Ryan's Top 10: Number 9

#9 Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Well, I think its becoming pretty obvious now that all Spoon does is write good songs. I mean 6 albums in, and you basically can’t go wrong with any of the Spoon catalog. In my opinion, the cream of the crop lies with 2002’s Kill the Moonlight and 2005’s Gimme Fiction, but Spoon’s latest, the annoyingly titled Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga manages to run neck and neck with both of those previous albums. I think Aquarium Drunkard said it best, that even if all Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga does is become a gateway for your entry into all other things Spoon, then it’s already done its job. But, maybe a band like Spoon isn’t for you….i mean some people really just don’t like well-done songs, with catchy guitar and piano laced riffs. I’m not one of those people, but I’m sure they exist. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga also holds the title of being the most upbeat album in the Top 10, as most of the songs come at you fast with a biting guitar at front and center. Some songs can tend to suffer from a bit of repetitiveness (see “The Ghost of You Lingers), but those moments are few and far between. Its funny, in Bryan’s Top Ten post, which also included Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, he listed three standout songs for him which were “The Underdog”, “My Little Japanese Cigarette Case”, and “Black Like Me”…and those are all good songs, but I’m going to cite a different three as being my highlights on the album. I’ll begin with the first track on the album, “Don’t Make Me a Target”. The best way I can describe this song is just to say that for some reason I feel like a badass when I listen to it. I’m clearly not a badass, so when I get a feeling like this, I often like to repeat what got me there in the first place. That being said, I’ve listened to “Don’t Make Me a Target” a lot. My other two highlights are “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb” and “Finer Feelings”, but you can’t really go wrong with any on the album. So, if you decided to pick up Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga on a whim this year and haven’t yet made it to any of Spoon’s previous albums, then quit wasting time and hit up Kill the Moonlight immediately.

Final Tallies:

Number of posts written today about Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga: 1

Number of time typed the word Ga: 36

Spoon - Don't Make Me a Target

Spoon - You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb

RR

Ryan's Top 10: Number 10

Fresh off a heartbreaking defeat in my fantasy football playoffs, I've decided to drown my sorrows in some of the best albums to grace my ears this year.

I've been sitting on this Top Ten list for the better part of a month now, all because I couldn't come up with a clever introduction to yet another Top Ten list. The real problem, however, was that my lack of something to say that plagued my intro certainly did not carry over to writing about the albums themselves. Each album write-up ended up being slightly longer than what I originally planned, and I didn't want to cut anything down. So rather than posting one gargantuan post, I've decided to break this up into a series of ten posts. Yes, I'm going to make this as painful as possible for everyone involved.

Now, I realize many may not particularly care what albums I think are the best of this past year, but I'm going to grace you with my opinions anyways. The thing I'd like us all to keep in mind, however, is what exactly the word "best" means.

Now, applying a term such as "best" to music is a very difficult thing to do. I don't know what makes an album better than another album. Seriously. I think a lot of people THINK they know, but i don't think they actually do. What I DO know though is what albums I've enjoyed the most throughout the past year. And that's what you'll find here. A completely subjective list of my favorite albums. I tried to take into account the potential "staying power" associated with an album, meaning is there a decent chance that an album might still be in regular rotation with me in 5-10 years. If so, I considered it for Top Ten status. If not, it was demoted. So, I hope you enjoy reading about the albums I've enjoyed, and I hope I do a decent job of conveying why I particularly like each album, all I ask is that if you enjoy any of these songs, or albums, that you purchase the albums mentioned. These are the albums of 2007 that I think are most worth your money. Also, I'd love to hear your opinions. So, if you've got time, let me know why you like (or don't like) these albums. I'd love to hear some most likely better thought out opinion's than just my own.

So, without further ado, on to the list....but first I should mention a few albums that just barely missed the cut. These five albums were all good enough to be included, but as I'm limited in the number of albums I can include, they were unfortunately left off.

My Honorable Mentions

Iron and Wine – The Shepherd’s Dog

My favorite Iron and Wine album remains the coeffort with Calexico. I really think the backing band adds an extra element to Sam Beam’s song writing that enhances most of the songs. The Shepherd’s Dog follows a similar format for the first time, with a backing band approach compared to the more solo previous record Our Endless Numbered Days. The Shepherd’s Dog also comes off slightly more eclectic than Beam’s previous efforts. I very much enjoyed the direction he decided to take with this album.

Iron and Wine - The Devil Never Sleeps

Bishop Allen – The Broken String

Most of the songs on this album were accumulated from their monthly EP effort from 2006, making it a “greatest hits” of sorts. The high point of the record hits very early with an excellent trifecta of songs leading off the album in “The Monitor”, “Rain”, and “Click Click Click Click”. While some of the songs might be a little poppy for some, but an overall nice effort on their second album.

Bishop Allen - Rain

Pela – Anytown Graffiti

A gem of an album that I gotta give total props to eMusic for. I had never heard of Pela, but thanks to some bored, emusic surfing, I stumbled upon Anytown Graffiti. It’s a collection of mostly uptempo indie rock songs, few of which disappoint. Its been one of my most pleasant surprises of 2007.

Pela - Tenement Teeth

The Shins – Wincing the Night Away

Wincing the Night Away, on the other hand, was one of my more disappointing albums of 2007. Not THE most disappointing album (Billy Corgan is holding down that spot with his Smashing Pumpkins “resurrection”), but disappointing nonetheless, despite finding its way into my Honorable Mentions. I realize a lot of people think very highly of this record, but after The Shins first two albums, I was expecting something that was going to stick with me a little more than this one has. Regardless, its not a bad album, I just wanted a little more.

The Shins - Sleeping Lessons

The White Stripes – Icky Thump

I think the fact that Icky Thump didn’t even make my Top Ten says more about the quality of new music in 2007 than it does about the record itself. Icky Thump is a very strong album, containing, quite possibly, the rockingest song of 2007 in its title track. That heart-thumping drumming, and weird instrumental solos puts it as one of my favorite songs of the year. There’s more to the album though, it’s a good collection of hard rocking songs that were absent for the most part from their previous effort.

The White Stripes - Little Cream Soda

Finally, the list:

#10 Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger

So, Ryan Adams puts out a lot of albums. We’re all pretty confident that’s a valid statement. It’s gotten to the point where you can’t read an Adams-related article or review without him being accused of being “prolific” as if to indicate this was an insult or an unwanted quality from a song-writer. Now listen, I’ll be the first to admit…not every Ryan Adams song is an “Oh My Sweet Carolina” and not every album a Heartbreaker. But that doesn’t mean that Adams isn’t constantly producing good songs. Every album has been a good, listenable album. That being said I’ve probably listened to Easy Tiger less than any other album in my Top Ten (maybe that’s why I’ve relegated it to the TenSpot, who knows). But I don’t need to listen to the album 100 times to know what it sounds like, and to know that I like it. 6 or 7 Ryan Adams in, I like to think I’ve pretty much got the hang of this now. Easy Tiger falls in line with a lot of the others, however, what separates this one from the 29’s and the Demolition’s is the consistency. I can pick up listening at just about any point throughout the album and enjoy the rest of the way through. I don’t mean that to say that the songs are interchangeable, just that they’re all good Ryan Adams songs, making Easy Tiger a collection of good Ryan Adams songs, and thus a good album. In addition, there probably isn’t a more heart-wringing, gut-wrenching song I’ve heard all year than “I Taught Myself How to Grow Old”. The harmonica kills me, and is quite possibly my favorite single part of just about any Ryan Adams song out there..........on second thought, I’d put the line about missing Kentucky and the winds blowing across the South on “Carolina” slightly ahead….but you get the point. I was hesitant when I first got Easy Tiger, with my thinking being, I already know what I’m going to hear, but I was wrong. I didn’t expect the constant quality throughout the entire album. I’m very glad I purchased the album.

Ryan Adams - I Taught Myself How to Grow Old

Ryan Adams - Oh My God, Whatever, Etc.

RR

Song of the Week 4

Tis the weekend for Christmas parties.

How about a Christmas song this week that EVERYONE needs to own? Here's one of the songs featured in everyone's favorite holiday special A Charlie Brown Christmas. Coincidentally, you can download the entire album at eMusic. So, if you don't already have it, its an excellent collection of Christmas oriented jazz songs. Plus, it might even store up a few memories along the way.

Vince Guaraldi - Christmas Time is Here

Also, The Leather Canary seems to have put together a couple Christmas mixes (they're currently up to five at the moment). You can download individual tracks or the entire mix in the form of a zip file. There's some real gems on there.

Finally, in the spirit of the holiday's, I'm going to include one more Christmas track in this weeks Song of the Week. Its another one my favorites.

Phil Ochs - No Chrismas in Kentucky

Enjoy.

RR

Free Stuff.....

Cold War Kids have recorded a six song EP called Mulberry Street and they're giving it away for free.

Just found out today. They're offering two songs a day between now and Friday at their website. You can go here, and scroll through their EPs. Mulberry Street should be at the bottom and you can download the first two tracks.

Track listing:

1. The Soloist in the Living Room
2. Heavy Boots
3. Quiet, Please!
4. The Wedding
5. In Harmony, In Silver
6. Don't Let Your Love Grow Away

Also, i noticed there's an acoustic EP available for free download from the site that i didn't know about called Acoustic at the District.

So, if you're a Cold War Kids fan, you should check it out. Hopefully the songs will be decent.

BUT WAIT!!! THERE'S MORE!!!

Apparently, Okkervil River has recorded an EP of cover songs which they are also releasing for free. Wow. Tis the season for giving, I suppose. It's a nine song EP which they're calling the Golden Opportunites Mixtape including one new Okkervil song and 8 cover songs recorded in various places over the past few years. You can download the album for free as a zip file from their website here.

Track listing:

1. April Anne by John Phillips (another good version of this one can be found on Okkervil River's Daytrotter Session.
2. Simon Smith and the Amazing Dancing Bear by Randy Newman
3. I Want to Know by Charles F. Olsen/Ed Sanders
4. Do What You Gotta Do by Jimmy Webb (another one on the Daytrotter session)
5. I Came Here to Say I'm Going Away by Serge Gainsbourg
6. The Blonde in the Bleachers by Joni Mitchell
7. Antarctica Starts Here by John Cale
8. Listening to Otis Redding at Home During Christmas by Okkervil's own Will Sheff
9. Solo by Sandy Denny

Man. Free stuff. Coolness. Enjoy.

RR

Instrumental Interlude

One of the many reasons you should be watching Friday Night Lights.

In between the year end posts and mixes, I wanted to present some instrumental illness. One of my favorite shows is Friday Night Lights and at the end of last week's episode, there was a sweet little instrumental that was perfect for the scenes that were playing out. I spent hours on Saturday looking for that instrumental and finally, on Sunday morning, I found it. The instrumental is Camera Obscura's Arrangements of Shapes and Space [buy here]. It is just one of many examples of how FNL uses music to accentuate the actions and emotions of a scene. Below are a couple of other instrumentals that I like.

Uncle Tupelo -- Sandusky
[Buy UT here]

Sun Kil Moon -- Si Paloma
[Buy SKM here]

BK

My Top 10 for 2007

I am no critic, but I love music. I sampled many a good record this year and I want to write about it. Idiot's Revenge, fuckers! Here are the best records I listened to in 2007.

1. Andrew Bird :: Armchair Apocrypha

When I saw Wilco on October 16th in Columbus, little did I know that the show would introduce me to my album of the year. Andrew Bird was the opener and we arrived midway through his opening set. Although I did not know his music, from the beginning, I was mesmorized by the stunning beauty of his music and the clusterfuck that is his show (believe it or not, I mean clusterfuck in a good way - there is so much happening musically and visually for essentially a one man band). Shortly thereafter, I picked up Armchair from Emusic.

This album is great and is a deal for approximately $12, considering that this album is perhaps worth $80,000. Andrew Bird is a scholar and he can teach you and your kids. You want to save some money on an education from a liberal arts college? Just play this record over and over again - you'll learn more than I learned from my liberal arts college. Bird makes beautiful music while discussing religion, philosophy, history (a song about the Scythians and their historical troubles with the pesky Sarmatians, damn them), the metaphysical, and so much more. A classical education he will give you, along with his perspective on religion v. science, mortality, nature v. nurture, just to name a few highlights. Oh yeah, did I mention his arrangements are beautiful and sound like nothing else in pop music? Bird crafts great, catchy songs with meaning, depth, and stunning beauty. Every track is a gem and meshed together, these 12 songs constitute my favorite record of 2007. Generally, I think this album has been underrated among critics, so I have no problem fluffing it with this much enthusiasm. Everything is worth listening to, especially Fiery Crash, Imitosis, Heretics, Darkmatter, Scythian Empires.

2. Josh Ritter :: Historical Conquests Of Josh Ritter

Ritter's follow up to The Animal Years is as strong from top to bottom as any other album from 2007. This album not only features some fantastic songs but, for whatever reason, it sometimes seemed that Ritter was singing them to me (as creepy as that sounds). In other words, a lot of his song subjects have relevance to my own experiences from 2007. That personal connection is always interesting to me.

Ritter is oftened pegged as a folk singer, and although there are elements of that on this album, it's also a pretty diverse work that includes some rockers, some catchy pop songs, and even some atmosphere. For the existing Ritter fan, you'll be happy to know that his poignant discussion of serious subjects, such as politics and war, are also present. My favorites: Mind's Eye, Right Moves, Empty Hearts, Wait for Love (You Know You Will).

3. The National :: Boxer

What I love about this album is the mellow intensity of it, (if that makes sense) created by the arrangements and the song writing. Matt Berninger, the primary songwriter, has a unique writing style that I find very interesting; it's almost as if he says what we are all thinking in the back of our heads but are too ashamed or scared to say (for example, in Slow Show: "Can I get a minute of not being nervous and not thinking of my dick"). In addition, it's Berninger's cryptic style that creates some really cool little short stories. Back to Slow Show -- for example, is this a twisted type of love song, or are we getting insights into a stalker? The arrangements are deliberate, often creating a dramatic affect in the storytelling (see Ada). Overall, it's a cool compliment to Alligator. Whereas Alligator has some screaming and yelling, Boxer has none that I can think of off the top of my head yet, I would argue, it is just as intense as Alligator (based on the factors that I've been rambling about). When standing next to Alligator, this is a fantastic follow up, one that shows continued growth from these guys. You can't go wrong with anything on this album, especially Mistaken For Strangers, Green Gloves, Slow Show, Start A War, Ada.

4. Dinosaur Jr :: Beyond

Before you start to think I've gone soft, I present to you Dino Jr's triumphant return. Nineteen years since their last album together, the original guys from Dino Jr released Beyond and, in my book, didn't really skip a beat. The signature shredding guitar licks of J Mascis are as intense as ever and the catchy hooks make many of these songs memorable. When I get the urge to kill some brain cells (by headbanging of course), I put Beyond on and commence rocking. My favorites: Pick Me Up, Back To Your Heart, Been There All The Time.

5. Centro-matic :: Operation Motorcide

Are you kidding? Only Will Johnson can put his scraps together and make a sweet EP. If you were unaware, the tracks making up Operation Motorcide are leftovers from last year's Fort Recovery, a great album in its own right. This EP carries on in the same direction as Fort Recovery, but perhaps with better songs. Atlanta is my favorite song of 2007! Operation Motorcide, Circuits to Circuses, and 74 Cuts, 74 Scars are, arguably, as strong as any song on Fort Recovery. In any event, Operation Motorcide was a tasty morsel to keep us held over until 2008 when Centro-matic and side project South San Gabriel are scheduled to release new records.

Here are my next five. All of these albums are great, but don't have the same consistency throughout as the Top 5 albums.

6. Spoon :: Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

It might be difficult to find any album with three songs as strong as The Underdog, My Little Japanese Cigarette Case, and Black Like Me.

7. New Pornographers :: Challengers

So yes, these guys and gals made an album that sounds similar to their previous albums. And yes, they made an album where alot of the songs might even sound the same. The New Pornographers seem to have bottled the formula for creating catchy, singable pop songs. Some find that bad. I, on the otherhand, don't mind it. Fact is, since I've been spinning this album, almost all of the songs have been stuck in my head at one time or another. I like that and I like this album.

8. Band of Horses :: Cease to Begin

Not as good as Everything All The Time, but still a pretty solid follow up. Forget the haters that knock this band for its MMJ similarities, Ben Bridwell and company can rock when they want or take it down a notch and still deliver a quality tune. Doubt me? Check out Ode to LRC, Islands On the Coast, Detlef Schrempf, and The General Specific.

9. Son Volt :: The Search

Another nice collection of songs from Farrar. Although some are throw aways, Methamphetamine, Highways & Cigarettes, and Circadian Rhythm rank up there with some of Jay's finest tunes. For even more greatness, pick up the bonus disc, which includes other gems such as Carnival Blues, Exurbia, and Houdini Punches.

10. Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings :: 100 Days, 100 Nights

Amy Winehouse might get all of the mainstream media attention for her "soulful" album, but it's Sharon Jones who released the most soulful album of 2007. With her magnificant band, The Dap Kings (the same band that backed up Winehouse), Jones delivers a sensational album that explores the subjects we expect from a great soul album - love, faith, and hardship - with her tight band and fantastic vocals. This album would probably rank higher if I had discovered it earlier. Where to start? I suggest the title track, Humble Me, Tell Me, and Answer Me.


Others worth mentioning:

Magnolia Electric Co :: Sojourner
Easily in the Top 5 if this weren't a box set. I figured a 4 disc set would be unfair to include since there are 4 discs of great stuff.

Okkervil River :: The Stage Names
I've never really enjoyed these guys until this album, probably because it's a little more "happy" in tone.

Rogue Wave :: Asleep At Heaven's Gate
Some really stand out tracks on this album including Cheaper Than Therapy, Lake Michigan, and Fantasies.

Wilco :: Sky Blue Sky
Although I was a little disappointed in the overall album, it's worth mentioning for my standout musical moment of the year: the Nels solo approximately 1:30 into You Are My Face.

Thurston Moore :: Trees Outside The Academy
Sonic Youth rocker does solo well. Mostly stripped down, there just was not enough time to digest it all for it to make the Top 10.

Music is good!

BK

Song of the Week 3

Man, its been one of those weeks...ya know? One of those weeks where on Tuesday you're like, "Oh my God, I can't believe its only Tuesday!!", then on Thursday you're like, "Holy crap, its already Thursday??" And you feel like you didn't get anything done.

Neither is ever a good feeling, but when they both happen in the same week it sucks even more. So, when stuck in a situation like this I like to do one of two things....rent and watch a funny movie (i finally saw Superbad this week) or listen to a loud song very, very loud and attempt to do permanent damage to my ear drums. That usually makes me feel better for a few minutes.

So, that's what we'll do with this week's Song of the Week. Here's The Black Keys performing "10 a.m. Automatic" live at the Cannery Ballroom in Nashville. No more explanation. Just turn the shit up and rock out for the next three minutes and four seconds.

The Black Keys - 10 a.m. Automatic

Feels a little better doesn't it???

RR

A sniff of the new DBT

How do you know you're pumped for an album to be released? One indication might be listening repeatedly to the 30 second samples of the songs that are available on Amazon.com. That's what I've been doing for the last few minutes as I stumbled across previews for the new Drive By Truckers record, Brighter Than Creation's Dark, due out on January 28th. I am fucking stoked with what I've heard. Alot of these songs seem to have a more relaxed vibe (think Heathens or My Sweet Annette) to them rather than the balls to the wall rock that we are accustom to with DBT. I like it, I gotta say! Anyway, I won't gush anymore over an album I've only heard clips of, but this album will easily be my most anticipated album for early 2008. Of course, if you are impatient, head to the Live Archive and search for DBT shows -- they previewed many of these songs on the Dirt Underneath Tour last summer.

You can take a listen yourself over here.

P.S. Cooley is prominent and is awesome. Thirty second clips are enough to tell me that!

BK

2007 Mix 1

Damn I am clever.

There were too many great songs from 2007 for me to narrow into one mix, so I cheated and decided to make this a double disc. Many of the songs are repeats of things I've posted throughout the year but, since I am putting them on my End of The Year Mix, they must be worth hearing again. So, without further adieu, here is the first batch of goodens.

Peter Bjorn & John -- Object of My Affection
Band of Horses -- Ode to LRC
John Doe w/Kathleen Edwards -- Golden State
Okkervil River -- Plus Ones
Interpol -- Rest My Chemistry
Spoon -- The Underdog
Josh Ritter -- Right Moves
The Shins -- Australia
The New Pornographers -- Failsafe
Great Lake Swimmers -- I Am Part of A Large Family
Dolorean -- Heather Remind Me How This Ends
Magnolia Electric Co -- Montgomery
Eddie Vedder -- Hard Sun
Centro-matic -- Atlanta
The Avett Brothers -- Pretty Girl From Chile
Two Cow Garage -- Camo Jacket

More to come later this week!

BK

P.S. For my nerdy colleagues, I suggest they check out the Chemistry Mix over at the Ear Farm. Lots of good stuff over there to help you with your titration and your reductions and your what have yous.

Plotting

So the last couple of days have been pretty quiet along these fronts, but that doesn't mean I haven't been doing anything. This past weekend, I committed myself to sitting down and giving all of the 2007 contenders one final quality listen. I think I have my Top 10 and I hope to unveil it within the next couple of days. Also, I've put together my favorite tracks of the year -- there were so many that it looks like this will be a 2 - CD set. Hopefully I'll have that aboard within a few days as well.

Those crazy Europeans and their crazy t-shirt designs.

In the meantime, I stepped out last night with a few cohorts to check out Peter Bjorn & John up at Bogart's. I will readily admit that I knew very little about PB&J before yesterday and, well, thanks to many a beers, I'm still not too familiar with them. I did spend much of yesterday familiarizing myself with their 2007 release, Writer's Block. Although it will not be making my Top 10, there is some pretty decent stuff going on here. I find them at their finest in songs like Object of My Affection, with the fuzzy guitar and catchy hooks.

Here's another song. Great success!

• Young Folks (beyond the wizard's sleeve re-animation)

[Buy PB&J here]

Weak blog, I know. Good songs though so fuck off.

BK