O.k., I'm fried from an extra-long work week, so instead I'm just gonna give a few recommendations.
Lydia, Illuminate
I first really heard this band on Monday, ordered the CD, and it arrived yesterday. It's basically Beneath Medicine Tree part 2, for better or worse. Mindy White adds some keys and vocals which fit perfectly in this indie blend, and help give it a bit more of a distinctive sound. Things get confusing on "Hospital," though, when Copeland's Aaron Marsh shows up to add vocals to the most Copeland-sounding non-Copeland track ever. Good stuff. Current favorite track: "A Fine Evening for a Rogue" ("don't you ever get lonely?")
Once, Original Soundtrack
I just saw this movie last night. It reminded me of why I could never fall for a girl who is an accomplished musician; we'd just fight like James and I do (which is fine for James and me, but probably not for a stable opposite-sex relationship). Anyway, the songs are fun, and the part on the bus near the beginning of the film was a total Jonathan Greener moment.
Death Cab for Cutie, "I Will Possess Your Heart"
O.k., this song isn't as good as it is long. It sounds really thin compared to... well, everything else Chris Walla has ever produced. Oddly, the first 4-1/2 minutes sound like seminal Wheaton jam band I.R.A.T.E., while the last 4 minutes (did I mention it's a long song?) have some good lyrics, but overall are quickly forgotten. I'm still optimistic about Narrow Stairs, releasing in May, but not quite as much as I was.
Motion City Soundtrack, Even If It Kills Me
This album didn't make it into 2007's Top Ten, and I'm still bothered by the "She's the pizza of my eye" lyric, but it's a really solid album. And the production perfectly matches the band's sound, elevating the songs higher than they could reach on their own. Current favorites: title track, "This Is For Real," "Last Night"
That's all. The tank's dry. Have a great Easter weekend.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
Oh No He DIDN'T
While meeting for coffee with a seasoned veteran of rock recording, I was confronted with the idea that the Foo Fighters could be to blame – at least in part – for the current “loudness war” occurring in modern rock music production. 1997’s The Colour and the Shape was presented to me as the first of the “loud” records – an album that jumps out of the stereo and into your head, not only melodically but also sonically. There is nothing in producer Gil Norton’s discography at that point to indicate a thirst for pushing the limits of volume, yet TCATS attacked with a vociferousness that none of its contemporaries possessed. The choruses on singles like “Monkey Wrench,” “My Hero,” and “Everlong” simply explode, and the verses are usually not far removed. So this got me thinking – could my favourite album from my favourite band be an instigator of the downward spiral we find ourselves a part of?
No.
No it cannot.
The real culprit, my friends, is all around the release of The Colour and the Shape, but not in it. Though 1997 saw the release of fellow masterpiece OK Computer, it also heralded the arrival of Deftones, Green Day’s Nimrod, and Re-Load, as well as, oh yes… the Backstreet Boys. Their self-titled album went platinum 14 times over in the US alone, and was followed by *NSYNC’s debut the following year, no slouch either, selling 11 million copies. 1998 also saw Korn’s first mainstream success, Follow the Leader, and here we start to see two different but equally-popular methods arising: the crystal-clear polish of the boy bands, and the bass-heavy, kick-drum-triggered nu metal crunch. Both approaches and styles were taking over airwaves and the first stages of the internet. After the successes of grunge, alternative, and pop-punk in the early- to mid-90s, rock music was getting pushed aside. Fighting for a place and a sound, producers took both elements – the pop sheen and the nu metal EQ – and threw them together. The result is where we find ourselves today: we have the best equipment to record, mix, and play music with the greatest dynamic range ever, yet we use less and less of it on records, to paraphrase the engineer I spoke with. And our ears are getting tired.
Whereas rock fans in the 70s and 80s related to albums on a personal and intimate level, blasting them through stereo systems or headphones, we cannot do that with the majority of albums released today. Putting aside how we connect to music currently, most records today literally fatigue our ears as we listen to them, assaulting them with so many frequencies and at such high intensities that we can only put up with it for so long. I’m sure many people have experienced situations where they find themselves physically unable to listen to music, usually after experiencing a high-volume setting for more than a short period of time. Sadly, this leads us to not value the experience of listening to and experiencing music as much as we should or could. Yet another reason why listeners no longer value music as a worthwhile piece of art, and instead treat it as a disposable commodity.
But at least it’s not the Foo Fighters’ fault.
No.
No it cannot.
The real culprit, my friends, is all around the release of The Colour and the Shape, but not in it. Though 1997 saw the release of fellow masterpiece OK Computer, it also heralded the arrival of Deftones, Green Day’s Nimrod, and Re-Load, as well as, oh yes… the Backstreet Boys. Their self-titled album went platinum 14 times over in the US alone, and was followed by *NSYNC’s debut the following year, no slouch either, selling 11 million copies. 1998 also saw Korn’s first mainstream success, Follow the Leader, and here we start to see two different but equally-popular methods arising: the crystal-clear polish of the boy bands, and the bass-heavy, kick-drum-triggered nu metal crunch. Both approaches and styles were taking over airwaves and the first stages of the internet. After the successes of grunge, alternative, and pop-punk in the early- to mid-90s, rock music was getting pushed aside. Fighting for a place and a sound, producers took both elements – the pop sheen and the nu metal EQ – and threw them together. The result is where we find ourselves today: we have the best equipment to record, mix, and play music with the greatest dynamic range ever, yet we use less and less of it on records, to paraphrase the engineer I spoke with. And our ears are getting tired.
Whereas rock fans in the 70s and 80s related to albums on a personal and intimate level, blasting them through stereo systems or headphones, we cannot do that with the majority of albums released today. Putting aside how we connect to music currently, most records today literally fatigue our ears as we listen to them, assaulting them with so many frequencies and at such high intensities that we can only put up with it for so long. I’m sure many people have experienced situations where they find themselves physically unable to listen to music, usually after experiencing a high-volume setting for more than a short period of time. Sadly, this leads us to not value the experience of listening to and experiencing music as much as we should or could. Yet another reason why listeners no longer value music as a worthwhile piece of art, and instead treat it as a disposable commodity.
But at least it’s not the Foo Fighters’ fault.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
"We're Getting the Band Back Together"
2008 is already the year of the reunion. Nobody cares that 2007 brought a new Smashing Pumpkins album and a Spice Girls reunion tour. 2008 is already brimming with possibilities, not even counting the New Kids on the Block rumors that are swirling.
Living Sacrifice - Demon Hunter's recent track, "Sixteen," illustrates why 90% of the metal/metalcore bands should just quit. Guest vocalist Bruce Fitzhugh shreds harder than most of the guitars out there right now, and it wasn't even a particularly stunning performance for him. It doesn't even matter that the line he growls is a word-for-word ripoff of Skillet's first single, "Gasoline." This guy could read cooking directions or road signs and it would still make my skin tingle (in a good way).
Stavesacre - Nothing's certain, especially with this band, but the current plan involves writing one last record with original guitarist Jeff Bellew (How to Live with a Curse was intended to be their last, but you get the impression that they weren't exactly satisfied with it). Judging by the gusto with which they're approaching their upcoming show in Germany, I'm getting optimistic.
Sixpence None the Richer - According to a recent blog post from Leigh Nash, she and Matt Slocum are at least making music together again. At first this made me happy, then I got uneasy flashbacks to Billy Corgan's Chicago Times ad and the resulting album. Fingers crossed.
Colored by Numbers - They're approaching it Postal Service-style (since the six members now live in Boston, Chicago, Seattle, Long Beach, Costa Rica, and Syria), but it's far too early to speculate.
dignan - No, not the band from Texas. The other one.
Artists I'm Still Hoping To Hear About: Steve Taylor, Fleming and John, Further Seems Forever w/Chris Carrabba (yeah I went there), Hey Mercedes, twothirtyeight.
Living Sacrifice - Demon Hunter's recent track, "Sixteen," illustrates why 90% of the metal/metalcore bands should just quit. Guest vocalist Bruce Fitzhugh shreds harder than most of the guitars out there right now, and it wasn't even a particularly stunning performance for him. It doesn't even matter that the line he growls is a word-for-word ripoff of Skillet's first single, "Gasoline." This guy could read cooking directions or road signs and it would still make my skin tingle (in a good way).
Stavesacre - Nothing's certain, especially with this band, but the current plan involves writing one last record with original guitarist Jeff Bellew (How to Live with a Curse was intended to be their last, but you get the impression that they weren't exactly satisfied with it). Judging by the gusto with which they're approaching their upcoming show in Germany, I'm getting optimistic.
Sixpence None the Richer - According to a recent blog post from Leigh Nash, she and Matt Slocum are at least making music together again. At first this made me happy, then I got uneasy flashbacks to Billy Corgan's Chicago Times ad and the resulting album. Fingers crossed.
Colored by Numbers - They're approaching it Postal Service-style (since the six members now live in Boston, Chicago, Seattle, Long Beach, Costa Rica, and Syria), but it's far too early to speculate.
dignan - No, not the band from Texas. The other one.
Artists I'm Still Hoping To Hear About: Steve Taylor, Fleming and John, Further Seems Forever w/Chris Carrabba (yeah I went there), Hey Mercedes, twothirtyeight.
Friday, February 22, 2008
The Backlash
There is a backlash coming, and I can't wait.
Less than a decade ago, mp3.com arrived as a source for music of all kinds - mainstream, indie, obscure, global, local, you name it. It gave way to PureVolume and eventually MySpace (and the popularity of P2P networks), but the surge had started. People - mainly youth - were able to download anything they wanted, as long as they searched hard enough for it. Record and digital music collections exploded, giving rise to the changing perspectives on music that I have written about previously.
Before this point, music (and music opinion) was received largely via close friends and family, large media outlets (radio and MTV), and perhaps the odd group activity like a school dance or Christian skate night. The focus in many of these contexts was a collective experience of an individual performance. You listened to the radio while doing errands with your family or on long road trips. You watched MTV with friends (especially if you didn't get MTV and were forced to go to a friend's house to watch it). Dances and skate nights were obviously not about the music. Music was a soundtrack, but an incomplete one.
The digital age made music a constant, almost unbearable soundtrack. If you aren't listening to your iPod on the bus every morning, you can look up and note the many who are. Many people have large enough music libraries to play - without pause - for weeks or even months. The digital age also allowed for a rise in the number of recording and music-producing bands, who began to go on tours to support their passion.
But we're kinda getting sick of it.
Talking with friends and colleagues, there is a growing weariness with the state of music. There are so many bands, so many songs, so many mash-ups, not to mention so many websites, blogs, magazines, and TV channels. So many shows, and as a generation, we're sick of going to them all the time. Especially since we find ourselves disappointed by the performances more often than not. We'd rather listen to an album that we like, and not risk having it ruined for us by seeing an ill-prepared musical unit try to create a faithful rendition of it or an interesting digression from it.
We're also spending our own money now. And we're becoming more picky. Thus a backlash is on the horizon. Bands are starting to feel it, as are record companies. Both complain of music sharing harming their careers and investments. Sure, there may be a correlation there, but I'd be more inclined to believe that as the first generation to experience such music overload has moved from high school to college and now post-college life, it realizes that there are plenty of other ways to spend time than to sit at a computer and hunt down the latest and "greatest" musical acts.
But take heart, dear bands and musicians with true talent, passion, and commitment: the backlash that is coming will not destroy you, but it will thin out the herds quite a bit. At least, we can all hope it does. You can be sure that there will always be an audience for a truly kick-ass concert that's coming through town.
Less than a decade ago, mp3.com arrived as a source for music of all kinds - mainstream, indie, obscure, global, local, you name it. It gave way to PureVolume and eventually MySpace (and the popularity of P2P networks), but the surge had started. People - mainly youth - were able to download anything they wanted, as long as they searched hard enough for it. Record and digital music collections exploded, giving rise to the changing perspectives on music that I have written about previously.
Before this point, music (and music opinion) was received largely via close friends and family, large media outlets (radio and MTV), and perhaps the odd group activity like a school dance or Christian skate night. The focus in many of these contexts was a collective experience of an individual performance. You listened to the radio while doing errands with your family or on long road trips. You watched MTV with friends (especially if you didn't get MTV and were forced to go to a friend's house to watch it). Dances and skate nights were obviously not about the music. Music was a soundtrack, but an incomplete one.
The digital age made music a constant, almost unbearable soundtrack. If you aren't listening to your iPod on the bus every morning, you can look up and note the many who are. Many people have large enough music libraries to play - without pause - for weeks or even months. The digital age also allowed for a rise in the number of recording and music-producing bands, who began to go on tours to support their passion.
But we're kinda getting sick of it.
Talking with friends and colleagues, there is a growing weariness with the state of music. There are so many bands, so many songs, so many mash-ups, not to mention so many websites, blogs, magazines, and TV channels. So many shows, and as a generation, we're sick of going to them all the time. Especially since we find ourselves disappointed by the performances more often than not. We'd rather listen to an album that we like, and not risk having it ruined for us by seeing an ill-prepared musical unit try to create a faithful rendition of it or an interesting digression from it.
We're also spending our own money now. And we're becoming more picky. Thus a backlash is on the horizon. Bands are starting to feel it, as are record companies. Both complain of music sharing harming their careers and investments. Sure, there may be a correlation there, but I'd be more inclined to believe that as the first generation to experience such music overload has moved from high school to college and now post-college life, it realizes that there are plenty of other ways to spend time than to sit at a computer and hunt down the latest and "greatest" musical acts.
But take heart, dear bands and musicians with true talent, passion, and commitment: the backlash that is coming will not destroy you, but it will thin out the herds quite a bit. At least, we can all hope it does. You can be sure that there will always be an audience for a truly kick-ass concert that's coming through town.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Musical Espionage
I was thinking earlier this evening about how cool it would be if I were a world famous rocker and was contacted by a secret spy organization, who wanted to know if I would put coded messages in my songs, so as to communicate with their spies abroad.
I instantly realized this idea was absurd, because there's no way I could encode messages in songs and release them fast enough and with wide enough distribution to make any sort of difference.
But then I thought, isn't every artist, in a sense, taking part in a scheme like that? Almost every artist has a message in a particular piece of work, even if their message is self-absorption or "there is no message," which is a message about how sometimes things don't need to have a message. ("He's got a point, there." Name that movie!) Every artist has a message, and that message comes from somewhere, whether the artist believes it comes from the literal voice of God or simply synapses firing in the cerebral cortex. Musicians have a particular genre of message that many other artists do not share, that of the unstoppable sequence. I mentioned this in my first post here, how you can't stop music and observe it. Of course you can read musical notation and look at scores, but the actual music itself cannot be frozen and observed. It requires that we submit to its string of occurences in the 4th dimension.
Take time to listen to the codes, but don't let it jam your airwaves.
I instantly realized this idea was absurd, because there's no way I could encode messages in songs and release them fast enough and with wide enough distribution to make any sort of difference.
But then I thought, isn't every artist, in a sense, taking part in a scheme like that? Almost every artist has a message in a particular piece of work, even if their message is self-absorption or "there is no message," which is a message about how sometimes things don't need to have a message. ("He's got a point, there." Name that movie!) Every artist has a message, and that message comes from somewhere, whether the artist believes it comes from the literal voice of God or simply synapses firing in the cerebral cortex. Musicians have a particular genre of message that many other artists do not share, that of the unstoppable sequence. I mentioned this in my first post here, how you can't stop music and observe it. Of course you can read musical notation and look at scores, but the actual music itself cannot be frozen and observed. It requires that we submit to its string of occurences in the 4th dimension.
Take time to listen to the codes, but don't let it jam your airwaves.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
I Know It's Not Friday, But...
...Stavesacre is playing in the room next to me, and it made me want to write. When I say "Stavesacre," I don't mean a CD... I mean the actual band. It's a long story, but there they are. They just jumped into "Sundown Motel" (for the second time).
I love music. I love hearing it, I love playing it, I love thinking about it. I love it more than I love practically anything else. I love driving with the windows down and blasting it (but I don't like doing this on the highway because (a) then I can't hear the music as well, and (b) I actually performed a rather detailed study and series of experiments in an Environmental Science class about the potential hearing loss that can occur when driving with the windows down).
I love writing about music, too, and arguing about it as well. Which is how this whole blog started. I hate the discussion threads on sites like absolutepunk.net where it's just talk about anything EXCEPT the actual music. Whatever.
That being said, what I say here is rarely a complete opinion. So yes, though I think "pizza of my eye" is one of the dumpest lyrics ever written, - ever - I still like Motion City Soundtrack and listen to that CD rather frequently. And while I diss DLD a disproportionate amount, I still have 3 or 4 of their songs in my iTunes. And while I LOVE the Foo Fighters, anyone that knows me knows I can discuss my likes and dislikes with equal veracity. I love music, but I have a hard time loving it subjectively. So the hunt for the objective truth continues, if not about what is really "good" or "best," than at least about what I personally like most. So while I disagree with Noah's opinion about Coheed & Cambria, I'm glad he said it, because I didn't know he listened to ANY Coheed. Next time I see him we can argue - I mean, discuss - our different opinions. Or maybe we'll just skip it. That's beside the point. The point is that I love music and I love how it has bonded me to people in my life in so many different ways. Even if Luke is a bastard and doesn't allow comments on his blog.
I love music. I love hearing it, I love playing it, I love thinking about it. I love it more than I love practically anything else. I love driving with the windows down and blasting it (but I don't like doing this on the highway because (a) then I can't hear the music as well, and (b) I actually performed a rather detailed study and series of experiments in an Environmental Science class about the potential hearing loss that can occur when driving with the windows down).
I love writing about music, too, and arguing about it as well. Which is how this whole blog started. I hate the discussion threads on sites like absolutepunk.net where it's just talk about anything EXCEPT the actual music. Whatever.
That being said, what I say here is rarely a complete opinion. So yes, though I think "pizza of my eye" is one of the dumpest lyrics ever written, - ever - I still like Motion City Soundtrack and listen to that CD rather frequently. And while I diss DLD a disproportionate amount, I still have 3 or 4 of their songs in my iTunes. And while I LOVE the Foo Fighters, anyone that knows me knows I can discuss my likes and dislikes with equal veracity. I love music, but I have a hard time loving it subjectively. So the hunt for the objective truth continues, if not about what is really "good" or "best," than at least about what I personally like most. So while I disagree with Noah's opinion about Coheed & Cambria, I'm glad he said it, because I didn't know he listened to ANY Coheed. Next time I see him we can argue - I mean, discuss - our different opinions. Or maybe we'll just skip it. That's beside the point. The point is that I love music and I love how it has bonded me to people in my life in so many different ways. Even if Luke is a bastard and doesn't allow comments on his blog.
Monday, January 7, 2008
2007 Top Ten (and then some)
Top 10 Albums of 2007, in reverse order:
10. Wilco, Sky Blue Sky
I’ve listened to Wilco often enough in the past, but none of their albums ever struck me like this one. From the subdued opener which leads into the stuttered strut of “You Are My Face” and the Allman Brothers-flavored “Impossible Germany,” Wilco sound like a band from another era, but still fresh and lively. The perfect road trip album, whether driving across the country or just hopping over to Vegas (both of which I did this year, and listened to SBS while doing so).
9. Arctic Monkeys, Favourite Worst Nightmare
Plenty of bands last year tried “becoming punk” with little or no success. Arctic Monkeys accomplished this easily by sticking to the basics: write short, fast songs, release so many EPs and singles that everyone loses count, and don’t be afraid to employ every cliché and stereotype available. From false endings to questionable puns to nonsensical rhymes, all wrapped up in swagger and spit, Favourite Worst Nightmare has enough bombast for three albums, but not in the American style of “blinger is better” – Arctic Monkeys are from the anti-Fall Out Boy/Panic! at the Disco camp, and joyfully so.
8. Yellowcard, Paper Walls
This album reminds me of high school, in all the best ways. It contains all the major-key bite of classics like Slick Shoes’ Rusty and MxPx’s Life in General, but with the more advanced sense of melody and harmony that Yellowcard has always maintained.
7. Saves the Day, Under the Boards
This album would probably score much higher if it weren’t following up the excellent Sound the Alarm. As a stand-alone album it is head and shoulders above the competition, but it can’t compete against its predecessor. The title track opener is eerie until the whole band kicks in, and then it sounds so much like BOC’s “Don’t Fear the Reaper” that it’s distracting. “Woe” and “Because You Are No Other” sound like unfinished pieces of potentially good songs, while “Stay” is the least memorable ballad StD has recorded and “Getaway” is ferocious until the laughable chanting over the bridge. That’s not to say there are no bright spots on the album: “Radio,” “Can’t Stay the Same,” and “Get Fucked Up” comprise one of the best trilogies of songs Chris Conley has ever written, and “Bye Bye Baby” is among their best singles. Closer “Turning Over In My Tomb” turns in a strong finish, as well, leaving me excited for the closing chapter in this audio trilogy. Sadly, Under the Boards is this band’s Temple of Doom.
6. Band of Horses, Cease to Begin
I didn’t even realize this album would make it into my top ten until well into December, when I kept thinking about “that album that is always playing on my work computer.” Lo and behold, it’s Cease to Begin, a combination of Creedence Clearwater Revival and Explosions in the Sky. The perfect album for staying in all weekend. Put it on repeat.
5. Tegan and Sara, The Con
Tegan and Sara are identical twins and lesbians, which totally killed my celebrity crush on Tegan (the cute one). Not that crushing on a lesbian is wrong, per se, but I felt like it was just completely futile and unfair (not that any celebrity crushes aren’t futile, but…) This is all beside the point, though, which is that The Con is the best female-fronted rock album in my lifetime. (Anyone caught mentioning Exile in Guyville will be ignored.) Not only are the songs catchy and the lyrics witty and memorable, they’re also sonically rich and often transcend the traditional verse-chorus-verse formula with ease. Lines like “I was nineteen” seem simple enough on paper, but when infused with T&S’s passion and melody, they come to life and hit you as if you wrote them yourself.
4. Jimmy Eat World, Chase This Light
For a few days after I got this album, I decided that it was at best a distant third in the JEW oeuvre, behind Clarity (duh) and Futures (an increasingly underrated album). However, the more I listened to Chase This Light, the more it sucked me in with its subtle genius. Jim Adkins’ lyrics don’t appear any different, yet I find myself relating to them more closely than ever before. Lines like “Could going through the motions lead to real emotion?” and “Slap my face just to feel you somehow again” jump out at me. The album is not perfect, however; “Feelin’ Lucky” is this album’s “The Middle” (or “Jen,” from the Futures b-sides), and “Gotta Be Somebody’s Blues,” while not a bad track, oddly sounds much more like earlier Stavesacre (“Wither” from Absolutes) than Jimmy Eat World. Those are the only two songs that I routinely skip, though; the rest of the album is exceptional, and “Here It Goes” may be the single most catchy song JEW has ever recorded, which is a bold claim. But it can at least contend for that title.
3. The Most Serene Republic, Population
As this band doesn’t write songs so much as “soundscapes,” an accurate description is difficult. Imagine Anathallo with more rock, The Arcade Fire with more punk and less Canadianism (though TMSR are fellow Canucks), Sigur Ros on speed, or even Sufjan with less eccentricity, and you’re getting warm. Just check it out already.
2. Lovedrug, Everything Starts Where It Ends
This is a bit of a surprise to me, as I’ve been ambivalent about Lovedrug since I first heard them (opening for 238 on their farewell tour). But this album makes all the right moves, and I’ve been listening to it consistently since I first picked it up. More focused than earlier releases, ESWIE rocks and rolls its way through 11 tracks of post-grunge indie perfection before the beautiful closing track, foregoing pessimism for the uplifting “Wake up, you’re alive. We’re on your side.” Worth hearing repeatedly, every year.
1. Foo Fighters, Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace
Is this a surprise to anyone? The Foo have released a number of disappointments recently (worst offender: In Your Honor, which was, mathematically, not even half good), but make up for all of them in one fell swoop. ESPG saw the band returning to producer Gil Norton (responsible for Foo Fighters’ The Colour and the Shape and Dashboard Confessional’s A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar, among others) and dropping contrived rock ‘n roll, instead favoring inspired songwriting. The result is the band’s best album, on all fronts, since TCATS. Opening track “The Pretender,” while the band’s best balls-to-the-wall track since “All My Life,” is only the gateway to an album as rich with barnburners (“Let It Die,” “Erase/Replace,” “Come Alive”) as it is with ballads (“Stranger Things Have Happened,” “Statues,” “Home”). An impressive performance from a band many were beginning to suspect had long passed its prime.
Top 7 EPs:
7. The Rocket Summer, The Rocket Summer EP
6. The Spill Canvas, Denial Feels So Good
5. Flight of the Conchords, The Distant Future
4. Arctic Monkeys, Brianstorm
3. Bright Eyes, Four Winds
2. This Town Needs Guns, Cats and Cats and Cats Split EP
1. Days Away, Ear Candy for the Headphone Trippers
Miscellaneous:
Best Debut: Pierce the Veil, A Flair for the Dramatic
Best Album I Wish I'd Been Listening To Since Its Release: The CafFiends, Fission, Fusion, and Things Made of Concrete (2004)
Best Improvement Over Same Band's Last Release: August Burns Red, Messengers
Best Re-Release: Foo Fighters, The Colour and the Shape (this would have made it into the Top 10 had I not decided to disqualify it).
16 Standout Tracks:
RULES: None of these songs appear on The Top 10 Albums or Top 7 EPs, but are fantastic tracks. Organized in alphabetical order, but if sequenced properly, make a BITCHIN' mix disc.
"After the Devil Beats His Wife," Emery
"Clean Breaks," Dashboard Confessional (Best Song of 2007)
"Currents Convulsive," Pierce the Veil
"Don't You Know Who I Think I Am?," Fall Out Boy
"(Fork and Knife)," Brand New
"Hands On Me," Vanessa Carlton
"Love Like This," Natasha Bedingfield (the version without Sean Kingston)
"Night Moves," Down to Earth Approach
"Pearl," Maritime
"Say," John Mayer
"Soon We'll Be Living In the Future," Straylight Run
"The Truth," The Spill Canvas
"Up Against the Ropes," August Burns Red
"Videotape," Radiohead
"Waiting for the 7:18," Bloc Party
"Wax Simulacra," The Mars Volta
10. Wilco, Sky Blue Sky
I’ve listened to Wilco often enough in the past, but none of their albums ever struck me like this one. From the subdued opener which leads into the stuttered strut of “You Are My Face” and the Allman Brothers-flavored “Impossible Germany,” Wilco sound like a band from another era, but still fresh and lively. The perfect road trip album, whether driving across the country or just hopping over to Vegas (both of which I did this year, and listened to SBS while doing so).
9. Arctic Monkeys, Favourite Worst Nightmare
Plenty of bands last year tried “becoming punk” with little or no success. Arctic Monkeys accomplished this easily by sticking to the basics: write short, fast songs, release so many EPs and singles that everyone loses count, and don’t be afraid to employ every cliché and stereotype available. From false endings to questionable puns to nonsensical rhymes, all wrapped up in swagger and spit, Favourite Worst Nightmare has enough bombast for three albums, but not in the American style of “blinger is better” – Arctic Monkeys are from the anti-Fall Out Boy/Panic! at the Disco camp, and joyfully so.
8. Yellowcard, Paper Walls
This album reminds me of high school, in all the best ways. It contains all the major-key bite of classics like Slick Shoes’ Rusty and MxPx’s Life in General, but with the more advanced sense of melody and harmony that Yellowcard has always maintained.
7. Saves the Day, Under the Boards
This album would probably score much higher if it weren’t following up the excellent Sound the Alarm. As a stand-alone album it is head and shoulders above the competition, but it can’t compete against its predecessor. The title track opener is eerie until the whole band kicks in, and then it sounds so much like BOC’s “Don’t Fear the Reaper” that it’s distracting. “Woe” and “Because You Are No Other” sound like unfinished pieces of potentially good songs, while “Stay” is the least memorable ballad StD has recorded and “Getaway” is ferocious until the laughable chanting over the bridge. That’s not to say there are no bright spots on the album: “Radio,” “Can’t Stay the Same,” and “Get Fucked Up” comprise one of the best trilogies of songs Chris Conley has ever written, and “Bye Bye Baby” is among their best singles. Closer “Turning Over In My Tomb” turns in a strong finish, as well, leaving me excited for the closing chapter in this audio trilogy. Sadly, Under the Boards is this band’s Temple of Doom.
6. Band of Horses, Cease to Begin
I didn’t even realize this album would make it into my top ten until well into December, when I kept thinking about “that album that is always playing on my work computer.” Lo and behold, it’s Cease to Begin, a combination of Creedence Clearwater Revival and Explosions in the Sky. The perfect album for staying in all weekend. Put it on repeat.
5. Tegan and Sara, The Con
Tegan and Sara are identical twins and lesbians, which totally killed my celebrity crush on Tegan (the cute one). Not that crushing on a lesbian is wrong, per se, but I felt like it was just completely futile and unfair (not that any celebrity crushes aren’t futile, but…) This is all beside the point, though, which is that The Con is the best female-fronted rock album in my lifetime. (Anyone caught mentioning Exile in Guyville will be ignored.) Not only are the songs catchy and the lyrics witty and memorable, they’re also sonically rich and often transcend the traditional verse-chorus-verse formula with ease. Lines like “I was nineteen” seem simple enough on paper, but when infused with T&S’s passion and melody, they come to life and hit you as if you wrote them yourself.
4. Jimmy Eat World, Chase This Light
For a few days after I got this album, I decided that it was at best a distant third in the JEW oeuvre, behind Clarity (duh) and Futures (an increasingly underrated album). However, the more I listened to Chase This Light, the more it sucked me in with its subtle genius. Jim Adkins’ lyrics don’t appear any different, yet I find myself relating to them more closely than ever before. Lines like “Could going through the motions lead to real emotion?” and “Slap my face just to feel you somehow again” jump out at me. The album is not perfect, however; “Feelin’ Lucky” is this album’s “The Middle” (or “Jen,” from the Futures b-sides), and “Gotta Be Somebody’s Blues,” while not a bad track, oddly sounds much more like earlier Stavesacre (“Wither” from Absolutes) than Jimmy Eat World. Those are the only two songs that I routinely skip, though; the rest of the album is exceptional, and “Here It Goes” may be the single most catchy song JEW has ever recorded, which is a bold claim. But it can at least contend for that title.
3. The Most Serene Republic, Population
As this band doesn’t write songs so much as “soundscapes,” an accurate description is difficult. Imagine Anathallo with more rock, The Arcade Fire with more punk and less Canadianism (though TMSR are fellow Canucks), Sigur Ros on speed, or even Sufjan with less eccentricity, and you’re getting warm. Just check it out already.
2. Lovedrug, Everything Starts Where It Ends
This is a bit of a surprise to me, as I’ve been ambivalent about Lovedrug since I first heard them (opening for 238 on their farewell tour). But this album makes all the right moves, and I’ve been listening to it consistently since I first picked it up. More focused than earlier releases, ESWIE rocks and rolls its way through 11 tracks of post-grunge indie perfection before the beautiful closing track, foregoing pessimism for the uplifting “Wake up, you’re alive. We’re on your side.” Worth hearing repeatedly, every year.
1. Foo Fighters, Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace
Is this a surprise to anyone? The Foo have released a number of disappointments recently (worst offender: In Your Honor, which was, mathematically, not even half good), but make up for all of them in one fell swoop. ESPG saw the band returning to producer Gil Norton (responsible for Foo Fighters’ The Colour and the Shape and Dashboard Confessional’s A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar, among others) and dropping contrived rock ‘n roll, instead favoring inspired songwriting. The result is the band’s best album, on all fronts, since TCATS. Opening track “The Pretender,” while the band’s best balls-to-the-wall track since “All My Life,” is only the gateway to an album as rich with barnburners (“Let It Die,” “Erase/Replace,” “Come Alive”) as it is with ballads (“Stranger Things Have Happened,” “Statues,” “Home”). An impressive performance from a band many were beginning to suspect had long passed its prime.
Top 7 EPs:
7. The Rocket Summer, The Rocket Summer EP
6. The Spill Canvas, Denial Feels So Good
5. Flight of the Conchords, The Distant Future
4. Arctic Monkeys, Brianstorm
3. Bright Eyes, Four Winds
2. This Town Needs Guns, Cats and Cats and Cats Split EP
1. Days Away, Ear Candy for the Headphone Trippers
Miscellaneous:
Best Debut: Pierce the Veil, A Flair for the Dramatic
Best Album I Wish I'd Been Listening To Since Its Release: The CafFiends, Fission, Fusion, and Things Made of Concrete (2004)
Best Improvement Over Same Band's Last Release: August Burns Red, Messengers
Best Re-Release: Foo Fighters, The Colour and the Shape (this would have made it into the Top 10 had I not decided to disqualify it).
16 Standout Tracks:
RULES: None of these songs appear on The Top 10 Albums or Top 7 EPs, but are fantastic tracks. Organized in alphabetical order, but if sequenced properly, make a BITCHIN' mix disc.
"After the Devil Beats His Wife," Emery
"Clean Breaks," Dashboard Confessional (Best Song of 2007)
"Currents Convulsive," Pierce the Veil
"Don't You Know Who I Think I Am?," Fall Out Boy
"(Fork and Knife)," Brand New
"Hands On Me," Vanessa Carlton
"Love Like This," Natasha Bedingfield (the version without Sean Kingston)
"Night Moves," Down to Earth Approach
"Pearl," Maritime
"Say," John Mayer
"Soon We'll Be Living In the Future," Straylight Run
"The Truth," The Spill Canvas
"Up Against the Ropes," August Burns Red
"Videotape," Radiohead
"Waiting for the 7:18," Bloc Party
"Wax Simulacra," The Mars Volta
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