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!"
