Hey, you like St. Vincent! You should check out a few of the links I posted. I think you'd really like Andrew Bird and possibly Do Make Say Think and Caribou in particular. Maybe I'll start listing the genre just so people who haven't heard them know what to expect...or skip.Quoting Raiders (view post)
Yeah, me too. I wouldn't be able to make a top ten of the year at all, mainstream or not. Derek has about half as many albums from this year as I have in total.
However, this list is great. Especially the links. I just downloaded the James Blackshaw album, and it is astounding.
I am impatient of all misery in others that is not mad. Thou should'st go mad, blacksmith; say, why dost thou not go mad? How can'st thou endure without being mad? Do the heavens yet hate thee, that thou can'st not go mad?
lists and reviews
Love this album/band. It would be higher on my list, but very nice choice.
Have you heard Memories of the Future yet, Derek?
Good to hear. I was considering not bothering with the links anymore, but as long as someone finds them useful, I'll keep 'em coming. I'm glad you loved the Blackshaw album - beautiful stuff.
I'm not sure why it fell quite as far as it did. Had it come out a little later in the year, I'd probably have it in the top 20.
Nope, but Kode9's on my radar and that'll be the first album I check out. I definitely haven't given up on dub since I haven't heard much and really liked parts of Untrue.
Dude, I'm like basing all my future downloads on this list. My utorrent is empty. Pick up the pace.
PS On first listen, I like Busdriver a lot. I couldn't get that particular Blackshaw almbum, but found another (name escapes me right now), and its good.
Last 10 Movies Seen
(90+ = canonical, 80-89 = brilliant, 70-79 = strongly recommended, 60-69 = good, 50-59 = mixed, 40-49 = below average with some good points, 30-39 = poor, 20-29 = bad, 10-19 = terrible, 0-9 = soul-crushingly inept in every way)
Run (2020) 64
The Whistlers (2019) 55
Pawn (2020) 62
Matilda (1996) 37
The Town that Dreaded Sundown (1976) 61
Moby Dick (2011) 50
Soul (2020) 64
Heroic Duo (2003) 55
A Moment of Romance (1990) 61
As Tears Go By (1988) 65
Stuff at Letterboxd
Listening Habits at LastFM
Liking this list so far!
Dark Matter is my fav track on the Andrew Bird album though.
Last movies seen
Frank: Good
Mistaken for Strangers: Good
Guardians of the Galaxy: Good
Last TV seasons watched
Treme (S04): Good
The Legend of Korra (S03): Good
Currently reading
This Side of Paradise - F. Scott Fitzgerald
Ok, the pace will be picked up for today. I have 5 more, but not sure I can get the clips up for all of them. I'm heading back to my parents tomorrow, so I should have daily updates from now on.
#26
Akron-Family – Love is Simple
Genre: Folk rock
Akron-Family’s commune of chanters and jammers is bound to turn off those with distaste for the hippie spirit, but their passion for life and music is undeniable here. With a wonderful blend of folk and rock, jams and traditionally structured songs, Love is Simple is one of the years more uplifting, invigorating releases. Like Do Make Say Think, Akron-Family is the type of band the fill up a stage both literally and figuratively and their arsenal of musicians are as talented as their music is inviting.
Recommended Tracks: Ed is a Portal, Don’t Be Afraid, You’re Already Dead, I’ve Got Some Friends
#25
Deerhoof – Friend Opportunity
Genre: Art rock (?)
Deerhoof is quite simply the best absurdist rock band out there. Their sound is stripped down, yet remarkably complex and their infantile lyrics bring a humor that somehow fit comfortably within the compressed rockouts. What initially seems silly begins to make sense after additional spins as it becomes more evident that the lyrics aren’t written for the music or vice versa. Deerhoof treats the voice like another instrument and use their simple phrasing merely as the base of each song. They stretch elementary phrases like “If I were a man and you a dog, I throw a stick for yoooou” out for entire songs, constantly toying with the phrasing as layered drums intertwine, some building, others losing interest and falling to the background. Their tactics seem varied on nearly every song on the album; some tracks remain restrained while other rock out, yet none are content simply to head in the direction you’re expecting.
Recommended Tracks: The Perfect Me, +81, Cast Off Crown
#24
Raccoo-oo-oon – Behold Secret Kingdom
Genre: Noise rock, psychedelic rock
Just forget about the band’s terrible name or their music will kick your ass. I don’t even know how to begin describing their music, but I guess it’s a sort of drone metal, noise rock hybrid full of echoed lyrics and distortion. These guys do, however, have the courtesy of combining all these elements into fully realized songs. They do so not by burying them beneath the chaos of noise, but by shaping the noise into somewhat melodious forms, which, along with the more traditional drums, drive the songs full-speed ahead. I realize I’m making these guys sound more inaccessible than they really are and while you do have to like your music a little loud and chaotic to enjoy them, they’re worth checking out if you’re at least a little adventurous.
Recommended Tracks: Antler Mask, Visage of the Fox, Mirror Blanket
#23
The National – Boxer
Genre: Indie rock
When I first head The National’s first album, Alligator, I found their singer’s voice off-putting and his tenor crooning at odds with music. I’ve since come to except I didn’t know what the hell I was talking about, yet even when I first heard Boxer it took a little getting used to. Now that I’ve come to love it, his low monotone carries with it a weight and depth, which makes the songs all the more tragic and beautiful. Whether it’s a slow love ballad like “Green Gloves” or “Slow Show” or the more Springsteen-inspired rock of “Mistaken for Strangers”, The National’s music is always tight and efficient while emotionally engaging. They’re more traditional than a lot of other indie bands out their, yet manage to create a sound all their own, making them one of the best torch-bearer of plain ole’ “rock music”.
Recommended Tracks: Fake Empire, Green Gloves, Slow Show (cut to clips of Godard's Masculine, Feminine WTF?)
#22
Menomena – Friend and Foe
In my year-end write-up for TV on the Radio’s, Return to Cookie Mountain, I predicted a slew of shallow imitators. Well, not only was I wrong about the amount of imitators, but the one band that most resembles their sound managed to make one hell of an album. While ---‘s voice doesn’t quite match Tunde Adebimpe, their music has a sound of it’s own, using mathematical patterns to drive the songs to wonderful emotional peaks. Whether it’s the pianos on “Wet and Rusting”, the drums on “Rotten Hell”, the sax and whistling on “Boyscout'n” or nearly every instrument on “Muscle ‘n Flo”, Menomena leave room for every band member to define songs and seem to find a new way of getting their each time.
Recommended Tracks: Rotten Hell, The Pelican, Boyscout'n
Fantastic album. I was hoping it'd make your list. In fact, the last two would make my list, should I ever feel compelled to make one (which I won't).
The National is a good choice. Love that album, but I really prefer their first two and the Wasp's Nest EP.
Nice list so far. Still a lot here that I haven't heard.
Everyone seems to love The National album, but it just screams mediocre indie band to me. Reminds me of all the love for The Hold Steady record last year.
In Front of Your Face (Hong Sang-soo, 2021) - 6
Introduction (Hong Sang-soo, 2021) - 6
True Mothers (Naomi Kawase, 2020) - 8
Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy - (Ryusuke Hamaguchi, 2021) - 7
Wife of a Spy (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2020) - 7
The Power of the Dog (Jane Campion, 2021) - 9
Don't Look Up - (Adam McKay, 2021) - 4
The Matrix Resurrections (Lana Wachowski, 2021) - 4.5
Benedetta (Paul Verhoeven, 2021) - 7
mubi
For what it's worth, I hated that record, although I like their contribution to the I'm Not There soundtrack.
Alligator was very popular too.
This would be in my top ten, first time that they really clicked with me.#26
Akron-Family – Love is Simple
I agree that The Hold Steady's record was thoroughly mediocre, but I think The National write some consistently interesting music. Both of their albums took a little while to grow on me, however.
Yeah, I don't get the love of The National at all. They are okay, but somewhat one-note and nothing spectacular.
Last 10 Movies Seen
(90+ = canonical, 80-89 = brilliant, 70-79 = strongly recommended, 60-69 = good, 50-59 = mixed, 40-49 = below average with some good points, 30-39 = poor, 20-29 = bad, 10-19 = terrible, 0-9 = soul-crushingly inept in every way)
Run (2020) 64
The Whistlers (2019) 55
Pawn (2020) 62
Matilda (1996) 37
The Town that Dreaded Sundown (1976) 61
Moby Dick (2011) 50
Soul (2020) 64
Heroic Duo (2003) 55
A Moment of Romance (1990) 61
As Tears Go By (1988) 65
Stuff at Letterboxd
Listening Habits at LastFM
National backlash, eh? I love that album, it's my favorite of the year. They're an incredibly subtle band, using progression and song structure to complement Berringer's aching vocals and lyrics. It's hard to deny his attention to lyrical detail, just check out Green Gloves; incredible. Some people call it boring, but I think it's anything but; it's extremely emotional and on occasion tough to listen to, but I think it really nails the middle class notion of finding acceptance and love like very few can these days.
Great, great band.
Awesome choice, great album. Though I prefer Cave of Spirits.#24
Raccoo-oo-oon – Behold Secret Kingdom
Genre: Noise rock, psychedelic rock
Just forget about the band’s terrible name or their music will kick your ass. I don’t even know how to begin describing their music, but I guess it’s a sort of drone metal, noise rock hybrid full of echoed lyrics and distortion. These guys do, however, have the courtesy of combining all these elements into fully realized songs. They do so not by burying them beneath the chaos of noise, but by shaping the noise into somewhat melodious forms, which, along with the more traditional drums, drive the songs full-speed ahead. I realize I’m making these guys sound more inaccessible than they really are and while you do have to like your music a little loud and chaotic to enjoy them, they’re worth checking out if you’re at least a little adventurous.
Recommended Tracks: Antler Mask, Visage of the Fox, Mirror Blanket
I think I need to spend more time with Behold Secret Kingdom. Every thing I'd read about it beforehand made it sound like the best thing ever, but I was a bit let down by it upon hearing it.
I heard that Pole album today... didn't care much for it on first listen, but I scanned through it again listening for what others deemed highlights, and it's growing on me a bit. It doesn't sound that fresh or original to my ears, but it does remind me of the best parts of Mouse on Mars and early Autechre, which is a good thing.
Last 5 picks are updated with links, except for Raccoo-oo-oon which I couldn't find anywhere. I'd still recommend downloading 1 or 2 if you haven't heard it.
Awesome, I didn't know you liked them. I know Thirdy and one or two others around here loved them, but I figured most people forgot about the album since it came out so early in the year.
I really like Alligator, but after hearing both enough times, I do prefer Boxer a little. I haven't heard their first album or that EP, so I'll get right to it!
I have that one sitting around and definitely plan to get to it soon with your reco and TMT's 5-star review.
To be honest, I wasn't all that impressed with either of these albums the first couple listens. For some reason though, I kept going back to them and they slowly grew on me.
#'s 16-21 are written, so I'll start getting them up with links a little later tonight.
#21
Studio – Yearbook 1
Genre: Krautrockish neo-new wave with a side of awesomesauce
This was a late find for me, but the blend of danceable new wave grooves and upbeat post-punk bass and drums had me hooked from the first note. Had I caught this earlier on, I have a feeling it'd be at least another 5 spots higher. Anyways, while Studio doesn’t win many points for originality, they more than make up for it with the passion behind the music and the unique way they seamlessly blend multiple recognizable sounds into something new. The album starts off with “No Comply”, an updated version of the new wave ballad with a beautifully filtered sounds, followed by krautrock jam session in “Radio Edit” before changing directions drastically again with a seeming tribute to David Byrne with the 16-minute epic, “Out There”. From Talking Heads to New Order to The Cure, it may sound like Studio is merely ripping off bands that already had a successful and definitive sound, but the band is far greater than just the sum of their influences. Like a post-modern blend of everything good about 80s music, and really there wasn’t all that much, Yearbook 1 manages to look into the past for the inspiration to move towards the future.
Recommended Tracks: Origin (Shake You Down By The River), No Comply (very small clip), Radio Edit (another small clip, *sigh*)
I've really dig what I've heard of Studio; I'm sure that album will make my top ten when I hear it in full. Thx for the memo.
Posting Permissions
forum
Reply With Quote
