that much, but as I've said before, my iPod does have a seeming affinity to Mr. McManus's work. Interestingly, only one album from this year made the list, so you can probably make the assumption that you'll be seeing more about it in a week or so.
In the coming days, I'll continue this list fest with a list of the best concerts I saw over the last 12 months, and then begin counting down albums (only a dozen this year).
Inspired by a post at gorilla vs. bear, I thought I too would look at how I feel about my top five albums from last year fared in my opinion after having a chance to listen to them all year. Here's how my original top five looked last year:
Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
The National - Alligator
The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday
Wolf Parade - Apologies to the Queen Mary
British Sea Power - Open Season
I still listen to these albums somewhat regularly, so I didn't fare too poorly in what I picked. However, there were some albums that I didn't rate so highly that have only improved with age, which says something about their staying power. If I were ranking 2005 right now, the top five would look like this (orginal rankings in parenthesis):
Sufjan Stevens - Illinoise (9)
Wolf Parade - Apologies to the Queen Mary (4)
The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday (3)
The National - Alligator (2)
Broken Social Scene - Broken Social Scene (17)
Bloc Party would still make my top ten list, but I'm sure British Sea Power would fall a bit farther down (though I still really like the album). As for Broken Social Scene, here's what I said last December:
[This album] has really grown on me though. I suspect that if I were compiling this list sometime next month, it would crack the top 10.
Or top five! Overall, I didn't do too poorly in my estimating skills. Three of the original top five are still there, while the other two new additions were at least in my top 20. I'm not sure why Sufjan Stevens didn't make the top five the first time around. Maybe I was just a little burned out on him from the incessant chatter about the album on the music blogs. Illinoise, however, has more than held up for me. I probably listen to it more often now than I did last December.
I'm not sure I have a top 20 list in me this year for a couple of reasons. First, and most importantly, 2006 hasn't been the year 2005 was for music—at least not for music I've been listening too (and I'm sure I've missed my fair share). Second, that took a lot of work and since I'm going to be settling into a new loft and a new job this December, my focus will be elsewhere.
I probably won't be able to help myself and will do a top 10 though. And what do you think the chances are that The Hold Steady will be in the top five for consecutive years [Ed. Note: That's pretty apparent you big fanboy].
I was traveling to D.C. on Friday for a wedding (pictures here), and I was unable to get the stats for the previous week. So I guess that part of the music report will skip its first week.
I can, however, provide you with 10 songs drawn totally at random from my iPod:
When You Come - Crowded House
Whatever's Cool With Me - Dinosaur Jr
Positive Jam - The Hold Steady
You Are What You Love - Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins
Murdermile - The Kills
Silver - The Pixies
Faron - Prefab Sprout
Wake Up - Rage Against the Machine
Rude Mood - Stevie Ray Vaughan
Building Skyscrapers In The Basement - Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
The San Francisco Orchestra provides a very cool, interactive guide to Beethoven's Symphony No. 3. I don't know a lot about classical music (listening to Karl Haas notwithstanding), merely that I like quite a bit of it, so I found this guide very instructive. This is an excellent use of Flash to allow users to directly interact with something that isn't inherently visual.
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week:
Bettie Serveert
The Wedding Present
The Charlatans U.K.
Billy Bragg
Death Cab for Cutie
The Delgados
Elf Power
The Connells
Spiritualized
Dinosaur Jr.
For an completely different kind of look into my music library, here are 10 songs drawn totally at random from my library using iTunes' smart playlist functionality:
"Thirteen" - Johnny Cash
"Sound Check (Gravity)" - Gorillaz
"Little Fern" - Portastatic
"Knock Knock" - The Hives
"Isolation" - Joy Division
"Hell is Chrome" - Wilco
"Decoration Day" - Drive-By Truckers
"Cut Me DOwn" - Lloyd Cole & the Commotions
"Cars and Girls" - Prefab Sprout
"A Wooden Horse" - British Sea Power
NP: "This Is What It Should Have Been an Hour Ago" - Ocelot
According to my profile at Last.fm, I listened to the following artists the most last week:
Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros
Broken Social Scene
Swervedriver
Sufjan Stevens
The Hold Steady
Echo & The Bunnymen
Afghan Whigs
Blur
Pulp
The Walkmen
To provide another cross-section of my musical tastes, here are a random 10: songs drawn totally at random from my iPod using the smart playlist function of iTunes:
The Boy With The Thorn In His Side - The Smiths
Sky Starts Falling - Doves
Shake The Sheets - Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
Phenomena - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Heaven Adores You - Earlimart
Give My Love to Kevin (Acoustic) - The Wedding Present
Coolin' By Sound - Pavement
Come into Our Room - Clinic
Coma Girl - Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros
$1000 Wedding - Gram Parsons
Obviously, I'd be remiss if I didn't say it's been a pretty awesome musical week, seeing both Sunset Rubdown and The Hold Steady, but if I went on any more about that, it would just be boring.
OK. Now's the time for a superlative. The Hold Steady are the best rock and roll band in America.
Take away all the adjectives: no "indie", no "progressive", no "post" anything. They just rock and roll. Spin has called them the best bar band in America too, so I'm not too far off the reservation. I'm going to depart from my usual style here and start by talking about their headlining performance last night at the Earl.
They opened with the opening track from Boys and Girls in America(Pitchfork Review 9.4), "Station to Station." It started there. The crowd was pumped. The band was pumped. The sound was huge. Loud. And lead singer Craig Finn was frenetic and magnetic.
You can't really be prepared for their stage presence just by seeing them during set up or sound check. As one of my friends put it, Craig Finnan looks like your high school English teacher, and is probably just as literate. But once the performance begins, all that just melts away. And it did for about an hour and a half as they pulled material from all three of their albums. Highlights for me were "Your Little Hoodrat Friend," "Station to Station," "Stevie Nix," and the final encore, "Most People are DJs," which ended up with a good portion of the audience on stage. Bonus points to whomever loaned Craig their Twins jersery for the first encore; he said it made him feel 10 feet tall, but truth be told, he performed like he was 10 feet tall all evening.
If you don't know this band, and you like bands with a huge sound that just flat out rock, I heartily recommend that you check them out.
Sean Na Na had the unenviable task of warming up the crowd for the headliner. Walking into the Earl, I really had no idea what to expect, but I was impressed. The band was a good pairing with The Hold Steady and got the crowd warmed up nicely. During the show, I discovered that I knew one of the tracks, but I still couldn't tell you the name of it. I'd see these guys again live and will do some googling to see what else of theirs I can find.
I don't have much to report about the first act, The Secret Service. I only caught about three songs, but I can report that they were loud. And fast. And the lead singer played a flying-V, which is something you don't see much these days. NP: "Duress" - Swervedriver
Sunset Rubdown + Beaver + One Hand Loves the Other
Saturday night, I went to the new Lenny's to see Sunset Rubdown. It was my first time in the new Lenny's and I have to say it was a good place to see a show. It has probably double the capacity of the old bar, and everything is still cleanish (though I'm sure that will diminish over time).
I arrived early since I had a feeling this show would sell out, but as it turns out it didn't (more on that later). I had plenty of time to swill High Life while waiting for the first band to take the stage (which seemed to take forever). Eventually, however, local band On Hand Loves the Other started its set. They certainly didn't fit the bill of the usual act at Lenny's (which is now billing itself as Atlanta's CBGB's): the band consisted of two keyboards/synthesizers, a cello, and a lead singer. They had my interest piqued, but in the end the music was way too melodramatic for me and the singer kept singing in a falsetto. I think they've probably listened to "Bohemian Rhapsody" a few too many times. A couple of my friends enjoyed them, but they just weren't my cup of tea.
The next act, Beaver, was a complete shift of gears: very stripped down. I enjoyed this set quite a bit coming to listen with no knowledge of the music whatsoever. Beaver sounded a little like the Moutain Goats with great moments of Mangum-esque sound straight out of In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.
Then there was the main attraction for the evening, Sunset Rubdown. Originally, a side project of Spencer Krug from Wolf Parade, the group has expanded to include members from Pony Up! and XY Lover. Sunset Rubdown's sound doesn't fall far from the tree musically speaking. It's very similar to Krug's contributions to Wolf Parade. As for the show itself, I don't know if I have enough superlatives at my disposal. They rocked and rocked hard (even with an accordian). Spencer Krug is a very talented musician and songwriter. I had only heard a few of their songs before the show, but I definitely enjoyed all the material they played. If you don't know these guys, I recommend them very highly. This was the best show I've seen in quite a while.
On to the attendance. Where were you Atlanta? This show should have been a sellout! The crowd that did show up got a treat though and they showed a lot of energy throughout.
Now, if Wolf Parade would only swing through town.
And one more thing. Here's something odd and fascinating—a banjo version of "O Fortuna!" from Carmina Burana: Sandy Bull - Carmina Burana Fantasy. Spooky.
49. That dude that yells "Freebird" at every rock show
. . .
40. Parrotheads For millions, Jimmy Buffett isn’t just a guy who writes songs about putzing around the Caribbean — he’s a shining symbol of the “good life.” That so few of them will get any closer to this life than hanging out in a dank bar called The Banana Boat, wearing a Hawaiian shirt, sipping a frozen daiquiri and waiting for their turn to karaoke “Margaritaville” is monumentally depressing.
I won't give away any of the top 10. Some of it makes sense.
R.E.M. was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame Saturday evening. While these days it's probably more in vogue to make fun of R.E.M. than to praise them, I feel like this event should still be noted with appreciation for what they were and what they meant to music in general.
During my formative years in the 80s, most of the music you could hear on the radio was pretty terrible (we tend to forget that as we age I guess), and my discovery of R.E.M. and other underground bands like the Replacements kept me going musically in the redneck wilderness that was my high school (or at least I thought so at the time). Knowing who these bands were allowed you into a certain "in" circle of those who musically got it. And yes I know I was an arrogant little bugger. And chief among these badges were R.E.M. and the Smiths. So, I'm pretty happy that they were thus enshrined, even though the large R.E.M. collection there gave me the impression that it had already happened.
I was also lucky enough to catch their live performance from the awards show on the local PBS station. Bill Berry rejoined the band onstage for a three song set, and the band without Michael Stipe then played back-up band to Gregg Allman for a performance of "Midnight Rider" (and somewhere in Atlanta Senior's head imploded).
So without further ado, here's their performance from Saturday evening. And yes, I'm still searching for the mp3s.
Their induction is nicely timed with the release of And I Feel Fine: Best of the I.R.S. Years 1982-1987-- a retrospective of their years with IRS records which really should remind all of us that back in the day, R.E.M. were pretty damned good.
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week:
The Mendoza Line
Echo & The Bunnymen
Pavement
Pixies
Wilco
Luna
Swervedriver
Blur
Joy Division
Sigur Rós
I'd really encourage you all to sign up for Last.fm (if you haven't already). It's really a cool service. Not only does it track what you listen to day to day, which in and of itself is pretty interesting, it also allows you to discover new music based on your tastes. Finally, it allows you stream Last.fm radio to your PC either based on your personal listening tastes or on the recommendations it generates from users with tastes similar to yours.
So, go ahead, take the tour, and sign up. It's free and I wouldn't pimp the service so much if I didn't think it was cool.
On to a completely different way to slice my music collection, here are 10 tracks drawn totally at random from my iPod using iTunes' smart playlist feature:
(I Was Born in a) Laundromat - Camper Van Beethoven
You're A Big Girl Now - The Charlatans U.K.
Latin Simone - Gorillaz
Conrad - Jets to Brazil
Work All Week - The Mekons
The Sunnyside of the Street - The Pogues
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (Live) - Uncle Tupelo
I'm From Further North Than You - The Wedding Present
For once, I'm glad I held off on getting a newer iPod. Apple announced a whole bunch of new products today, including an 80 gig iPod! With the new iPods, you'll also be able to download games such as tetris, and they have increased video resolution to go along with all the movies iTunes will now be offerring.
In addition to the new 80 gig iPod, the shuffle has shrunk to an incredibly small size, and the Nano got some extra memory as well.
Finally, iTunes got an update (7.0) to support all these new features. So far, it's the only thing that I've been able to play around with much. It now supports adding album art to your playlists, which makes things a lot easier for folks like me who don't really want to scan all their CD covers or run willy-nilly all over the Interweb looking for images to add manually. So far, so good.
I'm sure there's more, but there's only so much to get on a wishlist in a given day.
UPDATE: OK, so I spent some time last night playing with the new version of iTunes. Overall, I really like the improvements in the design. Perhaps the biggest change is the ability to download cover art and then "flip through" your CDs in a jukebox-like interface (this is due to CoverFlow, whom Apple has apparently purchased).
It took quite a while to download the cover art, and I have a lot of "albums" for which no cover art exists, but it's still pretty cool and a nice addition to the program.
A full report has returned, since I've been pretty much chained to my computer for the last two weeks, and Last.fm has been listening. I listened to the following music the most last week:
The Charlatans U.K. (I'm just now getting around to absorbing their new album, Simpatico)
Pavement
Afghan Whigs
Luna
Pylon
The Smiths
Joy Division
Steve Earle
Idlewild
Modest Mouse
To give everyone another view into my musical tastes, here are 10 songs drawn totally at random from my music library (thanks to the iTunes smart playlist function):
"Soul Meets Body" - Death Cab for Cutie
"The Entryway" - Foreign Born
"Shocker in Gloomtown" - Guided by Voices
"Oh My God" - Kaiser Chiefs
"Last Great American Whale" - Lou Reed
"Snake" - Magnapop
"Ghost" - Neutral Milk Hotel
"Back to the Old House" - The Smiths
"The Seer's Tower" - Sufjan Stevens
"Ziggy Stardust (Live)" - Wilco
NP: "This is Not a Love Song" - Public Image Limited
I hope everyone had a great labor day. In honor of the first day back to work, here's a great way to waste a few minutes.
I've probably spent far too much time playing with Punk-o-Matic, a flash app that lets your choose from different beats and riffs to build your own punk rock masterpiece. The instruction voice-over can be a little brash and annoying at times, but it is a good way to waste a little time and smile at the silliness of it all.
Of course, I've yet to create anything that I'd slam dance to.
NP: "Bring on the Dancing Horses (Extended Mix)" - Echo & the Bunnymen
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week.
Pavement
Afghan Whigs
My Bloody Valentine
Pulp
Pixies
The Smiths
The Fall
Radiohead
The White Stripes
Death Cab for Cutie
These results come from a pretty limited sample, since I was traveling last week, but I suppose two full days of listening is enough for a valid, if small, sample.
Continuing the random theme, here are 10 songs drawn totally from my iPod using iTunes smart playlist feature:
"Desperados Under The Eaves" - Warren Zevon
"Altamont" - Echo & the Bunnymen
"Breakdown" - Suede
"Second Chance" - Scott Miller & the Commonwealth
"Deep Wilson" - Kristin Hersh
"Love Will Tear Us Apart (edit)" - U2 & Arcade Fire
"Camera " - Editors
"Rainbow Man" - The Pogues
"Subterranean Homesick Alien" - Radiohead
"Mountain to Sound" - Spoon
It seems my iPod like Warren Zevon a whole lot more than my listening habits would attest--he's made this list two weeks in a row, and I only have two albums or so of his music. Strange. I guess he's joining Elvis Costello among my iPod's favorite music.
Afghan Whigs are returning to the studio to work on four new tracks for their upcoming Rhino retrospective. Three of the original members will be back, along with a yet-to-be named drummer.
This is great news. Although I enjoy Greg Dulli's latest incarnation in The Twilight Singers, I've been a huge Afghan Whigs fan since I first stumbled upon their music in the early 90s. Heck, Gentlemen is as good a candidate as any to be the soundtrack to the slackerdom period of my life since it was in such heavy rotation. Hopefully, they'll grace us with some more music down the line some time.
I just flew in from New Jersey last night. I was up there for business the last three days, hence my lack of posts. The work was tiring and busy. The food was very Italian (and good), and I managed to make it into Manhatten one night with co-workers for some play time. All in all I'm glad to be back. (I did wave at the Oranges on the way back to Newark International though Krista.)
But I am here just in time for the Friday music report. So without further ado, Last.fm tells me that I listened to the following music the most last week:
Pavement
The Charlatans U.K.
Wilco
Echo & the Bunnymen
The Wedding Present
The Spinto Band
Blur
My Morning Jacket
Pulp
Elvis Costello
It seems that some old favorites made their way back onto the list. Just add the Clash, and you could probably find my favorite five bands over the last 15 years or so.
To give a more balanced view of what's in my music collection, here's 10 songs chosen completely at random by an iTunes smart playlist:
"Heart of Darkness" - Mission of Burma
"Burn that Broken Bed" - Iron & Wine and Calexico
"A Torch" - Sarge
"Ballad of the Band" - The Charlatans U.K.
"Blue Light" - Bloc Party
"Free Money" - Patti Smith
"Play It All Night Long" - Warren Zevon
"U Boat" - Kasabian
"I Never" - Rilo Kiley
"I Slept with the BonHomme at the CBC" - Broken Social Scene
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week:
My Bloody Valentine
Neko Case
Catherine Wheel
The New Pornographers
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
Swervedriver
The Shins
The Wedding Present
Bloc Party
Blur
To slice and dice my music collection another way, so to speak, here are 10 songs drawn totally at random from my iPod using the smart playlist feature of iTunes.
"Straight A's - Dead Kennedys
"Truckstop Cassettes" - Portastatic
"Liberty Ship" - The La's
"Mass Romantic" - The New Pornographers
"Mohammed's Radio" - Warren Zevon
"What Goes On" - Bettie Serveert
"Conversations" - The Posies
"Lorca's Novena" - The Pogues
"Na Na Na Na Naa" - Kaiser Chiefs
"The Ruling Class" - Loose Fur
Would there be any interest in adding the actual mp3s of these Friday random 10 lists for your previewing pleasure (leaving them up for the week until the next report of course)? Or are most of these artists already well represented in your music collections? Maybe just one that I think is obscure? Just trying to gauge some interest and my your visits here more productive.
In a final music related note, I finally finished transitioning my many CDs to digital format. It only took a bit over a year and a half. Of course, the last 60 or so CDs had been sitting there unripped for probably a year, and I just wanted to add one particular disc last week, so I just kept on going until I was done. Let's hope I don't have to go through that again.
Anyone else have any juicy musical tidbits that may be of interest? NP: "Little Girl"- Death From Above 1979
I don't have any stats for the music I listened to the most last week since I was on vacation and far away from my computer. I do have a random sampling of my library for you to peruse though. So, in the absence of a top 10, here's yet another random 10:
Shine a Light - Wolf Parade
Caring is Creepy - The Shins
Lyla - Oasis
Magic America - Blur
New Amsterdam - Elvis Costello
Trilogy - Toenut
We've Been Had - Uncle Tupelo
Weakness- Morning Theft
What Became of the Likely Lads - The Libertines
Buckets of Rain - Neko Case
Normal music reports should resume next week since I've been listening to a far amount of music at work this week. See what I've been listening to.
Special Video Bonus Edition!
Remember when they still made music videos? This one is a favorite from the late 80s. Seeing CVB live these days just isn't the same. Note the use of some of Howard Finster's work in the video for bonus points.
Rob Dickinson alone was worth the price of admission. Touring to support his new solo album, Fresh Wine for the Horses, he played an acoustic set at the Variety Playhouse in support of The Church.
We arrived just as he was beginning his set. He opened with a Catherine Wheel song, "Heal 2" , and I have to say, I liked the acoustic version better than the released version of the song. He made his way through a variety of his solo material and songs originally recorded by The Catherine Wheel. I was surprised by how well the Catherine Wheel material translated to an acoustic treatment. Some of the notable songs off his solo album were "Oceans", "Handsome", and "My Name is Love."
Of course, there was plenty of older material as well, including "Futureboy", "Black Metallic", and "Crank". I never thought I'd hear "Crank" at an acoustic show, but he pulled it off and it retained the same intensity as the studio version of the song. All in all, the set sounded like an acoustic Catherine Wheel session, including the same wall of sound and alternating quick and loud portions of song. The audience ate it up. All the merch sold out quickly between sets.
Then there was The Church. Ah yes. The Church. This will likely surprise many of you, but for as long as I've loved this band, this was the first time I've actually got to see them live. To be quite honest, I'm not very familiar with their recent catalog of work, but I found a lot to like anyways. While about half of the songs during the two hour set were somewhat unknown to me, I still enjoyed them anyway because the band are such consumate musicians--not afraid to take an older song and blow it up to rebuild it from scratch.
Messrs. Kilbey, Koppes, and Wilson-Piper were certainly on their game last night, playing musical chairs with the instruments as they proceeded through the set. Over the course of the evening, they played songs that spanned the entirety of their long musical career--moving comfortably back and forth between songs from the late 80s to their new material and songs from the late 90s.
Given the era that I'm familiar with, there were still quite a few songs that stood out to me. The first would have to be their flamenco re-imagining of two songs from Gold Afternoon Fix: "Metropolis" and the Elizabethan inspired version of "Grind". Reaching a bit further back, they played a wonderful version of "A New Season" from Starfish [Ed. Note: Please tell me you already own this]. Their version of "Tristesse" from Heydaywas a bit less to my likely, but that's just quibbling at this point.
The next to last song before the encore, of course, was their song--in the same way that "Love Will Tear Us Apart" is Joy Division's. Steve Kilby gave what may have been the best introduction to a particular song that I've ever heard at a concert: "A long time ago I wrote a nice little song, and people liked it... It went on to sleep with producers in Hollywood to get in the movies like the one with the bunny and it finally ended up on the OC, at which point my 15 old daughter finally said, 'Dad you're like this cool after all" [Ed. Note: paraphrase of course]. Then they launched into a incredible version of the song they must be sick to death of, "Under the Milky Way".
Then the encores. For the first, they chose the oldest song in their catalog, "The Unguarded Moment" and were joined for most of the song by the audience. Rob Dickinson then joined them for the final songs. For their single song on the second encore they played "Constant in Opal" from Remote Luxury. You could have knocked me over with a feather. And play it they did. Without visual confirmation, I'd never have believed that there wasn't an electric guitar to be found on stage (the whole evening really). Spicing it up with some Patti Smith ("Because the Night"), they totally turned the song into a barn-burning, rocking show stopper and ender.
It was worth the wait really.
Minor quibble: they didn't play "Hotel Womb." (And I feel bad even writing that the show was so good.)
I've just returned from vacation. Seven glorious days without the Internet, email, or voicemail. But since I'm back, I thought I'd check in with what Last.fm recorded as my most listened to music last week:
Last night, Editors opened their U.S. tour at the Roxy here in Atlanta. I didn't even realize they were coming to town until last weekend, but I'm happy to have made it to the show.
Opening for them were local band, The Futurists, and Lake Trout, from Baltimore. The Roxy keeps on a pretty strict time schedule apparently, so I ended up totally missing The Futurists. I did manage to hear most of Lake Trout's set. Whoever was running the board, however, didn't do a very good job as the vocals and lead guitar were, for the most part, totally obscured by drums and bass (I can't imagine that was the sound they were going for). The result was a very muddy sound for all but one of their songs. The one song that came through clearly, I liked. Maybe it was the Frank-Black like yelping. In any case, I'm going to reserve judgement until I hear an mp3 of theirs or two.
Strangely, the show didn't seem to be sold out, as there was still some room around when Editors took the stage, and the balcony was closed. All I have to say is a lot of people missed out on a great, if too brief, show. For those of your familiar with their music, their stage presence was nothing at all like I expected. Instead of sticking right in front of the mic and making little movement (like Ian Curtis for example), these guys were all over the place on stage. They really reminded me of the antics of the Psychedelic Furs in their prime.
Oh, yeah, the music. For the first show of their tour, they were amazing tight and ripped through most of the songs from their album, The Back Room. They even played two or three new songs that may be on their next album (I can't be sure about the third). Once they had completed their set, they had played all but one song that I had heard before, so I can't really blame them for the brevity of the show. The encore ("Bullets") was electric and really got the crowd moving even more than they had been before.
Final assessment? This show did nothing to shake my belief that The Back Room is the album Interpol's second album should have been.
Unfortunately, I don't have any photos of the show that are worth posting here. The light show played havoc with my camera phone (it was cool though), and I neglected to bring a proper digital camera.
ASIDE: Dear Dilettante in Distress, if you read this and you don't have their album yet. Go. As quickly as possible. I'm pretty darned certain you won't be disappointed.
NP: "All Good Naysayers, Speak Up! Or Forever Hold Your Peace!" - Sufjan Stevens
According to my profile at Last.fm, I listened to the following music the most last week:
Elf Power
Sunset Rubdown
Echo & the Bunnymen
The Charlatans U.K.
Blur
Wilco
Swervedriver
The Connells
Steve Earle
The Hold Steady
Nothing really new there, except perhaps Sunset Rubdown, a Wolf Parade side project that I'd highly recommend. Last week, I also offerred 10 random songs from my iPod, and it was kind of fun, so here are 10 more:
Kill the Power - Snowden
Ballad of the Band - The Charlatans U.K.
Cry One More Time - Gram Parsons
Dark is Light Enough - The Duke Spirit
Death or Glory - The Clash
How Near How Far - ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead
President of What? - Death Cab for Cutie
The Pigs - Toenut
Winchester - Robyn Hitchcock & the Egyptians
Her Last Fling - Lloyd Cole and the Commotions
NP: "Pulp Song" - Stellastarr*
*I still have no idea what the asterisk is for, so I thought I'd invent a footnote.
Last.fm seems to be down at the moment, so I can't report on what I listened to the most last week. Taking another page from the music blogging handbook, however, I can give you a random 10. All this entails is setting up a smart playlist in iTunes to grab 10 songs totally at random from my music collection. So here they are:
Man in a Box - Fur Patrol
Off Your Face - My Bloody Valentine
Bury Me with It - Modest Mouse
Dangle - The Spinanes
Kamera (Alternate Version) - Wilco
Seagull (live) - Ride
Zephyr - Electrafixion
Nice Cup of Tea - The Damned
I'm Hungry - The Sugarcubes
Little Girl - Death from Above 1979
This type of list may even provide more insight into my musical tastes as a whole. Hopefully, I'll be able to update this with the actual listening report this weekend.
NP: "The Day After the Revolution" - Pulp
UPDATE: My Last.fm profile seems to be available again, and it seems that Last.fm has changed things around a bit as well (though that may be guesswork, since I can't get everything to load right). So, without further ado, here is what I listened to the most last week:
It's been a busy week, so I apologize for the lack of posts. After the World Cup and holidays and such, things should return to more or less normal. On to the music!
According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week.
Well you see, it's like this. There isn't one. Last week was devoted to listening to or watching the World Cup, so there's only three bands that even cracked more than one listen, so any report wouldn't be representative of what I'm hearing on a daily basis.
NP: "Eanie Meany" - Jim Noir (the song from the Adidas soccer commericial)
I really hope this is not a hoax. In any case, someone posted the following in the Neutral Milk Hotel section of the E6 Townhall.
hello again.
for the past few months ive been putting together the pieces of everything ive written in the past three years and its been a revelation. whenever i had the time ive been writing melodies and keeping them in my head for later, and songs just accumulate, im not waiting as some have said. i still dont know how we’re going to put it all together, the songs will have more noises and collages in them. because of that we dont know whether this will be korena pang or neutral milk hotel or michael bolton but that doesnt really matter. names are just a box we put things in to separate them, and we’re figuring out what box these songs go in.
we dont have a timetable for releasing the album yet, so dont get your hopes up for new songs now. if you want more “aeroplane” just ignore all of this, the songs are songs but they’re longer and more free. when jeremy came down after his tour we just spent days playing noise while screaming and it was incredibly liberating.
it has been so much fun that we will for sure be playing a show or two, probably more. freedom is a wonderful thing but at a certain point you need the routines of normal life. ive had that for a while but i realized last year at the show with the livys that the best sort of normal ive ever had was on the road with my friends. getting to gigs late with cars coughing and trombones smacking on doors, the giant egg leaks over the masses, the yolk sustains us, we eat whites for days. it can never be the same but i need to get as close as i can to that again.
so thats all. everything is happening soon, this is the year. thanks for listening. jeff.
Back on schedule again! According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week:
Echo & the Bunnymen
Joy Division
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
Rilo Kiley
Swervedriver
The Wedding Present
Cranes
Mogwai
The Cure
Pulp
Quite the mixed bag there. I haven't been listening to music during the day as much since the beginning of the World Cup, which could explain some of the new names.
I'm off to Chicago this evening, so I'll be away from all computers all weekend. With that in mind, I'm bringing you the Friday Music Report one day early (again). According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following music the most last week:
Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros
Sigur Rós
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead
Pavement
Death Cab for Cutie
The White Stripes
Blur
Interpol
Prefab Sprout
Pulp
In other news, Mexico's manager in the World Cup has been ordered to stop smoking in the dugout. I don't know why I find this funny.
Despite being very busy at work, the blog must go on. Or at least the Friday Music Report must. According to the fine folks over at Last.fm, I listened to the following artists the most last week:
We Are Scientists
The Clash
Blur
Death Cab for Cutie
Echo & the Bunnymen
Wilco
Joy Division
Sigur Rós
The Charlatans U.K.
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
I'm bummed that I'll be missing We Are Scientists when they come to town, but they are opening for Arctic Monkeys, so the show sold out rather quickly. At least I'll be seeing Echo & the Bunnymen on the 20th.
And in another side note, the only time I turned on the TV at my parents house last weekend, Westway to the World was on the Documentary channel. Serendipity defined.
No, I haven't taken leave of my senses. I'm fully aware that this is Thursday, but since I'll be travelling up to the sticks tomorrow, I thought I'd get this out of the way early (rather than late). According to my Last.fm profile, I listened to the following artists the most last week.
Wilco
Death Cab for Cutie
Bettie Serveert
Blur
The Clash
The Replacements
Broken Social Scene
Pulp
Echo & the Bunnymen
The Damned
I can too go a week without listening to the Charlatans U.K. (even though they have a new album out).
I'm not sure how I missed this for so long, but I ran across The Sandinista Project! this morning. This is a project to remake--track by track--the album Sandinista!, one of my favorite albums, despite its many endearing flaws.
Jimmy Guterman, the man behind the project explains its genesis this way:
December 12, 2005 is the 25th anniversary of the release of Sandinista! I've been thinking about doing something to celebrate it. A party didn't seem like the right thing. Someone suggested I write a book about it. Only a few thousand words in, it was clear that I shouldn't inflict that on anyone. So what to do?
I'm not a fan of tribute records. Nearly every one I've heard is a hit-or-miss set, usually with way more misses than hits. So I'm wary of that particular vehicle. But the more I've thought about it, the more I'm convinced that a Sandinista! tribute collection could be a sprawling mess in the tradition of Sandinista! itself, especially if I populate it with people you wouldn't expect on such a collection. The original was stuffed with surprises; so should any tribute.
Apparently, Disc 2 is now complete, and there are a couple of pretty recognizable artists involved. I'll definitely be checking in on the progress of this effort.
My Old Kentucky Blog has posted 15 covers of Love Will Tear Us Apart. I had most of these, but there are some interesting editions. Check 'em out. Which ones do you like the most? The least?
– Fever Ray
