Top Ten Albums 10-25-09

1. "Sainthood" by Tegan and Sara
Easily the top of my list, another gem from the Canadian twin sisters. After getting it, I could barely listen to anything else. Seems like a fusion of "The Con" and "So Jealous". Grabs your attention immediately with a distorted keyboard rhythm on "Arrow" and keeps it until the chant back reflective "Someday".  After a couple listens I also noticed that I like Sara's songs more and with a quick check at wikipedia I saw that I like her songs more on every album. How did I miss that? But Tegan is no slouch, just not in my same headspace musically. Most played: "Arrow", "Someday", and "Sentimental Tune"
2. "Cassadaga" by Bright Eyes
Feeling a bit more mellow, so I reached for a work staggering genius (lyrically). Conor earned those comparisons to Dylan here (and on his self-titled). Depression-era folk, Guthrie style abounds with that dash of classical Americana. He's grown up here, not angry or near tears like previous Bright Eyes, but still oozing emotion. Most played: "If The Brakeman Turns My Way", "Four Winds", "Classic Cars, and "I Must Belong Somewhere"
3. "Take This To Your Grave" by Fall Out Boy
Bet you didn't expect to see pop-punk here did you? It's how I earned my music loving stripes and still carries good memories, in this case a show in Des Moines in November 2003 with 30 people. A pretty good album at that, lacking production and the instrumental skill that recent years have brought, but making up for it with heart. "Saturday" shows the bands hardcore/metal roots and displays Patrick's amazing voice and feels at home following a near acoustic song. I forgot how timeless this sounds too, if you remember high school that is. Maybe that explains their rise, 3000 at a concert in Sept. 2004 and stadiums by spring of 2005. Most played: "Saturday", "The Patron Saints of Liars and Fakes", and "Chicago is So Two Years Ago" (my first experience with them).
4. "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix" by Phoenix
Damn this is a catchy disc. I also realized that Phoenix is basically France's version of Bloc Party, and decided more countries should have bands like Bloc Party. A couple songs sound a bit too similar, but I write that off to have their style down so well. Though "Lasso" is kind of an extension of "1901"...I'd have placed them next to each other. Also I kind of forget they are French, they could easily have been pulled from the Brooklyn scene. Most Played: "1901", "Listzomania", and "Armistice"
5. "Cycles" by Cartel
A reminder of why I loved them in the first place, their 2004 EP has returned sonically.They moved out of the Dr. Pepper bubble/publicity stunt. That album was so over-produced it nearly drowned. The first song "Let's Go" reminds me a lot of "Honestly". Just some really great pop-punk, left raw like it should be. Kind of reminds me of certain Blink 182 stuff. Plus a "we did it live" O'Reilly shot in the lyrics of "Faster Lyrics". Most Played: "The Perfect Mistake", "Let's Go", and "27 Steps"
6. "Red of Tooth And Claw" by Murder By Death
If Johnny Cash made western horror story concept albums it would sound like this. Actually it would sound less good because they have a cellist. Lead singer Adam Turla famous described it as a "Homer's Odyssey of revenge, only without the honorable character at the center." My favorite/most played was used in the trailer for "Inglorious Basterds" as well. Oh and they are amazing live, with black and white westerns projected on the stage behind them. They play New Years Eve shows in Iowa City most years lasting until after 3am Most played: "Coming Home", "'52 Ford", and "Rum Brave"
7. "In Defense of The Genre" by Say Anything
Last week I mentioned his critique of a genre on "Admit It!", well here he does an about face. This was written after 3 mental breakdowns and eventually recovery. To my ear this is among the greatest double discs ever made, in part because its a concept album. It takes a certain skill to put almost 90 minutes of music on 27 songs. More to make it have indie, rock, emo, rap, spoken word, electronic, dance, and industrial songs. There are screams and whispers and even a couple jokes "Sorry Dudes, My Bad" and "Died a Jew" come to mind. The former talks about his breakdowns, the later about race relations:

you say you hate the shade of my face
for my father's sharecrops
my people were slaves, before yours invented hip hop
apologize, but i'm in on the joke
another brother to scoff at the dancing patterns of white folk

The amazing thing that as different as the two discs are, they aren't that great alone. Most played: "No Soul", "Died A Jew", "Have At Thee!", "We Killed It" and "The Church Channel"
8. "Sleep Is For the Week" by Frank Turner
What have I not said about this album already? Most played: "A Decent Cup Of Tea", "Romantic Fatigue", and "Once We Were Anarchists"
9. "The Twilight Saga: New Moon Soundtrack" by Various Artists
Everything about me tells me not to like Twilight, but the author is a music junkie like myself. A really great soundtrack, and I might just see this movie to see where these songs end up going. All songs were written specifically for this, except the Muse song (which is a special remix, so it's a toss up). A collection of indie all-stars and a feat that in an album with Bon Iver, Muse, Grizzly Bear, and Death Cab For Cutie my favorite song is my someone I've never heard before (Anya Marina). Most played: "Satellite Heart" (by Anya Marina), "Roslyn" (by Bon Iver and St. Vincent), "Meet Me On The Equinox" (by Death Cab), and "A White Demon Love Song" (by The Killers).
10. "Sing The Sorrow" by AFI
There is something pure about this album. Maybe it is just what I feel about that point in my life. Here AFi shook off most of their hardcore punk roots and traded it in for a more alt-rock feel. The first time I ever heard synthesizers and rock music and dammit if I wasn't hooked. One of the deepest albums I've ever heard, just listen to it with headphones in a quiet, maybe dark place. Still 6 years out I hear new things, especially on the last epic-poem style track. Most played: "Bleed Black", "The Great Disappointment", and "...But Home Is Nowhere" (that epic last track, all 15 minutes of it)

Top Ten Albums 10-12-09

1. "The '59 Sound" by The Gaslight Anthem
I came across this review and seems like the best way of describing them, since I actually didn't like them at first.

To go about explaining the appeal of this band seems to me like having to tell someone sex is an enjoyable act. It should be common knowledge. As was the case of several people I've discussed the band with, the attraction wasn't instant. Like when you meet someone but think they're ok, possibly a bit boring but become friends after you've had a long talk over tea or a memorable experience together. That's how me and Gaslight were introduced.

Most played: "The '59 Sound", "Old White Lincoln", and "Mile Davis and The Cool"
2. "Superioryouareinferior" by Rae Spoon
Based solely on "Come On Forest Fire Burn The Disco Down" being the best song I've heard in at least 6 months (I get some 200 albums a year, so that's as far back as I am willing to go with risking hyperbole). It's the kind of song you hear and think "oh yeah, THAT is what music should sound like. It's the type of album that defies genre. It has bits of country, folk, and indie that leap out. It also has that "Bon Iver vibe", only instead of sounding like a cabin it sounds like the rolling plains. The lyrics are so damn good that you get lost in them only to realize the wavering of his voice is stunningly beautiful as well. Oh yeah, when you listen you'll no doubt hear a female voice, that's because Rae is transgendered, born female. Most played: "Come On Forest Fire Burn The Disco Down", "My Heart Is a Piece of Garbage (Fight, Seagulls, Fight!)", and "If You Lose Your Horses" (sounds like it was stolen from Woody Guthrie himself)
3. "By The Throat" by Eyedea and Abilities
Maybe the best fusion of rock and rap in a decade. Many rappers dabble in rock, because there is a common love of power chords and something archetypal of electric guitar. But Eyedea, being among the best in the business having won Scribble Jam, shows here he understand that you can't just replace beats with guitar. Again he shows raw emotion and oozes peronsal stories in his music. Most played: "Burn Fetish" (with it's great "empathy is the poor man's cocaine" line), "Spin Cycle" (channeling Led Zeppelin), and "Junk"
4. "Terror State" by Anti-Flag
A return to my roots. This was in my CD player regularly for a year. Absolutely essential during those Bush years. Enough said, right? Most played: "You Can Kill The Protester, You Can't Kill The Protest", "Mind the G.A.T.T.", "Operation Iraqi Liberation (O.I.L.)" and "Wake Up!"
5. "The First Three Years" by Frank Turner
When you are Frank Turner you can put out a retrospective of new and old stuff after 3 years. Because putting out an album and an EP a year that makes you prolific enough to get away with it. This is a collection of stardards and songs that missed the cut due to being covers or too angsty. And when you can cover "Dancing Queen" with only an acoustic guitar and make it sound like you wrote it, you get the point. Most played: "Thatcher Fucked The Kids", "Heartless Bastard Motherfucker", "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight" (Postal Service cover), and "Dancing Queen" (ABBA cover)
6. "Monsters of Folk" by Monsters Of Folk
I tried not to like it, but it is undeniably good. It's "Conor Oberst" (album) with different singers, and a dash of "Outer South". Most Played: "Temazcal", "Man Named Truth", and  "Whole Lotta Losin", and "The Sandman, The Brakeman, and Me"
7. "...Is A Real Boy" by Say Anything
A staggering work of genius if I've ever heard one. A harsh indictment of an entire genre of music and maybe of the way music is made in general. "Admit It!" shouts down hipsters on their perch and "Alive With The Glory Of Love" tells of a ghetto love story during WWII, add a song about cats fighting, one about rough sex and you'd think the album would implode. But like it's maker's disease, the bipolar nature here just fits. You wouldn't want it any other way. Most played: "Admit It!", "Belt", and "Chia Like I Shall Grow"
8. "The Sufferer and The Witness" by Rise Against
One of my favorite albums, by one of the all-time great progressive bands. Check out their music videos and see they are music's Alan Grayson. Sort of. Anyway, on this album they manage to make a spoken word track a standout on a hard-rock album. A must have for a progressive too. Most played: "The Approaching Curve" (that spoken word song), "The Good Left Undone", and "Behind Closed Door"
9. "Crash Love" by AFI
Through not as great as "Sing the Sorrow", it's in that same vein. And it shed that whole glam-rock bullshit of "DecemberUnderground". They are better when they stick to their East-Bay (SF) Hardcore punk roots. But with better production. Here they include old-school sing songs and clap along, which are one of my many musical weaknesses. Most played: "Beautiful Thieves", "Too Shy To Scream", and "Veronica Sawyer Smokes" (which could have been pulled any of their Nitro releases).
10. "Repo! The Genetic Opera Sountrack"
Who'd have thought that a soundtrack to movie with both Paris Hilton and the girl from Spy Kids singing would make my list? Then again it also has real musicians, like Sarah Brightman, the best selling soprano of all time. And it was produce by the singer of X Japan and has some other industrial accents. Plus, it touches on just about every genre of music. Most played: "Zydrate Anatomy", "Chase The Morning", and "Things You See In A Graveyard"