It's that time of year where anyone and everyone starts pulling top ten lists from out their ass. After the lists have been removed from said anuses, they're usually placed in magazines and online for other people to ridicule, causing them to reach high up in their colon to usher forth their own top ten list.
And this is no exception. The cycle is unbroken.
Thanks to Initials' superspeedy internet connection, I kept surprisingly up to date this year with new rocknroll music, moreso than in years past. This is a fairly comphrensive list, if I do say so myself.
Before we get to the top ten, let me take a moment to point out the artists who came out with cds this year that totally blew. That's not fair of me to say. Let me take a moment to point out the artists that disappointed me and made me sad in my heart. These five artists made my shitlist.
White Chalk--PJ Harvey. It's called a guitar, and you shouldn't be allowed to make a cd without it.
In Rainbows--Radiohead. After all of the hubub, it seemed underwhelming. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't it.
Magic--Bruce Springsteen. A good album, yes, but the Boss has crossed the line from being an old man mumbling/singing to sounding like a dying muppet.
Sky Blue Sky--Wilco. Technically it's a well-constructed album, but it's pretty forgetable. Catchy songs are not your enemy, Jeff Tweedy!
Graduation--Kanye West. There are some great songs on this album, but the ratio between good songs (3) to filler (13) is unacceptable.
And now, what you've all been waiting for, complete with commentary, links to amazon.com, mp3 download, and youtube links.
10. I'm Not There--Original Soundtrack (mp3/youtube) I'm not entirely sure what I thought of the movie. I think I liked it, even though it didn't make a whole lot of sense. I'm not much of a Dylan fan (see my above comment about sounding like dying muppets) but the soundtrack has done a great job of collecting who's who in the alt-country universe and having them cover Bob Dylan. Sure, some are successful and some are not, but as far as two-cd sets go, this one still has a decent hit/miss ratio.
9. American Doll Posse--Tori Amos(mp3/youtube) I had written off Tori Amos back in high school. I liked her first few albums, but ever since "To Venus and Back" she's gotten too weird for my taste, and I had chalked up my earlier adoration to being young and gay. But with this album she proved that she can still have fun sitting behind a piano, and the stupid little conceits don't have to get in the way of a good song.
8. Night Falls over Kortedala--Jens Lekman (mp3/youtube) I was trying to describe what Jens Lekman sounded like to one of my friends, and I came up with "the Magnetic Fields using a synthesizer that had every single classical music instrument programmed in it." Talksing with bittersweet lyrics and horns and strings mandolins--what's not to love?
7. Raising Sand--Robert Plant/Alison Kraus (mp3/youtube) I was never a big Led Zepplin fan--what can I say, I'm gay--and bluegrass is just something I'm getting into, and this collection of covers is spot-on. It's a little bit country, a little bit rock-n-roll, but it's put together really well.
6. Volta--Bjork(mp3/youtube) The big beats, the synthpop fun, the euphoric vocals, it's good to get Bjork back to her roots, and forget about a cappella albums and soundtracks. It may not be a huge step forward artistically, but it's a welcome return back.
5. Kala--MIA(mp3/youtube) This is what I hoped the Bjork album would sound like: bigger, sassier, worldlier beats. A step forward creatively while still staying accessible. Every year there's a new female British rapper who is poised to take America by storm (e.g. Ms Dynamite, Lady Sovereign, Lily Allen) and while M.I.A. might not be the greatest rapper out there, she's certainly got the tightest production and the sassiest beats.
4. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga--Spoon(mp3/youtube) I had heard songs from Spoon's earlier records, and to be honest, I wasn't much impressed. But with Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, these guys surpass Wilco in the alt-country-ish pop that's fun to listen to. Listening to the album sets up a mood of good times hanging out with friends. I don't know how else to describe it.
3. Sound of Silver--LCD Soundsystem(mp3/youtube) It's more than a return to the dancefloor, which is what all the hipsters (myself included) said with his first album. This time, he's able to express those big emotions without giving up the basslines, the guitars, the drum machine, and the falsetto. It's tongue in cheek and earnest and intelligent and everything electronic music should be.
2. Back to Black--Amy Winehouse(mp3/youtube) Everyone loves this album, it seems. From the disjointed start of "Rehab" to the steady beats of "Addicted" the album is a study in blending the old with the technology of the new. It's a soul record by way of the Supremes and Spector. Unlike Britney, her breakdown seems like that of a real artist. I'm not entirely sure what I mean by that statement, but I'm sticking with it.
1. Neon Bible--Arcade Fire(mp3/mp3/youtube) Nothing has gotten more play on my iPod this year than this album. I liked their first, but this one is far and away better, if only because it's more accessible. It's U2 grandeur without the U2. "No Cars Go" and "Keep the Car Running" jump into my head constantly, and it's intense and bombastic and meticulous and it makes me want to be a rock star. C'mon, it's named after a John Kennedy Toole book--how could I not love it?.
