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Monday, April 16, 2007
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Friday, April 13, 2007
Fav Fav Albums out of 100 Part IV (41-20)
Wow. Sprang Break, I've been too busy, and I apologize, let's get back to business though...
partfour.
40. Girl Talk- Night Ripper
This album was ultimately the brain child of Gregg Gillis, and he’s got a pretty collective brain if you ask me (just check out the lists of songs he uses for each! song on NightRipper). This easily became one of my top albums of last year, most easily stated, because of its addictiveness, each song pulls in emotions previously held about one of the many songs that the actual track on the disc holds snippets from. Each song has at the least 2 snippets that catch your attention and make you get into the song. And after more than a few listens, you realize this album isn’t only fun, but remarkable and unforgettable, and probably one of the most impressive works you’ll hear to date.
mp3: Girl Talk- Warm It Up (Favorite mash: Annie and Fergie, "Feel My Hearthumps")
mp3: Girl Talk- That's My DJ (Favorite mash: Right when it's about to go into "Blinded By the Light")
mp3: Girl Talk- Once Again (Favorite mash: Ying Yang Twins and the Verve, "Bittersweet Whisper Song")
mp3: Girl Talk- Summer Smoke (Favorite mash: "It's Magic" and "Gold Digger")
Buy here.
39. The Strokes- Room On Fire
What I believe to be the band from Manhattan’s greatest album to date. This effort is flawless in the way that every song is what you want it to be: Full of energy, scratchy vocals, pretty and neat guitar and drum medlies, and that alternative sound that gives these guys the name that when people hear it, automatically hear that new era rock and roll. There are so many memorable songs on this disc it’s not even funny, if I want to just sample the glorious ”What Ever Happened”, I find myself getting myself caught in a labyrinth of this album, and it consumes me, making me take pit stops at every track, making me bask in everything coming from the stereo speakers, getting me lost in a world of rock bliss.
mp3: The Strokes- What Ever Happened
mp3: The Strokes- The Way It Is
mp3: The Strokes- The End Has No End
Buy here.
38. Sufjan Stevens- Michigan
The voice of Sir Sufjan Stevens simply makes me tremble. And it is broadcasted beautifully over one concentrated genre for this state. Sufjan focuses on simple folk music (with bells of course) while traveling through Michigan, and he captures this sound perfectly. He cements his voice and his style, making it easy to understand that the talent present is overflowing, and calling for attention, because it deserves it. This album contains some of my favorite acoustic songs I have ever had the pleasure to listen to, and it produces the great overall effect a Sufjan album will always produce. Complete sound, and a more than solid consistency with songs, the excellence is almost spread out to cover every track on the disc, even though it doesn’t need to be, because each track holds its own personality, it’s own special little catch, Mr. Stevens does that for you. He creates so many little experiences that build up and build up to make one giant phenomena of a record. This thing is bursting with talent and entertainment and joy, and is just a fine example of excellent modern music.
mp3: Sufjan Stevens- Flint (For the Unemployed and Underpaid)
mp3: Sufjan Stevens- Romulus
mp3: Oh Detroit, Lift Up Your Weary Head! (Rebuild! Restore! Reconsider!)
Buy here.
37. Josh Rouse- 1972
This album…was another road trip album, and it was a fun one. I seriously thought that Josh Rouse was just obsessed with the year 1972 when I first heard the noises and lyrics coming from my headphones, he sang with such emotion and belief. He was positive and funky and happy and cool and made songs that were kind on the ears. The album divides into different experiences and stories of Rouse’s mother (or is it?), fake relationships (he was born that year, and babies can’t have complicated relationships, but yet again they are probably modern relationships with a twist called the past…Touché, Mr. Rouse), and the vibrations of love. Now that I think about it, It’s pretty much an album of disco and lovemaking with the sounds of alternative singer/songwriter guiding these bizarrely random themes. A quality listen nonetheless.
mp3: Josh Rouse- Sunshine (Come On Lady)
mp3: Josh Rouse- Rise
Buy here.
36. The Beatles- Abbey Road
I still don’t understand the whole paulisdead thing, but also, I am not as cool or talented as the Beatles…not for millions of miles. Anyway, that whole shazz made this album cover one of the most famous of all time. But that isn’t even the focus of thought right now, just a little side note, this album is remarkable, and is the Beatles album that has taken hold of me the most. So much energy is laid out on every turn of the album, that crisp Beatles sound just echoing throughout your head, you lay dazed and dreaming after a few listens, you lay mesmerized and changed after a few more. You are a huge fan after one listen. The Beatles almost perfect everything on this album, and manage to spark a conspiracy theory in making one of the most flawless and needed rock albums of all time.
mp3: The Beatles- Octopus Garden
mp3: The Beatles- Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End (p.s. stupendous)
Buy here
35. Harry and the Potters- The Power of Love
Like I said earlier about the first Harry and the Potters album, this stuff is creative and hot. And I’m not trying to diss the Hogwarts squad, but their stuff in the early stages sounded kinda rough and not of good quality, it didn’t make the music not good, it just made it not as good as it could be, and that is why I was so joyful to hear of this masterpiece. It was a great idea, with great music, and now WITH GREAT QUALITY, and more experience. In this album the band is finally molding into final shape, and that is the shape in where I begin anticipate any single release by the group, and I begin hovering over any recent news snippets of new albums/compilations/soundtracks/remix albums/ect.. From this point on it doesn’t get normal, this band is on radar and is at a place with this album that they are becoming killer at what they do, and perfecting their style and building their individual sound. Awesome.
mp3: Harry and the Potters- (Not Gonna Put On) The Monkey Suit
mp3: Harry and the Potters- Smootchy Smootchy, Pukey Pukey
mp3: Harry and the Potters- The Phoenix Song
mp3: Harry and the Potters- Felix Felicis
Buy here.
34. Stars- Set Yourself on Fire
This is just a good album. I mean there is a lot more to say, but that needs to be known. This is a wicked good album. The voice of Torquil Campbell is the first angelic quality tagged to this band that I will bring up. His voice sounds so sophisticated and heartfelt, filled with stories of broken hearts and relentless love, all the while staying cool and understanding that is was for the better. Second is the vocals that guide by Amy Millan. She adds a certain evenness to every song, playing each track out like a captivating duet. Overall this album will rock your socks off, it unleashes track after track of good song, each containing their own special flow, making this one of my favorite albums.
mp3: Stars- Your Ex-Lover Is Dead
mp3: Stars- One More Night
mp3: Stars- Set Yourself On Fire
Buy here.
33. Modest Mouse- We were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
Modest Mouse does not fail when putting out a disc of songs they’ve made. They just do not. And in this case, they do more than just not fail, they excel quite tremendously. On first listen, I wanted to take time, listen to each song one by one over and over again. I successfully did this with about 5, then I just needed more, because the 5 I listened to were unbelievable. I enjoyed listening to ”Fire It Up” so much on repeat that I listened to that one for about 4 days straight, listening to that one only. ”Spitting Venom” was like a symphony of indie rock, just parading through different twists and turns and kicking ass as doing this wonderfully. My favorite Modest Mouse release because It captures all the bands’ elements at the perfect moments, and presents the listener with just a buffet of unbelievable muzak.
mp3: Modest Mouse- Fly Trapped In a Jar
mp3: Modest Mouse- We've Got Everything
Buy here.
32. R.E.M.- The Reckoning
This was one of the only albums from the 80s that my parents actually welcomed (into our record player in the living room of my old house). This album collected everything that was R.E.M., bottled it up, and poured it into not only my ears, but my heart and my memory, indulging me with a landmark band of alternative music. Their laid back alternative flow was just so endearing and personal. Personally, this album just struck a good nerve for me, it related to me then, and to this day, the youth of the band, the optimistic look into the future that echoed through every track. Also, the album cover may be one of my favorite of all time, and although that is not an aspect I have spoken of much to this point, it is definitely an important one, it is one that drives the listener to listening to the artist’s disc, and it is one that should summarize the disc’s mentality.
mp3: R.E.M.- Harborcoat
Buy here.
31. Elliott Smith- Either/Or
O Boy. Getting to the Elliott. This is an artist who I have been very into for the past 2 years. I find almost everything he does near flawless, and he is dead, so that makes everything just so much more precious. Either/Or is an excellent Elliott Smith album. It captures the edge of Elliott’s side of darkness and paranoia, but also shows his side of certainty. The sound Elliott captures is different from anything else, it controls the imagery of a personal favorite day dream of mine, the woods (cabins, lakes, being secluded from everything that is decided, all that good stuff), and it is conveyed wonderfully in this album, almost powerfully. Elliott steps up to the plate with this album with knowing exactly what he wants to accomplish, and does that, with flying colors.
mp3: Elliott Smith- Between the Bars
mp3: Elliott Smith- Speed Trials
mp3: Elliott Smith- The Ballad of Big Nothing
Buy here.
30. Big Star- #1 Record
This album is most likely the most influential individual album on indie muzak today…in my opinion. Big Star just put together the hooks that people didn’t expect to hear, the hooks that people weren’t hearing at the time, and strangely enough, people accepted these songs, and oh yeah it was damn good noise too. The name of this album almost literally (if it were completely literal it would be my number 1 record on this list), this album carries a tracklist full of classic songs that will bring you back to times you had experienced or spark dreams of experiences that will be had. BS just captures this sound that is so remarkable and so unique that you almost know within one listen that this is a record that could change someone’s life, a record that is needed in the world of music.
mp3: Big Star- Thirteen
mp3: Big Star- Watching the Sunrise
Buy here.
29. Of Montreal- Sunlandic Twins
Basically every Of Montreal album is excellent and great and spectacular and makes you dance, but the edge that Sundlandic Twins has lies in the power of one song, and basically the way that song reflects onto the rest of the album. That song is ”The Parties Crashing Us”. It makes you jump out and instantly become mesmerized by every element of it, and this brings in the attraction that paves the way for appreciation and attention to the outright perfection of the album. I was kind of lying before, it is not only one song that separates this from other OM albums (just in this very moment I realized that ”Requiem for O.M.M.” means Requiem for Of Montreal Member…stellar), this whole album stands out. Power, energy, catchiest damn tunes I’ve heard in a while (all of OM’s are, but I mean, this is just…Oh my, oh my).
mp3: Of Montreal- Requiem for O.M.M.
mp3: Of Montreal- The Parties Crashing Us
Buy here.
28. Death Cab for Cutie- Transatlanticism
I’m kind of sad that this is the only DcfC album I have included in the list, but all the others were swimming at the edge. Anyways, this is a wowee zowee album, not in the Pavement way, but in the way that you say, “Wowee zowee! That album was good, who is this band? Can I rock with them? All the time?” But basically, yeah, something along those lines. Not that comedic though, this album is heart wrenching. It sings of heart break and despair and love and friendship and questions the world and questions everything else in the world while staying to the roots of them being the most quintessential indie band in business right now. Each track is memorable and power filled with sounds that just make you bob your head and make it impossible not to ask who the artist singing the song is. Basically, this band sounds good, and the best through this album- the most experienced, mature, and well put together.
mp3: Death Cab for Cutie- Passenger Seat
mp3: Death Cab for Cutie- Tiny Vessels
mp3: Death Cab for Cutie- Expo '86
Buy here.
27. Cloud Cult- Advice from the Happy Hippopotamus
I seriously want to yell this band’s name at the top of a mountain with this album playing as the soundtrack so people can understand how talented and (excuse my language, but it’s needed) fuckin’ kickass this album is. The drum beats almost smash you in your face while listening, and each songs go to places where you would completely not expect, but after comprehending the indescribable change, your glad it went there, real glad. And as you continue listening to this album from start to finish, you begin actually hoping that it’ll get worse, because you’re scared of how good each song is, it seems impossible, but this troupe from Minnesota do it. They really outdo any expectations with this as well, which is just so refreshing, they could’ve went with less tracks and done a mediocre album to put them on the map, but they took the risk, went deep and long, with risky movements, and I believe this paid off. For they have made a timeless and epic album of alternative indie rock and roll, all of those.
mp3: Cloud Cult- Lucky Today
mp3: Cloud Cult- Washed Your Car
mp3: Cloud Cult- Living on the Outside of Your Skin
Buy here.
26. Arcade Fire- Funeral
This is where it all began. With Arcade Fire, our generation is witnessing first hand account a band that will make history as being one of the best. This is their debut. A straight up masterpiece, and nothing less than that. Its pretty obvious why this album succeeds in being widely accepted and enthusiastically welcome, the risky lyrics that stick deep beneath the surface of things, the eerie mumbles of Win Butler, the shouts that accompany in the background, the feeling their sound evokes, this remarkable sensation from knowing exactly what is happening while listening, and being blown away by that feeling. With this being their debut album, they show unforeseen potential, and on the album they show signs of no improvement needed, they could simply make albums like this their entire career and be listed as one of the greatest bands to walk the face of the earth (or beneath).
mp3: Arcade Fire- Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
mp3: Arcade Fire- Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
mp3: Arcade Fire- Wake Up
Buy here.
25. The Grateful Dead- Anthem of the Sun
Since childhood, I have been practically force fed Grateful Dead from my father, and in most cases I will thoroughly enjoy the stuff, but that enjoyment will never really stick and develop into love or need. Key word in that sentence was really, because Anthem of The Sun did stick. I’m not sure what made it stick. IT could be the immaturity that results in what sounds like a very fun time in the recording studio, a very free time, and a very magical and experimental time. That is what the Grateful Dead was about, having fun with trying different things and making an extraordinary final project. Anthem of the Sun captures all the regular Grateful Dead qualities (songs like ”That’s It For the Other One) while mixing it up and just jamming and having great loads of fun (songs like ”Alligator”). I mean even if you are not a big Grateful Dead fan, this album is still surprisingly fun to listen to.
mp3: The Grateful Dead- That's It For the Other One
mp3: The Grateful Dead- Born Cross-Eyed
Buy here.
24. Built to Spill- There's Nothing Wrong With Love
This is purely a great indie rock album of the 90s. I was told about this album from a friend (Courtesy of the Gold Soundz) and I have yet to pay him back rightfully because of how unbelievable this album is. This is just solid indie rock, flawless indie rock. Each song goes over my expectations and surprises me, pleasantly surprises me. From start to finish you just want to listen to this album, you don’t have to really pay attention to much because it’s all right in front of you, laid out simply with all attractive qualities accessible and smack right in your face. BTS over the years has developed into one of the best indie rock bands ever, and were a pioneer for the genre, this album bottles this up better than any other of theirs (even though ”Velvet Waltz” is my favorite Built to Spill song and on my top 10 of all time).
mp3: Built to Spill- In the Morning
mp3: Built to Spill- Car
mp3: Built to Spill- Twin Falls
Buy here.
23. Sebadoh- III
Sebadoh got it so right. So right. They jumped into this whole scene, planted a seed for their own type of lo-fi plant, and that plant grew and gave birth to other seeds that created a whole new species of plants. Enough with the metaphor, this album kicks tail. From the song featured in the creepy last scene of Kids, to the just plain old brilliant ”Violet Execution”, this album flows, and there is so much to the album, so many songs that you can just sit back and relax too, but also to think about. Just listening to the emotion that drains from each effort on this album, the listener can’t help but be amazed. The quiet shiver of Barlow’s voice over the scratchy recording creates this warm and fuzzy feeling when you listen, it gives you the goose bumps because you feel like everything’s happening right there with you, everything is about you, everything is surrounding you, and everything is clear. An excellent album, calling it a classic would be granted an understatement.
mp3: Sebadoh- Violet Execution
mp3: Sebadoh- Spoiled
Buy here.
22. Kings of Leon- Aha Shake Heartbreak
Never have I seen more spunk from a group of Southern rockers, and it mashes with their homeland traits beautifully! The KOL create a very special thing here, a disc that you can tap your feet too, sit confused for hours over the mumbling of Caleb’s vocals, dance to, think to, dream to, all in one effort. Aha Shake Heartbreak really excels in the way that it is a new style of good listen, a new way to enjoy the music, and that is rarely seen these days. If you want to best explempify the experience that is received when listening to this album, take ”Kings of the Rodeo”, from beginning to end it explodes with a pop sensation and clever catchy rhythms. That is how this album is, catchy, addicting, southern, popish, hard rocking, and at times very intellectual (although you don’t expect it). Just a great sounding record in every track and in the soul that screams out for attention.
mp3: Kings of Leon- King of the Rodeo
mp3: Kings of Leon- Day Old blues
mp3: Kings of Leon- Taper Jean Girl
Buy here.
21. The Clash- London Calling
This is my prime example of an album that is just so unbelievable as a whole (Wait, make that second to most prime example, most prime example is sitting high and mighty in the number 1 spot). This album flows with themes and punk rock pioneering that blows any contemporary attempting this feat out of the water. The sound is so unique that you cannot help to love it, also, the band, being as cool as they were, contributes greatly to the enjoyment. The Clash is a band you can love, with music that backs that feeling. London Calling captures that essence the best, it catches them at their peak, just rocking and rolling through any other bands at the time. Also The Clash were part of that whole Brit Punk thing, which made it even more appealing. But the most appealing of this band has to be the sound. Impeccable punk rock, some new thinkers, and bam, there you have it.
mp3: The Clash- Train in Vain
Buy here.
Ok. One more to go. Fun fun for everyone. Always with love...BK
partfour.
40. Girl Talk- Night RipperThis album was ultimately the brain child of Gregg Gillis, and he’s got a pretty collective brain if you ask me (just check out the lists of songs he uses for each! song on NightRipper). This easily became one of my top albums of last year, most easily stated, because of its addictiveness, each song pulls in emotions previously held about one of the many songs that the actual track on the disc holds snippets from. Each song has at the least 2 snippets that catch your attention and make you get into the song. And after more than a few listens, you realize this album isn’t only fun, but remarkable and unforgettable, and probably one of the most impressive works you’ll hear to date.
mp3: Girl Talk- Warm It Up (Favorite mash: Annie and Fergie, "Feel My Hearthumps")
mp3: Girl Talk- That's My DJ (Favorite mash: Right when it's about to go into "Blinded By the Light")
mp3: Girl Talk- Once Again (Favorite mash: Ying Yang Twins and the Verve, "Bittersweet Whisper Song")
mp3: Girl Talk- Summer Smoke (Favorite mash: "It's Magic" and "Gold Digger")
Buy here.
39. The Strokes- Room On FireWhat I believe to be the band from Manhattan’s greatest album to date. This effort is flawless in the way that every song is what you want it to be: Full of energy, scratchy vocals, pretty and neat guitar and drum medlies, and that alternative sound that gives these guys the name that when people hear it, automatically hear that new era rock and roll. There are so many memorable songs on this disc it’s not even funny, if I want to just sample the glorious ”What Ever Happened”, I find myself getting myself caught in a labyrinth of this album, and it consumes me, making me take pit stops at every track, making me bask in everything coming from the stereo speakers, getting me lost in a world of rock bliss.
mp3: The Strokes- What Ever Happened
mp3: The Strokes- The Way It Is
mp3: The Strokes- The End Has No End
Buy here.
38. Sufjan Stevens- MichiganThe voice of Sir Sufjan Stevens simply makes me tremble. And it is broadcasted beautifully over one concentrated genre for this state. Sufjan focuses on simple folk music (with bells of course) while traveling through Michigan, and he captures this sound perfectly. He cements his voice and his style, making it easy to understand that the talent present is overflowing, and calling for attention, because it deserves it. This album contains some of my favorite acoustic songs I have ever had the pleasure to listen to, and it produces the great overall effect a Sufjan album will always produce. Complete sound, and a more than solid consistency with songs, the excellence is almost spread out to cover every track on the disc, even though it doesn’t need to be, because each track holds its own personality, it’s own special little catch, Mr. Stevens does that for you. He creates so many little experiences that build up and build up to make one giant phenomena of a record. This thing is bursting with talent and entertainment and joy, and is just a fine example of excellent modern music.
mp3: Sufjan Stevens- Flint (For the Unemployed and Underpaid)
mp3: Sufjan Stevens- Romulus
mp3: Oh Detroit, Lift Up Your Weary Head! (Rebuild! Restore! Reconsider!)
Buy here.
37. Josh Rouse- 1972This album…was another road trip album, and it was a fun one. I seriously thought that Josh Rouse was just obsessed with the year 1972 when I first heard the noises and lyrics coming from my headphones, he sang with such emotion and belief. He was positive and funky and happy and cool and made songs that were kind on the ears. The album divides into different experiences and stories of Rouse’s mother (or is it?), fake relationships (he was born that year, and babies can’t have complicated relationships, but yet again they are probably modern relationships with a twist called the past…Touché, Mr. Rouse), and the vibrations of love. Now that I think about it, It’s pretty much an album of disco and lovemaking with the sounds of alternative singer/songwriter guiding these bizarrely random themes. A quality listen nonetheless.
mp3: Josh Rouse- Sunshine (Come On Lady)
mp3: Josh Rouse- Rise
Buy here.
36. The Beatles- Abbey RoadI still don’t understand the whole paulisdead thing, but also, I am not as cool or talented as the Beatles…not for millions of miles. Anyway, that whole shazz made this album cover one of the most famous of all time. But that isn’t even the focus of thought right now, just a little side note, this album is remarkable, and is the Beatles album that has taken hold of me the most. So much energy is laid out on every turn of the album, that crisp Beatles sound just echoing throughout your head, you lay dazed and dreaming after a few listens, you lay mesmerized and changed after a few more. You are a huge fan after one listen. The Beatles almost perfect everything on this album, and manage to spark a conspiracy theory in making one of the most flawless and needed rock albums of all time.
mp3: The Beatles- Octopus Garden
mp3: The Beatles- Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End (p.s. stupendous)
Buy here
35. Harry and the Potters- The Power of LoveLike I said earlier about the first Harry and the Potters album, this stuff is creative and hot. And I’m not trying to diss the Hogwarts squad, but their stuff in the early stages sounded kinda rough and not of good quality, it didn’t make the music not good, it just made it not as good as it could be, and that is why I was so joyful to hear of this masterpiece. It was a great idea, with great music, and now WITH GREAT QUALITY, and more experience. In this album the band is finally molding into final shape, and that is the shape in where I begin anticipate any single release by the group, and I begin hovering over any recent news snippets of new albums/compilations/soundtracks/remix albums/ect.. From this point on it doesn’t get normal, this band is on radar and is at a place with this album that they are becoming killer at what they do, and perfecting their style and building their individual sound. Awesome.
mp3: Harry and the Potters- (Not Gonna Put On) The Monkey Suit
mp3: Harry and the Potters- Smootchy Smootchy, Pukey Pukey
mp3: Harry and the Potters- The Phoenix Song
mp3: Harry and the Potters- Felix Felicis
Buy here.
34. Stars- Set Yourself on FireThis is just a good album. I mean there is a lot more to say, but that needs to be known. This is a wicked good album. The voice of Torquil Campbell is the first angelic quality tagged to this band that I will bring up. His voice sounds so sophisticated and heartfelt, filled with stories of broken hearts and relentless love, all the while staying cool and understanding that is was for the better. Second is the vocals that guide by Amy Millan. She adds a certain evenness to every song, playing each track out like a captivating duet. Overall this album will rock your socks off, it unleashes track after track of good song, each containing their own special flow, making this one of my favorite albums.
mp3: Stars- Your Ex-Lover Is Dead
mp3: Stars- One More Night
mp3: Stars- Set Yourself On Fire
Buy here.
33. Modest Mouse- We were Dead Before the Ship Even SankModest Mouse does not fail when putting out a disc of songs they’ve made. They just do not. And in this case, they do more than just not fail, they excel quite tremendously. On first listen, I wanted to take time, listen to each song one by one over and over again. I successfully did this with about 5, then I just needed more, because the 5 I listened to were unbelievable. I enjoyed listening to ”Fire It Up” so much on repeat that I listened to that one for about 4 days straight, listening to that one only. ”Spitting Venom” was like a symphony of indie rock, just parading through different twists and turns and kicking ass as doing this wonderfully. My favorite Modest Mouse release because It captures all the bands’ elements at the perfect moments, and presents the listener with just a buffet of unbelievable muzak.
mp3: Modest Mouse- Fly Trapped In a Jar
mp3: Modest Mouse- We've Got Everything
Buy here.
32. R.E.M.- The ReckoningThis was one of the only albums from the 80s that my parents actually welcomed (into our record player in the living room of my old house). This album collected everything that was R.E.M., bottled it up, and poured it into not only my ears, but my heart and my memory, indulging me with a landmark band of alternative music. Their laid back alternative flow was just so endearing and personal. Personally, this album just struck a good nerve for me, it related to me then, and to this day, the youth of the band, the optimistic look into the future that echoed through every track. Also, the album cover may be one of my favorite of all time, and although that is not an aspect I have spoken of much to this point, it is definitely an important one, it is one that drives the listener to listening to the artist’s disc, and it is one that should summarize the disc’s mentality.
mp3: R.E.M.- Harborcoat
Buy here.
31. Elliott Smith- Either/OrO Boy. Getting to the Elliott. This is an artist who I have been very into for the past 2 years. I find almost everything he does near flawless, and he is dead, so that makes everything just so much more precious. Either/Or is an excellent Elliott Smith album. It captures the edge of Elliott’s side of darkness and paranoia, but also shows his side of certainty. The sound Elliott captures is different from anything else, it controls the imagery of a personal favorite day dream of mine, the woods (cabins, lakes, being secluded from everything that is decided, all that good stuff), and it is conveyed wonderfully in this album, almost powerfully. Elliott steps up to the plate with this album with knowing exactly what he wants to accomplish, and does that, with flying colors.
mp3: Elliott Smith- Between the Bars
mp3: Elliott Smith- Speed Trials
mp3: Elliott Smith- The Ballad of Big Nothing
Buy here.
30. Big Star- #1 RecordThis album is most likely the most influential individual album on indie muzak today…in my opinion. Big Star just put together the hooks that people didn’t expect to hear, the hooks that people weren’t hearing at the time, and strangely enough, people accepted these songs, and oh yeah it was damn good noise too. The name of this album almost literally (if it were completely literal it would be my number 1 record on this list), this album carries a tracklist full of classic songs that will bring you back to times you had experienced or spark dreams of experiences that will be had. BS just captures this sound that is so remarkable and so unique that you almost know within one listen that this is a record that could change someone’s life, a record that is needed in the world of music.
mp3: Big Star- Thirteen
mp3: Big Star- Watching the Sunrise
Buy here.
29. Of Montreal- Sunlandic TwinsBasically every Of Montreal album is excellent and great and spectacular and makes you dance, but the edge that Sundlandic Twins has lies in the power of one song, and basically the way that song reflects onto the rest of the album. That song is ”The Parties Crashing Us”. It makes you jump out and instantly become mesmerized by every element of it, and this brings in the attraction that paves the way for appreciation and attention to the outright perfection of the album. I was kind of lying before, it is not only one song that separates this from other OM albums (just in this very moment I realized that ”Requiem for O.M.M.” means Requiem for Of Montreal Member…stellar), this whole album stands out. Power, energy, catchiest damn tunes I’ve heard in a while (all of OM’s are, but I mean, this is just…Oh my, oh my).
mp3: Of Montreal- Requiem for O.M.M.
mp3: Of Montreal- The Parties Crashing Us
Buy here.
28. Death Cab for Cutie- TransatlanticismI’m kind of sad that this is the only DcfC album I have included in the list, but all the others were swimming at the edge. Anyways, this is a wowee zowee album, not in the Pavement way, but in the way that you say, “Wowee zowee! That album was good, who is this band? Can I rock with them? All the time?” But basically, yeah, something along those lines. Not that comedic though, this album is heart wrenching. It sings of heart break and despair and love and friendship and questions the world and questions everything else in the world while staying to the roots of them being the most quintessential indie band in business right now. Each track is memorable and power filled with sounds that just make you bob your head and make it impossible not to ask who the artist singing the song is. Basically, this band sounds good, and the best through this album- the most experienced, mature, and well put together.
mp3: Death Cab for Cutie- Passenger Seat
mp3: Death Cab for Cutie- Tiny Vessels
mp3: Death Cab for Cutie- Expo '86
Buy here.
27. Cloud Cult- Advice from the Happy HippopotamusI seriously want to yell this band’s name at the top of a mountain with this album playing as the soundtrack so people can understand how talented and (excuse my language, but it’s needed) fuckin’ kickass this album is. The drum beats almost smash you in your face while listening, and each songs go to places where you would completely not expect, but after comprehending the indescribable change, your glad it went there, real glad. And as you continue listening to this album from start to finish, you begin actually hoping that it’ll get worse, because you’re scared of how good each song is, it seems impossible, but this troupe from Minnesota do it. They really outdo any expectations with this as well, which is just so refreshing, they could’ve went with less tracks and done a mediocre album to put them on the map, but they took the risk, went deep and long, with risky movements, and I believe this paid off. For they have made a timeless and epic album of alternative indie rock and roll, all of those.
mp3: Cloud Cult- Lucky Today
mp3: Cloud Cult- Washed Your Car
mp3: Cloud Cult- Living on the Outside of Your Skin
Buy here.
26. Arcade Fire- FuneralThis is where it all began. With Arcade Fire, our generation is witnessing first hand account a band that will make history as being one of the best. This is their debut. A straight up masterpiece, and nothing less than that. Its pretty obvious why this album succeeds in being widely accepted and enthusiastically welcome, the risky lyrics that stick deep beneath the surface of things, the eerie mumbles of Win Butler, the shouts that accompany in the background, the feeling their sound evokes, this remarkable sensation from knowing exactly what is happening while listening, and being blown away by that feeling. With this being their debut album, they show unforeseen potential, and on the album they show signs of no improvement needed, they could simply make albums like this their entire career and be listed as one of the greatest bands to walk the face of the earth (or beneath).
mp3: Arcade Fire- Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
mp3: Arcade Fire- Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
mp3: Arcade Fire- Wake Up
Buy here.
25. The Grateful Dead- Anthem of the SunSince childhood, I have been practically force fed Grateful Dead from my father, and in most cases I will thoroughly enjoy the stuff, but that enjoyment will never really stick and develop into love or need. Key word in that sentence was really, because Anthem of The Sun did stick. I’m not sure what made it stick. IT could be the immaturity that results in what sounds like a very fun time in the recording studio, a very free time, and a very magical and experimental time. That is what the Grateful Dead was about, having fun with trying different things and making an extraordinary final project. Anthem of the Sun captures all the regular Grateful Dead qualities (songs like ”That’s It For the Other One) while mixing it up and just jamming and having great loads of fun (songs like ”Alligator”). I mean even if you are not a big Grateful Dead fan, this album is still surprisingly fun to listen to.
mp3: The Grateful Dead- That's It For the Other One
mp3: The Grateful Dead- Born Cross-Eyed
Buy here.
24. Built to Spill- There's Nothing Wrong With LoveThis is purely a great indie rock album of the 90s. I was told about this album from a friend (Courtesy of the Gold Soundz) and I have yet to pay him back rightfully because of how unbelievable this album is. This is just solid indie rock, flawless indie rock. Each song goes over my expectations and surprises me, pleasantly surprises me. From start to finish you just want to listen to this album, you don’t have to really pay attention to much because it’s all right in front of you, laid out simply with all attractive qualities accessible and smack right in your face. BTS over the years has developed into one of the best indie rock bands ever, and were a pioneer for the genre, this album bottles this up better than any other of theirs (even though ”Velvet Waltz” is my favorite Built to Spill song and on my top 10 of all time).
mp3: Built to Spill- In the Morning
mp3: Built to Spill- Car
mp3: Built to Spill- Twin Falls
Buy here.
23. Sebadoh- IIISebadoh got it so right. So right. They jumped into this whole scene, planted a seed for their own type of lo-fi plant, and that plant grew and gave birth to other seeds that created a whole new species of plants. Enough with the metaphor, this album kicks tail. From the song featured in the creepy last scene of Kids, to the just plain old brilliant ”Violet Execution”, this album flows, and there is so much to the album, so many songs that you can just sit back and relax too, but also to think about. Just listening to the emotion that drains from each effort on this album, the listener can’t help but be amazed. The quiet shiver of Barlow’s voice over the scratchy recording creates this warm and fuzzy feeling when you listen, it gives you the goose bumps because you feel like everything’s happening right there with you, everything is about you, everything is surrounding you, and everything is clear. An excellent album, calling it a classic would be granted an understatement.
mp3: Sebadoh- Violet Execution
mp3: Sebadoh- Spoiled
Buy here.
22. Kings of Leon- Aha Shake HeartbreakNever have I seen more spunk from a group of Southern rockers, and it mashes with their homeland traits beautifully! The KOL create a very special thing here, a disc that you can tap your feet too, sit confused for hours over the mumbling of Caleb’s vocals, dance to, think to, dream to, all in one effort. Aha Shake Heartbreak really excels in the way that it is a new style of good listen, a new way to enjoy the music, and that is rarely seen these days. If you want to best explempify the experience that is received when listening to this album, take ”Kings of the Rodeo”, from beginning to end it explodes with a pop sensation and clever catchy rhythms. That is how this album is, catchy, addicting, southern, popish, hard rocking, and at times very intellectual (although you don’t expect it). Just a great sounding record in every track and in the soul that screams out for attention.
mp3: Kings of Leon- King of the Rodeo
mp3: Kings of Leon- Day Old blues
mp3: Kings of Leon- Taper Jean Girl
Buy here.
21. The Clash- London CallingThis is my prime example of an album that is just so unbelievable as a whole (Wait, make that second to most prime example, most prime example is sitting high and mighty in the number 1 spot). This album flows with themes and punk rock pioneering that blows any contemporary attempting this feat out of the water. The sound is so unique that you cannot help to love it, also, the band, being as cool as they were, contributes greatly to the enjoyment. The Clash is a band you can love, with music that backs that feeling. London Calling captures that essence the best, it catches them at their peak, just rocking and rolling through any other bands at the time. Also The Clash were part of that whole Brit Punk thing, which made it even more appealing. But the most appealing of this band has to be the sound. Impeccable punk rock, some new thinkers, and bam, there you have it.
mp3: The Clash- Train in Vain
Buy here.
Ok. One more to go. Fun fun for everyone. Always with love...BK
Thursday, April 5, 2007
It's in the woods
Finally. Twin Peaks :The Second Season is finally coming out to DVD Box Set, and I hate to say it but, it took whoever was in charge of this escapade long enough. Twin Peaks is easily one of my favorite TV shows of all time along with the brilliant Six Feet Under and the addictive The O.C.. But TP brings a different quality to the table other than addictiveness and intelligence (which it definitley does, I mean who didn't want to know who killed Laura Palmer?), it brings something that diggs deep in the psyche and claws through the outer layers of your brain to hit the stems of imagination and wonder, wonder of what goes on beyond everything. What goes on in the woods?. The Second Season reveals the secret of the murderer (I will never tell, you just have to watch for yourself), and bottles up that sense of mystery and curiousity along with the question of what lies beneath, and almost multiplies it, exploding the bottle and sending this vibe all through out the experience of watching that season, so much that you cannot ignore it. Anyway I'm rambling, you can buy it on the link above labeled: DVD Box Set, and you will enjoy it (But you need season 1 and the pilot to fully succeed in that effort!). Always with love...BK
mp3: Angelo Badalamenti- Twin Peaks Theme Song
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
God that was strange to see you again.
Nostalgia sometimes has a cure, in the form of remix albums. This is certainly the case for Stars' remarkable release Set Yourself On Fire that has been remixed and flipped around to make Do You Trust Your Friends?, and has made quite possibly my favorite remix album of 2006 or 2007 (so far). From the opening chords of Final Fantasy's rendition of "Your Ex-Lover is Dead" you will realize that this thing does justice for it's original (Let me slightly trail off and explain how great of an album Set Yourself On Fire was. It was such a solid and flawless release from a great group and it captures everything and anything one would ever need in a beautiful instance and delivers it to the listener in a form of wonderful and sweet brevity). The (remix) album flows like the shadow of the original, abiding to the guidelines of that should-be-respected masterpiece, but also throws in necessary twitches and changes that add to the creativity and leaves the listener with something new of something that was originally their favorite. You can't go wrong with listening to this if you like good music (Just my opinion, I guess that's fine if you don't like the hush and mystical sounds of Stars), I mean, Arts & Crafts basically hands this thing to you on a golden platter with the bands remixing glorious music (Apostle of Hustle, Junior Boys, The Dears, The Stills, Russian Futurists). But anyway, I thought this was a more than interesting little listen, and a definite buy. Always with love...BK
mp3: Stars- Your Ex-Lover Is Dead (Final Fantasy Remix) (p.s. the piano melody may be one of the most beautiful things I have heard in ages, it sings hope and distress at the same time, simply astonishing, I'm speechless by the ways of Owen Pallett)
mp3: Stars- Set Yourself On Fire (Montag Remix)
mp3: Stars- Sleep Tonight (Junior Boys Remix)
Buy that pile of hot fuss right here.
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Le Printemps De Bourges/ The Forms
Le Printemps de Bourges is a music festival held in France, celbrating it's 31st anniversary, and it is loaded with some talent. Some of the lineup includes bands such as Peter, Bjorn, and John, Feist, Lady Sov, Akron/Family, The Rakes, Joanna Newsom, Loney, Dear, Benjy Ferree, Cold War Kids, Maximo Park, Bloc Party, and my personal favorite, Phoenix. Ha, so yeah, that's pretty attractive if you ask me, and I wish I lived in/near France (kind of) at a time like this. The venues seem stellar and it sounds like a rocking good time, if you have the oppurtunity, I definitley reccomend checking this little diddy out.
mp3: Phoenix- Long Distance Call (25 Hours a Day Remix)
mp3: Akron/Family- No Space In This Realm
mp3: Bloc Party- Song for Clay (Dissapear Here)
mp3: Feist- The Park
This band is called The Forms, a find on the 2007 SXSW Showcasing Artists, and I literally owe my life to those files. These guys hail from Brooklyn like many great alternative bands these days, and have something really special to their sound, something I still can't completely put my finger on. They come out each song immediatley getting to the point of catching your attention. Their guitar riffs are like none I have ever head, and the vocals sound like echoes...in a good way. They have finished a new album but have not put anything out about it except for one song titled "Alpha" on their MySpace, and by the sound of that one song, it should be as good as their 2003 release Icarus. I'm saying it right now, this band has and enormous ammount of potential and should definitley be watched because you'll be really upset if you miss the wave. Always with Love...BKmp3: The Forms- Sunday from 2003's Icarus
mp3: The Forms- Blackmetal from 2003's Icarus
Monday, April 2, 2007
Loop
Intellectual party. I felt a little like talking, and using music to aid how I'm feeling. This is all becoming overwhelming, everything is taking over me. I feel like I'm losing control of my actions and my mind, I feel everything draining out of me. Soon I will disappear all together, against my will, and be somewhere new, sometime. There is a new era forming into existence, an era of emptiness. Do not be scared of the future, relate to it, I'm not sure what is happening to all of us, but it's either something beautiful or something horrible, listen to the mp3 as you read this over and over. Discover phenomena.
mp3: Bright Eyes- Clairaudients (Kill Or Be Killed)
First off would have to be my search for the right place for me for the next four years. I look West, and "There's a feeling I get when I look to the West..." and I look East, to the familiarity of life, to comfort and ease.
mp3: Nick Butcher- Minutes Overlap
Colorado College vs. Bennington College. I have seesawed through the pluses and minuses of both schools, and I cannot conclude a stable result. This is a big decision I feel, I'm entering a new stage of my life that can be determined by myself, and I have never had a decision with that impact yet in my life. Of course shallow factors still appear in the mix, parties, girls, fun & games during the nighttime, just about anything that my fever leans toward. But the other factors are the ones I have shuffled in and out of. So basically im dancing in this zone of confusion trying to find clarity in a proper decision. If anyone has any extra knowledge/experiences from either of these wonderful places, please leave those words in the comments so they can aid in my decision somewhat.mp3: Big Star- Way Out West
mp3: The Zincs- Head East, Kaspar
Next on the list is discussing this world of relationships. What happens with two people that can make them so in love with each other or so hateful towards each other? What's the connection that occurs there? that works for both extremes? I certainly don't know away, I don't know why people do things to hurt other people...
"I pulled the trigger just to watch them run away,"
Or why people go to the pinnacle to make people feel something for them when there is nothing to be felt. I don't know. Yet again we all really don't know anything, everything is pretty much assumption.. But there is the feeling from finding someone that is atleast seemingly compatable, and I believe that's what everything is for. The feeling that everything is working, and that piece of the puzzle is well in place, and is making it easier to put together the whole thing. It's either that or the company from this person you cannot be without.
"I maintain, then, that while all the gods are happy, Love- if I may say so without giving offence- is the happiest of them all, for he is the most beautiful and the best."
Relationships are cool I guess, stress and all, they bring happiness, they bring confusion, and they bring work to make the first one work, but most importantly they bring hurt. And I guess after all is said and done the real question is: Is that happiness worth all of that?. That statement is neither optimistic nor pessimistic, it is objective.
mp3: Rogue Wave- All You Need is Love (Beatles Cover)
mp3: The National- Green Gloves
mp3: Okkervil River- Love to a Monster
And of course there is regret. And never knowing what could have happened, and sorrow for misunderstanding between two. Because sometimes saying sorry isn't enough, and that line is never crossed, and things are lost.
mp3: Built to Spill- Velvet Waltz
The reason this is called Loop, is for how many times these questions are asked, I'm not the only one, I do not know anything pretty much, I'm just another turn on the loop function.
Sunday, April 1, 2007
Fav Fav Albums Out of 100 Part III (60-41)
Lord Lord, let's keep on exploding.
partthree. (by the way, why do I keep starting these album posts with albums colored in swamp green?)
60. Modest Mouse- Good News for People Who Love Bad News
Modest Mouse sounds really good most of the time (Understatement). Yes yes yes this album came out when I was just being blinded by the indie light and had not yet seen the likes of the youthful age of MM, so this was pretty much my first experience of them (Before there was Moon and Antartica, before there was the lonesome crowded West, there was the good news for those people who love bad news, for me at least), and I’m glad this was my first experience. This was really the band becoming more mainstream, therefore their message was more clear, and their unique sound was distinguished easily and by means of making you fall in love with that new sound. Kick-A album with Kick-A songs. I pick this over some of that old stuff because it’s simply a more familiar project to the band I first met, I really do like the old stuff, a lot, but I love good news.
mp3: Modest Mouse- The World At Large
mp3: Modest Mouse- Black Cadillacs
mp3: Modest Mouse- The View
Buy here
59. Original Soundtrack to the Motion Picture Magnolia
ONLY SOUNDTRACK ON HERE (although others would qualify, Eternal Sunshine, Garden State, Twin Peaks, Rules of Attraction, Cabin Fever, Kids, Marie Antoinette, I could go on and on). I could have put others, but this is here for a reason! Yes, Magnolia does happen to be my favorite film ever created, and yes that helps contribute a lot, but that’s not it. The soundtrack is simply filled with great music, I mean where can you go wrong when you have Jon Brion composing, Aimee Mann rocking original songs, and Supertramp? A great collection that fits perfectly and contributes to the charm of a great great film.
mp3: Aimee Mann- Save Me
mp3: Aimee Mann- Wise Up
mp3: Jon Brion- So Now Then
mp3: Supertramp- Goodbye Stranger
Buy here.
58. Loney, Dear- Loney, Noir
This is one that came out this year. 2007. You’ll be seeing a few more from this year, and this one has the right to be at this point in the charts. Such a sexy album. Emil Svanängen rocks my socks off with his voice that sounds as if he were singing lullabies to children. His soft vocals and careful craft of his instruments comes together for this unique sound that is just so cute and amazing that you can’t help but daydream with it as a soundtrack. I literally can’t get enough of this band, and this album has about as much climax in every song as the scene in Star Wars Episode 2: The Empire Strikes Back, when Luke is told by Vader that Vader is in fact his father. I’m trailing off now. Please (listen) and thank you. --- p.s. long live Sweden for producing a chunk of indie awesomeness…all the time.
mp3: Loney, Dear- And I Won't Cause Anything at All
mp3: Loney, Dear- Saturday Waits
Buy here.
57. The Beatles- The Beatles (White Album)
Oh the Beatles, once again this should be at the top of my list, but I have not yet reached those depths, those depths that will show me the greatness that I can faintly hear and understand and those depths that everyone talks about, I’m getting there, I mean it made it this far. This album is excellent, some of my favorite individual Beatles tracks were born on this album, and continue to live long lives. It’s a funny thing, how the Beatles still are revolutionary today. Songs I hear that were made in the late 60’s reflect on what new styles of great bands are being heard today. Oh wait what’s that called again? Oh yes, influence. But Beatles influence is different than any other influence, because I believe in another 20 years, areas that the Beatles had already covered will be at the head of the scene.
mp3: The Beatles- Blackbird
mp3: The Beatles- While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Buy here.
56. mc DJ- Illin'Noise! The Sufjan Stevens Remix Album
This thing was kept very quiet, and was really hard to locate, but once I did, the work was all worth it. Truly an excellent, and my favorite remix (one artist remix) album I’ve ever heard. MC DJ spices up and flips around and kicks over and picks up again the Sufjan songs to recreate them in so many different ways that broadcast the pleasure of the original while adding a unique twist to captivate whoever is lucky enough to be listening. Who could ever think that ”A Prarie Fire Wanders About” could be made into a high school fight song? I certainly couldn’t. Also, you may recognize mc DJ from Derrick Comedy as Jerry who pooped his pants (hilarious, this guy is seriously multi-talented)
mp3: MC DJ- jacksontown
mp3: MC DJ- casmir
Or download the thang right here and check out Glover's (mc DJ's) blog here at Childish Gambino.
55. Cake- Comfort Eagle
Cake is their own type of band, this is a master album. John McCrea voices out songs like preaching to a point. And with melodic ties and balance, each track comes out like a neatly wrapped gift resulted from the holidays. The scene that this album creates is epic, and the words paint a picture. There’s not much more I can say about this album... besides that it rocks? Each song is like a powerful punch to the face, and although it’s not too personal to me, it still needs to be up here because these songs come together to make something that should be a greatest hits album. Cake is their own band, and listening to these will be like listening to a completely new style of music.
mp3: Cake- Shadow Stabbing (p.s. originally recorded for McCrea's old band John McCrea and the Roughhousers who played around in the 80s... Cake in the 80s sounds great)
mp3: Cake- Short Skirt/Long Jacket
Buy here.
54. Belle and Sebastian- Dear Catastrophe Waitress
Scotland should be proud. Because wowee zowee this thing is great, this thing, this band, this album, this feeling when listening to songs about letters being written to a certain Mets baseball star. They most definitely mix it up, having light fluffy harmonies with soft male and soft female voices guiding it through an open field, because in all the songs familiarity and clarity are screaming in presence. A sensational pop album from a sensational group. By far their greatest work because it captures everything from how good the song sounds through my big old headphones to the point the song is trying to make. Wait? Like I said before? Clear. Remarkable and Classic, would be two one word descriptions of this album.
mp3: Belle and Sebastian- If She Wants Me
mp3: Belle and Sebastian- Piazza, New York Catcher
mp3: Belle and Sebastian- Wrapped in Books
Buy here.
53. Pedro the Lion- Achilles Heel
This is like, my first middle school album that I still am more than satisfied with still being attracted to. Pedro the Lion is a killer group and each song on Achilles Heel is just doused with heart and beauty. David Bazan’s dark and calm voice presents a country folk alternative feel that sticks with you and is branded in your memory after that pleasant experience of listening. Each song has the same kind of sound, but Pedro finds a way to create individuality somehow, they don’t use different instruments because they don’t need to. The creativity that comes from this album makes the outcome majestic, because when you have creativity spliced with a stable alternative song, you’ll get one hell of a result, aka. Achilles Heel
mp3: Pedro the Lion- Bands with Managers
mp3: Pedro the Lion- A Simple Plan
Buy here.
52. Phantom Planet- The Guest
I love this album, Phantom Planet is just so cool, because anything they do I adore, and the reason that is true is because of this album. This was my first experience of Phantom Planet, having not heard Phantom Planet is Missing, and their pop sound attacked me and held on like a leech. I mean, you can’t fight it, it’s a fact: ”California is an unbelievable song, and in my opinion one of the best made, and the whole album is like that! I cannot express how much some of these songs mean to me except by repeatedly announcing how songs like ”Anthem” of ”Lonely Day” were built me by excessive nighttime listening sessions, and I think mp3s work a lot better at expressing this feeling.
mp3: Phantom Planet- Anthem
mp3: Phantom Planet- Wishing Well
Buy here.
51. Speechwriters LLC- Clones
This band is so under the radar it’s not even funny, and it makes me kinda mad too, because this much talent shouldn’t be hidden from the world. Speechwriters is a band of their own style, and they promote this style perfectly on this album. Although it’s only 5 songs, the case is definitely quality and not quantity. Each song is flawless acoustic guitar with lyrical movements that mirror one of that in the rapping/rhyming scheme, this element simply just adds to the band’s touch and unique style. And basically every where you want the song to go, it goes, satisfying your every need while taking a good listen. I love the style of this group, and I love their final product.
mp3: Speechwriters LLC- Hitchhiker's Guide
mp3: Speechwriters LLC- Beach Song
Buy here.
50. Guster- Keep It Together
Wow. Flawless record, another one that was really hammered into my memory through a roadtrip with nothing but a heavy CD player, some headphones, and this work of art. Each track as amazing as the one before, building up to an anthem with glimpses of The Wizard of Oz. Truly a spectacular feat was reached by Guster when releasing this album. Each song is radiant and exciting and perfect in its own way, and any song could be the one that speaks most to anyone, it could all easily vary because every song is packed with so much emotion and fun. It is literally hard listening to a song on this album, because once your finished with that bliss, you need to hear another, then another, until you’ve gone through the entire album while sitting in the parking lot, 23 minutes late.
mp3: Guster- Come Downstairs and Say Hello
mp3: Guster- Homecoming King
mp3: Guster- Diane
mp3: Guster- Ramona
Buy here.
49. Nick Drake- Pink Moon
I still don’t know the story of Nick Drake. Who he was, what time he was, when he died, for why he died. I never dove into that pool of questioning to a deeper understanding of this mysterious legend (I would do so with Elliott Smith), I don’t know why I never did, I just didn’t. All I did was sit back and listen to his folk music. Soft and tranquil, seemingly effortless and impossible to hate, these songs nourished their listeners with imagery of beauty, and this was courtesy of Mr. Drake. Pink Moon captures this sales pitch from Drake wonderfully and shows the magic that this individual can make the best out of anything else he has masterfully put together. Possibly one of the best acoustic albums of all time. Need I say more?
mp3: Nick Drake- Which Will
mp3: Nick Drake- Pink Moon
Buy here.
48. Final Fantasy- He Poos Clouds
Owen Pallet is a Lord in my books. He names his album He Poos Clouds and in all honesty this makes it very hard to determine what kind of album it will be. But immediately, right off the bat, the album identifies itself as something new and different. A breath of fresh air, and a sign for hope. And, given the songs are about Dungeons and Dragons, they still pose a striking feature that really connects with the listener. The lyrics are silly at times but mean well. The violin is impeccable along with all the other instruments. And this guy has some clever clever hooks in the melody that the listener never sees coming. An artist that definitley needs to be watched, for he will be great.
mp3: Final Fantasy- ->
mp3: Final Fantasy- Song Song Song
mp3: Final Fantasy- Many Lives 49 MP
Buy here.
47. The Magnetic Fields- i
The Magnetic Fields are simply amazing. They rarely show any signs of disappointment (rarely to never), and they just pump out song after song after song of this music you just want to listen to. On i, Merritt has the listener follow the chimes of bells and the hollow echo of his deep voice to reach the area of satisfaction with this album. Here, with a concept album, everything is played out in terms of (cough cough) i, or me (or you, or Stephin Merritt). That openness and familiarity that is created with that concept is so breathtaking to me because it creates a world of comfort with what your listening to, and when you are comfortable with enjoying something, love for that thing is built quite easily.
mp3: The Magnetic Fields- I Wish I Had An Evil Twin
mp3: The Magnetic Fields- I Looked All Over Town (p.s. like just listening to this makes me amazed at how good this music is, how good music can be in general)
Buy here.
46. Feist- Let It Die
Leslie Feist is a very pretty girl with a very pretty voice. I’m pretty sure she’s about every indie kids Wonder Woman because she captivated the lot of them with Let It Die. And just like them, my heart was stolen as well (as of now Kate Walsh is also stealing pieces of my heart). This album is just so…so…what’s the word? Good. Everything is in perfect arrangement, and intricately placed in are little jabs of electro or foreign or lounge or funk or disco sounds. All this with good music and her beautiful voice, just come together something that is so revolutionary and fun that it’ll keep you locked in your room for days dancing with yourself and singing along with a much more attractive voice than your own.
mp3: Feist- Let it Die
mp3: Feist- Gatekeeper
mp3: Feist- Secret Heart
Buy here.
45. Stephen Malkmus- Stephen Malkmus
So my friend had this gold mine just sitting on his computer, and as I was searching through his iTunes one night to see if I could find any gems, I found about 12. I am seriously blown away by this effort. This self-titled album explores the depths to some of the strangest things (My favorite subject being the song that tells of a certain Captain James Hook) in a new found style by Malkmus, although the listener misses the hardcore Pavement sound, he/she cannot help but adopt this new style and fall in love with it on the spot. Each song pretty much rules your mind and your ears, so be prepared for this thing if you haven’t had a sample. By far Malkmus’s best solo album to date.
mp3: Stephen Malkmus- Church on White (p.s. the rip Malkmus provides on this song is one of my favorite solos of all time)
mp3: Stephen Malkmus- Jo Jo's Jacket
mp3: Stephen Malkmus- Pink India
Buy here.
44. Bush- Sixteen Stone
Bush rocked the 90s, and my brother’s stereo in the 90s. It was about the only alternative noise I heard from there (Besides R.E.M.), and boy I’m glad I did. This album is classic, and unforgettable in the way that it just kicks you to the floor and leaves you there to help yourself up. And might I add ”Machinehead” is most likely my top pump-up song, it gets the adrenaline going, just like all sixteen stones. It saddens me that I don’t see Bush around so much anymore, the name may be one of my favorite band names ever, and their sound was all their own, untouchable. And seeing that performance of ”Gylcerine” in the rain made me sit on my knees in awe and say, “wow, Bush is pretty damn badass.”
mp3: Bush- Machinehead
Buy here.
43. Bob Dylan- Highway 61 Revisited
I have to put this here. It should be higher I guess, but nonetheless this needs to be talked about. My parents were predominantly dead heads and Dylan fans, Dylan was the exception in their tie-dye blinded world. And basically every Dylan record that now sits in their record collection (which is immense and very impressive) was played with a crackle trailing it on the record player as I grew up. This album astonishes me, because it feels like it defines an entire era, which is hard for one album to do. The lyrics are amazing and so deep and open that you could get lost inside them, searching for a proper meaning that relates to you. The folk sound is clearly so good that it will serve to countless successful acts in the future. Pretty darn good album.
mp3: Bob Dylan- Queen Jane Approximately
mp3: Bob Dylan- Like a Rolling Stone
Buy here.
42. Thomas Dybdahl- Science
This album has been controlling my mindset for the past 2 weeks, and I am obsessed with it. Such a delicate sound on an impeccable album, every song has its own thing that makes you fall deep into it. It’s almost like a dream when listening to Science you forget everything around you and focus on the sounds coming from your speakers, headphones, ect., and you focus on what the song is bringing out from you, you focus solely on that. This album has had an immediate effect on me since first listen, Dybdahl’s soft voice seems to be a suffice answer to any question I have ever had. Please listen to this album, I beg of you, for the sake of what music should stand for these days.
mp3: Thomas Dybdahl- No One Would Ever Know
mp3: Thomas Dybdahl- Everybody Knows
Buy here.
41. Winter Vacation- The Netherlands, 1980
Winter Vacation is a band that I found on a little record label called Asaurus Records that continues to impress me with each release, but Winter Vacation was just plain old awesome. Winter Vacation is like sitting in a cabin at night as snow slowly falls, or standing in a parking at night lot as snow slowly falls, basically sitting somewhere, calm and happy as snow falls, or as whatever you love happens (mine being slow snow fall at night). But this album is one guy, working all the instruments, and making exquisite sounds. Sounds that evoke such feelings like I described, and what makes it even better is the fact that it’s so lo-fi and so natural. A great release from someone who needs more credit.
mp3: Winter Vacation- Balloon Township
mp3: Winter Vacation- Upstate Estate (p.s. **SITF highly recommended song)
Buy here.
kiss it part three, your'e outta here. stay tuned.
"We all slide down the surface of things,".
partthree. (by the way, why do I keep starting these album posts with albums colored in swamp green?)
60. Modest Mouse- Good News for People Who Love Bad NewsModest Mouse sounds really good most of the time (Understatement). Yes yes yes this album came out when I was just being blinded by the indie light and had not yet seen the likes of the youthful age of MM, so this was pretty much my first experience of them (Before there was Moon and Antartica, before there was the lonesome crowded West, there was the good news for those people who love bad news, for me at least), and I’m glad this was my first experience. This was really the band becoming more mainstream, therefore their message was more clear, and their unique sound was distinguished easily and by means of making you fall in love with that new sound. Kick-A album with Kick-A songs. I pick this over some of that old stuff because it’s simply a more familiar project to the band I first met, I really do like the old stuff, a lot, but I love good news.
mp3: Modest Mouse- The World At Large
mp3: Modest Mouse- Black Cadillacs
mp3: Modest Mouse- The View
Buy here
59. Original Soundtrack to the Motion Picture MagnoliaONLY SOUNDTRACK ON HERE (although others would qualify, Eternal Sunshine, Garden State, Twin Peaks, Rules of Attraction, Cabin Fever, Kids, Marie Antoinette, I could go on and on). I could have put others, but this is here for a reason! Yes, Magnolia does happen to be my favorite film ever created, and yes that helps contribute a lot, but that’s not it. The soundtrack is simply filled with great music, I mean where can you go wrong when you have Jon Brion composing, Aimee Mann rocking original songs, and Supertramp? A great collection that fits perfectly and contributes to the charm of a great great film.
mp3: Aimee Mann- Save Me
mp3: Aimee Mann- Wise Up
mp3: Jon Brion- So Now Then
mp3: Supertramp- Goodbye Stranger
Buy here.
58. Loney, Dear- Loney, NoirThis is one that came out this year. 2007. You’ll be seeing a few more from this year, and this one has the right to be at this point in the charts. Such a sexy album. Emil Svanängen rocks my socks off with his voice that sounds as if he were singing lullabies to children. His soft vocals and careful craft of his instruments comes together for this unique sound that is just so cute and amazing that you can’t help but daydream with it as a soundtrack. I literally can’t get enough of this band, and this album has about as much climax in every song as the scene in Star Wars Episode 2: The Empire Strikes Back, when Luke is told by Vader that Vader is in fact his father. I’m trailing off now. Please (listen) and thank you. --- p.s. long live Sweden for producing a chunk of indie awesomeness…all the time.
mp3: Loney, Dear- And I Won't Cause Anything at All
mp3: Loney, Dear- Saturday Waits
Buy here.
57. The Beatles- The Beatles (White Album)Oh the Beatles, once again this should be at the top of my list, but I have not yet reached those depths, those depths that will show me the greatness that I can faintly hear and understand and those depths that everyone talks about, I’m getting there, I mean it made it this far. This album is excellent, some of my favorite individual Beatles tracks were born on this album, and continue to live long lives. It’s a funny thing, how the Beatles still are revolutionary today. Songs I hear that were made in the late 60’s reflect on what new styles of great bands are being heard today. Oh wait what’s that called again? Oh yes, influence. But Beatles influence is different than any other influence, because I believe in another 20 years, areas that the Beatles had already covered will be at the head of the scene.
mp3: The Beatles- Blackbird
mp3: The Beatles- While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Buy here.
56. mc DJ- Illin'Noise! The Sufjan Stevens Remix AlbumThis thing was kept very quiet, and was really hard to locate, but once I did, the work was all worth it. Truly an excellent, and my favorite remix (one artist remix) album I’ve ever heard. MC DJ spices up and flips around and kicks over and picks up again the Sufjan songs to recreate them in so many different ways that broadcast the pleasure of the original while adding a unique twist to captivate whoever is lucky enough to be listening. Who could ever think that ”A Prarie Fire Wanders About” could be made into a high school fight song? I certainly couldn’t. Also, you may recognize mc DJ from Derrick Comedy as Jerry who pooped his pants (hilarious, this guy is seriously multi-talented)
mp3: MC DJ- jacksontown
mp3: MC DJ- casmir
Or download the thang right here and check out Glover's (mc DJ's) blog here at Childish Gambino.
55. Cake- Comfort EagleCake is their own type of band, this is a master album. John McCrea voices out songs like preaching to a point. And with melodic ties and balance, each track comes out like a neatly wrapped gift resulted from the holidays. The scene that this album creates is epic, and the words paint a picture. There’s not much more I can say about this album... besides that it rocks? Each song is like a powerful punch to the face, and although it’s not too personal to me, it still needs to be up here because these songs come together to make something that should be a greatest hits album. Cake is their own band, and listening to these will be like listening to a completely new style of music.
mp3: Cake- Shadow Stabbing (p.s. originally recorded for McCrea's old band John McCrea and the Roughhousers who played around in the 80s... Cake in the 80s sounds great)
mp3: Cake- Short Skirt/Long Jacket
Buy here.
54. Belle and Sebastian- Dear Catastrophe WaitressScotland should be proud. Because wowee zowee this thing is great, this thing, this band, this album, this feeling when listening to songs about letters being written to a certain Mets baseball star. They most definitely mix it up, having light fluffy harmonies with soft male and soft female voices guiding it through an open field, because in all the songs familiarity and clarity are screaming in presence. A sensational pop album from a sensational group. By far their greatest work because it captures everything from how good the song sounds through my big old headphones to the point the song is trying to make. Wait? Like I said before? Clear. Remarkable and Classic, would be two one word descriptions of this album.
mp3: Belle and Sebastian- If She Wants Me
mp3: Belle and Sebastian- Piazza, New York Catcher
mp3: Belle and Sebastian- Wrapped in Books
Buy here.
53. Pedro the Lion- Achilles HeelThis is like, my first middle school album that I still am more than satisfied with still being attracted to. Pedro the Lion is a killer group and each song on Achilles Heel is just doused with heart and beauty. David Bazan’s dark and calm voice presents a country folk alternative feel that sticks with you and is branded in your memory after that pleasant experience of listening. Each song has the same kind of sound, but Pedro finds a way to create individuality somehow, they don’t use different instruments because they don’t need to. The creativity that comes from this album makes the outcome majestic, because when you have creativity spliced with a stable alternative song, you’ll get one hell of a result, aka. Achilles Heel
mp3: Pedro the Lion- Bands with Managers
mp3: Pedro the Lion- A Simple Plan
Buy here.
52. Phantom Planet- The GuestI love this album, Phantom Planet is just so cool, because anything they do I adore, and the reason that is true is because of this album. This was my first experience of Phantom Planet, having not heard Phantom Planet is Missing, and their pop sound attacked me and held on like a leech. I mean, you can’t fight it, it’s a fact: ”California is an unbelievable song, and in my opinion one of the best made, and the whole album is like that! I cannot express how much some of these songs mean to me except by repeatedly announcing how songs like ”Anthem” of ”Lonely Day” were built me by excessive nighttime listening sessions, and I think mp3s work a lot better at expressing this feeling.
mp3: Phantom Planet- Anthem
mp3: Phantom Planet- Wishing Well
Buy here.
51. Speechwriters LLC- ClonesThis band is so under the radar it’s not even funny, and it makes me kinda mad too, because this much talent shouldn’t be hidden from the world. Speechwriters is a band of their own style, and they promote this style perfectly on this album. Although it’s only 5 songs, the case is definitely quality and not quantity. Each song is flawless acoustic guitar with lyrical movements that mirror one of that in the rapping/rhyming scheme, this element simply just adds to the band’s touch and unique style. And basically every where you want the song to go, it goes, satisfying your every need while taking a good listen. I love the style of this group, and I love their final product.
mp3: Speechwriters LLC- Hitchhiker's Guide
mp3: Speechwriters LLC- Beach Song
Buy here.
50. Guster- Keep It TogetherWow. Flawless record, another one that was really hammered into my memory through a roadtrip with nothing but a heavy CD player, some headphones, and this work of art. Each track as amazing as the one before, building up to an anthem with glimpses of The Wizard of Oz. Truly a spectacular feat was reached by Guster when releasing this album. Each song is radiant and exciting and perfect in its own way, and any song could be the one that speaks most to anyone, it could all easily vary because every song is packed with so much emotion and fun. It is literally hard listening to a song on this album, because once your finished with that bliss, you need to hear another, then another, until you’ve gone through the entire album while sitting in the parking lot, 23 minutes late.
mp3: Guster- Come Downstairs and Say Hello
mp3: Guster- Homecoming King
mp3: Guster- Diane
mp3: Guster- Ramona
Buy here.
49. Nick Drake- Pink MoonI still don’t know the story of Nick Drake. Who he was, what time he was, when he died, for why he died. I never dove into that pool of questioning to a deeper understanding of this mysterious legend (I would do so with Elliott Smith), I don’t know why I never did, I just didn’t. All I did was sit back and listen to his folk music. Soft and tranquil, seemingly effortless and impossible to hate, these songs nourished their listeners with imagery of beauty, and this was courtesy of Mr. Drake. Pink Moon captures this sales pitch from Drake wonderfully and shows the magic that this individual can make the best out of anything else he has masterfully put together. Possibly one of the best acoustic albums of all time. Need I say more?
mp3: Nick Drake- Which Will
mp3: Nick Drake- Pink Moon
Buy here.
48. Final Fantasy- He Poos CloudsOwen Pallet is a Lord in my books. He names his album He Poos Clouds and in all honesty this makes it very hard to determine what kind of album it will be. But immediately, right off the bat, the album identifies itself as something new and different. A breath of fresh air, and a sign for hope. And, given the songs are about Dungeons and Dragons, they still pose a striking feature that really connects with the listener. The lyrics are silly at times but mean well. The violin is impeccable along with all the other instruments. And this guy has some clever clever hooks in the melody that the listener never sees coming. An artist that definitley needs to be watched, for he will be great.
mp3: Final Fantasy- ->
mp3: Final Fantasy- Song Song Song
mp3: Final Fantasy- Many Lives 49 MP
Buy here.
47. The Magnetic Fields- iThe Magnetic Fields are simply amazing. They rarely show any signs of disappointment (rarely to never), and they just pump out song after song after song of this music you just want to listen to. On i, Merritt has the listener follow the chimes of bells and the hollow echo of his deep voice to reach the area of satisfaction with this album. Here, with a concept album, everything is played out in terms of (cough cough) i, or me (or you, or Stephin Merritt). That openness and familiarity that is created with that concept is so breathtaking to me because it creates a world of comfort with what your listening to, and when you are comfortable with enjoying something, love for that thing is built quite easily.
mp3: The Magnetic Fields- I Wish I Had An Evil Twin
mp3: The Magnetic Fields- I Looked All Over Town (p.s. like just listening to this makes me amazed at how good this music is, how good music can be in general)
Buy here.
46. Feist- Let It DieLeslie Feist is a very pretty girl with a very pretty voice. I’m pretty sure she’s about every indie kids Wonder Woman because she captivated the lot of them with Let It Die. And just like them, my heart was stolen as well (as of now Kate Walsh is also stealing pieces of my heart). This album is just so…so…what’s the word? Good. Everything is in perfect arrangement, and intricately placed in are little jabs of electro or foreign or lounge or funk or disco sounds. All this with good music and her beautiful voice, just come together something that is so revolutionary and fun that it’ll keep you locked in your room for days dancing with yourself and singing along with a much more attractive voice than your own.
mp3: Feist- Let it Die
mp3: Feist- Gatekeeper
mp3: Feist- Secret Heart
Buy here.
45. Stephen Malkmus- Stephen MalkmusSo my friend had this gold mine just sitting on his computer, and as I was searching through his iTunes one night to see if I could find any gems, I found about 12. I am seriously blown away by this effort. This self-titled album explores the depths to some of the strangest things (My favorite subject being the song that tells of a certain Captain James Hook) in a new found style by Malkmus, although the listener misses the hardcore Pavement sound, he/she cannot help but adopt this new style and fall in love with it on the spot. Each song pretty much rules your mind and your ears, so be prepared for this thing if you haven’t had a sample. By far Malkmus’s best solo album to date.
mp3: Stephen Malkmus- Church on White (p.s. the rip Malkmus provides on this song is one of my favorite solos of all time)
mp3: Stephen Malkmus- Jo Jo's Jacket
mp3: Stephen Malkmus- Pink India
Buy here.
44. Bush- Sixteen StoneBush rocked the 90s, and my brother’s stereo in the 90s. It was about the only alternative noise I heard from there (Besides R.E.M.), and boy I’m glad I did. This album is classic, and unforgettable in the way that it just kicks you to the floor and leaves you there to help yourself up. And might I add ”Machinehead” is most likely my top pump-up song, it gets the adrenaline going, just like all sixteen stones. It saddens me that I don’t see Bush around so much anymore, the name may be one of my favorite band names ever, and their sound was all their own, untouchable. And seeing that performance of ”Gylcerine” in the rain made me sit on my knees in awe and say, “wow, Bush is pretty damn badass.”
mp3: Bush- Machinehead
Buy here.
43. Bob Dylan- Highway 61 RevisitedI have to put this here. It should be higher I guess, but nonetheless this needs to be talked about. My parents were predominantly dead heads and Dylan fans, Dylan was the exception in their tie-dye blinded world. And basically every Dylan record that now sits in their record collection (which is immense and very impressive) was played with a crackle trailing it on the record player as I grew up. This album astonishes me, because it feels like it defines an entire era, which is hard for one album to do. The lyrics are amazing and so deep and open that you could get lost inside them, searching for a proper meaning that relates to you. The folk sound is clearly so good that it will serve to countless successful acts in the future. Pretty darn good album.
mp3: Bob Dylan- Queen Jane Approximately
mp3: Bob Dylan- Like a Rolling Stone
Buy here.
42. Thomas Dybdahl- ScienceThis album has been controlling my mindset for the past 2 weeks, and I am obsessed with it. Such a delicate sound on an impeccable album, every song has its own thing that makes you fall deep into it. It’s almost like a dream when listening to Science you forget everything around you and focus on the sounds coming from your speakers, headphones, ect., and you focus on what the song is bringing out from you, you focus solely on that. This album has had an immediate effect on me since first listen, Dybdahl’s soft voice seems to be a suffice answer to any question I have ever had. Please listen to this album, I beg of you, for the sake of what music should stand for these days.
mp3: Thomas Dybdahl- No One Would Ever Know
mp3: Thomas Dybdahl- Everybody Knows
Buy here.
41. Winter Vacation- The Netherlands, 1980Winter Vacation is a band that I found on a little record label called Asaurus Records that continues to impress me with each release, but Winter Vacation was just plain old awesome. Winter Vacation is like sitting in a cabin at night as snow slowly falls, or standing in a parking at night lot as snow slowly falls, basically sitting somewhere, calm and happy as snow falls, or as whatever you love happens (mine being slow snow fall at night). But this album is one guy, working all the instruments, and making exquisite sounds. Sounds that evoke such feelings like I described, and what makes it even better is the fact that it’s so lo-fi and so natural. A great release from someone who needs more credit.
mp3: Winter Vacation- Balloon Township
mp3: Winter Vacation- Upstate Estate (p.s. **SITF highly recommended song)
Buy here.
kiss it part three, your'e outta here. stay tuned.
"We all slide down the surface of things,".
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Movie Madness! (well not so much...)
I just felt like a movie post. It's cool right? I mean movies mean more to me than music, yet I haven't even written a true post about where I am right now with them and what I'm looking forward to seeing. So let's start it off, with anitcipation...
Here is a list of films I am very jazzed up about seeing in the near future.
Where the Wild Things Are by Spike Jonze
Yes! An adaptation of one of my favorite children bedtime stories. Paul Dano will play Alex which makes it all the more worth while, with appearances from some other fine actors. I'm really quite excited to see what Jonze does with this, I love the branching out that seems to be becoming more and more apparent in the independent film bracket.
Scavenger Hunt by Eli Roth
Now I'm not too sure about the legitamacy on this puppy, but Gosh darn do I want to see it. I did heavy research on the "true events" that it is going to be based off of, and wow. These kids did some crazy things, I even got a peek at the Scavenger hunt list they used one year, kids are messed up, and getting messier, and I am (or was) hoping that this will be the Kids of this decade.
There Will Be Blood by Paul Thomas Anderson
This film is the most anticipated of any coming out ever for myself. The screenshot samples that have been on p.t.'s unofficial site, cigarettes and red vines. I have the book that it is adapting just lying on my shelf (Oil! by Upton Sinclair), because I had a change of heart when i realized that I wanted to experience this film head on, I didn't want any form of a spolier for this already epic film.
mp3: Aimee Mann- Cigarettes & Red Vines (p.s. something for p.t.a. and f.a. to dance too)
Wristcutters: A Love Story by Goran Dukic
This is very interesting. Purgatory for the suicidal? and love blossoms? According to the title. This is very interesting. Tom Waits also stars.
mp3: Tom Waits- November
The Darjeeling Limited and The Fantastic Mr. Fox both by Wes Anderson
New Wes Anderson movie (wide angled shots, excellent ensemble cast, beautiful scenery, clever dialogue, cool themes, pretty music), Wes Anderson doing animation (? I don't know I've never seen this before).
So that's that for what I need to see. I just finished watching Science of Sleep, and of course Gondry made masterful tricks out of ordinary things to make the film into a realm where it was hard to distinguish between the real life and the dream, and I believe it was meant for that way. But that's about the only serious movie I've seen lately. Still wanna see Zodiac, and witnessed the very very very funny Blades of Glory last night (Will Ferrell never fails), supremely funny movie and reccomended for a good time with friends. I'm out on the night now. It's Saturday. Always with love...BK
Friday, March 30, 2007
Cassadaga Nights: The Ballads of Conor Oberst
O boy! For some reason it has been a sad week. I mean I know why it has been sad for me, but you don't. It has been a sad week and we'll just leave it at that. I'll find something personal to put here. But there is some sort of happiness that always shows up late to the party in a stage of not-feeling-so-hot about things, and that happiness is Bright Eyes' new release: Cassadaga. Oh yeah and by the way there is so much info on this thing, courtesy of that titan site that rhymes with mikipedia.
So upon first listens, this album seems captivating. I mean it. I'm seriously losing it for this year in music, it keeps getting better and better, extravagant album after extravagant album. For Cassadaga, Oberst approaches and becomes so much closer to one of his influences, the big Bob (Dylan). Oberst flows so smoothly in the folk sound, mashing harmonicas and pedal steel, taking a dip back to his electronic roots found on Digital Ash in a Digital Urn. Everything really sounds so complete and beautiful on this album. I'm quite speechless and I'm not even into it that much yet. I think that's strange. Because usually it takes me a while to get into it, basically im very excited to see what happens, what evolves between me and Cassadaga or the rocks beneath the water. I want to post almost every song, because there is simply so much depth to each that I haven't covered yet, and I don't want to leave one out that in time soon I will decipher for relevance on my own point of view and opinion and perspective. But I will, so believe me this is just me trying to show you the variety and wonderful perplextion this album brings through some songs that differ but show the potential of this album as a whole. Always with love...BK
mp3: Bright Eyes- Hot Knives
mp3: Bright Eyes- Classic Cars (p.s. love the hook at the point of the song when the lyrics go like "The best classic singers die in the back of classic cars," or "she said I kissed her different, that all the men her age were mean,")
mp3: Bright Eyes- Lime Tree
So upon first listens, this album seems captivating. I mean it. I'm seriously losing it for this year in music, it keeps getting better and better, extravagant album after extravagant album. For Cassadaga, Oberst approaches and becomes so much closer to one of his influences, the big Bob (Dylan). Oberst flows so smoothly in the folk sound, mashing harmonicas and pedal steel, taking a dip back to his electronic roots found on Digital Ash in a Digital Urn. Everything really sounds so complete and beautiful on this album. I'm quite speechless and I'm not even into it that much yet. I think that's strange. Because usually it takes me a while to get into it, basically im very excited to see what happens, what evolves between me and Cassadaga or the rocks beneath the water. I want to post almost every song, because there is simply so much depth to each that I haven't covered yet, and I don't want to leave one out that in time soon I will decipher for relevance on my own point of view and opinion and perspective. But I will, so believe me this is just me trying to show you the variety and wonderful perplextion this album brings through some songs that differ but show the potential of this album as a whole. Always with love...BK
mp3: Bright Eyes- Hot Knives
mp3: Bright Eyes- Classic Cars (p.s. love the hook at the point of the song when the lyrics go like "The best classic singers die in the back of classic cars," or "she said I kissed her different, that all the men her age were mean,")
mp3: Bright Eyes- Lime Tree
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
my.were.they. + MGMT
my were they is like Interpol, a lot like Interpol, with a dash of Hot IQ's, get the picture now? No? Ok, math equation time. my were they= (Interpol) - (the experience and sophomoric qualities) + (more clever guitar rythyms x very noticeable potential). Still don't get the picture? I give up. Just listen to some mp3's of them. I've listened to this little album a couple of times now and I can see a band forming here, I mean like a band that will be in the Hot Indie Rock section of iTunes (Wait what? No. I don't look at that or anything? What?). But seriously, these guys are from Chicago (a place where a lot of great people go un noticed), and have this new album coming out, I seriously think you should be on the look out for, it's called 'after they threw me in the river and before i drowned' (I love that album name). Read about the new album and the band here, and check out the band's webpage here. Have a good one, world. I'll see you sometime with something. Always with love...BK
mp3: my were they- afterglow
mp3: my were they- velocity
p.s. my friend showed me how this kickass band MGMT (they are electronic and funky and great, show a great resemblence to SITF favorite Brothers Past, check them out here) has gotten signed to Columbia Records and is adding what I believe will be a great album to the endless list of them so far for 2007. Here's a song from their ep Time to Pretend. And check out some demos from the new album coming soon (Ornacular Spectacular) on their MySpace. Enjoy this one hitter.
mp3: MGMT- Time to Pretend
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