Tuddd's Muddd

The Best Albums of 2011 (so far) [part 2]

 

    Sincere apologies (t'heh!  Not really!  Go fuck yourself!) for the lack of Muddd action during these precious summer months.  Not making any excuses (actually, watch me), but I've been super fucking busy 1.) dealing with the resurgence of my Antiques business, 2.) writing a book, 3.) "curating" (hehheheh I HATE THAT WORD) a successful vegetable garden, and 4.) partying my fat fucking tits off.  Seriously, this has probably been the funnest summer of my sad, pathetic life.  Also, it's pretty safe to assume that my summer squash can beat the shit out of your summer squash.  Bitch. 

    So, at this very moment, you're looking at a continuation of / sequel to this post.  The way I do these lists is pretty simple.  You may or may not notice that there are no repeats between the lists.  This is because, over the course of the year, my tastes have been known to shift, sometimes dramatically.  For example, it's pretty safe to assume that the Kurt Vile record will place a lot higher on my year-end "Best Of" list than it did upon my initial handful of listens.  But I really don't feel like re-writing a Kurt Vile album review at this point, nor do I feel like slotting it (and other records from earlier in the year) into this list, which includes ONLY newer albums.  [Jesus Christ, I've somehow managed to bore myself.  Enough.  You semi-literate shitbags should be able to figure out a Best Albums list, mehopes.]

    So, enjoy this list, or jump in front of a city bus, I really don't give a shit.  [J/K, smoocherz!!!]

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1.) Raveonettes - Raven in the Grave -- The Raveonettes' gloomiest record yet, which says quite a bit for a band that has made a career creating an (insanely catchy) songbook of tunes spanning the topics of heartbreak, depression, drug addiction, depression, rape, depression, inadequacy, suicide, depression, and so forth.  But this is also a legitimate career highlight, their most well-crafted, thoroughly tuneful, thoughtfully paced, and perfectly produced album since '03's Chain Gang of Love [which is incidentally one of my favorite albums of all time].

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2.) Cheeseburger - Another Big Night Down the Drain -- Much has changed in the land of Cheeseburger since the release of their self-titled masterpiece in 2007.  The band has expanded its lineup, adding a second (and, at times, a third) guitarist and a bassist; vocalist extraordinaire Joe Bradley departed during the lengthy period between the recording and release of this album; they endured label issues and uncertainty as to the whether or not this second album would even see the light of day.  But fortunately, the important things didn't change: Cheeseburger still knows how to do it right.  So what does Another Big Night add to the band's greasy, nicotine-stained, beer-soaked legacy?  Well, for one, it hammers home Joe Bradley's legitimate (and possibly entirely unintentional) claim as an undeniably great rock and roll vocalist.  For another, it adds several great songs to Cheeseburger's canon -- the best of the bunch, "Roll Like That" and "Winner" are as fist-pumpingly awesome as anything they've ever done.  And for yet another, it serves as a righteous reminder SOMEBODY still remembers how to FUCKING ROCK.

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3.) Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact -- Just a lovingly crafted, complex, vibrant, beautiful album.  Here, Gang Gang Dance manages to incorporate the textured, dancey, ecstatic highlights of their previous work (which usually only traversed a couple of great tracks per album) into a full-album experience which flows seamlessly from song to song.

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4.) Melvins - Endless Residency -- In early 2011, stoners up and down the East Coast cursed their geography when the Melvins announced their residency at Spaceland in LA, at which they would play every Friday during the month of January as follows:

<<Jan. 7: Melvins set (current line-up performing Colossus of Destiny); Lysol and Eggnog records in their entirety
Jan. 14: Melvins 1983 (Buzz, Dale and Mike Dillard); Melvins set (current line-up performing normal set) and Houdini in its entirety
Jan. 21: Melvins Lite (Buzz & Dale only); Melvins set (current line-up performing normal set) and Bullhead in its entirety
Jan. 28: Melvins set (current line-up performing normal set) and Stoner Witch in its entirety>>

Uhhhhhh, yeah.  Jealous much?

This limited-edition 4 CD box set contains live recordings of each of the full albums that the Melvins performed during that run, warts and all.  Of course, it's not ALL good (I doubt I will ever make it through all 17+ minutes of "Lividity"), but what is good (the very, very vast majority) is very much worthwhile.

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5.) Liquor Store - Yeah Buddy -- So, according to Tuddd archives, I've seen Liquor Store live 10 times over the last two years, which seems a bit low considering how much I've pumped these guys up to friends, acquaintances, and random passers-by, but what can you do (the sands of time, etc.).  Anyway, it's a serious relief to hear that the band was somehow able to capture the grimy, slovenly, riotously bad-ass spirit of their live shows on this, their first LP.  But don't take my word for it; watch some of my buddy Devin's Liquor Store live clips here or here or here.  Truly one of the few (as in, literally, there are THREE) great local bands (they're from Jersey) actually actively putting out music today.  

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6.) Beastie Boys - Hot Sauce Committee Part Two -- Contains everything you'd expect from a top-notch Beasties album: hilarious rhymes, great production, and show-stealing guest spots on this, their first truly worthwhile outing of the new millennium.  And if you haven't seen their promo video for this album yet, do yourself a favor: find a comfy chair, pull some bong rips, and press play. 

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7.) Melvins - Sugar Daddy -- To many, still yet another Melvins live record might seem excessive.  (Notice another 4-CD live set from the Melvins just a few spots above this one.)  Not this band, however.  To quote Buzz Osbourne, "I'm not afraid of putting out records."  And it's a testament to the strength of the Melvins' recent output that they're capable of putting out a damn good live album that largely neglects their "classic" material, focusing instead mostly on stuff from Nude With Boots and (A) Senile Animal.

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8.) White Denim - D -- I've been singing this band's praises for awhile now, and I hope that one day they're somehow able to put all of their great influences (classic guitar rock, soul, bluesy southern rock, folky pop, with just a smidge of lite prog and jamminess) in the blender and come up with the show-stopping Album of the Year-competing album that I know they're capable of.  I just KNOW White Denim has an Exile on Main Street in 'em somewhere.  While this album isn't that album (sorry, it just doesn't rock hard enough), it's certainly on par with their previous output (which I've enjoyed).  At this point, that is probably this band's real (recorded) strength: putting out eminently listenable albums.  The real winners here can be found in the spiraling guitar work of "At the Farms," the sentimental "Street Joy," and the bubbly "Is and Is and Is."

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9.) Explosions in the Sky - Take Care, Take Care, Take Care -- If you've ever heard an Explosions in the Sky song, you know EXACTLY what you're getting here.  If you haven't, allow me to explain: delicate, heavily-reverbed, extremely emo(tive) instrumental / post-rock that wrings every last drop out of the quiet / loud dynamic.  Not for everyone, but those who do like it tend to REALLY like it.

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10.) O'Death - Outside -- OATTETH FOREVER!!!! [inside joke.]  If you were worried that these guys' inimitable version of scrappy, punky mountain music would be derailed by their misfortune (their drummer was stricken with bone cancer), fear not: this album is just as persistently, undeniably, rollickingly catchy as their previous work.

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11.) Tombs - Path of Totality -- Never mind the relentless brutality and A+ riffs on this record.  This album has the highest ranking on the list of any band that has had a member throw a punch at me.  Huzzah!

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12.) Battles - Gloss Drop -- I loved the shit out of "Atlas" (who didn't), but generally I found Mirrored to be monotonous and tuneless (if rhythmically interesting at times).  But this time around, by enlisting a cadre of guest vocalists and focusing more on melody, Battles manage to stave off my boredom quite effectively.

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13.) Liturgy - Aesthethica -- So apparently Liturgy main dude Hunter Hunt Hendrix has pissed off a lot of people in the black metal community.  Of course, why anyone would give a holy horsefuck about the opinions of the black metal community, I have no earthly idea.  Oh yeah, that's right, sometimes they kill people an' shit.  Watch your ass, brah!

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14.) Red Fang - Murder the Mountains -- Was really excited about this one, due to my thoroughly enjoying their first two releases, both of which I reviewed somewhere on this site.  Plus I enjoyed their live show.  And as anyone who knows me knows, I loves me some good ol' fashioned meat n' taters stoner metal.  Not to mention that this has gotten an assload of great press.  But seriously guys, whud'j'ya do with all the hooks?

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15.) Various Artists - Persian Funk -- Of course, I'm a sucker for this type of compilation.  For example, without '09's Psych Funk 101 comp, I would have never discovered this gem.  On Persian Funk, there are several worthy tracks, but look no farther than Morteza's creatively named "Morteza" for a sick fucking jam that shoulda been the theme to some awesomely horrible '70s genre film / blaxploitation flick / heavily mustachioed cop drama.

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16.) Mars Classroom - New Theory of Everything -- As someone who regularly identifies GbV as the Greatest Band of All Time, I occasionally feel pangs of guilt about the sheer amount of unadulterated vitriol I've poured into reviews of recent-period Robert Pollard releases.  That being said, this album has exactly ONE great song on it, which immediately makes it better than any of the umpteen trillion other Bob releases we've seen over the last two years.  (That being said, "Wish You Were Young" is the shit.)

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17.) Times New Viking - Dancer Equired -- Yes, this is the first Times New Viking album without the endearingly oppressive layer of tape hiss we've all grown to know and love.  As a direct result of that, it would probably be more... I dunno, 'romantic' for music journalism's sake if this review were to read either 1.) "they prove that they're a damn fine band without the hiss" or 2.) "they prove that the hiss was hiding their suckitude all along."  But neither is the case.  On this album, TNV is simply a decent, sloppy indie pop act, of which there are approximately fifteen trillion bipping and bopping around the blogosphere at any given time.  [Incidentally, say what you want about the glut of "lo-fi" bands that popped up over the last few years: yes, it was redundant, and yes a lot of undeserving people got a lot of press for the wrong reasons, but I'll take lo-fi copycats over first generation chillwave any day of the fucking week.]

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18.) Dum Dum Girls - He Gets Me High -- This is nowhere near a 'bad' record by any means, but when comparing recent releases by gothy, Jesus and Mary Chain-influenced noise pop bands, this is just so far inferior to the Raveonettes album that it's practically irrelevant.  Which is a shame.  Kristen Gundred may have a really nice singing voice, but she does herself no favors by penning some of the most godawful lyrics ever recorded.

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19.) Krallice - Diotima -- Technically accomplished; bone-crushingly loud; forged from unimpeachable integrity; virtually impossible to listen to in its entirety in one sitting.

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20.) The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Belong -- Signing on with 90s stalwarts Alan Moulder and Flood as a production team has made these guys' scrappy little pop tunes decidedly less limp-wristed, but, with two notable exceptions ("Belong" and "Even in Dreams" are both pretty great), the songwriting remains firmly in "meh" territory.

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21.) Boris - Heavy Rocks (2011) -- If you're not familiar with Japanese sludge-meisters Boris' huge discography, you might not be aware of the fact that they put out another (greatly superior) album called Heavy Rocks nine years ago.  This one seems to rehash the ground they've been traversing on their last several more conventional, song-based studio albums, albeit less successfully / more boringly.  Although, in Boris' case, wallowing in the past is decidedly less awful than, say, experimenting in electro (see #29 below). 

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22.) The People's Temple - Sons of Stone -- The production on this album manages to replicate Nuggets-era (well, San Fran Nuggets, at least) garagey, folky psych.  And, just as many Nuggets acts were good for one great song and nothing more, this album consists of one true gem (the title track) and a bunch of aimless, dreary, stoned-sounding horsecrap.

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23.) The Antlers - Burst Apart -- Throughout the course of the media blitz that preceded this album, Peter Silberman said he wanted this Antlers album to be something that "didn't need to be an overwhelming emotional experience every time you listen to it," referencing Hospice's gut-wrenchingly intimate catharsis (which actually worked).  Uhhhhhhh, bad move.  Saying "we're taking the emotional experience out of an Antlers record" is tantamount to saying "ok, we're going to make a Metallica record, but we're going to take out the guitar solos, we're going to make the snare sound like a fucking empty tin can, and we're going to let Kirk write lyrics."  Avoid.

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24.) Death - Spiritual Mental Physical --  This is to be considered an 'Odds and Sods'-type release, focusing on unearthed tracks and unfinished sketches, many of which are too bare to actually be considered "songs."  So this should not be considered a true follow up to '09's pretty darn good ...For the World to See.  The only real noteworthy tidbit on this one is "The Masks," which hilariously rips off the entire verse of the Beatles' "Got to Get You Into My Life,"  note for note.

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25.) Foo Fighters - Wasting Light -- Yeah, I know, what was I thinking, right?  Well, since you asked, my "acquaintance," who is a useless thieving moron and one of the biggest pieces of ignorant Lwong Eyelund trash I've ever met, one day said to me "duuuuuhhhhh... you heard the new Foo Fighters?  I don't usually like thrash metal but this is pretty good!!!111!!!1!" [Yes, you could actually HEAR the accidental 1's rolling out of his tooth-deprived mouth.]  Of course, this genius' idea of thrash metal is probably like O.A.R. or something, so I should have filed this away along with everything else he ever says under "flush immediately," but, in the interest of "acquaintance" relations, I instead thought to myself, "hmmm, it would be nice to have something we could both listen to and enjoy during those timeless moments where he's shamelessly / gratitudelessly leeching drugs and booze off of me late nite."  So I gave this shitty album a shot, sue me.  Whatever.  Foo Fighters are terrible, move along, nothing to see here. 

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26.) The Kills - Blood Pressures -- Sorry, Jack White totally ruined Alison Mosshart.  While the Kills' first two albums worked largely in part to VV and Hotel's convincing stabs of drugged-out creepiness, these songs all just sound antiseptically prefab, ideal for hawking Volkswagens or fancy sunglasses or expensive strollers or whatever the fuck it is that white folks waste their money on these days. 

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27.) Panda Bear - Tomboy -- A total crock of hyped-up gimmicky garbage.  I don't know about you, but me, I'm a "song" guy, and the songwriting on this one is, for all intents and purposes, virtually non-existent.  It makes sense that technology (oooh, look at me!  I can loop shit!) plays such a central role on this album, because I've met toasters that have more soul than this moron.  The best thing you can say about Tomboy is that it makes 'good background music,' which, to me is probably the most scathing indictment one can make about ANY music.

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28.) Crystal Stilts - In Love With Oblivion -- Ugggggghhhhh... the singing on this... THE SINGING! THE GODAWFUL SINGING!!!  How do the other members of the band put up with this massive horsecock being rammed down their collective throats time and time again, over and over, on every single fucking track?  HE SINGS THE SAME TWO FUCKING NOTES IN EVERY SONG!!!  AND THAT'S IT!!!!!!!  Is this just an elaborate practical joke, and rest of the band isn't in on it?  Are the other band members just afraid they're going to hurt his feelings if they broach the subject?  Does the singer suffer from IDS (Imminent Death Syndrome)?  Is this a brilliant marketing hoax played on the public to prove that morons will cream their jeans over ABSOLUTELY ANYTHING that gets compared to Joy Division?  Meh, fuck it, who really cares.  This album blows. 

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29.) Boris - Attention Please -- Yes, it may take balls for an established heavy band like Boris to branch out into yet another new genre (noisy, breathy industrial electropop, uh, or something) while focusing on their weakest instrument (guitarist Wata's thin-as-toilet paper voice, which is seemingly incapable of expressing anything more intense than a sigh), but that doesn't mean we have to like it.  Or pay money for it. 

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30.) Various Artists - Sing for Your Meat: a Tribute to Guided by Voices -- Worse than pointless.  Is there really a huge demand for giving absolute no-talents a podium for the sole purpose of eviscerating classic GbV songs?  Well, there shouldn't be.  Since most of the original "studio" versions of these songs were recorded on the cheap (on 4 track or 8 track), and since most of the artists on this joke of a piece of shit of a record choose to perform these songs in a lo-fi "style" as well, they've given me no choice but to judge these inferior remakes face-to-face against the originals, which rank among the greatest songs EVER WRITTEN AND PERFORMED BY ANYBODY.  So you wanna guess how Crooked Fingers, James Husband, and some idiot from the Vivian Girls fare?  Take a wild stab!

 

The 40 Best Albums of 2008

    I've been sittin' on this bad boy for a week and a half, so even though there's at least 5 albums that I meant to listen to which will tragically go unheard, it's time to get on my horse up in this piece.  Listening-wise, I'm a hundred-plus albums into 2008 and hooooo mama am I ready to flip the calendar into '09.

    You may or may not notice that this list lacks many staples of this year's Top Albums lists that you'll find elsewhere, which is for the simple reason that I didn't bother buying 'em.  That stuff won't be on the list because it failed to impress during whatever brief shot I gave it, be it SNL performance (Vampire Weekend), radio session (MGMT), live set (High Places), or the band's previous work, of which I'm the only person I know who doesn't like it (TV on the Radio).  As for the rest of the list, I'm still working on finishing up reviews for all of the other albums I heard in '08, but who the fuck knows when I'll get around to posting that one.  

    For this list, all the usual rules apply: these are all albums which I personally bought, so by actually spending a shitload of money on recorded music instead of stealing it like the rest of you deadbeats, I'm hopefully digging myself out from under a decade-and-a-half of karmic debt, slowly but surely.  (That's how it works, right?)  Also, reissues are not permitted, which is why you won't find the Bosco deal on here, or the Dennis Wilson joint.  But otherwise anything else is permitted: EPs, compilations, live albums, you name it.  In the name of RAWK, let's have at it, shall we?

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1.) Earth - The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull -- I liked Earth's previous incarnation as doomy dronesters, but The Bees' brand of repetitive, dreamy twang totally smokes anything else of theirs that I've heard.  Make no mistake, though: this is not good driving music, nor is it much good for drinkin'.  (Or, presumably, drinking and driving, although I haven't tested that one out.)  And no, this album does not rock.  But what it does manage to do -- unconditionally soothe, that is -- is so welcome that I'll be relying on this album as a stress reliever for a very, very long time.  No joke, sidle on up next to this one and you'll find yourself thinking someone replaced your Folgers Crystals with straight up smack.

2.) The Raveonettes - Lust Lust Lust -- By opening this album with "Aly Walk With Me," the longest and most distortion-heavy song in their catalog, the Danish twosome draws a line in the sand: if you don't absolutely love The Raveonettes by this point, then you never will.  And by returning to the template put forth on 2003's excellent Chain Gang of Love, Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo have once again hit upon a winning combination: perfect melodies, plenty of Psychocandy-esque fuzz, near-telepathic harmonies, and their own should-be-patented dirty/sexy aesthetic.  Although Lust Lust Lust largely shies away from the genre-hopping of 2005's Pretty in Black, this year's four (count 'em, four) other Raveonettes releases (and a solo album) manage to provide Wagner with an outlet for his more experimental side(s).  Song of the Year candidates: "Dead Sound" (#4), "Hallucinations" (#13), "Aly, Walk With Me (#15).  "Blush," "You Want the Candy" and "Blitzed" are also great.

3.) The Magnetic Fields - Distortion -- Like usual, Stephin Merritt tosses out a whole mess of poppy goodness, yielding several unmistakeable gems in the process.  Unlike past works, however, each of Distortion's 3-minute-or-so nuggets is swathed in a haze of distortion worthy of the best Jesus and Mary Chain (or Raveonettes, for that matter) records.  Yes, there's a few bummers on here, but if you wield your skip button right, you're in for quite a treat.  Song of the Year candidates: "California Girls" (#6), "The Nun's Litany" (#12), "Drive on Driver" (#17), "I'll Dream Alone" (#58).  I also like "Three-Way," "Zombie Boy," and "Courtesans" quite a bit.

4.) Metallica - Death Magnetic -- Replacing baby-eater/Nazi/child pornographer/gift-giver Bob Rock at the boards, superultramegaproducer Rick Rubin famously challenged Metallica to "write the second half of Master of Puppets."  Yeah, that wasn't going to happen, but what they wound up with mirrors ...And Justice For All, and almost eerily so: there's an opening song which sounds a lot like "Blackened," legit Metalli-classic at track 4 ("The Day That Never Comes"), a 9+ minute kickass instrumental and a relatively brief shot of molten fury to close the album.  Now, to be sure, some remnants of Metallica's "lost period" (a/k/a the last two decades) remain, notably the cringetastic "Chicken Soup for the Aging Metalhead Soul"-style self-help lyrics.  But before 2008, had I been asked which staple of my teenage years would seemingly against all odds roar back into relevance, I probably would have chosen Guns N' Roses, based on their track record of "practically nothing" over the last 17 years vs. Metallica's track record of "a lot of crappy music since Justice."  But boy, would I have been wrong.  Song of the Year candidates: "The Day That Never Comes" (#7) and "That Was Just Your Life" (#14).  But they're all pretty good except "Judas Kiss."

5.) Times New Viking - Stay Awake EP -- These arty Ohioan lo-fi devotees have long professed their admiration for Guided by Voices, and this EP is their best approximation of "classic" period GbV's awesome melodicism.  Short and sweet, without a duffer in the bunch.  Song of the Year candidate: "Sick and Tyred" (#19), but fuckin' a, they're all money.

6.) Blood on the Wall - Liferz -- Immature, lo-fi, garagey, and as fun -- and welcome -- as free blow.  Sure, you'll find yourself playing the "sounds like..." game throughout this album, but c'mon, that's part of the fun: brother-sister duo Brad and Courtney Shanks make no attempt to disguise their unabashed Pavement/Sonic Youth/Pixies worship, and neither should you.  Song of the Year candidates: "Junkeee... Julieee..." (#23), "Sorry Sorry Sarah" (#37).

7.) Sigur Ros - Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust -- When describing this album, it's easy to get bogged down by discussing the most obvious, soundbyte-worthy qualities: there's a song sung in English; a coupl'a tunes which display a newfound jaunty positivity; a lack of the band's trademark bowed guitar sound; super lush orchestration.  But make no mistake, this is very much a Sigur Ros record, and probably the most uplifting record of the year.  Song of the Year candidate: "Inni Mer Syngur Vitleysingur" (#24)

8.) Tapes 'n Tapes - Walk It Off -- All year I was trying to think of a reason to dislike this other than Dave Fridmann's totally blown-out production, and, at last, I couldn't.  The songwriting is just too strong here, even if the mix is way, way too harsh.  Although there's nothing as subtly awesome as The Loon's "Manitoba," "Time of Songs" comes damn near close, and the rockin' songs (especially "Le Ruse," "The Dirty Dirty" and "Headshock") do, in fact, rock.  But buyer beware: turn down your subwoofer or you're going to need some new speakers (and maybe some new neighbors).  Song of the Year candidates: "Le Ruse" (#27), "The Dirty Dirty" (#40), and "Le Ruse" (#47), with "Headshock" just barely missing the cut.

9.) School of Seven Bells - Alpinisms -- Meticulously concieved without being heavy-handed, this breezy electropop masterpiece is based around the splendid vocal harmonies of the lovely Deheza twins (Alejandra and Claudia), layers of ooey-gooey synth, and former Secret Machines dude Ben Curtis' bend-but-don't-break peppy hip-hop beats.  In a fair universe, this fine album would yield several chart hits, but alas, the world is filled with assholes who have terrible taste in everything.  Song of the Year candidates: "Half Asleep" (#30), "Face to Face on High Places" (#54), and "My Cabal" should be up there somewhere, too.

10.) David Byrne and Brian Eno - Everything That Happens Will Happen Today -- Who'd'a thunk that: 1.) Byrne/Eno would regroup for a follow-up to Bush of Ghosts and 2.) the ensuing result would be so coherent, bordering on MOR and 3.) said album would feature several outstanding cuts.  (Well, I guess that last one is pretty reasonable.)  A very optimistic, affirming pop album.  Song of the Year candidates: "Everything That Happens Will Happen Today" (#16), "One Fine Day" (#55).  Everyone else seems to like "Strange Overtones" quite a bit, but I prefer "My Big Nurse" along with the other two.

11.) Goes Cube - Not What We Thought and Hutchinson EPs -- Few bands 'round these parts have had as much positive bandwidth devoted to them as Brooklyn's mighty Goes Cube.  Which makes sense: they mix incredibly heavy riffs, stunning chops and attitude straight out of a Dischord manifesto.  Face it, it's only a matter of time before the powers that be wise up and hand these guys a kickass record deal.  'Til then, get to know 'em while they're still playing the small rooms and putting out self-released EPs.  Song of the Year candidates: Goes Cube Song 54 > Goes Cube Song 50 medley (#22), and Goes Cube Song 57 (#31), although I'm also partial to Hutchinson's "Gravestones Like Chess Pieces."

12.) The Thermals - Live at the Echoplex -- If 2008 was the year of the "solid-if-unspectacular" album, this good-not-great live album's placement on the list is more indicative of a void in the Tuddd Archive: high-quality live Thermals (other than their Daytrotter session and Pitchfork.tv's awesome Don't Look Down mini-set) is apparently hard to come by.  Unfortunately, this appears to be a straight, unaltered 'board mix, meaning that the vocals are way too prevalent in the mix and the guitar too low, but Kathy Foster's all-meat-no-filler basslines thankfully come across loud and clear.  Song of the Year candidates: I disqualified live tracks from the Best Songs list, but this one's jampacked with all your favorite Thermals favorites.

13.) The Futureheads - This Is Not the World -- After these guys stunk up the joint with '06's downright putrid News and Tributes, fans had reason to think The Futureheads had completely jumped the shark.  Fortunately, This Is Not the World takes a step in the right direction towards re-establishing The Futureheads as postpunk juggernauts (sub-category: "spiky/angular/uber-energetic").  Joyous?  Fun?  Hells yeah, although the band would have done well to throw a couple of downtempo curveballs (think "Danger of the Water" or "Hounds of Love" from the debut album) into the mix, as well as relying a bit more on their awesome four-part harmony vocals.  Song of the Year candidates: "Walking Backwards" (#10), with "Think Tonight" and "The Beginning of the Twist" also as standouts.

14.) Russian Circles - Station -- I loved '06's Enter (that year's fourth-best record) because it married the flash-fingered virtuosity of thrash to the atmospherics of straight-up post-rock.  Like, imagine if somehow Stuart Braithwaite had wandered into a Puppets-era Metallica jam session.  (Fuck yeah!)  Although Station relies less on guitarist Mike Sullivan's incredible chops -- to the album's detriment, in my opinion -- songs like "Harper Lewis," the title cut, and especially "Verses" are undeniably beautiful melodies.  Song of the Year candidate: "Verses" (#9).

15.) Torche - Meanderthal -- Critics have been creaming their collective Levis over Torche's near-perfect blend of heaviness and pop sensibilities (I'm lovin' Earfarm's "Melvins-meets-what-the-Foo Fighters-should-sound-like" comparison), and it's no wonder: these guys are both riff-tastic and hooky at the same time.  Great, great listen, and probably my favorite album to make multiple appearance during setbreaks at live shows in '08.  Song of the Year candidates: "Across the Shields" (#3), "Without a Sound" (#66).

16.) Deerhunter - Microcastle/Weird Era Continued -- Aaaah, fudgesicles.  I'm conflicted about where to rank this album, and for many reasons.  First off, Deerhunter are absolutely one of my favoritest bands (I've seen 'em live six times this year).  I ranked Cryptograms #3 on last year's Best Of Albums list.  When it comes to Microcastle proper, the first few tracks and last several tracks are better than anything anybody else has done this year, although the album's middle proves mushy.  What's more, it took me at least 50 listens before I figured out that Cryptograms was totally fucking awesome, and Weird Era definitely has similarly impenetrable-at-first qualities.  And although I have to admit to a little bit of disappointment about the band's refusal to release a "definitive" version of "Calvary Scars" (the Microcastle version is too short; Weird Era's too long), allow me to remunerate for them with the following: Download 02 Calvary Scars .  (Yes, there's a little static during the first few seconds, but after that you're golden.)  Song of the Year candidates: "Nothing Ever Happened" is the year's best song, and "Twilight at Carbon Lake" (#8) and "Never Stops" (#26") aren't far behind.

17.) King Khan and the Shrines - The Supreme Genius of King Khan and the Shrines -- This one's a real crowd-pleaser.  If you're into Rhino's incredible Nuggets box set (and who isn't), then this album is for you.  Imagine top-notch garage-psych married to throat-shredding classic soul and you've got a pretty good idea as to what this one sounds like.  In an informal polling of "People That Have Visited Me At My Apartment or Ridden Shotgun in My Car 2008", this album easily comes out on top.

18.) Krallice - Krallice -- To me this album sounds like a cross between a nuclear holocaust and vigorous, relentless genital mutilation. 

19.) Portishead - Third -- After over a decade of dormancy, Portishead manage to break new ground on this newest long-player, instead of simply conjuring nostalgia by resting on their trip-hop laurels.  As original, inscrutable and downright creepy as ever, Third incorporates the best elements of "old" Portishead by relying on painstaking production and harrowing vocal performances, while still sounding nothing like their previous work.  Song of the Year candidates: "The Rip" (#18) and "Silence" (#57). 

20.) Times New Viking - Rip It Off -- If there's a theme to the top portion of this list, it would have to be "I like albums that are filled with distorted pop songs."  Seriously, look above: numbers 2, 3, 5, 8 and 16 all line up neatly under that description.  Listening to this album evokes similar feelings to those first few glorious listens of Alien Lanes or Bee Thousand, with the pedal firmly to the metal in an immediate, melodic vein.  Only unlike GbV, who always seemed to succeed in spite of their primitive recording techniques, Times New Viking's genius is in making the hiss and distortion into an actual instrument in and of itself.  (I'm aware that last sentence makes little-to-no sense, but fuck it.)  Song of the Year candidates: "Teen Drama" (#39).  "The Wait" and "My Head" both also rock. 

21.) Boris - Smile -- A good album, but one gets the feeling Boris could shit something like this out in their sleep (to coin a phrase).  You have breakneck barn burners in the vein of Pink's "Woman on the Screen," slower numbers, and the compulsory lengthy slab of drone that closes the record -- all pretty standard, really.  The new ground that's broken can be found in the hypnotically dubby "My Neighbor Satan," which evokes the greatness of Bill Laswell's Charged project.  Come to think of it, I'd love to hear a Laswell/Boris collab.  Southern Lord, make it happen!  Song of the Year candidate: "My Neighbor Satan" (#34)

22.) Viking Skull - Doom, Gloom, Heartache and Whiskey -- Man, I loves me some good ol' fashioned meat-n-taters stoner metal, which begs the question why I don't randomly check out more music similar to this.  A New Year's resolution for '09 perhaps?  Anyway, these guys' sound falls somewhere around Bad Wizard's whiskey-n-meth party rock and more traditional Sabbath-worship.  (A winning combo.)  And you have to root for any band that proclaims in song their desire to "drinky-drinky-drink, drink-drink-drink, drink 'till we shit our pants."  Song of the Year candidate: The title track is friggin' great, although I hadn't heard it in time for the Best Songs list.

23.) White Denim - Exposion -- Although this album isn't able to capture the raving lunacy of their live show, it's still a tasty collection of jams.  Sonically these guys represent a nice amalgam of Creedence, Allmans, Nuggets, scrappy soul outfits, and your favorite garage bands.  Song of the Year candidate: Transparency (#60)

24.) Jay Reatard - Matador Singles '08 -- As a fan of much of the esteemed Mr. Reatard's music, this is undoubtedly his most cohesive collection yet, which is odd when considering that its material is drawn from the 7" sides that comprised his Matador singles series.  To be sure, he's still DIY, just with a little more variety as to the instrumentation.  The world eagerly awaits his next offering, set for release in the early months of '09.

25.) Early Man - Beware the Circling Fin EP -- These guys are another band with a highly anticipated upcoming '09 release on tap, and this EP serves admirably as a tide-you-over placeholder until the full-length is released.  These guys do the Judas Priest/Kill 'Em All thing better than anyone.  Song of the Year candidate: Sinking the Blade (#56).

26.) Melvins - Nude With Boots -- Adding the members of Big Business to their roster hasn't changed the way The Melvins operate, and why should it -- anyone who's ever heard/seen Big Business immediately notices the sonic debt they owe to Buzz Osbourne and Dale Crover.  Similar to previous releases, Nude With Boots has plenty of sludge, ranging between deceptively poppy numbers and slower doomy shit.  Song of the Year candidate: "Billy Fish" (#52).

27.) Chairlift - Does You Inspire You -- Loved these guys' live show both times I saw 'em with Caroline Polachek's impeccable vocals framed poifectly by the sparse instrumentation provided by her bandmates.  The album plays out similarly, with some majorly diverse pure pop styles on display.  From Erasure's bubbly electropop to Annie Lennox' confident songcraft, even to grandeur worthy of The Cure.  Song of the Year candidates: "Evident Utensil" (#2), "Bruises" #61.

28.) The Kills - Midnight Boom -- I felt that The Kills perfected their dark, beat punk/no wave dramas on No Wow, so the slightly gussied-up, gimmicky feel of singles "URA Fever" and "Cheap and Cheerful" is a bit disappointing.   Midnight Boom was supposedly heavily influenced by schoolyard chants and cadences, which succeeds most notably on the standouts "Hook and Line" and "Sour Cherry" but comes off as grating on cuts like "Alphabet Pony."  Also notable is the successful foray into Luscious Jacksonish territory with the uberchill "Black Balloon."  Uneven record but still very listenable and catchy throughout.  Song of the Year candidate: "Hook and Line" (#21).

29.) The Big Sleep - Sleep Forever -- Some nice instrumentals, some great '90s-ish alt-rock, and some more reflective pieces.  Nothing groundbreaking, but still worthy of many, many listens.  Song of the Year candidate: "Pinkies" (#50).

30.) Thalia Zedek Band - Liars and Prayers - Just as Johnny Cash's raspy howl said as much as his lyrics, as do Thalia Zedek's leathery vocal cords at this stage in her career.  Many gloomy artists seem to revel in a "light at the end of the tunnel" theory of songwriting, but Zedek largely eschews any thoughts of redemption in most of her songs, much to her credit.  Song of the Year candidate: "Lower Allston" (#51).

31.) Jay Reatard - Singles 06-07 -- In the Red Records helpfully collects many of Reatard's out-of-print vinyl sides on this one, including alternate versions of several Blood Visions tracks.  Good shit.  Song of the Year candidate:  "Another Person" (#58).

32.) Cheap Time - Cheap Time -- These guys sound like Richard Hell fronting the Heartbreakers.  Or Johnny Thunders fronting the Voidoids.  Or both.  Or something.  Song of the Year candidate: "Too Late" (#41)

33.) Witch - Paralyzed -- I loved Witch's debut record (#6 on 2006's Best of Albums list) and although this one doesn't have anything as immediately awesome like "Seer" or "Rip Van Winkle," it manages to de-emphasize the Claypoolish vocals, which is an improvement.  By and large, the songs are leaner and quicker paced, adding a Motorheadish to their rock solid Sabbath template.  Good shit.  Song of the Year candidate: "Eye" (#73)

34.) Young Knives - Superabundance -- Among their British post-punk soundalike counterparts, these guys are better than Kaiser Chiefs but worse than The Futureheads.  So they're pretty good.  Song of the Year candidate: "Turn Tail" (#36).

35.) Boat - Topps EP -- I liked their last full length (perhaps a bit underrated at #35 on last year's list), and their live show also hit home.  This l'il 4-song morsel continues in the vein of adorable scrappiness, but you'd be a fool to deny these melodies.  A fool I say!!  Song of the Year candidate: "Four Beds for Boat" (#72) made the list, and I fucked up majorly leaving "Bee Buzz" off.

36.) Death Vessel - Nothing Is Precious Enough for Us -- There's plenty about Joel Thibodeau that sets him apart from other contemporary "neo-trad" folk artists.  First, the gender-bending vocals and flawless upper register make for a pleasant listening experience.  And second, the songwriting is just so much better than that of Devendra and other freakfolkies as to render them kinda irrelevant.  Solid follow up to '05's Stay Close, which I also liked quite a bit.  Song of the Year candidates: "Block My Eye" (#44), "Bruno's Torso" (#64).

37.) Mogwai - Batcat EP -- This teaser EP seemed to bode well for those (all four of us) that dug the direction the band took on '06's Mr. Beast with the title track reminiscent of Beast's Pelican-esque "Glasgow Mega-Snake."  Unfortunately the Hawk Is Howling album proved to be boringly mediocre, with "Batcat" the belle of the ball.  Song of the Year candidate: "Batcat" (#35)

38.) Los Straitjackets - Los Straitjackets in Concert -- I love Los Straitjackets, especially in the live setting, but this album would have benefited from being seriously edited down, to, say, maybe 45 minutes or so.  Take the classics ("Casbah," "State Fair," "University Blvd." "Pacifica," etc.) and throw on a bunch of the theme song covers (Batman, Titanic, Munsters, Magnificent Seven, Midnight Cowboy) and you'd have a fine set of songs.  As with most live experiences, when you can't actually be there, less is usually more.

39.) Sian Alice Group - 59'59 -- This music traverses the same territory as the live show: simple and pretty ("As the Morning Light"), stuff a bit darker ("Way Down to Heaven"), tracks that sound kind of like Mogwai ("Kirilov") and stuff that wouldn't sound out of place on the new Portishead album ("Contours").  Overall, this album shows off a style that's vaguely gothy post rock, and the vocals are stunning.  Is there some filler?  Sure, and they probably should have cut the album down to match their usual 40-45 minute set length, but for the most part I'm diggin' it.

40.) Scars on Broadway - Scars on Broadway -- Well, it's clear from comparing this (effectively Daron Malakian's solo debut) to last year's Elect the Dead (by System of a Down vocalist Serj Tankian) who contributed what to System: Malakian the tight, blatantly poppy metal riffing, apocalyptic lyrics and the bathroom humor; Tankian the ranting homeless guy-style sloganeering ("PRAISE THE LORD AND PASS THE AMMUNITION!"), the apocalyptic lyrics and the bathroom humor.  Although this is probably too slickly produced, it never approaches anything like Linkin Park or whatever, so that's good.  Song of the Year candidates: "World Long Gone" (#38), "They Say" (#46)

The 75 Best Songs of 2008

   

    Yes, this is just like thousands of other crappy blog lists that you'll come across, with one wrinkle: in honor of the spirit of giving/sharing that accompanies the holiday season (and because sharing is caring, duh) I figured I'd give a little something back to those of you who happen to traipse through this here Muddd, in the form of primo tunage.  However, since I'm not too keen on giving away copyrighted stuff, I've tried to include kickass high quality *live* bootlegged versions of as many songs on the below list as I could find.  I say "tried" because a few of these are pretty poor quality-wise, and because (obviously) I wasn't able to track down live versions of anywhere near every song.  (Anyone have any Cheap Time bootlegs?  How about Cheeseburger?  Blood on the Wall?  Didn't think so.)

    That being said, the way in which this list was executed was pretty fucking retarded, since I'm just now realizing shit like I forgot to put any King Khan on here, among other notable omissions.  The only real rule is that I'm not including tracks from live albums which already have been put out on albums, otherwise this list would be full of Thermals and Los Straitjackets songs.  Again, since I'm already noticing my own errors on the list ("Go for the Exit" should be way higher, for one), I'll probably use the comments section to amend errors.  Actually, after having spent damn near a full day on this, it's more likely that I'll never actually look at this list again. 

    Nonetheless, blah blah blah, on with the list.  To avoid confusion, the arrow thingies ------> signify a downloadable mp3, and pretty much any other link goes to somewhere on YouTube.  Don't say I never did nuthin' for ya.

------------

1.) "Nothing Ever Happened" by Deerhunter    ------>Download 06 Nothing Ever Happened

Notes: I'm looking to poach as little as possible here... NYC taper has a couple good recordings from Deerhunter shows this year here and here, both of which I attended.  The best live version of this song I've ever seen/heard is on Youtube here, from Baeble music's capture of the song of August's McCarren Park show (with soundboard audio!) which I also went to. 

2.) "Evident Utensil" by Chairlift                     ------>Download Chairlift 2008-11-19 

Notes: This download is actually a 12-minute long mp2 of Chairlift's November BBC session, and as such it's comprised of the following tracks: 1- introduction/interview 2- Bruises 3- interview 4- Evident Utensil 5- closing comments.  Also, here's a live video from the After the Jump Festival, which I actually attended, skipping Chairlift's set because I had no idea who they were at the time.  Boooo me. 

3.) "Across the Shields" by Torche                   ------>Download 07 Across the Shields 

Notes: I'm aware that this MP3 doesn't sound that great, but high quality Torche boots are apparently tough to come by; I have a couple other live versions of this song with this one being the least awful.  Watch this for the best Youtube has to offer for this song.

4.) "Dead Sound" by The Raveonettes            ------>Download 02 Dead Sound 

Notes: This is the best of the six live versions that are currently littering Tuddd Archives... a fantastic recording right here.  Here's the music video (prob'ly the best music video I've seen all year), and here's video of a sweet-ass acoustic version.

5.) "Heart of Chambers" by Beach House

Notes: Yeah, no luck on finding live audio versions of this anywhere, but here's the music video.

6.) "California Girls" by The Magnetic Fields    ----->Download 1-02 California Girls

Notes: Drastically different arrangement than the feedback-swathed album version.  More of a chamber pop thing going on here, which is nice, and here's a video version of the same performance the download is from.

7.) "The Day That Never Comes" by Metallica    ------> yeah, not gonna happen.

I actually have an excellent live version of this song but I'm not about to unleash Metallica's phalanx of lawyers upon myself.  Here's an oddly truncated live version from Jools Holland and here's the actual music video.

8.) "Twilight at Carbon Lake" by Deerhunter     ------>Download 12 Twilight at Carbon Lake

Notes:This version is okay, but (again) head here for a superior version captured by NYC taper.  Live video: check.

9.) "Verses" by Russian Circles

Notes: I got nuthin' mp3-wise.  Here's a good version from Youtube though.

10.) "Walking Backwards" by The Futureheads

Notes: Again, a big fat fucking donut.  Here's the puppet-infested music video, although I'll warn you that it's a music video which is presented in the style of "the making of the music video," which is annoying and gay. 

11.) "For Malena" by Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog

Notes: Yeah, nada.  Who knows if this song has ever even been performed live.

12.) "The Nun's Litany" by The Magnetic Fields        ------>Download 2-08 The Nun's Litany

Notes: Just as "California Girls" above, this "Disortion" nugget gets the chamber-pop treatment.  Shirley Simms handles vocals on the album version, but live Stephin Merritt takes the reins.  Here's an interview/solo performance (with bouzouki!) starring Merritt.

13.) "Hallucinations" by The Raveonettes        ------>Download 01 intro _ Hallucinations 

Notes: Has a brief KCRW tag at the beginning, but fuck yeah it's a great version.  This is an awesome pro-shot live video of the song.

14.) "That Was Just Your Life" by Metallica   

Notes: See #7 above.  Same story here.  This is an excellent live version, complete with creepy/lame staged "backstage all access" retardedness.  To avoid the poopy parts, skip to about 3 minutes in.

15.) "Aly Walk With Me" by The Raveonettes    ------>Download 06 Aly, Walk With Me 

Notes: Man, KCRW sure knows how to mix the Raveonettes, which is more than I can say for some music venue soundguys.  (Terminal 5, I'm looking at you.) Live/acoustic version here, and Sune n' Sharin discuss the song (rather inanely) here.

16.) "Everything That Happens Will Happen Today" by David Byrne and Brian Eno ------>Download 02 Everything That Happens Will Happ

Notes: Anyone know why he didn't do a show in NYC on the last tour?  Anybody?!

17.) "Drive On Driver" by The Magnetic Fields     ------>Download 2-07 Drive On, Driver

Notes: Third of four songs on this list from Distortion.  Here's a live video from Oslo.

18.) "The Rip" by Portishead                            ------>Download 02

Notes: Great song.  Radiohead digs it, too. 

19.) "Sick and Tyred" by Times New Viking       

Notes: Nothing to offer, although this implies that there's a forthcoming music video.  Huzzah.

20.) "Highly Suspicious" by My Morning Jacket    ------>Download 2-10 Highly Suspicious

Notes: I was tempted to use the version from their June show at Radio City (which I attended), or the one from their legendary Bonnaroo set (which I didn't), but this version just sounds better.  This is the video of the performance from Bonnaroo.

21.) "Hook and Line" by The Kills                     ----->Download 03 Hook and Line

Notes: Rare acoustic version.  I think I remembered reading somewhere that this was the first time they had performed this song ever, which explains the brief confusion at the beginning.  Here's a live video from Glasgow, missing the first few seconds of the song, but shot in black and white from pretty much underneath VV. 

22.) "Goes Cube Song 54" > "Goes Cube Song 50" by (you guessed it) Goes Cube

Notes: Can't find anything relevant videowise.

23.) "Junkee.... Julieeee" by Blood on the Wall

Notes: Watch this.

24.) "Inni Mer Syngur Vitleysingur" by Sigur Ros        ------>Download 06 Inní Mér Syngur Vitleysingur

Notes: Flat-out frickin' adorable.  Here's the "official video" and here's a live video of the song from LA.

25.) "The Crippled Jazzer" by Marnie Stern

Notes: Oddly enough, I couldn't find anything for this song, but check below for the "Transformer" video.

26.) "Never Stops" by Deerhunter                    ------>Download 02 Never Stops

Notes: Once again, allow me to direct you towards the NYCTaper website for a superior version.  Live video: I was at this show.

27.) "Time of Songs" by Tapes 'n Tapes

Notes: I couldn't find anything, although I'm starting to wonder why I didn't put "Headshock" on this list somewhere.

28.) "Ain't Got Nothin' (To Go Wrong)" by Dead Meadow    ------>Download 02 Ain't Got Nothing (To Go Wrong)

Notes: Live video here.

29.) "Coming Down the Stairs" by Endless Boogie

Notes: I got nothin'.

30.) "Half Asleep" by School of Seven Bells                ------>Download 06 Half Asleep

Notes: Best I could find on the video front was this partial. 

31.) "Goes Cube Song 57" by Goes Cube                        ------>Download Goes Cube - Song 57

Notes: Here's a version of this song from a show I was actually at.  Warning: volume is super low on this one.

32.) "Chemtrails" by Beck                                           

Notes: This guy has a live mp3 available, and here's a live video.

33.) "Jellybean" by Cheeseburger                                ------>Download Cheeseburger - Jellybean 

Notes: That's from the a sampler which was put out to promote Cheeseburger's Vice/Colt 45 tour.  Videos from that tour's stop at Glasslands are available here; look closely enough and you'll notice me drunkenly grabbing for the mic throughout the set.  Cringe.

34.) "My Neighbor Satan" by Boris                            ------>Download 1-07 My Neighbor Satan pt. 1

Notes: This one was split into 2 halves, so the second half is here: ------>Download 1-08 My Neighbor Satan pt. 2 _ intro

35.) "Batcat" by Mogwai                                               ------>Download Mogwai2008-09-13t14_vbr

Notes: Head over to Archive.org for way too much live Mogwai.  Live footage here; music video here.

36.) "Turn Tail" by Young Knives                                ------>Download Young Knives 2008-08-26

Notes: Just like the entry for Chairlift above, this one is an mp2 from a BBC session.  This one's a little longer, lasting about 17 minutes.  The tracklisting: 1- intro/interview 2- Dyed in the Wool 3- interview 4- Turn Tail 5- closing comments.  High quality/pro-shot live footage here.  Official video here.

37.) "Sorry Sorry Sarah" by Blood on the Wall

Notes: Indeed, the cupboard is bare on this one, so y'know what?  Here's a video of another awesome song of theirs with a chick's name in the title.

38.) "World Long Gone" by Scars on Broadway

Notes: Haven't seen any live audio circulating from Daron Malakian's post-SOAD band, but here's a live video and here's the actual (censored) big-budget music video for the song.

39.) "Teen Drama" by Times New Viking                    ------>Download 05 Track 05

Notes: For your viewing pleasure, live video.

40.) "The Dirty Dirty" by Tapes 'n Tapes

Notes: I've seen these guys twice and both times there's been an absolutely awful sound mix, which fortunately isn't the case here.

41.) "Too Late" by Cheap Time

Notes: "Too Late" is the first song on this video.

42.) "I Hate Nobody" by Oxford Collapse

Notes: Zero-zip-zilch-no-nada-none-nothing.

43.) "Young and Beautiful" by The Raveonettes

Notes: I don't think they've played this song live yet, so I think I'll go against the constraining motif of this list and cheat a little. 

44.) "Block My Eye" by Death Vessel

Notes: The well appears to be dry.

45.) "I Got Mine" by The Black Keys                        ------>Download 03

Notes: Live on Letterman!

46.) "They Say" by Scars on Broadway

Notes: Sweet live version or official music video version.

47.) "Le Ruse" by Tapes 'n Tapes

Notes: Couldn't find anything, not that I looked all that hard.

48.) "The Emerald Snow of Sleep" by Danava

Notes: I have a few boots from their '08 tour, but they didn't play this song on any of 'em.  Maybe it's tough to reproduce the synth loops live?  Who the fuck knows.

49.) "Lost Coastlines" by Okkervil River                ------>Download 10 Lost Coastlines

Notes: Video of the first time they ever played this live.  Also, the music video.  YAY!!!

50.) "Pinkies" by The Big Sleep

Notes: Here's a cool unplugged version of the song.

51.) "Lower Allston" by Thalia Zedek Band

Notes: Never seen Thalia Zedek/Come boots anywhere. 

52.) "Billy Fish" by The Melvins                        ------>Download 04 Billy Fish [9_14_08 Netherlands]

Notes: Live video.

53.) "Shiller" by Ratatat

Notes: Live video right here.

54.) "Face to Face on High Places" by School of Seven Bells

Notes: Live video.  Probly their most MBV-influenced song.

55.) "One Fine Day" by David Byrne and Brian Eno        ------>Download 01 One Fine Day [11_8_08 Upper Darby

Notes: Here's a video of the Young at Heart chorus backing up DB.  Friggin' beautiful.

56.) "Sinking the Blade" by Early Man

Notes: I was totally expecting not to be able to post anthing for this song, so I was pleased to find this.

57.) "Silence" by Portishead

Notes: I have a live version of this badboy but it's ruined by static.  This isn't a bad consolation prize, though.

58.) "Another Person" by Jay Reatard

Notes: I just looked at the clock, and apparently I've been working on this useless list for 7 straight hours, stopping only to make a sandwich.  Starting to hate myself. 

59.) "I'll Dream Alone" by The Magnetic Fields

Notes: Yeah, I got nothing.

60.) "Transparency" by White Denim

Notes: Welcome to donut city, population Tuddd.

61.) "Bruises" by Chairlift

Notes: See above (#2 on the list specifically) for a download that includes this song.

62.) "Spider Hole" aka "Vacant Moan" by O'Death        ------>Download 03 Spider Home

Notes: The song comes named two different ways: "Spider Hole" on the single, and "Vacant Moan" on the record.  Of the two I prefer the rougher single version.

63.) "Buriedfed" by Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson

Notes: Music video here.  Live footage here.  My life in here.

64.) "Bruno's Torso" by Death Vessel

Notes: jklfasdjklsdfjakljasdlksdjaklajfklsdjfklajsdklafjsdklafjsdklajfsdklajflas.

65.) "Transformer" by Marnie Stern

Notes: Music video here.

66.) "Without a Sound" by Torche

Notes: See #64.

67.) "Crooked Head" by Fucked Up

Notes: Daytrotter has a great live version of this song, along with others, here.  And here's live footage of this song from their marathon 12 hour show in NYC.

68.) "Sweet Love for Planet Earth" by Fuck Buttons    ------>Download 05 Sweet Love for Planet Earth [2_12

Notes: Live video.

69.) "We're Gonna Rise" by The Breeders                    ------>Download 10 We're Gonna Rise

Notes: Yes! We have no videos.  We have no videos today!

70.) "Shempi" by Ratatat

Notes: Live video here.

71.) "Shea Stadium" by Marnie Stern

Notes: Yeah, right.

72.) "Four Beds for Boat" by BOAT

Notes: Scrappy, scrappy, scrappy!

73.) "Eye" by Witch

Notes: I found nothing, but face it, "Witch Eye" is pretty much search engine-proof.

74.) "Go for the Exit" by Boston Spaceships                ------>Download 2-09 Go for the Exit

Notes: Couldn't find anything video-wise.

75.) "American Names" by Sebastien Grainger

Notes: Take it.  Just take it already!

The Best Albums of 2008 (so far) [updated yet again]

   

    I've been sitting on this one for nearly a full month, and by this point it's damn well time to get this bastard updated (yet again) before I have a true behemoth on my hands.

    First off, the rules remain the same as on previous lists, meaning that with the exception of reissues and singles, everything's game: regular albums, compilations, best-ofs, you name it.  I've heard every one of these albums the whole way through AT LEAST a few times each.  And yes, I've personally purchased every album on this list: none of that Limewire bullshit for me.  There's still a veritable cum-dumpster full of albums that will be out in the coming months, so it's safe to say this list will scarcely resemble the one I wind up putting out somewhere around Christmas '08.  I'll be putting out a list including all the remaining '08 "Eagerly Anticipated"s that I can think of sometime reasonably soon.

    Blah blah blah, shut the hell up, get to the list.  Okay.  But first, honorable mentions to a couple of album-less singles: Chairlift's sugary sweet "Evident Utensil" and O'Death's galloping "Spider Home."  Fine songs, both.

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1.) Earth - The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull -- In many ways, this is the most remarkable album in my entire collection: never in my life have I ever encountered anything -- powders, pills and potions included -- that manages to totally and unconditionally soothe, regardless of the circumstances.  Seriously.  Neighborhood kids making a racket?  No worries.  Family members driving you up the fucking wall?  Not a problem.  Car alarms starting to really, really piss you off?  BRING THAT SHIT. 

I liked Earth's previous incarnation as doomy dronesters, but The Bees' brand of repetitive, dreamy twang totally smokes anything else of theirs that I've heard.  Make no mistake, though: this is not good driving music, nor is it much good for drinkin'.  (Or, presumably, drinking and driving, although I haven't tested that one out.)  And no, this album does not rock.  But what it does manage to do is so welcome that I'll be relying on this album for a very, very long time.  No joke, sidle on up next to this one and you'll find yourself thinking someone replaced your Folger's Crystals with straight up smack. 

2.) The Raveonettes - Lust Lust Lust -- By reverting to the template put forth on 2003's excellent Chain Gang of Love, Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo have once again hit upon a winning combination: perfect melodies, thrifty songwriting, plenty of Jesus and Mary Chain fuzz, near-telepathic harmonies, and their own should-be-patented dirty/sexy aesthetic.  Song of the Year candidates: "Dead Sound," "Aly Walk With Me," "Hallucinations."

3.) The Magnetic Fields - Distortion -- Just as on 1999's landmark 69 Love Songs, Stephin Merritt tosses out a whole mess of poppy goodness, yielding several unmistakable gems in the process.  Unlike 69 Love Songs, however, each of Distortion's 3-minute-or-so nuggets are fittingly swathed in a haze of distortion worthy of the finest Jesus and Mary Chain (or Raveonettes) records.  A nice collection of songs, even if -- only occasionally, mind you -- you find yourself tempted to hit the skip button for a couple numbers ("Please Stop Dancing" and "Mr. Mistletoe," notably). Song of the Year candidates: "Drive on Driver," "California Girls," "The Nun's Litany" and "I'll Dream Alone."

4.) Blood on the Wall - Liferz -- Immature, lo-fi, garagey, and as fun -- and welcome -- as free blow.  Sure, you'll find yourself playing the "sounds like..." game throughout this album, but c'mon, that's part of the fun: brother-sister duo Brad and Courtney Shanks make no attempt to disguise their Sonic Youth/Pixies worship.  For the record, according to iTunes this is my most listened-to album of '08.  Yay!  Song of the Year candidates: "Junkeee... Julieee," "Sorry Sorry Sarah."

5.) Tapes 'N Tapes - Walk It Off -- In what has to be easily the most puzzling hatchet job of the year, famed producer Dave Fridmann overloads these songs to near-unlistenable levels, complete with fartin' bass (check out the first chorus of "Headshock," jeez Louise).  It's as though the band sought to erase any memory of the glowing Pavement/Pixies comparisons brought on by their excellent debut, The Loon, and by adding little other than sheer volume, the production manages to completely overwhelm any subtleties these songs could have ever had (there's nothing here as hauntingly understated and beautiful as The Loon's "Manitoba," for example).  It's a testament to the strength of the material that several of the songs manage to shine through Fridmann's attempt at making the record sound like a low-bitrate mp3.  I for one probably would have preferred hearing the demos.  Song of the Year candidates: "Le Ruse," "Time of Songs," "The Dirty Dirty."

6.) Sigur Ros - Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust -- Much has been made of the band ditching their trademark bowed-guitar sound, but (thankfully) the grandiose, uplifting qualities of Sigur Ros' music remain.  When describing this album, it's easy to get bogged down by discussing the most obvious, soundbyte-worthy qualities: there's a song sung in English ("All Alright"), a couple tunes display a newfound jauntiness (most evident on album opener "Gobbledigook"), and the lush orchestration, but make no mistake, this is very much a Sigur Ros record, and a fine one at that.  Song of the Year candidates: Lots of good ones, with the flat-out adorable "Inni Mer Syngur Vitleysingur" leading the pack thus far for me.

7.) The Futureheads - This Is Not the World -- After these guys stunk up the joint with '06's downright putrid News and Tributes, fans had reason to think The Futureheads had completely jumped the shark, but This Is Not the World re-establishes them as juggernauts in the spiky/angular/uber-energetic category of post-punk.  Joyous?  Fun?  Hells yeah, although the band would have done well to throw a couple of downtempo curveballs (think "Danger of the Water" or "Hounds of Love" from the debut album) into the mix, as well as relying a bit more on their awesome four-part harmony vocals.  Song of the Year candidate: "Walking Backwards," "The Beginning of the Twist."

8.) Times New Viking - Rip It Off -- What is it about Ohio lo-fi bands?  Not since GbV crawled out of the basement for good a little over a decade ago has a lo-fi band been as deserving of excessive critical praise as these guys.  In this interview, when asked "what was the tipping point that made you sign with Matador?"  Times New Viking guitarist Jared Phillips begins his answer by stating "Alien Lanes," which, without even reading any further, sums things up nicely.  And although the melodicism of Rip it Off doesn't necessarily approximate the awesomely schizophrenic kitchen sinkism of mid '90's GbV, the enthusiasm, immediacy and FTW/DIY style does.  Song of the Year candidates: "Teen Drama," "The Wait."

9.) Goes Cube - Not What You Thought EP -- Say no more.  This band is great, and it's only a matter of time before the powers that be wise up and hand Goes Cube a kickass record deal.  Go here to download a new/unreleased/totally asskicking track by these guys.  Song of the Year candidates: "Goes Cube Song 57," and the "Goes Cube Song 54" into "Goes Cube Song 50" medley.

10.) Torche - Meanderthal -- Critics have been creaming their collective Levis over Torche's near-perfect blend of heaviness and pop sensibilities, and it's no wonder: these guys are both riff-tastic and hooky at the same time.  Song of the Year candidate: "Across the Shields" is probably '08's best so far.

11.) Portishead - Third -- After over a decade of dormancy, Portishead manages to break new ground instead of resting on their trip-hop laurels.  As original, inscrutable and downright creepy as ever, Third incorporates the best of elements "old" Portishead by relying on painstaking production and harrowing vocal performances, while still sounding nothing like their previous work.  This one's really a "grower;" revealing more with every successive listen; I won't be shocked if Third manages to crawl up nearer the top of the list by year's end.  Song of the Year candidate: "The Rip."

12.) Boris - Smile -- It's tough not to compare subsequent Boris outings to their 2006 (or '05, depending on which part of the world you live in) masterpiece, Pink, so why fight it.  Like Pink, this album has a few straight-edge barn-burners, some meatier tracks and a lengthy noise suite to cap it all off, and there's nothing nearly as great as "Farewell."  This album is still a fine listen without seeming like it required much effort; I'm not sure whether that speaks well or poorly for the band.  The real gem here is in the hypnotically dubby "My Neighbor Satan," which evokes the greatness of Bill Laswell's Charged project.  Come to think of it, I'd love to hear a Laswell/Boris collab.  Make it happen, Southern Lord!  Song of the Year candidate: "My Neighbor Satan."

13.) Russian Circles - Station -- I loved '06's Enter (that year's fourth-best record) because it married the flash-fingered virtuosity of thrash to the atmospherics of straight-up post-rock.  Like, imagine if somehow Stuart Braithwaite had wandered into a Puppets-era Metallica jam session.  (Fuck yeah!)  Although Station relies less on guitarist Mike Sullivan's incredible chops -- to the album's detriment, in my opinion -- songs like "Harper Lewis" and especially "Verses" are undeniably beautiful melodies.  Song of the Year candidate: "Verses."

14.) The Big Sleep - Sleep Forever -- Some nice instrumentals, some great '90s-ish alt-rock, and some more reflective pieces.  Nothing groundbreaking, but still worthy of many, many listens.  Song of the Year candidate: "Pinkies."

15.) King Khan and the Shrines - The Supreme Genius of King Khan and the Shrines -- If you're into Rhino's incredible Nuggets box set (and who isn't), then this album is for you.  Imagine top-notch garage-psych married to throat-shredding classic soul worthy of James Brown himself and you've got a pretty good idea as to what this one sounds like.  Song of the Year candidate: "Crackin' Up," a Bo Diddley cover.

16.) Thalia Zedek Band - Liars and Prayers -- Remember when Rick Rubin's late-career recordings of Johnny Cash (notably the cover of Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt") went to great lengths to establish the pain and world-weariness of the man's voice?  Liars and Prayers has that in spades, utilizing the band's most unique instrument -- Zedek's voice -- to great effect.  Musically and thematically, this album has much in common with previous Zedek outings although here it sounds as though she's been gargling with Dran-O in the intervening years since '04's stellar Trust Not Those in Whom Without a Touch of Madness.  Song of the Year candidates: "Body Memory" and "Lower Allston."

17.) Witch - Paralyzed -- I absofuckinglutely loved their debut (#6 on my 2006 Best Of Albums list) and although this one doesn't have anything as immediately awesome as "Seer" or "Rip Van Winkle" it still seriously rocks.  This time around, the songs are leaner and faster paced, adding a whiskey-n'-crank-tinged breath of Motorhead to the preexisting Sabbath/stoner template.

18.) The Kills - Midnight Boom -- I felt that The Kills perfected their dark, beat punk/no wave dramas on No Wow, so the slightly gussied-up, gimmicky feel of singles "URA Fever" and "Cheap and Cheerful" is a bit disappointing.   Midnight Boom was supposedly heavily influenced by schoolyard chants and cadences, which succeeds most notably on the standouts "Hook and Line" and "Sour Cherry" but comes off as grating on cuts like "Alphabet Pony."  Also notable is the successful foray into Luscious Jacksonish territory with the uberchill "Black Balloon."  Uneven record but still very listenable and catchy throughout.  Song of the Year candidate: "Hook and Line."

19.) Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson - Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson -- Not sure what to think of this one.  On the one hand, Robinson often manages to evoke greatness in his songs (Dylan, Petty, even Neil Young), but on the other I can't help but be a bit wary that I'm being duped by the whole confessional junkie angle, one to which I'm obviously susceptible (um, Please Kill Me is one of my favorite books).  Is this really sincere?  To quote Johnny Rotten, "ever get the feeling you've been cheated?"  Yeah, kinda.  Song of the Year candidate: "The Debtor."

20.) Cheap Time - Cheap Time -- These guys sound like Richard Hell fronting the Heartbreakers.  Or Johnny Thunders fronting the Voidoids.  Or both.  Or something.  Song of the Year candidate: "Too Late."

21.) Endless Boogie - Focus Level -- These guys have built up quite the cache of hipster cool in all the right ways.  They have friends in high places (Stephen Malkmus famously prodded them to open for him at Bowery in '01), cool jobs (Matador art department; professional record collector), they've put out a couple of long out-of-print releases on tiny labels, and uh, apparently they like to party.  What they've created is a record perfect for drinkin,' card-playin' and cigar smokin': no worries if ya hafta get up an' take a leak (or blow a rail), the songs will still be chooglin' away when you get back to the table.  Song of the Year candidate: "Coming Down the Stairs."

22.) Black Keys - Attack and Release -- See, I'm not such a big fan of garage bands consciously trying to clean up their sound, and this album is a perfect example of why.  When critics write about the Black Keys needing to "switch up their aesthetic" and that "things had gotten stagnant," I wonder why everyone just couldn't leave well enough alone.  Also, I'd like to humbly invite the Black Keys back into the garage, and Danger Mouse to stick to writing shitty music for retarded twelve year olds. 

23.) Jay Reatard - Singles '06-'07 -- Earlier this year, I traveled a total of four hours (two hours there, two back) to catch a Jay Reatard live set at Bowery which clocked in at a robust 23 total minutes.  Live, he's a revelation, but on record he falls into the "good not great" category.  I haven't heard any of his '08 singles (a few of which are supposed to be fucking awesome), and I'm definitely looking forward to the Matador compilation of said singles which is supposed to be out in a couple of months. 

24.) Los Straitjackets - Los Straitjackets in Concert -- I love Los Straitjackets, especially in the live setting, but this album would have benefited from being seriously edited down, to, say, maybe 45 minutes or so.  Take the classics ("Casbah," "State Fair," "University Blvd." "Pacifica," etc.) and throw on a bunch of the theme song covers (Batman, Titanic, Munsters, Magnificent Seven, Midnight Cowboy) and you'd have a fine set of songs.  As with most live experiences, when you can't actually be there, less is more. 

25.) Danava - Unonou -- These days it's stylish to reference Sir Lord Baltimore as an influence, but the first half of this album is likely as close as I've ever heard a modern band come to matching that band's primal greatness.  (Sadly, no singing drummer, though.)  Along the path of riff-heavy stoner metal, this is miles and miles superior to the Black Mountain record.  At times, these guys take the unusual step of basing songs around unconventional Dan Deaconish synth loops, which stand out gloriously amongst the usual crunchy sturm und drang.  And, at times, all of this somehow manages to work marvelously.  Unfortunately, the album fades a bit down the stretch, ending in a colossally embarrassing misstep with a godawful ripoff of Zeppelin's "Achilles Last Stand."  The first few songs are great, though.  Song of the Year candidate: "The Emerald Snow of Sleep."

26.) My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges -- My first run-through of this album had me pegging it as the year's worst, and although it does suffer dramatically in comparison to Z or Okonokos, it appears as my intial survey was a bit too harsh.  No, it's not awful, but it's not that great either.  And put me in the camp that actually likes the mildly controversial "Highly Suspicious" -- it's easily the catchiest song on the record.  Also, it's funny to imagine the frowny faces that had to be made in order to record the background vocals.  Song of the Year candidate: "Highly Suspicious."

27.) Dub Trio - Another Sound is Dying -- Chops, chops, chops, and more chops on these instrumentals, with very little actual "dub" present, unless you count a couple of brief, spacey interludes crammed between the breakneck mathy riffing.  At first one may think Biohazard or Helmet, but I'd say these guys sound most like the latter-day, unappreciated era of Faith No More, which is only fitting considering their place on Mike Patton's Ipecac label, their history as Patton's touring band for his Peeping Tom project, and Patton's turn on guest vocals on the creepy "No Flag."

28.) Howlin' Rain - Magnificent Fiend -- As I've written before, I really, really, really miss Comets on Fire, and it's a bit of an unfair disadvantage to any Howlin' Rain record, even a good one, that it is simply not Comets.  And it's not that Magnificent Fiend is a bad record; far from it, but in addition to being a bit too reserved for my tastes it lacks any truly *great* songs (like "Calling Lightning With a Scythe" and "The Hanging Heart" from the self-titled debut).  Nonetheless, there are some entertaining instrumental passages, not to mention stunning soloing on "Lord Have Mercy" and "Goodbye Ruby."

29.) Fuck Buttons - Street Horrrsing -- Another album that's improved the more I've listened.  Like much experimental/progressive/ambient, it's probably best listened to on the train home after an exhausting night of excess and debauchery. 

30.) Young Knives - Superabundance -- Among their British soundalike counterparts, these guys are better than Kaiser Chiefs but worse than The Futureheads.  So they're okay.  Their live show is highly recommended. 

31.) Crystal Antlers - Crystal Antlers EP -- I saw these guys live recently, and my thoughts on this EP are exactly the same as they were for the live show: with very few minor exceptions, these guys sound exactly like Comets on Fire, who are one of my favorite bands of all time.  Not that it makes any sense to award originality for its own sake, but it's still tough for me to unconditionally stamp the seal of approval on such a blatant ripoff, no matter how good it sounds.  I'll keep listening to this one, and hopefully eventually I'll figure out something non-derivative about it, in which case it will probably find itself twenty-or-so places higher on the year end list.  Hmmm. 

32.) Grails - Take Refuge in Clean Living -- I need more time with this one, but thus far I've really enjoyed this when I've been stoned, not so much when I haven't been stoned.  I bet these guys get that a lot, though.

33.) Beach House - Devotion -- Some very nice songwriting on this one, but the absolute lack of any dynamics at all makes it sound a bit to pharmied-out to be truly awesome.  Song of the Year candidate: "Heart of Chambers."

34.) The Breeders - Mountain Battles -- It's not an awful album, it's just wildly inconsistent.  Of course, I was hoping for some garagey GbV-ish pop like Last Splash, but alas that bird has flown.  There are a few charming songs ("Here No More," "Overglazed," "Bang On") but there's just too much filler.

35.) Meshugga - Obzen -- The label on the front of this one reads: "EXPERIENCE THE HEAVIEST, MOST DEVASTATING AUDIO ATTACK EVER CAPTURED IN 52 MINUTES AND 25 SECONDS" which pretty much sums things up.  The band's assault is relentless and unwavering, with arguably the most sophisticated bass drumming I've ever heard, but listening to the full thing in one sitting is (literally) a bit of a beating.  Oddly enough, although this album (obviously) sounds nothing like Beach House, both albums are best taken in small doses.

36.) Crystal Stilts - Crystal Stilts EP -- Not an iota of originality on this one, although the songs are tuneful enough, especially "Shattered Shine" and "Through the Floor."  If you think Paul Banks apes Ian Curtis, check this guy out.

37.) Dead Meadow - Old Growth -- On the album's excellent opening track, "Ain't Got Nothing (To Go Wrong)," these guys cultivate an addictive groove, chooglin' along like a whiskey-fueled Creedence jam session.  But the act gets old after a few tracks, drifting into jambandish aimlessness and never really taking the listener into balls-out RAWK!!! territory.

38.) Beck - Modern Guilt -- I'm not the world's biggest fan of DangerMouse. And although previous Beck producers have worked wonders with his material, that material was already at least good.  Although there are a couple of decent songs on this album, for the most part, the songs are lackluster, matching DangerMouse's "fabled" production beat for dreary beat.  I'm hoping this one will be a "grower," but who th' fuck knows.

39.) Robert Pollard - Robert Pollard Is Off to Business -- I've long advocated that Uncle Bob split once and for all with studio svengali/multi-instrumentalist Todd Tobias.  Not because they're incapable of making good music together: Fiction Man and From a Compound Eye were great; the Bubble and Zoom EPs had their moments, and much of late-period Guided by Voices was recorded with Tobias at the helm.  No, it's because somewhere along the way, over the past couple of years, Bob n' Todd forgot how to rock.  Although this is Bob's best new record -- including side projects -- since '06's good-not-great Normal Happiness, I'm still uncomfortable with the amount of autonomy Tobias has over the proceedings: remember, in the halcyon days of GbV, Bob was always at his best churning out tunes by the bucketload and recording them with whatever and whomever he had at his disposal at the moment, instead of allowing one (non-Bob) person (Tobias) to play almost all of the instruments himself.  While this isn't a bad record, it still sounds mature, and maturity has never suited Uncle Bob.  Nor should it.

40.) Birds of Avalon - Outer Upper Inner EP -- To be sure, I need more time with this one but thus far it reminds me a lot of last year's Bazaar Bazaar LP: competent (if unspectacular) music, with a Robin Zander soundalike crowing above it all. 

41.) Ratatat - LP3 -- Not gonna lie: I'm not finding that this one merits too many repeat listens.  Odd, because there's probably little difference between this and either of their first two records, which I liked.  It's possible that the sameness has finally gotten to me.

42.) Oxford Collapse - The Hann Byrd EP -- Many artists have clauses in their contracts stating that the parent label gets first crack at putting out a given release, and if the parent label passes on said release the band is allowed to farm the record out to another label.  If that's the case, it's understandable that Sub Pop would have passed on this one.  Where Oxford Collapse's previous album, Remember the Night Parties, set the standard for summer rockin' (at least to me), this one falls short.

43.) Growing - Live at Floristree 1.26.08 -- Useless if you're not high, although if you are high you may find the repetitiveness kinda groovy.

44.) Under Byen - Siamesisk -- To me, Under Byen's catalog consists of two types of music: dramatic, white-knuckle post-rock with arty Bjorkish flourishes, and limp new-agey noodling.  This EP, recorded with a full orchestra, unfortunately is neither here nor there: neither intriguing enough to warrant multiple listens, nor bad enough to skip outright.

45.) The Sword - Gods of the Earth -- Too samey.  Plus, the kinda fuzzy quality of the recording does a band like The Sword -- who should be recorded with precision and clarity in mind -- no favors.

46.) Awesome Color - Electric Aborigines -- One song has the line "there's nothing wrong/with what we say." Au contraire, mon frere: there's everything wrong with what you're saying.  Actually, the lyrics are so inexcusably godawful that a perfectly decent Stooges-y raveup is totally ruined.  Lots of "right/tonight/light" rhymes, over and over and over a-fucking-gain.  Seriously, the guy would have been better just yelling random phonetics or reading out of the phone book. 

47.)  Atlas Sound - Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel -- I really wanted to like this one (considering how awesome the Deerhunter album was --  #3 on last year's Best Of Albums list) but you're not going to find any great songs here, although Bradford Cox' DIY sound manipulation and production trickery is amusing at times.  All in all just too druggy and tossed-off sounding.

48.) Nine Inch Nails - The Slip -- '07's Year Zero was a crock of unadulterated shit, marrying half-baked political rants (yes, we hate Dubya too, we get it already) to uninspired, rote Trent-by-numbers tunelessness/melody avoidance.  Well, the political bile may be gone on The Slip, but the crappy music remains. 

49.)  Various Artists - Disco Not Disco 1974-1986 -- Again, I have no earthly idea why I picked this up, but if you like your disco lo-fi-ish this might be your cup of tea.

50.) No Age - Nouns -- Meh.  Must be yet another sign that I'm getting old, but I think these guys are the most overrated thing out there today.

51.) Jonny Greenwood - There Will Be Blood Soundtrack -- Useless without the context of the movie (which is excellent).  I've heard that Master Greenwood apparently ripped off a bunch of other avant-garde-ish composers to make this, which I guess somehow makes it even worse. 

52.) Black Mountain - In the Future -- The "heavy" riffs are derivative and uninspired, the folky interludes are substanceless, the songs plod, and that "LITE BRITE LITE BRITE LITE BRITE" bullshit is about as much fun as a kick square in the balls.  I like hard rockin' stuff that sounds good when you're high; this album just sounds like the musicians were high when they made it.  To quote my pal Beefy D., "this is hard rock for people who like Rusted Root." 

53.) Robert Pollard - Superman Was a Rocker -- Take it from this Pollard fanatic: this album fucking sucks.  Believe me, nobody wants Bob to step up his game more than I do, but any way you slice it this album is a depressing waste of time/money.  Where Bob used to craft incredible melodies seemingly effortlessly, this album just makes him sound tired, old, and lazy.

54.) Ponytail - Ice Cream Spiritual -- Basically, the musicians are Lords of the Underworld, and the vocalist is a ritalin-ed up Timmy.  Lots of screaming over a bedding of non-descript loud riffage.  Somewhere, Phil Collins is outraged.

   

Boris with Torche and Clouds at Webster Hall, July 10th, 2008

    Just got back from the Boris show... holy fuckin' shit does my back hurt.

    First off, a big thumbs down to Webster Hall/Ticketmaster for advertising tonight's show as being 7 PM doors (for which one logically assumes an 8 PM showtime)... both Webster Hall's website and (more importantly) the ticket had the wrong info.  When I rolled up to the venue tonight at about quarter after 7 I was informed that doors were at 6 PM and that the first band had gone on at 7.  Oh, fudgesicles. 

    So consequently I wound up missing the first half of Clouds' set.  When I walked into the room I knew by their twin Les Paul attack that this wasn't going to be some hipster metal irony fest -- these guys came to rock.  I knew nothing about them before today, but I liked what I heard: they kind of sounded like Panthers, or maybe like a more hardcore Priestess or Bad Wizard.  They seemed good-natured about playing for "the early crowd" and in turn the audience was fairly receptive. 

    Up next was Torche, who I hadn't seen live since '06 when they were supporting Mogwai.  Their new album, Meanderthal, is pretty great, being the second-best "heavy" record I've heard this year, just behind Goes Cube's awesome Not What We Thought EP.  These guys took the stage a little before 8 and treated the crowd to some seriously punishing material, much of it from the new album, with the highlight (for me, at least) being the super-catchy "Across the Shields." 

    Between sets I noticed Justin from The Austerity Program (read this for my brief-yet-thorough take on that fine band) was in attendance, so I chatted him up about the availability of their excellent new single, "Song 20 (The River)" which is out on 7".  I was wondering if it would be coming to iTunes any time soon, which doesn't seem too likely, although if you buy the 7" here you get directions on how to download mp3s of the songs, so that's cool.  Of couse during said conversation I was actually wearing an Austerity Program tee shirt, so I'm officially the biggest dork in the room. 

    Boris came on, and I knew two expect two things: 1.) asskicking metal goodness running the gamut from breakneck speed metal to ethereal drones, and 2.) my back would give out, forcing me to leave the show early.  This is the fourth time I've seen Boris live (Sept. '06 at Northsix, Oct. '07 at Music Hall of Williamsburg, this March at Knitting Factory and tonight, duh) and the fourth time out of four that, yup, both of those things happened. 

    The set itself was great.  Michio Kurihara was guesting, which for me is a positive in that his guitar playing is phenomenal, ranging from wah-wah stompin' to chunky, inventive chords to masterful control over his distortion and feedback.  The negative is that on many songs it reduces Wata's contributions to  practically nil.  And with Webster Hall's reputation for atrocious sound mixes... yeah.  (Case in point: the bass was barely audible all night.  Seriously man, if you're the sound guy how do you not notice and fix this immediately?!)

    They started off with the psychedelic "Flower Sun Rain" from their recent Smile LP, before shooting into a mini-set of thrashing fury: "Buzz-In," "Laser Beam," the title Track from '06's stellar Pink and "Statement."  The action in the pit was pretty wild, as always consisting mainly of overexcited tweens and terrified, bearded fatasses caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.  Next we got a song which reminded me a lot of Queens of the Stone Age's "Avon," which despite me having no idea what the fuck it was was probably the set's highlight for me.  What a riff!  Next came "My Neighbor Satan," probably Smile's high water mark, with the live effort replacing the album version's dubby trippiness with a bonecrushing three guitar attack.  Sadly, this is the point at which my back pain became too excruciating for me to concentrate on the music... I do remember that they played another song before "You Were Holding an Umbrella," and I left during what sounded to me like "[ ]" but honestly I don't remember. 

    So yeah, same as always for me at a Boris show: great music, lots of pain.  So it goes. 

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    Not sure what my deal is this weekend but if I had to place a bet I'd wager on Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson at Glasslands tomorrow night, free Goes Cube/Giraffes show at McCarren on Saturday during the day, and the free Breeders show on Sunday, also at McCarren.  'Til next time, TudddMerica! 

The Best Albums of 2007 pt. 1 (list #11)

    Better late than never, eh?  Well, what say we get right into it.

    I'm reluctant to brand 2007 "the year of" anything in particular because I don't really see any recent trend as being definitive.  There were unlikely comebacks, stunning debuts, disappointing clunkers and puzzling choices.  Personally, 2007 was the year that I finally fell out of love with Robert Pollard's non-archival releases.  (*SOB* Parting is such sweet sorrow!)  My favorite record store closed down, my dad died, I quit my shitty job, and I started my own business.  But enough about me.

    Before we get started, first: the ground rules, which remain the same as last year : this only counts albums released in '07, and not reissues, so no Daydream Nation, Nico's The Frozen Borderline or ELO's Out of the Blue, or the Blossom Toes or 13th Floor Elevators reissues.  But pretty much everything else is fair game -- live albums, limited edition EPs, retrospectives compiling old tracks, whatever.  Also, this list only contains albums that I personally own -- none of that Limewire bullshit.  And, yes, I will eventually have mini-reviews posted for all 70+ albums I heard in '07.  This is just the first half.

    Oh, and winner of the yearly "Sufjan Stevens Illinoise Memorial Trophy" (given to the album responsible for so much spillage of music journalist ejaculate that my adding a review would surely result in nothing but redundancy) is Panda Bear's Person Pitch.

    So let's have at it, shall we?

2007: The Year in Albums

1.) Arcade Fire - Neon Bible -- All those of you that expected Arcade Fire to follow up the incredible Funeral with an equally worthy sophomore record, stand up.  The general consensus was that the rich emotional depths that were successfully mined to such stunning effect on Funeral would just be too much to be equaled a second time around.  Fortunately, as it turned out, the band members didn't need to suffer through further family tragedies -- as they famously did prior to Funeral's release -- to find the inspiration necessary to create another excellent album.

     Replacing the mournfulness of Funeral with righteous, bilious outrage at a world gone mad, Neon Bible isn't a protest record in the traditional sense in that its disillusioned fury is not focused on a sole target.  Instead, Win Butler's lyrics paint with a broad stroke, with the prevailing themes of perseverance (as in "Keep the Car Running") versus suffocating hopelessness ("Black Mirror," notably) and justified paranoia ("Windowsill") coloring much of the material.  In one of the most original first-person narratives since Steely Dan's "Don't Take Me Alive,"  "Antichrist Television Blues," (supposedly originally titled "Joe Simpson"), eviscerates the unconscionable greed and lecherous hypocrisy of "God-fearing" showbiz parents literally from the inside out.

    Not that it's perfect.  For one, they probably shouldn't have put the two "Don't wanna..." songs back to back (Antichrist Television Blues and Windowsill).  And "My Body Is a Cage" sounds like leftovers from  "Intervention" But these are relatively minor quibbles, and by never coming within shouting distance of the sophomore slump, Arcade Fire have established themselves as the best band in the world. 

2.) Radiohead - In Rainbows -- Consciously turning away from the compulsion to reinvent themselves yet again, what we have here is easily the most comfortable Radiohead's ever sounded.  Disclaimer: this is most assuredly not a RAWK album, nor is it given to overly ambitious flights of electronic fancy, and the ideological axe-grinding is kept to a minimum.  Wisely, this leaves plenty of room for what's always been the most striking instrument in their arsenal: Thom Yorke's voice.  As usual, Nigel Godrich's production is picture perfect, framing Yorke's gentle melodies with ebbs and swells that serve to augment instead of overpowering the material.  And with the focus firmly on the melodies, Yorke uncorks some real stunners.  Best song: The wordless coda of "Nude" is the most sublime musical moment of the year.

3.) Deerhunter - Cryptograms -- A complex, at times harrowing inward journey so instantly identifiable and evocative that you can practically hear the unwelcome clamminess of cold sweat percolating within your speakers.  Just as with their fantastic live show, Deerhunter manage to expose insecurities without wallowing in gratuitous unpleasantness -- although some severely macabre themes are visited throughout the album's course, the main impression Cryptograms leaves is the painstaking care that clearly went into its production, not to mention the obvious appreciation of Floyd-esque subtlety and dynamics.

4.) Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond -- The beast awakes!  Nearly twenty years after the dissolution of the "classic" Dino Jr. lineup, who'd'a thunk they'd drop a legitimate contender for album of the year right out of the gate?  And with Beyond being jam-packed with great song after great song, one comes away with the feeling that this reunion will not be of the simple one-and-done variety. (Well, that and the fact that they've been touring almost incessantly for the last two years.)  Within the Dino Jr. catalog, only You're Living All Over Me tops Beyond.  Yes, it's better than Bug.  Way, way, way better. Best song: the multipart "Pick Me Up" which traverses several distinct sections before locking into the year's best guitar solo.

5.) Robert Pollard - Crickets: The Best of the Fading Captain Series, 1999-2007 -- A two disc  retrospective highlighting the best and the brightest from Robert Pollard's now-retired Fading Captain Series label, encompassing forty+ solo albums, through-the mail collaborations, and other assorted idiosyncratically-named side projects.  Unfortunately since Pollard's first two proper solo records (Not in My Airforce and Waved Out) were released by Matador, there's nothing to be found on here from those undeniable classics but fear not, this sumbitch still has a ton of great tracks.  As a Fading Captain Cliffs Notes of sorts it holds up as well as can be expected (if not better), but in the name of all that's holy, where the fuck is Submarine Teams?  Includes 6 previously unreleased tracks for the diehards.  Best song: how about a top six?  1.) "Pop Zeus," arguably Pollard's finest composition ever, 2.) "Sensational Gravity Boy, 3.) "Stifled Man Casino," from the first Airport 5 collaboration (with former GbV member Tobin Sprout), 4.) the grungy-as-fuck "Time Machines" from Lexo and the Leapers, 5.) the semi-lecherous "Tight Globes," and 6.) the defiant chest-beater (and live favorite) "Alone, Stinking and Unafraid."

6.)  Cheeseburger - Cheeseburger -- Do you like to party?  Well, do ya?!!  Cheeseburger takes rock back to... well, I'm not sure when, (when was rock ever this fun?) but a time when in order to forget your troubles all you needed was a pocketful of quarters for the jukebox, a keg and a group of drunk-off-their-ass crazy friends.  Think all the fun, showmanship and off-color humor of a more-belligerent AC/DC, with the bombast crammed down from arena size just enough to fit in your corner bar.  Or, better yet, your basement. 

7.) Guided by Voices - Live From Austin -- Well, a mediocre-to-averageish GBV show was/is pretty much better than anything anyone else (Robert Pollard included) can put out there these days.  Also comes on DVD.  On this show, recorded for the Austin City Limits television program during a stop on the band's farewell "Electrifying Conclusion" tour in 2004, Uncle Bob reaches into his seemingly bottomless well of songs to rock out with just-added rarities ("Do the Earth," "Navigating Flood Regions"), "new" shit from their underrated Half Smiles of the Decomposed album ("Gonna Never Have to Die," "Girls of Wild Strawberries,") and all-time faves ("Echos Myron," "Tractor Rape Chain").  Highlights: rhythm guitarist/blacked-out superhero Nate Farley tumbling off the stage during "Fair Touching;" Bob accidentally introducing surprise guest Pete Yorn as "Tom Yorn," Bob totally muffing the lyrics during "Pendulum" only to be saved by right hand man/lead guitarist Doug Gillard, (who receives a "Thanks, Doug!" from an appreciative Bob) and the ensuing "you can suck and still rule" monologue.

8.) Pelican - City of Echoes -- Sorry, but it has to be said: one's enjoyment of this album is directly related to how much the sloppy drumming annoys/distracts you.  But if you can learn to focus on the riff-savvy songwriting and fantastic guitar interplay instead, you're golden.  Best post-metal record since last year's stunning Enter by Russian Circles.

9.) Panthers - The Trick --  Brooklyn band's follow up to 2004's super-awesome Things Are Strange sets you up with a stunning array of heavy riffing, then knocks you out with clever, passionate lyrics.  These ten tracks are over quick, with most clocking in at under three-and-a-half minutes, and I salute the brevity, but I feel that the addition of a slow-burning, meandering track (like Things Are Strange's "We Are Louder" and "If You Were Young Once, Rage") or two would have varied the dynamics just enough to really knock this one outta the park.  One of the top "heavy music" records of the year.   

10.) Hull - Viking Funeral --  Hull manage to cram everything that's great about metal into one incredible 17 minute track: bone-crushing riffs, dextrous guitar work, psychotic growls, dramatic climaxes, and just enough bluesy noodling to occasionally drag the listener back to normalcy.  Having caught these guys live a couple of times and heard some of their other jams, you can bet I'll have my ear to the ground listening for info about a new release. 

11.) Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Is Is EP -- A collection of 5 songs written between Fever to Tell and Show Your Bones.  And that's important to state: this is a collection of songs which are actually able to stand on their own, away from the preconceptions/baggage of the vaunted YYY live show.  While I listened to Fever to Tell thinking "boy, these songs don't hold a candle to their in-concert counterparts," this record proves that they're capable of putting together an incredibly tight, cohesive EP of damn good music.

12.) Interpol - Our Love to Admire -- an uneven record, and the weakest of their three LPs, but still strong enough to yield several gems.  (First single "The Heinrich Maneuver" is not amongst said gems.  Spoiler alert!) And although Our Love doesn't reach the heights of their previous two full-lengths, at least they didn't try to shoehorn some radio-friendly crap on there somewhere, y'know, since they're on a major label now and all.  In fact, the closest anything comes to being "extravagant" or "bloated" on this record is the orchestra on "Pioneer to the Falls," which compliments the song *perfectly*.  Seriously, guys, thanks for not trying to sound like the Goo Goo Dolls or whatever.   

13.) Sigur Ros - Hvarf/Heim -- This consists of two distinctly separate EPs, the first of which (Hvarf) collects unreleased tracks and a couple of alternate takes, and the second of which (Heim) culls tracks from a mostly acoustic tour of the band's native Iceland.  While these guys have been accused (as has the entire post-rock genre) of relying too much upon simple quiet-loud dynamics to create their stunning crescendos, Heim shows that the band are not simply slaves to their wattage.

14.) Type O Negative - Dead Again -- Probably the band's most consistent release since their 1994 breakthrough Bloody Kisses.  Should you choose to listen, be ready for the following: gratuitous riffing spread across multi-part suites, Brooklyn accents, rolled "r"s, self-deprecating lyrics, incomprehensible soapbox harangues, and keyboard interludes so lame that Richard Marx hears 'em and says, "that's gay."  To have seen these guys live recently (their show at Irving Plaza in May was the single most disappointing show I caught all year ), one might have come to the conclusion that they were better off heading gracefully into retirement (or rehab/jail), that won't be necessary.  Well, at least for another few years or so.  Prepare to be thoroughly offended.

15.) Baroness - The Red Album -- The skullcrushing riffs!  The formidable chops!  The...  The... uninspired vocals!  Seriously, this is a top notch metal album sabotaged somewhat by some dreadfully monotonous and repetitive vocal melodies.  Fortunately, the emphasis here is placed heavily enough on lengthy instrumental passages that the singing isn't an automatic turnoff.  Best song: "Grad," which is -- you guessed it -- an instrumental.

16.) Pissed Jeans - Hope for Men -- Basing their fury upon boredom, self-doubt and loathing a loathsome society, Pissed Jeans use an impossibly sludgy presentation to hammer their point home.  Sludgecore to the max.  Basically, Hope for Men is the musical equivalent of shitting yourself at work -- on purpose.

17.) Os Mutantes - Live at the Barbican Theater -- A recording of the influential Brazilian group's first performance from their comeback tour in 2006.  I've had the pleasure of seeing Os Mutantes live twice, and I'm a bit puzzled why they would have chosen to release their first show back; many of these songs were further limned out and expanded as the band became more comfortable playing them.  In that way, this can be seen as a somewhat expanded, live version of their stupendous Anything Is Possible best-of release.  While many have been critical of the "Jesus Christ Superstar"-ish presentation of some of the songs (probably most flagrantly obvious on "Technicolor"), the full band and choir really comes through in the clutch, especially on the more complex vocal arrangements.  And while the prominent place in the band's sound assumed by Sergio Dias' surprisingly chops-y lead guitar playing has been criticized in print countless times, f that noise with a broomstick: Os Mutantes is a band for whom self-indulgence, bombast and absurdity are not dirty words.

18.) Panda Bear - Person Pitch -- [Yeah, I know I wasn't going to post a review for this bad boy, but I figured I'd share this.  While perusing the eMusic member reviews before I snagged this record, I came across a negative one which dismissed Person Pitch as little more than  "Beach-Boys-on-a-radio-in-another-room-in-a-church noise."  Wait, you're trying to tell me that that's a negative review?!]

19.) Boris with Merzbow - Rock Dream -- Limited edition release of a live collaboration between shapeshifting Japanese metal band Boris and acclaimed noise merchant Merzbow.  Recorded in Tokyo earlier this year, the track selection includes examples many of the more well-known phases of Boris' career: lengthy doom/noise suites ("Feedbacker" clocks in at nearly 40 minutes), straightforward raveups (Akuma No Uta's Ibitsu and Pink's "Pink" and "Woman on the Screen"), the title track from this year's uberchill collaboration with Michio Kurihara, Rainbow, and all kinds of fascinating shit from here and there.  To be sure, Boris are a formidable machine live (I seen 'em twice), although I'm not sure Merzbow's additions to this recording are all that significant -- the songs are great enough without smearing an Echoplex all over 'em.

20.) Bad Religion - New Maps of Hell -- There are two possible schools of thought on this record: 1.) "wow, they pinched out another?  Aren't these guys like two decades past their prime?"  or 2.) "fuck tha haters, their recent records have been good."  If you're in camp #1 you're probably not going to be convinced to check this one out either way.  For those in camp #2, this is a solid record, not as good as Empire or Process but better than No Substance and New America.  

21 and 22.) Two Gallants - The Scenery of Farewell (EP) and 2GS (album) -- I'm reviewing these together because to my ears they could have conceivably originated from the same sessions; the material sounds that much alike.  Or they could be leftovers from last year's #13 What the Toll Tells.  Anyway, these guys do a gritty and proficient amalgam of folk and punk -- it's amazing Adam Stephens can pull off "grizzled" when he looks like Neil Patrick Harris with stubble.  Although I don't like any of these tracks quite as much as "Prodigal Son," "Steady Rollin'," "Waves of Grain," or "Long Summer Day," but as that album aged particularly well, so should these two.

23.) A Place to Bury Strangers - A Place to Bury Strangers -- Make no mistake, these guys are probably my favorite "new" NYC-area band (hey, that's some great Kool-Aid! Top me off, wouldja?), but that's largely based on their seizure-inducing live show (c'mon, they even use a strobe light for Kirk's sake!).  This album is somewhat of a mixed bag, recorded lo-fi on the cheap, drenched in feedback and swathed in the effects produced by frontman Oliver Ackerman's homemade guitar pedals.  While I usually commend a band for such a blatantly DIY presentation, a little more polish would have really helped to translate their sophisticated layered/swirling live sound onto record.  Not to be overly critical, but would Loveless (one of this album's obvious musical touchstones) have been as awesome without Kevin Shields' maniacal Svengali-esque overproduction?  I think not.  Musically, you're getting a julienned amalgam of My Bloody Valentine, Jesus and Mary Chain, Ministry, and the like.  If you're going to wear your influences on your sleeve, you might as well be influenced by the best.

24.) Interpol - Live EP -- This tasty little number is available only at select indie stores -- a nice tip of the cap to a community that embraced Interpol's dark aesthetic from the beginning now that the band is on a major.  The six songs represented here, recorded in London, are all good choices.  My only complaint is that Carlos D's bass is not as prevalent in the mix as it should be, robbing the band's tight-as-hell rhythm section of its meloidic element.  But still easily worth the purchase.

25.) Praxis - Tennessee 2004 -- In the year's second most aggressive display of chops (to the Fucking Champs, listed below), we have virtuoso Buckethead dropping surgically precise, flashfingered guitar bombs over the equally impressive drumming of ex-Primus drummer Brain, rooted down by the thick-as-molasses, confident dubbiness of Bill Laswell.  The many solo sections prove that this band might just have too much talent for their own good, so it's no shock that they sound their best paying tribute to Hendrix on the Band of Gypsies classic "Machine Gun."

26.) Crippled Black Phoenix - A Love of Shared Disasters -- Mournful, dreary, doleful album which at times exhibits similarities to the bodies of work of Mogwai and Portishead (members of which are in CBP), with several gothy ballads mixed in here and there.  In most places the album works quite well (the proper songs, notably) but the unnecessary repetition of interludes "The Whistler" and "Long Cold Summer" and the clunky inclusion of a Tennyson poem set to music bloat it a bit. 

27.) Explosions in the Sky - All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone -- Overwrought?  Yes.  Gratuitous?  Hell yeah.  Maudlin?  Check.  Emo?  Um, sure, that too.  But make no mistake, this is a fine album, and it works a lot better than plenty of recent records by more highly respected denizens of the post-rock genre.  The music on this record mines its raw material from many heavy emotional sources; "It's Natural to Be Afraid" constructs an intricate latticework of impending dread, practically dissolving into abject darkness before giving way to delicate passages of hope and strident beauty.  "The Catastrophe and the Cure" emphasizes patience in times of trouble, with a (melo)dramatic, sublimely gentle climax seeing the listener through.  Unfortunately, the album ends with a whimper, as the new age tinkling of "So Long, Lonesome" sounds a bit too Weather Channel-y for these ears. 

28.) Los Straitjackets with Big Sandy - Rock En Espanol vol. 1 -- "America's instrumentalists" and surf rock torch-bearers Los Straitjackets have tried to find a way around the fact that the larger mass of the record buying public often has trouble digesting sizable swaths of vocal-less music: by hiring Tijuana crooner Big Sandy to sing Spanglish semi-translations of '50s/'60s rock classics, they've created a record with several curiously mixtape-worthy offerings.  Best song: the cover of the Kinks' "All Day and All of the Night," recast here as "El Dia de Noche."

29.) LCD Soundsystem - The Sound of Silver -- Hmmm.  Beyond "All My Friends" and "North American Scum" (both of which are great), I'm not the biggest fan.  But those tracks alone are good enough to secure a decent ranking, though.

30.) Red Fang - Tour EP II -- loved these guys' live set opening up for the Fucking Champs   -- what you get here is some good ol' fashioned meat n' taters stoner metal.  Nuthin' fancy, just some mighty fine listening.  Not to mention the year's best bass solo in the middle of "Suicide." 

31.) Times New Viking - Paisley Reich -- Noisy, raw, kinda awesome punk shit with extremely lo-fi production values.  Seriously, this makes Bee Thousand-era Guided by Voices sound like it was produced by Rick Rubin in a 48 track digital studio.  The drums sound like garbage cans, the keyboards sound like guitars, the guitars sound like a circular saw vs. copper pipe in a steel cage death match, and the vocals sound just flat out fugly.  Enjoy!

32.) Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Jukebox Explosion --  A collection of random tracks culled from 7"s, compilations, and other out-of-print sources.  You know what yer gettin' here: grungy, sloppy riffs; delirious, crackhead-in-a-dumpster sound effects/assorted percussion; and Spencer's hellish, HomelessCrazyElvis vocals.  If I were into self-mutilation, I'm assuming this is the type of shit I'd like to listen to while pulling my own toenails out.

33.) Boris with Michio Kurihara - Rainbow -- second solid offering this year by these guys, and with another collaborator.  As Boris is seemingly devoted to exploring each n' every corner of LOUD music possible, it's important to note that Rainbow takes a step back from the doom/punk/thrash hybrid of Pink, with the band and guest guitarist Michio Kurihara visiting more subdued, subtle territory.  Personally, I never wanted to put the word "subdued" (or any like synonym) into a Boris review, and too many of the tracks wind up sounding new-agey and weak.  While it's impossible to tell what influence Kurihara had over these sessions, it's pretty safe to say that Boris without Kurihara is better than Boris with.  But fear not; in all likelihood this album doesn't signify any long-term deviation from great records like Akuma No Uta and Pink; knowing these guys, if you look hard enough you'll probably find that they've put out another ten or so import-only slabs of awesome within the last few weeks that you'll never get to hear.

34.) Deerhunter - Fluorescent Gray EP -- companion piece of leftover tracks from Cryptograms, this EP consists of one standout track, the noisy and cathartic "Wash Off" (arguably the band's best overall song) and a few tracks which, truth be told, are waaaay better live than on these studio versions.  Here "Dr. Glass" is wispy and weak; live it's a bass-heavy and groovy number, arguably the creepiest funk song I've ever heard.  The title track also benefits greatly from the live treatment.  Best song: Guess.

35.) BOAT - Let's Drag Our Feet -- What we have here is lo-fi indie pop largely bereft of guitar, with vocals by a guy (or guys) singing in a wobbly, bashful upper register typical of said indiepop genre.  Take it or leave it, but what saves BOAT from the dustbin of genericness is the nifty songwriting on this album, accompanied by clever, endearing lyrics ranging from bashful self-deprecation to humorous boasting to lovelorn sincerity to flat out goofiness.  Nice little record.  Best songs: 1.) "Make Way for the Genius to Appear," 2.) "Come with Me We'll Win," 3.) "I'm a Donkey for Your Love."

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EDIT: the second half of this list can be found here.   Merry Christmas to you all, and to all a good night.  Or should I say, "Feliz Navituddd!"

NYC Show listings, October 28th to November 3rd, 2007

    Egads, I haven't gotten my shit together to post anything for the past week-plus, with nothing posted since I got supremely fucked up at the Z-Trip/MSTRKRFT CMJ show at Studio B.  And I won't be posting a review of that show (or any pictures) mainly because I spent about 90% of the show outside, unable to, uh, "baseline" but feeling so damn good that I really didn't care.

    Didn't go to a single show last week, the first time I've skipped a full week in several months.  I had tix for Down at Roseland Thursday night, but face it, the new Down record is fuckin' boring, plus on Friday I had friends from the Midwest fly in to visit so I had to rest my chemistry for that shit.  I'll be out of town next weekend (wedding in 'Nawlins) which means I'm going to miss *BOTH* of Bobby Bare, Jr.'s area performances (GRRRRRRR!!!).  So here's a list of the week's shows which caught my eye.  Enjoy. 

Sunday, October 28th

Show: Boris and Damon Naomi (with Michio Kurihara) at Bowery Ballroom
Why I'm not going: first off, I'm fucking exhausted from the weekend, and second off I've been smoking weed for hours.  But more importantly I already caught this tour on its first trip through town (Oct 3 at Yuppie Northsix).  And I got a sweet/dank poster.  Not that it wasn't enjoyable, but I prefer Boris without Michio Kurihara guesting.  Honestly, Wata was completely drowned out and barely audible when I saw 'em.  Important to mention that although they are focusing more on the slower, bluesy shit on this tour, they still toss a bunch of Pink-esque barn-burners into the set, and they do "Farewell."  So smoke a fatty or two, fire up your earplugs and head over to this -- you'll dig it.

Show: Attakke with The Degenerics and Planned Collapse at Uncle Paulie's
Why I'm not going: fuck man, I'm groggy.  This is some of the best weed I've smoked in several years.  But yeah, I saw Attakke opening up for Baroness at Don Pedro's on Oct. 1st and I was pretty impressed.  Classic thrashiness with an impressively throaty female shouter on vocals.  During Attakke's set, I saw perhaps the most fucked up thing I've seen at a show all year.  ("How fucked up was it, Tud?")  Well, I'll tell you how fucked up.  Attake's singer was late so the crowd was getting ornery while waiting for their set to begin.  People were killing the time by double-fisting PBRs, and it was getting pretty ripe around the stage.  As Attakke started their set, blasting into their set at a billion miles an hour, the wheelchair-bound fan who was next to me was upended by a gaggle of particularly overzealous/drunk fucks, and dumped out of said chair onto the floor (where people were slamming into each other pretty painfully).  Now, while this was pretty fucked up, the truly fucked up part of this is that a large percentage of the crowd didn't seem to care at all about this poor dude who was flopping around on the floor, and continued basically beating the shit out of each other.  Pretty absurd, and probably the most hardcore crowd I've seen since Slayer in February.  (Oh yeah, and Baroness were amazing too.)

Monday, October 29th

Show: Damo Suzuki with "special guests" at Knitting Factory
Why I'm going: Well, truth be told, I'm really not all that familiar with the Damo Suzuki's work with Can (I dig the era when they had that crazy black dude as their vocalist.  But from the (admittedly tiny) sampling of Suzuki solo shit I've heard, this concert will be bizarre enough where I'll get my money's worth.  Members of Oneida are apparently guesting, which can be either a good thing or a bad thing. 

Tuesday, October 30th

Show: The Forms at Cake Shop
Why I'm not going: whoa there, buster, who says I'm not going.  I'm kind of undecided on this one.  Basically, I know very little about these guys other than what one of the guys from Goes Cube wrote in their MySpace blog.  But Goes Cube are awesome enough that I might be inclined to take their word for it on this one. 

Show: Used to Be Women and Awesome Color with Tall Firs at Glasslands
Why I'm not going: well, I actually might be more interested in this one than the Forms show above.  I can't believe it's been nearly a full year since I've caught the awesome Used to Be Women, which was also at Glasslands.  Saw Awesome Color opening up for Dinosaur Jr. at Irving Plaza in June and I think they share a couple members with UtBW.  And you can't beat Glasslands for a venue. 

Show: Nicole Atkins and the Sea at Union Pool
Why I'm not going: saw these guys a couple of weeks ago at the Raveonettes NY shows and I wasn't impressed.  Kinda loungy, middle-of-the-road major label pap.  Probably the type of stuff you'd take a girl to if you're trying to get in her pants.  (This is helpful if the girl in question has really unoriginal tastes in music.)

I'll be back tomorrow with the pick of this year's Halloween shows, and maybe more (depends, as with pretty much anything, upon how stoned I get tomorrow).  Peace. 

Best Albums of 2006 List (List #4)

    FINALLY I'll get crackin' on this sum'bitch.  Between working 60 hours/week and dealing with moving into my new apartment, spare time has been fleeting.  Oh, yeah: plus, my dad died.  But as I sit here listening to some beautiful classical-ish music, I realize I'd better fire this shit up before it becomes totally irrelevant (i.e. last year's "Best of 2005 List" which I didn't post until like June).

    The only rule is that reissues are not included, so that eliminates TimeLife's excellent 10-CD "Malt Shop Memories" compilation.  Fortunately, this rule has little bearing on the Chavez retrospective, because Chavez just isn't good enough to make the list anyway.

    Disclaimers: I've heard about 50 albums that were released in '06 proper, including a bunch of the usual crap that you'll find on many other year end lists (The Hold Steady, TV on the Radio, The Raconteurs, etc.).  Again, to be sure, these albums are excluded from this list not because I didn't hear them, but because they're terrible.  For a mea culpa on records I probably should have listened to by now, see the below post entitled "Albums I Should Have Heard By Now" or something like that.

   

LIST #4: THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2006

20.) Thom Yorke - The Eraser -- This sounds exactly the way you'd expect a Thom Yorke solo joint to sound, which is not such a bad thing.  But buyer beware: it's ultra monotonous, which is not such a good thing.  Oddly, it sounds *kinda* like Radiohead, but still has its own singular identity: The Eraser is not as experimental as Kid A or Amnesiac; not as RAWK as The Bends; not as violently spotty and uneven as Hail to the Thief, and nowhere near as good as OK Computer.  Although it is a "solo" release, Yorke wisely kept ace producer Nigel Godrich behind the boards -- his mastery of dynamics conjures a "new Floyd-for-the-do-it-yourself-digital-age" vibe.  Best song:  "Analyse."

19.) Keene Brothers - Blues and Boogie Shoes -- solid-if-unspectacular collaboration between Tommy Keene and Robert Pollard, crammed to the gills with competent powerpoppage.  Almost a little bit too "mature" (as Bob himself would say) for my tastes, but it's obvious that Bob went out of his way to fire up some decent melodies on this one, as opposed (for example) to his downright shabby efforts on the Airport 5 records, which is a shame, because I prefer Airport 5's musical bedding (supplied by former GbV second fiddle Tobin Sprout) to that of the Keene Brothers.  *sigh*  Tobe deserved better.  Best songs: "Death of the Party" and "Heaven's Gate."

18.) Howlin' Rain - Howlin' Rain -- side project from Comets on Fire frontman Ethan Miller.  After the first three Comets records (this was released prior to Avatar), the, um, "restraint" on this one is super obvious (i.e. no echoplex freakouts, no Keith Moon-on-crack drum breaks and no processed vocals).  And it's easy to dismiss this as a full album of CoF castoffs, but so fucking what, it's still some mighty fine good listenin'.  Best song: "Calling Lightning with a Scythe."

17.) Beck - The Information -- I'm torn re: Beck.  Half of me wishes that he had quit/left/died/whatever after Odelay, while the other half of me is happy that he's able to keep pumping out serviceable-yet-totally-inessential records to give my ears a brief respite from the usual metal/punk/postrock/indie stuff that I listen to these days.  Since I have absolutely no tolerance for the robotic monotony of beat-centric electronica and I openly revile hip-hop culture, Beck's blue-eyed and funkified junk sculpture is pretty much as close as I get to either of those genres.  In other words, what he lacks in melody, cohesive lyrical content and substance he more than makes up for, well, by sounding absolutely nothing like anything else I appreciate.   On The Information, he re-ups with Sea Change producer/Radiohead guru Nigel Godrich, who no doubt provides most of the bleeps, bloops and sound effects.  Has Beck shat out Guero II (or, just as accurately, Odelay III)?  Probably.  But just as long as he's not subjecting me to faux-earnest whinefests like Sea Change I'll keep on listening.  Best song: "Cellphone's Dead."  Does Herbie Hancock get royalties from this?  'Cuz he should. 

16.) Wolfmother - Wolfmother -- My God, there are so many reasons that, in theory, I should *HATE* these fucking guys.  Musically, completely unoriginal/totally derivative.  Prettyboy frontman.  Questionable drumming.  "Third verse, same as the first" aesthetic.  Credential-free, meteoric rise to stardom.  The same two-note riff in what seems like every fucking song.  And, plainly put, the worst lyrics not written by Lenny Kravitz.  But when you RAWK like these fellas, you make it fairly easy to overlook all that.  Probably the Party Record of the Year (unless you're a heroin addict, in which case you'd probably favor Mogwai's Zidane soundtrack).  Best song: WOO-MON!

15.) Ratatat - Classics -- This is officially the first electronic-related record I've enjoyed since the ketamine flowed like nostril-imbibable wine a few years back.  To Ratatat's credit, instead of skewing the mix towards some absurdly banal beat as a given track's focus (as is predictably the case with most electronic artists), they put the emphasis firmly on melody.  Yes, at times it sounds kind of Tetris-y, and it's as dangerous as a glass of milk, but hot damn are some of these jams catchy.  Best song: "Tacobel Canon."

14.) Robert Pollard - Normal Happiness -- [insert yearly "well, Bob's probably not as good these days as he was around Bee Thousand/Alien Lanes, but he's still better than pretty much anyone else around/this album has some great ones and some really, really awful ones/probably not going to convert any non-believers but Pollard fanatics will eat this one up"-themed comment here.] Best song: "Top of My Game."

13.) Two Gallants - What the Toll Tells -- Got turned onto these guys when I saw 'em opening for Wolfmother (surprisingly awesome) and Gov't Mule (shudder) in September.  They're about as irony free as you can get; in fact, if you can't stand ultra-earnest lyrics you're likely to have your head explode while listening to this record.  Lots of songs about being an outlaw/rebel/misfit/outcast -- kind of in the vein of a more literate Mike Ness.  However, where Social D base their trademark sound around a wall of crunchy-ass guitars, Two Gallants' foundation is vocalist Adam Stephens' raspy howl, which many may instantly find off-putting.  Part of me wishes these guys would just bite the bullet and pick up a kickass rhythm guitarist, but on the other hand that could severely fuck up songs like "The Prodigal Son."  Hmmm.  What the fuck do I know.  Best to leave well enough alone, I guess.  Best song: "Waves of Grain."

12.) Built to Spill - You in Reverse -- I've always thought of BtS as kind of the ultimate cock-tease band -- they come so close to actually rocking that, at times, they can be mistaken for actually rocking.  Other than that, this record is a tough one to pigeonhole on the "Is it Indie?" test.  It's indie: two-chord songs.  It's not indie: said songs occasionally last 8+ minutes.  It's indie: crummy vocals.  It's not indie: fancy guitar playing.  It's indie: sounds kinda like Modest Mouse.  It's not indie: sounds kinda like Neil Young.  Best song: everybody says "Goin' Against Your Mind," but I'm going with "Conventional Wisdom."

11.) Boris - Pink -- Um, WTF?  This album obviously came out in '05, but I've seen it on so many year-end best-of lists (i.e. those compiled by people more punctual than I) that leaving it out would be gay.  Musically, these guys cover pretty much all the bases: grandiose post rock, gritty speedpunky metal, noise, doom, you name it -- all kinds of great riffs.  Plus I kinda dig not having any idea what the vocalist is singing about.  Best song: "Farewell."

10.) Bobby Bare, Jr. - Nick Nacks and Paddy Whacks -- Live/tour CD by an artist who, until '06's The Longest Meow (which was recorded largely live in the studio) was definitely better appreciated in concert than on record.  Bare Jr. just simply sounds better when presenting his songs with Pixies-ish instrumentation than he does on the subtler, rootsier album versions.  The only thing keeping this out of the top 5 is the questionable omission of "Valentine" and "Motherfucker," which really defies all logic, considering that those are two songs which benefit most from the live treatment.  Best song: Hmmm.  Lotsa good'uns.  I'll have to go with "Terrible Sunrise" since I already have several great live versions of "Flat Chested Girl from Maynardville."

9.) Robert Pollard - From a Compound Eye -- Again, with a few outstanding exceptions, the songs on this record are _not_ immediately accessible pop masterpieces, and at least for me, FaCE required practically a full year in my listening incubator thingy before I thought it was much good.  As with any of Bob's recent records, one's apprecation for FaCE will hinge largely on how one feels about Todd Tobias' production.  To me, one of the greatest things about Guided by Voices in the pre-Tobias days wa that their songs, even when primitively recorded, almost always were exactly as loud as they needed to be: no more, no less.  That's obviously not the case on this album.  Songs like "Dancing Girls and Dancing Men," "I'm a Widow" and "Love is Stronger than Witchcraft" are flat out gay.  On the other hand, it's difficult to imagine "The Flowering Orphan," "Cock of the Rainbow" or "50 Year-Old Baby" without the lush Tobias touch.  Regardless, there are just too many great songs on this album to pass it up.  Of particular note is "The Right Thing," in which Pollard gives the listener a window into the process by which he turns basement scraps into full-fledged songs.  The track begins with a brief, repetitive three-note pattern, accompanied by non-descript, generic (probably improvised) lyrics before switching key, switching gear and rocking the fuck out.  Fuck yeah!  Best song: "US Mustard Company," also the best song of the year.

8.) Comets on Fire - Avatar -- When is a top 10 album still a disappointment?  When you've started your career off as The Kings of the Hard Rockin' Freakout, challenging Mogwai for the Planet's Greatest Band crown, and then you drop an album that sounds as much like a Phish/Allmans hybrid as it does your earlier output.  Face it, "Dogwood Rust" sounds like Phish's "Birds of a Feather," "Hatched Upon the Age" sounds like the title track of Billy Breathes, and nearly everything else has at least one moment where you think, "damn, this sounds like" either "Whipping Post" or "Elizabeth Reed."  Phew, at least there's no Rusted Root thrown into the mix!  And were we really eager to hear what Comets sounded like playing ballads, for fuck's sake?!  God, I know that may sound harsh; after all, this is still a really good album.  It's nowhere near Comets on Fire or Blue Cathedral, any way ya slice it, however.  Many of the songs feature wildman drummer Utrillo Kushner on piano (yeah, I know), which moves echoplex maven Noel Von Harmonson off his noise-makin' shriek machine onto the drumkit, which in turn leads to a decrease in noise, distortion, and overall unpleasantness.  This is definitely not a positive development.  The only song that really sounds like old-school Comets to me is the all-too-brief "Holy Teeth," which clocks in at about 3 minutes.  Seriously, guys: NEEDS MORE ECHOPLEX.  Best song: probably "Dogwood Rust."

7.) Bobby Bare, Jr. - The Longest Meow -- Hot damn, this dude has to be my find of '06.  So this is what good alt-country sounds like!  Having heard more than my fill of acts like Ryan Adams and Wilco had made me dismiss the entire genre as nuthin' but a bunch of talentless hacks and watered-down jamband-lite wankers.  But fuck that, Bobby Bare Jr.'s the real fucking deal.  On The Longest Meow, which was recorded virtually entirely live in the studio, Bare splits the difference between his alternative-ish past and his more country-grounded solo records with the Young Criminals' Starvation League, retaining both the grinningly clever lyrics and the RAWK heft.   Now, I used to beat the drum for Robert Pollard to no avail, but that bird has flown.  In other words, the fact that Bobby Bare Jr. is not insanely popular is all the proof you need to know that America is full of dumb assholes.  Best song: "Stop Cryin'."

6.) Witch - Witch -- True meat n' taters stoner rock at its finest, with J Mascis (!) on the drumkit.  Of course, the lyrics are a bit over-the-top generic (lots of burning pyres, funerals, magic spells, and even a succubus!) but c'mon, the blueprint for this (or any other great stoner rock) is Sabbath, so juvenile things-that-go-bump-in-the-night imagery is not simply given a pass: it's revered.  The guitars are downtuned and fuzzy, and Mascis does as good a Bill Ward impersonation as anyone.  My only real complaint is that the vocals are a bit too Claypool-esque for me.  Minor complaint, though: make no mistake about it, this is a damn fine album.  Grow yer hair out, bust out the air guitar, and thrash along to the opening lick to "Rip Van Winkle," you pussy.  Best songs: "Rip Van Winkle" and "Seer."

5.) Tool - 10,000 Days -- Hey, you hear that?  What's that sound?  Oh, right, that's my indie cred being flushed down the toilet.  Meh, who needs it.  If anyone needs me, I'll be pulling bong hits and listening to Alice in Chains.  Best song: "Jambi." 

4.) Russian Circles - Enter -- Now, this is some damn hot flashfingered instru-metal, done up post-rock style, and cheers to 'em on that.  This album is meant to be taken as a succession of linked suites, and a continuous theme is definitely noticeable the whole way throughout: not in a rock opera-ish way, but more in an overall "this is our style, so deal with it you pansy" type display of manliness.  At times slow and brooding, at times manically aggressive, just like any great metal record.  Any chance Mogwai picks these guys up as openers on their next trek across the States?  Pwease?  Best song: "Death Rides a [motherfucking] Horse [vulgarity added]."

3.) Tapes 'N Tapes - The Loon -- See, since I grew up listening to Zeppelin, Guns N' Roses and Metallica instead of Pavement, Jesus Lizard and Morrissey I don't suffer from the jaded hipster tendency to bury every great new album under an insufferable game of "spot the influence."  Presumably, this is why I like bands like Interpol, The Raveonettes, and all kinds of shit that others simply dismiss with a "meh, they're ripping off Gang of Four" and a cluck of the tongue.  The Loon was easily my most-listened-to new album in 2006.  It's the type of record that, at first, seems awkward and self-consciously self-conscious before you realize A.) these dudes can play, B.) they write a damn fine song, and C.) said dudes can really RAWK without having to simply rely on excessive volume (make no mistake, that's really fucking tricky).  "The Iliad" stomps, "Insistor" shuffles, and "Jakov's Suite" is the best rock n' roll underture not written by Pete Townshend.   And you can't leave out the vicodin-and-comfy-chair perfection of "Manitoba."  Good, good shit.  Best song: "The Iliad."

2.) Robert Pollard - Moon -- As the old saying goes, "Everything sounds better live."  In the case of the songs from this year's FaCE (see above review), this adage is proven true with the album versions fleshed out into fully-formed, beefier versions of themselves.  For the uninitiated, Moon was recorded during Robert Pollard and the Ascended Masters' (goddamn, I love that band name) two-show stint opening up for Pearl Jam.  Oy vey, who knew that they'd be able to make "Dancing Girls and Dancing Men" listenable?  It's a real fucking shame that the ticket-buying public is such a bunch of clueless shiteaters, because if Bob could have sold out some of the shows on his tour supporting Normal Happiness, he wouldn't have had to bust up his excellent backing band (Tommy Keene on guitar/keys, Jon Wurstur on drums, Jason Narducy playing bass, and Dave Phillips on guitar).  Of course, since I'm a scab-scratching nitpicker, I have a few bones to pick with the chosen setlist.  For example, for Christ's sake, where the fuck are "US Mustard Co," "Denied," "I'm a Strong Lion" and "Recovering?"  And if Bob was going to bust out some songs from Normal Happiness in front of the Dockers n' North Face set in the Pearl Jam audience, why not "Top of My Game" and "Rhoda Rhoda?"  And couldn't he have squeezed a second GbV chestnut in there somewhere?  Either way, and with all my petty bitching aside, this is a fantastic record, significant because it's really only the second proper live album he's released, and it seems that Bob's beer-fueled caravan won't be hitting the road for the foreseeable future, which is a shame.  If you never saw a Pollard solo show, or never saw GbV live you really, really missed out.  Best song: "The Right Thing."  I AM HIIIIIIIIIIIIIGH!!!!!!  "Conqueror of the Moon" is incredible too, though.

1.) Mogwai - Mr. Beast -- If you think that Young Team is better than this, you're an asshole.  Best song: "Glasgow Mega-Snake."