Top 40 with blurbs coming on Friday. If you were assigned blurbs, please PM them back to me by 9 am Chicago time on Friday morning because I want to get the countdown started around 10.

Sometime tomorrow, most likely in the afternoon, we'll finally do the compilation and miscellaneous poll results.

Surprised Wayne's already out.

Low IQ in stereo. Awesome.

guess TI beats him...

life the same
low iq in stereo
lifes the same
except for my shoes

The piece in GQ this month on Lil Wayne was fascinating.

Sad to see this bow out before the top 50, especially right before such a dreadful run of Paste-approved indie-by-numbers shit.

But I guess you can't expect the board to pay attention if there's not a Pitchfork score for them to follow.

there's only a couple of records from my list I know will show up, which means a lot of really good records missed the top 100. No different than the last 2 years I suppose.

It would be interesting to see which users have the most top 10 records place every year. I will only get 2 I would guess, which I'm not sure I have even got that many before.

The Deerhoof record, if I had known them before this year, may have had at least a shot at my top 50. It seems a bunch of albums that missed/were in my top 51-100 ended up on this list.

In other words, the SOMB top 100 = spotty in my post-top 50, likely due to impressionability and buzz.

Do you mean place at all? Or top 10 records place in the SOMB top 10?

Ooh! You really let us have it with this post! You're SOMB's Tom Paine, man.

Undo- Talk to me about Deathconsciousness. Don't know the first thing about 'em.

I guess first impressions aren't ever to be counted on... Especially those based upon 30 fuckin' second samples.

This list kicks ass so far. I was surprised to see MGMT and Lil' Wayne already. Glad to see Badu on the list where she was placed. I anticipate the next 40. I'm enjoying this much more than they singles results.

Also, someone said that T.I. will beat out Lil' Wayne. Is his album really going to post? I'm sure I saw Lil' Wayne's album on more lists than T.I.

Definitely need to check out that Lindstrøm album. That Shearwater album cover gives me chills every time. I wish I would have remembered to mention it in the "best album art" section for the miscellaneous poll.



Awesome.

Never heard of them before but I checked out their myspace and really liked what I heard, but it's only one song. Plus it's a 13 song double album with a lot of songs over 6 minutes, but I'd like to hear more.

What twat mentioned Dog Man Star in their MGMT review? I wish I could have done my first shit of 2009 into their mouth.

Quit asking for it.

Last post on the topic.

If this is their worst record then they are one hell of a band (which they are anyways, so stupid point by me). It's their third best though. Highly Suspicious is so fucking good, I can't believe the hate it recieves.

Thought that Lindstrom was awful though, so who knows


You really should. Most of it takes a few listens to get into, but it's well worth it.

Holy shit yes. So glad to finally see someone else who thinks that. But I also think Z is their best album and a lot of people said it was their worst before Evil Urges came out so...

LOPP

I mean the number of albums in YOUR top 10, that place in the SOMB 100 countdown. I know it must be weird for some people around here given not that many are too much into progressive rock (and it's umbrella) but for me, I'm used to voting for dozens of albums that are high on my list that I know won't even come close to being in the top 100.

That's what I mean by saying there are plenty of albums that are to those who voted highly for them, that won't ever be heard due to the fact they're not gonna place. But I suppose that's what that eoy suggestion thread is for.

The dislike for Highly Suspicious really shouldn't be any sort of surprise. Calling it a departure from their usual thing would be a ridiculous understatement. Also, it's really fucking terrible.

Man, Z is gonna be shoe-in for my top ten albums this decade. So good.

Yeah, but it's unfortunate if people heard the falsetto on the title track and then this departure on track 3 and gave up on the album. I've recently come around to this in a big way...a fine addition to their catalogue that trumps Z. The ballads are gorgeous, particularly Librarian and the last two tracks are classic jamming MMJ.

At Dawn = 9.2
It Still Moves = 8.9
Z = 8.7
Tennessee Fire = 8.5
Evil Urges 7.6

imo.

but i think MMJ are really starting to have 2 different factions of fans, much like Radiohead post-Kid A. you've got the people who started with Z and those who came prior. they're a completely different band than they were when i first saw them in 2001. There's only 2 remaining members from the lineup who played on At Dawn. I still really prefer the live lineup with Danny Cash and Johnny Quaid, as great as Carl is.

they're still a great band now, and one of the best live bands around today... but they're not the same amazing band i fell in love with 8 years ago unfortunately and i've come to terms with this.

the lyrics on Librarian are kinda shitty imo, but it does have a ton of great songs that i think SHOULD overshadow any of the few bad songs, ie: Smokin' From Shooting, Aluminum Park, Remnants, Thank You Too, Two Haves, I'm Amazed, etc. in fact it has some of their best ballads since At Dawn for me.

yeah, smoking from shooting is one of the best songs of their catalog. up there with phone went west and one big holiday. i'm not bothered by the changes in the band. i've been listening to them since at dawn and i'm glad they're evolving, rather than making the same album over and over. there are going to be more failures for them, but as long as they're still trying to make something different, i'm cool with it.

It wasn't meant to be insulting, but you can take it however you like. If anyone "slammed" you in this thread, I missed it. You're not talking about a legitimate flaw in the poll. You're asking why specific rock songs you like didn't do as well as rap songs you don't like. The occam's razor answer is that a lot of people just liked those songs more.


Voting for singles is not nearly as hard as some people make it out to be. Between the running lists that this board keeps all year, other people's already-submitted lists, and google/discogs/youtube, anyone can make a top 25 in an hour or so, or a top 50 in a couple hours. If there's some silent majority of R.E.M. fanatics who can't be bothered, than yeah, their voices will go unheard. That's their problem, not Paul's or the board's at large.

im taking tomorrow off from work for this.

Fuck yeah.

I had to go it alone last year, that was definitely some bullshit.

BEHOLD THE POWER OF SLAP NUTZ!!!

As a member of that "silent majority" (I used to be a board regular in the early 00s), it's not my problem, either, because I don't care about singles. It's only a problem for those people, like elemeno, who do care.

Two albums from my top 20 (that's all I listed) have been put up so far, and they both were near the bottom of my list. I'd bet three more are a sure bet, and I really, really hope that a particular fourth one shows up. I know a few people liked it a lot here, but I don't know if that was enough. I'll be pleasantly surprised if it makes it...

Then there are those of us who came in with It Still Moves and like the last 3 records more than the first two. To me that seems to be more of the dividing line--people who think the first 2 records are masterpieces that will never be topped, and those that are fully on board with the directions taken on the last 3, like Brobee and myself (though I don't think Evil Urges is a failure at all).

Foolishly, somehow I do care and I bring up this argument once a year, for shame. Note to self-let it go next year.

And Raj- if I was a newbie and you made the statement about me just expecting people to like what I like, I wouldn't think that was insulting, rather just ignorant...but I've made my argument for a "songs" list(which absolutely could be done, and however arbitrary or diverse, would be far more interesting a read than a "singles" list) enough times in the past that I'll spare you the wasted time reading because your response has always been the same. Not seeing eye to eye about that is not insulting at all...claiming that I expect people to like music that I like implies that you know of some character flaw in me that you simply have no insight into whatsoever from the little you know of me from this message board.
And my comments really had little to do with R.E.M. per se- just used them as an example...and they certainly had nothing to do with my having any criticism of Paul and the much appreciated work he puts into these entertaining endeavors.
BTW, listening to Lil Wayne right now...damn if he isn't one of the catchiest rap vocalists I've ever heard.
Happy New Year to you.

The Tennessee Fire could in fact be my favorite MMJ record at this point.

It's probably not. It's probably It Still Moves, but TTF is really incredible.

The Tennessee Fire is definitely my favorite album of theirs.

It Still Moves is a close second, but TF is just too damn beautiful

Look at this year's singles list. It has an incredibly diverse group of artists and genres. Including an overrepresentaton of indie rock. There are a ton of interesting, little known songs on their to entertain the ear.

How can you keep making this argument when our list includes, among others, "Sabali," three fucking Lykke Li tracks, a Fennesz track, two TV on the Radio songs, David Byrne, Sigur Ros, two Cut Copy songs, Laura Marling, Feist, The Kills, Jenny Lewis, The National, Portishead, "Happy House," two British Sea Power songs, two M83 songs, a shit ton of Weezer, and a top ten that only features two big hits, three remotely "hip-hop" songs, and is topped by a song the radio hasn't touched?

Your argument makes no sense, but Happy New Year.

edit: this all said, "a milli" should have beaten "lollipop".

Yeah, yeah, yeah, "diverse" obviously set you off and made you misinterpret the argument I've made over the last five years. I don't know you and you've probably never heard the argument I suspect, but Happy New Year to you as well....and good references on diversity- I like most those songs, for what it's worth.

Sorry PT. This year, same as any, I fail to see that a songs list would do anything other than stick the non-singles from the top 20 albums in to our existing singles list. More votes would mean more obscure stuff not making it and a hegemony. Had we done something in 2004 say we'd no doubt have had five Arcade Fire and three Wilco tracks in the top 20. Or having "Get Innocuous" and "NY I Love You" joining the three SoS singles near the top of the chart last year. Imo that would be neither interesting or more diverse.

That said, if someone wants to run one for this year or next year alongside I'd happily vote. and Happy New Year to you too.

Happy New Year, Mitch...now let's keep this out of the albums thread.

I was really just trying to point out how awesome the singles list was this year. No bad blood meant.

I started with Z. I enjoy It Still Moves a good deal, but At Dawn and Tenessee Fire are getting a bit too southern for me. Didn't know about the member changes, and I only listened to them once or twice, so I should probably go back.

see... and I prefer their alt-country stuff to the rock (with a few exceptions)

first time i heard At Dawn i thought it was a long lost Neil Young record

cant think of a nicer compliment...

Quaid's playing really brought a loose, breezy and oddly kind of forceful dimension (that it lacks in its current incarnation as much as it tries to 'rock') to MMJ and he is sorely missed in post-ISM MMJ, despite how much I love Evil Urges... I mean, Run Thru alone, Quaid makes that song.

the first post Johnny/Danny show i saw in early 2004 was just AWFUL. and the sad thing is, M. Ward w/ MMJ backing him opened. it was my least fave MMJ and M. Ward show at the time... the new lineup gels way better now, and is no doubt great, but you're right... Carl is a much more precise and fluid player, which i'm sure some prefer, i just found Johnny a lot more interesting and fitting of their sound.

And I forgot to vote for that album! Should've been top 20 for me.

i woulda ranked all these either higher or lower



seriously though is there a running list so far of what's been posted since i dont feel like spending my first day back going through
a whole lotta bitchin

I started with It Still Moves, but I think Z is their best effort, At Dawn is second and Evil Urges is awful. I like the song, but the album blows.

So basically there is no blueprint to follow on whether you like Evil Urges or not, because we have people who love Z the most and hate Evil Urges, those who liked the old stuff and loved Evil Urges, and everywhere in-between. Personally, I think that if you subtract "Highly Suspicious," it's really not that difficult of a record to get into. A little Z (the first two songs, Pt. II), and a lot more seriously streamlined versions of pre-Z material. Nothing wrong with that to me though. I loved most of it.