Sound Opinions Message Board > SOMB Top 100 Albums of 2009

Full Version: SOMB Top 100 Albums of 2009 - Results Thread

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Paul

Dec 28 2009, 12:15 PM

FINAL RESULTS

1 Animal Collective - Merriweather post pavillion
2 phoenix - wolfgang amadeus phoenix
3 Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
4 XX - XX
5 Converge - Axe to fall
6 Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
7 neko case - middle cyclone
8 The-Dream – Love vs. Money
9 Flaming Lips - Embryonic
10 Sunn O))) - Monoliths & Dimensions
11 Fever Ray - Fever Ray
12 Weezer - Raditude
13 Handsome Furs – Face Control
14 Raekwon – Only Built For Cuban Linx II
15 yeah yeah yeahs - it's blitz!
16 super furry animals - dark days / light years
17 sunset rubdown - dragonslayer
18 St. Vincent - Actor
19 bill callahan - sometimes i wish we were an eagle
20 Akron/Family – Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free
21 Dinosaur Jr. - Farm
22 Bat For Lashes - Two Suns
23 mastodon - crack the skye
24 dj quik and kurupt - blaqkout
25 reigning sound - love and curses
26 Shackleton - The Three EPs
27 JJ – jjn02
28 pains of being pure at heart - s/t
29 Girls – Album
30 baroness - the blue album
31 Future of the Left - Travels with myself and another
32 Antlers - Hospice
33 Metric - Fantasies
34 Sonic Youth - The Eternal
35 Tim Hecker - An Imaginary Country
36 Memory Tapes – Seek Magic
37 Pavement Ist Rad & The Lots Of People Posting All Starr Band (Feat. Trai'd) - Sing Vampire Weekend's Contra
38 Morrissey – Years Of Refusal
39 Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career
40 Field - Yesterday & Today
41 Passion Pit – Manners
42 Wilco, Wilco (The Album)
43 Electrik Red – How To Be A Lady Vol. 1
44 japandroids - post-nothing
45 Annie – Don’t Stop
46 Micachu and The Shapes – Jewellery
47 Califone - All My Friends Are Funeral Singers
48 Decemberists - The hazards of love
49 Fuck Buttons - Tarot sport
50 Junior Boys - Begone Dull care
51 Kylesa - Static Tensions
52 James Blackshaw - The Glass Bead Game
53 Horrors - Primary Colours
54 Oneida - Rated O
55 atlas sound - logos
56 mos def - the ecstatic
57 Cymbals Eat Guitars - Why There Are Mountains
58 Cobalt - Gin
59 Krallice - Dimensional Bleedthrough
60 Atom™ - Liedgut
61 Julian Casablancas – Phrazes for the Young
62 Emeralds - Emeralds
63 Juan MacLean – The Future Will Come
64 arctic monkeys - humbug
65 Jay Reatard – Watch Me Fall
66 dan deacon - bromst
67 Fanfarlo – Reservoir
68 maxwell - blacksummer's night
69 Isis - Wavering Radiant
70 Avett Brothers – I And Love And You
71 Manic Street Preachers - Journal For Plague Lovers
72 A Sunny Day in Glasgow - Ashes Grammar
73 Thermals - Now We Can See
74 Antony and The Johnsons - The Crying Light
75 Martyn - Great Lengths
76 m. ward - hold time
77 Few Nolder - New Folder
78 wild beasts - two dancers
79 franz ferdinand - tonight
80 Them Crooked Vultures -S/T
81 Fun – Aim and Ignite
82 why? - eskimo snow
83 mew - No More Stories Are Told Today, I'm Sorry, They Washed Away
84 Pet Shop Boys – Yes
85 pissed jeans - king of jeans
86 Black Dog – Further Vexations
87 Andrew Bird – Noble Beast
88 Big Pink - a Brief history of love
89 Mumford and Sons – Sigh No More
90 Thee Oh Sees - Help
91 Fiery Furnaces - I'm going away
92 Built To Spill - There Is No Enemy
93 HEALTH - Get color
94 Vivian Girls – Everything Goes Wrong
95 A.C. Newman - Get Guilty
96 DâM-FunK – Toeachizown
97 Bibio - Ambivalence Avenue
98 yo la tengo - popular songs
99 Black to Comm - Alphabet 1968
100 Lightning Bolt - Earthly Delights

142 voters, 1162 albums voted for.

We're going to run through #100-#41 today. The top 40 with blurbs will follow on Wednesday.

badger5000

Dec 28 2009, 12:16 PM

first (2nd year running)

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 12:24 PM

“Its a monster.” - helmet52

#100.

Lightning Bolt - Earthly Delights
(489 Points, 9 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "Measured with that ruler, Earthly Delights is Lightning Bolt's metal album. We're talking degrees here-- the duo of bassist Brian Gibson and drummer Brian Chippendale still prioritize speed and volume over genre. But overall, most tracks center around the kind of growling chords and monolithic beats metal is built on. Even the more amorphous songs have a distinct gravitational pull. And as with the best metal, the simple pound can be kinda catchy, driving into your brain until it's stuck there.

In other words, Earthly Delights is no grand departure. But drastic change wouldn't fit this band. The whole point of their music is hypnotic repetition, magical moments sprouting from endless reiterations. They could stretch out further, but they'd likely lose access to those mini-epiphanies. Besides, there are enough bands rejecting their pasts in the name of diversity. Lightning Bolt are happy to grind out an eternal present, and few can dig deep into a moment quite like them." (7.6/10)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "Hypermagic Mountain" (#65 of 2005)

Ranked Highest By: emgee, powernotgreed (#3)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 12:35 PM

“This one should be in Avec's nook really but I’m here now so wtf....” - Bruegel

#99.

Black To Comm - Alphabet 1969
(491 Points, 9 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

allmusic Review: "Given the MC5-referencing band name one would be forgiven for expecting brash soul/rock with a revolutionary aesthetic -- no less so than the album title, suggestive as it is of the year of the French student uprising and other protest movements around the globe. Yet the softly rising rumble of feedback and static leading into murky piano that starts Alphabet 1968 with "Jonathan" suggests calmer if no less moody waters, fitting for an artist, real name Marc Richter, who has previously appeared with more straightforward drone efforts on friendly labels like Digitalis and runs his own imprint, Dekorder. More than many acts exploring the intersection of minimal electronics, collaged samples and serene feedback zone, Black to Comm here shows a slightly unexpected source point of sound -- while many acts have recreated the work of Robert Hampson in Loop, few as yet have done so with his aggressive, relentless yet nearly always drumless rhythms in Main. Yet Black to Comm's ear for that approach -- sometimes openly as with the pulse underpinning "Forst," sometimes in terms of suggestion as overlapping patterns of noise assemble and reassemble over the course of a song as on "Rauschen" and the ghostly organ rise and fall of "Traum GmBH" -- gives Alphabet 1968 a stronger kick than many of its fellow travelers. Similarly the earliest work of Third Eye Foundation also finds an echo here, where even buried beats provide an essential driving point just as it did for Matt Elliott's work. Even so, it's not quite enough to give Richter a sense of his own unique style -- the album is at base an artful, accomplished collage of numerous reference points that any number of similarly minded artists also explore. But it does promise more for the future as Richter expands his sound to more inclusive, exploratory areas of interest." (3.5/5)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: helmet52 (#2)

Also Ranked By: maps (#4)

Amazon Link

stephen thomas erlewine

Dec 28 2009, 12:38 PM

very nice 'take you home to my mama' reference, paul. good portent of things to come.

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 12:41 PM

“this is a super entertaining listen” - Chronodiggity

#98.

Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs
(498 Points, 15 Votes)

US Chart Position: #58

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "Fortunately, as Yo La Tengo celebrate a quarter-century of existence with Popular Songs, their twelfth album, there's still plenty to like without a PR push. The Yo La Tengo repertoire has expanded steadily over the years, and the genre experiments of years past have slowly assimilated into their creative process until it's hard to remember the mere Velvets-jacking indie pop band they once were. The easy way to draw fickle attention to your dozenth album would be a drastic makeover, but Yo La Tengo are wise enough to choose continuity over the easy angle. And as far flung as these dozen Popular Songs may be, any Yo La Tengo scholar can easily trace their DNA back through their discography.

Now, forget I said all that for a moment, as the opening track and single, "Here to Fall", is the exception to the rule. Nearly guitarless, with a menacing electric piano and cinematic strings lifted from an Isaac Hayes soundtrack, it's an ear-catcher for anyone expecting the same old same old. If there's an antecedent here, it's the treasured "Autumn Sweater", but beaten and wary and a little dangerous, Ira Kaplan refusing to play the kindly, reassuring grandfather: "I know you're worried/ I'm worried too."

But it's a darkness that quickly lifts. "Avalon or Someone Very Similar" is upper-register psychedelia, dreamy and chipper. And when the drony keyboards and hazed-out Georgia Hubley vocals combine on "By Two's", we're safely back on familiar ground-- in this case the late-night dream cycle of And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out, arguably the band's last unmitigated success." (7.9)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass" (#13 of 2006)

Ranked Highest By: Paul (#4)

Amazon Link

SmashNapCrash

Dec 28 2009, 12:41 PM

The SOMB favorite year-end event is finally here.

This list should be fantastic, the amount of diversity on the the individual lists was spectacular, and this list should be a great way to catalogue the great ones that some of us missed this year.

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 12:46 PM

“Fantastic record. I honestly do not hear the BoC comparison.” - The Luscious Phil

#96.

Bibio - Ambivalence Avenue
(498 Points, 16 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "While these songs are a quantum leap for Bibio, they still reasonably project from the foundation he's laid. But there's no accounting for the remainder of the album, which finds him paddling the uncharted waters of hip-hop, techno, and points outlying. "Jealous of Roses" sets lustrous funk riffs dancing between the stereo channels as Bibio belts out a surprisingly effective Sly-Stone-in-falsetto impersonation. "Fire Ant" spikes the loping soul of J Dilla with the stroboscopic vocal morsels of the Field; "Sugarette" wheezes and fumes like a Flying Lotus contraption. The music feels both spontaneous and precise, winding in complex syncopation around the one-beat, with subtle filter and tempo tweaks, and careful juxtapositions of texture (see the arid, throttled voices scraping against the sopping-wet chimes of "S'vive"). Many songs taper off into ambient passages that have actual gravity, gluing the far-flung genres together. It's the kind of seamless variety, heady but visceral, that few electronic musicians who aren't Four Tet have achieved.

While Ambivalence Avenue is an excellent album by any measure, Bibio deserves extra credit for venturing outside of his established comfort zone. He began his musical career trying to emulate Steve Reich and Boards of Canada on no-fi equipment. He was fascinated by the physicality of media-- of degrading tape and malfunctioning recording gear. And he was interested in the natural world, letting the sounds of streams and rainshowers stand in for his own personality. Having depleted these ideas over the course of three solid albums, he's put them aside to do nearly the opposite. Ambivalence Avenue moves the focus from the flaws of media to their capacity for precision, and takes fewer cues from nature than from the urban sounds-- including Dilla and Madlib-- that Bibio admits discovering in recent years. By jettisoning a limiting aesthetic, he reveals his abilities to be startlingly vast, and one of our most predictable electronic musicians becomes a wild card." (8.3/10)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: elementus (#5)

Amazon Link

arkin

Dec 28 2009, 12:51 PM

Not a bad start. That Bibio disc has really grown on me.

Vivian Darkbloom

Dec 28 2009, 12:51 PM

Downloading

Sid Hartha

Dec 28 2009, 12:53 PM

YLT's star appears to be fading. Not a bad album by any stretch, but alas...

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 12:53 PM

“melodic as fuck” - Bruegel

#95.

DâM-FunK - Toeachizown
(502 Points, 10 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "Anyone with a thing for g-funk should find instant geek-out recognition in this music, a garage-bound DIY love letter to the post-Worrell musical diaspora that covers everything from Roger Troutman's eternal bounce to the cosmic jazz crossover of the Clarke/Duke Project. In between, you get slow-ride R&B jams ("One Less Day"; "I Wanna Thank You For [Steppin Into My Life]"), grooves that toy with the more prog- and fusion-influenced corners of funk ("Flying V Ride"), post-disco dance music ("Candy Dancin'"), proto-electro ("Keep Lookin' 2 the Sky"), and just about anything else you might've heard on the SOLAR label 25 years ago. There are nods to the retrofitting treatment that the cream of late-70s/early-80s Moog funk underwent once DJ Quik and Dr. Dre got ahold of it; "Killdat aka Killdatmuthafu*ka" actually sounds a bit more like 1992 than 1983, all sinister chords and bop-gun percussion.

But calling Dâm-Funk's music straight-up throwback nostalgia only skirts what's really appealing about it. For the first minute or so, you might dredge up some roller-rink memories, but once that groove sets in-- granite-thick Moog bass coupled with drum machine breaks so propulsive their physical impetus overrides their mechanicalness-- it starts transcending historical allusions and becomes all about structure and groove, about how just plain fucking great fat Roland basslines and Oberheim kick drums sound together. That's about when you get waylaid by one of Riddick's solos-- fluttering and unpredictable, often flowing more like something that might come out of a free jazz sax or an acid rock guitar than a funk synthesizer. It's the secret weapon that underscores how seriously he takes this stuff, the catalyst that should provoke listeners to realize this music isn't just a fun update of a classic sound-- it's a work of real transcendence." (8.2)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: deceptikon (#5)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 12:58 PM

“Even though Get Guilty struck me as a mostly mid-tempo affair, I gotta say there were enough hooks to keep me interested and going back.” - Bobzilla

#95.

A.C. Newman - Get Guilty
(507 Points, 12 Votes)

US Chart Position: #99

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "Like some of Costello's music, much of Guilty feels like a gambit-- a playful way of unsettling expectations with a fun-house mirror approach to musical structure and a fondness for meta-narratives. Newman, like buddy and collaborator Dan Bejar, has always turned his (and our) attention back toward the process of creating (see also: "The Fake Headlines", "Twin Cinema"). The title Get Guilty is a deliberate wink toward postmodern author Donald Barthelme, and "The Palace at 4 AM" is a meta-romantic homage to the act of writing, nestled inside a life-on-the-road tale. On the stately, cascading album-opener "There Are Maybe Ten or Twelve", after singing the song's first lyric, Newman throws us off his path: "That wasn't the opening line, it was the tenth or the twelfth. Make of that what you will."

Because he knows how to imbue them with purpose and drive, Newman's narrative fragments and impressionistic lyrics can work just as well without self-reflexivity. On "The Heartbreak Rides", one of his dozen or so best compositions to date, he sings, in his irresistibly nerdy falsetto: "She led the modern sunset to your window, gestured with a plain-Jane hand, she said 'Let's go.'" We don't get a direct sense of what the adventure entails, but the suggestion alone, like the song, is invigorating, like an unplanned road trip or the anxious rush of a romantic relationship." (7.5)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "The Slow Wonder" (#58 of 2004)

Ranked Highest By: Ogawa (#8)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 01:04 PM

“Man I was hoping they'd be naked in there or something... ” - Fiat Records

#94.

Vivian Girls - Everything Goes Wrong
(516 Points, 9 Votes, One #1 Vote)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "ndeed, Everything Goes Wrong almost feels more like a third record than a second. There are no dramatic missteps, no weird forays into krautrock, just a batch of mostly solid rock cuts. But there are notable differences between this album and its predecessor. Part of what made Vivian Girls so appealing (and ultimately divisive) was its synthesis of influences-- Spector pop, the C86 stuff, shoegaze, it was all in there. But the band was always quick to shrug off those inspirations ("I actually don't like shoegaze at all", drummer Ali Koehler once told me in an interview), and there is markedly less pop-canon pastiche this time around. If they're drawing on any particular genre now it's the thrashy hardcore they grew up on; the sound here is decidedly more aggressive (or at least faster) than before. Ramped-up rpms on "I Have No Fun" and "The Desert" are welcome, and standout "Survival" finds a sweet spot by combining it with sugary melodic verses.

The move away from bubblegum-sticky garage rock towards classically inspired punk works both for and against the band here. On one hand the sound feels more their own, but the subtraction of some those doo-wop hooks, along with the record's darker, more somber tone makes for fewer instantly memorable moments. The band finds eventually finds its comfort zone, though. They do so on "Double Vision", a four-minute (!) jangle-pop cut that ends in a lovely group-sung coda, and "The End", the song that most closely resembles 80s blues-punk greats Gun Club, whose inspiration, if not purposefully sought after, looms large on the record. But Everything Goes Wrong's best track is also its strangest: "Tension" is Vivian Girls gone art-punk, and with its spiky choruses yanked from dirge-y tar pit sludge, it feels somehow like a Wire song covered in muck (a compliment, of course).

And that's the funny thing about this album: It's weirdly kind of a grower. There's nothing that immediately jumps out and announces itself as the "Where Do You Run" of Everything Goes Wrong. Some of that has to do with the gloomier vibe of the record; its pleasures are less upfront, sneakier in a way. But under the radar is a good look for Vivian Girls in 2009, and hopefully it adds a bit more nuance to the discussion surrounding them." (7.8)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "Vivian Girls" (#74 of 2008)

Ranked Highest By: Duff. (#1)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 01:08 PM

“Noisy harsh electro layered with shoegaze-y vocals.” - juvenal

#93.

HEALTH - Album
(522 Points, 10 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "In terms of its stylistic shift, the album is an unqualified success. Whether the result of their mixed-genre collaborations with Crystal Castles, relentless touring or plain old musical growth, HEALTH have clearly located their sound. It hinges on a more delicate balance of noise and prettiness (think the heaviest part of a My Bloody Valentine track magnified to entire-song length) and emphasizes frontman Jake Duzsik's androgynous vocals. With this revamped style, portions of Get Color reach the high bar set by "Die Slow". One such moment is "Before Tigers", with huge walls of guitar-and-drum noise that play off its whisper-to-a-roar vocals. "Nice Girls" is meaner and more asymmetrical but succeeds with similar contrast. Here, forceful tribal drumming sets off screeching instrumental caterwauls that seem at odds with, but ultimately blend into its ethereal, almost feminine coos.

HEALTH also incorporate more electronic textures this time around, and songs like "Death+" and "Eat Flesh" find the band using intricate synth patterns as jumping-off points for brutal freakouts. These tracks rely less on melody than those mentioned above, and while usually very sonically interesting, they seem to have only one purpose-- destruction. In that sense, a number like "Eat Flesh" fascinates my ears but doesn't do much for my heart. I'm not sure what I'm supposed to feel when I listen to the song, other than that maybe everything is fucked so it's best we just rage until the sun comes up. Which is a completely legitimate sentiment (and, heck, probably accurate) but I think I was able to glean that much from HEALTH's first record." (7.4)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: n.k. (#2)

Also Ranked By: stignasty (#4)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 01:13 PM

“having had some time to turn it up in my vehicle and run around the park a few times with my iPod, I've decided I'm now really enjoying this album.” - Pygmy

#92.

Built To Spill - There Is No Enemy
(530 Points, 11 Votes)

US Chart Position: #50

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "In this context, even their well-worn and comfortable indie jamming feels revitalized. The core lineup of Martsch, Brett Nelson, and Scott Plouf remains unchanged, and they produce the same sound: a majestic, heavy-footed thud, held aloft by Martsch's transcendent guitar work and weightless tenor. But within this framework, they are pushing harder than ever before: witness the cooing "ooh-la-la" backup harmonies in "Life's a Dream", or the outbreak of horn charts at the song's bridge. Three-quarters of the way into "Things Fall Apart", a mariachi trumpet wanders in, seemingly from a Calexico album. "Pat", meanwhile, is a blistering, two-and-a-half-minute burst of anger that hearkens back to Martsch's days in Treepeople. But even the straightforward Built to Spill songs are some of the best ones we've heard in a long time: "Nowhere Lullabye" and "Life's a Dream" are two of the most gorgeously dreamy ballads Martsch has written since "Else" or "Kicked It in the Sun", and on "Good Ol' Boredom", when Martsch finally fires up his shimmering, multihued guitar, the following extended solo workout feels both thrilling and earned. The end result is easily the best Built to Spill album of the decade-- an improbable late-career reawakening and heartening evidence that becoming dependable doesn't mean having to settle for being predictable." (7.9)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "You In Reverse" (#25 of 2006)

Ranked Highest By: August West, solace, Elemeno P.T. (#6)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 01:22 PM

“Fuck Radiohead” - the dude in the Fiery Furnaces

#91.

The Fiery Furnaces - I'm Going Away
(531 Points, 13 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "n some cases, this comes off like a Dylan-esque pose, particularly on the Highway 61 Revisited-ish "Cut the Cake", but for the most part, the reserved approach to personal revelation is entirely appropriate. This isn't "confessional" music, at least not in the way that we often understand that mode of songwriting to be about venting pain and anxiety. This is more about reflection on the past, or even a reconfiguration of memory to make sense of the present tense. This is certainly the case for "Lost at Sea", a gorgeous ballad near the end of the sequence that finds Eleanor struggling to understand her reasons for ending a relationship. It's easily one of the Friedbergers' best compositions to date, but also one of the most atypical, as its majestic piano parts recall Elton John's work in the early 70s, and Eleanor's lyrics have an unadorned candor generally lacking in their older work. After six years of songs about everything from cell phone salesmen in the Middle East to being kidnapped by sinister Mormons, there is something refreshing in hearing her sing something as relatable and unpretentious as "Baby I'm... maybe I'm not me."

Not every song is so nakedly emotional. A solid third of I'm Going Away sticks to the band's thematic comfort zone, i.e., romanticizing seemingly lost cultural moments from the not-too-distant past. The record starts with the title track, a traditional number arranged by the duo to sound convincingly like one of their originals, and it bows out with "Take Me Round Again", a rollicking chorus in rounds that name checks popular songs from the early 20th century, including "When a Fellow's on the Level With a Girl That's on the Square", "The Merry Widow Waltz", and "See Saw Margery Daw". Like most of the duo's body of work, the latter practically demands annotation, and it certainly gains something from a bit of research. Ultimately, it's unnecessary-- the pleasures of "Take Me Round Again", like the rest of I'm Going Away, are immediate and unforced. The Fiery Furnaces will always be arty and precious, but they definitely know their way around a good tune. Have a drink and sing along." (7.8)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "Blueberry Boat" (#26 of 2004), "EP" (#88 of 2005), "Bitter Tea" (#74 of 2006), "Window City" (#75 of 2007)

Ranked Highest By: Relevant Elephant (#5)

Amazon Link

stephen thomas erlewine

Dec 28 2009, 01:24 PM

QUOTE (arkin @ Dec 28 2009, 12:51 PM)

Not a bad start. That Bibio disc has really grown on me.

ditto. i'd probably place it higher if i were making my list now. sounds so effortless that it's easy to dismiss unfairly.

lostbikes

Dec 28 2009, 01:26 PM

I'll agree with the "harsh" description of HEALTH's music. The main thing that keeps me from liking them more.

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 01:27 PM

“great songwriter” - simakos

#90.

Thee Oh Sees - Help
(532 Points, 8 Votes, One #1 Vote)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "With an album this retro-minded, there's a desire to pick apart all its myriad influences, and indeed, I could spend my entire word count investigating nods to the Small Faces, 13th Floor Elevators, the Troggs, and others, but that would be missing the point. The important thing here is that Thee Oh Sees incorporate the oft-referenced Nuggets stuff in a way that feels reverential. With grinding guitars and bah-bah-bah vocals, tracks like "Meat Step Lively" and "Go Meet the Seed" owe everything to this style, but with the punk and new-wave elements also at play, they don't feel trite or plagiarized. Even if they did, these guys sound so much more authentic than almost anyone else doing this kind of thing that one wonders if it would matter.

As he did on Master's Bedroom, Dwyer splits vocal duties here with bandmate Brigid Dawson and it's this one-two punch that really makes the record sing. On devilish stompers "Destroyed Fortress Reappears" and "Ruby Go Home", her soft croon cuts the acidity of Dwyer's yelp and lends the tracks buoyancy. It's a give-and-take not unlike the Mamas and the Papas' or the B-52s', and even though the band is the first to point out they don't sound like the latter, the comparison is apt. The male/female vocal interplay bleeds into Help's slower tracks and works there, too. Dwyer and Dawson meet in the chorus of gritty love ballad "A Flag in the Court" and beautifully double-track the brooding, dirty groove of "Can You See?"

These tracks and other winners such as "Rainbow" and "Soda St. #1" comprise an album that's virtually mistake-free. It's hard to pick out a song, or even aspects of a song, that don't work within the overall context of the record. That's not to say that everyone will love it. In the end it's a niche piece, and if you don't have an appreciation for the music Thee Oh Sees are drawing upon, it's safe to say this won't be your thing. But if you're a lifelong garage-rock purist or just enjoy the occasional Jay Reatard track, there's a good chance you'll get a lot of mileage out of Help. It's hard not to: This is like meat and potatoes prepared by a master chef-- totally familiar but utterly delicious." (8.0)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: 50/50 (#1)

Also Ranked By: frankie say relax (#5)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 01:32 PM

“The album is still excellent of course. Most critics seem to be liking it other than the mob over at Drowned in Sound, who inexplicably described the band as the Nickelback of folk.” - andystripes

#89.

Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More
(555 Points, 10 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: #11

Charting Singles: "Little Lion Man" (#24 UK), "Winter Winds" (#44 UK)

BBC Review: "London’s nu-folk scene has turfed up surprises as unlikely as they’ve been refreshing of late. First we had Laura Marling, displaying a poise and unnerving command of her material that called to mind the best of the 70s troubadour tradition. Then there was Johnny Flynn’s earthy erudition, steeped as it was in folk’s mystical lexicon. And this year Noah & The Whale reconciled their twee approach with a newly-whetted pop savvy and broader sonic palette, transforming into a major-league concern in the process.

Having paid their dues the old-fashioned way as the (superb) on-off backing band for Marling in 2007/08, Sigh No More sees four-piece Mumford and Sons strike out for equally distinctive territory, carving out a mostly winning – if nigglingly naive – debut that deserves an audience to match its impressive convictions. It’s a record deploying a wealth of folk signifiers, from banjos and sighing mandolins to dubious lyrics about how the harvest left no fruit for you to eat, but which in truth shares more genes with the bombastic song progressions of Arcade Fire or even Kings of Leon’s grit ‘n’ shine indie anthemics.

As such, the title-track builds into head-spinning panorama like the ones that greet photogenic tourists reaching a Highland summit in a Scottish tourist board ad – but the view’s secondary to the transcendent feeling it evokes. It’s a fist-pumping formula realised undoubtedly in part through Arcade Fire and Maccabees veteran Markus Drav’s production work, and while much of Sigh No More sounds impressively big as a result – Little Lion Man and Thistle & Weeds are especially massive – it also leaves the band open to sounding portentous when the tunes aren’t up to snuff. I Gave You All is one such howler, singer Marcus Mumford’s vocal howling its impotent rage at a bothersome ex. Hell might hath no fury like a folkie scorned, but do the results have to sound quite so much like JJ72 cast-offs?

Still, no matter: time’s on the side of these barely 20-something hayseeds, and with a little more ballast to temper their flightier moments, they should go on to fine things indeed."

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: robbie (#3)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 02:07 PM

“Love the intro and outro to every song. The big parts in the middle where the lyrics go don't move me.” - Loop

#88.

The Big Pink - A Brief History of Love
(560 Points, 13 Votes)

US Chart Position: #138

UK Chart Position: #56

Charting Singles: "Dominos" (#27 UK)

Pitchfork Review: "But perhaps the most audacious claim made by A Brief History of Love is that Oasis' Be Here Now might've been onto something had its creators not been loaded on cocaine during its recording process (to this day, it's still one of the worst sound engineering jobs you'll hear on a major-label album). This is generally not a popular stance, since history has viewed it as the big loser in Britpop's dinosaur-meet-asteroid summer 1997. But not everyone was interested in following OK Computer's example of using electronic music for texture so much as another avenue towards anthems, and tracks such as "Bittersweet Symphony", "Pure Morning", "All You Good Good People", and, yes, "D'You Know What I Mean" proved a natural fit between massive, if rudimentary hip-hop beats and what might otherwise be flag-waving, stadium-filling radio smashes. And so then, the lineage continues with the Big Pink's mighty "Dominos"-- it's such an undeniable, simple hook, and such an undeniably locomotive but lumbering beat that it steamrolls any doubt you have about the rest of it being underwritten or misogynistic.

But more promising is how in spite of the IMAX-ready sonic presence of previously released singles like "Dominos" and "Crystal Visions", History rarely feels something other than hand-crafted. Furze and Cordell produced the album themselves, with engineering done by Rich Costey who, judging from the latest Mew and Glasvegas records, knows his way around huge. A Brief History stills sounds surprisingly nuanced in headphones-- you can enjoy how the group fits an entire album's worth of power chords into a swath of synthesizers that honor their 4AD legacy on "Dominos", but from the anticipatory shaker that leads into the hook or the feedback-scratched bridge, repeat listens are rewarded long after they've been demanded. "Too Young to Love" hurtles by on momentum more than melody, its raga drone breaking up into shards of scree like a comet through the atmosphere. But almost as hypnotic is the passionate vocal performance on "Velvet", which reveals a similar endlessly upward arc to "Fake Plastic Trees", right down to the distorted blow-out midway through.

Though History never fails to sound elegantly wasted at any tempo, its majority goes in buffet-style on the last two decades of UK's beat-minded rock, united by Furze's Jason Pierce-ing sneer. "At War With the Sun" nicks Stone Roses' jangle with nastier distortion pedals, while "Frisk" is halfway between Damon Albarn's early forays into funk and the more silken prog of Mansun's Attack of the Grey Lantern. Two years ago, you might've caught Cordell releasing early singles from Crystal Castles and Klaxons on his Merok label, so it's not a surprise that learning on the job resulted in nu-rave wondering how it missed out on shrieking dumb fun like "Golden Pendulum" and "Tonight"." (8.2)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: Izzy (#3)

Amazon Link

stphone

Dec 28 2009, 02:12 PM

wow, nice to see dam-funk make the list. great record.

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 02:14 PM

“How much whistling is there?” - r.i.p.

#87.

Andrew Bird - Noble Beast
(573 Points, 14 Votes)

US Chart Position: #12

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "Noble Beast is, in many ways, a record that asks you to forget the way you currently approach the album. It didn't click for me on early listens. The sometimes drifting song structures, frequent tonal shifts, odd lyrics, and interludes presented a stuffed canvas full of interesting sounds that didn't seem to have a focal point, didn't seem to have a place where you were supposed to enter the composition. Eventually, however, everything fell into place. Marinating in an album in this way is old-fashioned in the overloaded peer-to-peer era, but it's a fitting approach from Bird, a guy who often wrestles with the implications of modern technology and communications.

The sound of the album is as important as the notes Bird plays, and this extends to the lyrics, where he's gradually gone from word-play to syllable-play, often choosing lines for their sounds and tonal quality more than for their meaning. Nevertheless, Bird's music is still emotionally powerful-- he gives uncommon weight to odd phrases, sometimes backing off pronouncing a word fully. His diction comes and goes similar to the way Thom Yorke's does. Some of the phrases don't mean anything; others jump out oddly, like the way he follows a free-association game on "Masterswarm" with the startlingly cogent, even harrowing line, "They took me to the hospital and they put me through a scan." Bird injects the music with similar contrasts, opening "Effigy" with a spooky bed of looping, processed violins before shifting into one of the album's most traditional-sounding moments, with finger-picked acoustic guitar playing a simple, straightforward melody.

Despite early listens, I quickly found myself returning to the record even as I corresponded about it with some nonplussed colleagues. And it revealed itself to be fantastically detailed, from the woodwinds that spice the electronic pulse of "Not a Robot, But a Ghost" to the bassline that comes out of nowhere at the finale of "The Privateers". More broadly, it takes you even further into the canyons of Bird's mind, and it does so with an organic, unhurried flow that's ultimately an improvement on 2007's Armchair Apochrypha, a record I felt was sometimes too fussy and mannered. Even the bonus disc that comes with the deluxe edition, Useless Creatures, has a captivating looseness that finally brings some of the high-wire energy of his unpredictable live shows into the studio." (7.5)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs" (#5 of 2005), "Armchair Apocrypha" (#27 of 2007)

Ranked Highest By: tweed (#2)

Amazon Link

vurt

Dec 28 2009, 02:24 PM

QUOTE (stphone @ Dec 29 2009, 08:12 AM)

wow, nice to see dam-funk make the list. great record.

Definitely. That and the Black to Comm are my favourites to see in the list so far. If I did my list again today, Dam-Funk would be a whole bunch of places higher, but that's the nature of the beast.

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 02:25 PM

“Something to look at and lose yourself with while listening” - throughsilver

#86.

The Black Dog - Further Vexations
(577 Points, 10 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Record Collector Mag Review: " After the cerebral trampoline of last year’s Radio Scarecrow, UK techno pioneers The Black Dog humped a punishing gigging schedule which has galvanised them into a more dancefloor-friendly follow-up. It comes with an underlying message attacking increasingly-Orwellian government tactics and public complacency at the way our lives are monitored and controlled. This discontent manifests in the pressure cooker grooves underpinning tracks such as 0093 and We Are Haunted, the mix of boiling anger in the complex rhythms and spatial beauty of the strings often recalling Detroit’s infamous techno activists Underground Resistance.

This music is often dismissed as cold and mechanical but seething emotions soar in the likes of Stempel and CCTV Nation, the pounding grooves and intertwining textures swelling into glorious meteor-storms of rafter-swinging proportions, which sometimes manage to enter the realms of avantclassical. You’re Only SQL carves a monolithic acid-funk path slashed with eerie strings, while Tunnels Ov Set hammers a slo-mo industrial dub-crash soundscape, closing the album on a suitably ominous note.

The Dog have produced a work of astounding vision, terrible beauty and merciless dancefloor carnage, cocking a leg to techno glory once more but squirting out possibly their most complete work yet. Not mincing words, Further Vexations ranks among the great UK electronic albums."

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "Radio Scarecrow" (#30 of 2008)

Ranked Highest By: deceptikon (#2)

Amazon Link

SmashNapCrash

Dec 28 2009, 02:31 PM

Kinda surprised Big Pink is this low in the poll.

Andrew Bird, i didn't know he was making waves this year.

Great list so far.

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 02:32 PM

“Pissed Jeans: King of Jeans” - vaporized in the thread "Have any decent albums hit this year that have any balls?"

#85.

Pissed Jeans - King of Jeans
(591 Points, 15 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "No one's going to confuse this with pop music, of course, but Pissed Jeans have certainly become more economical and precise in their attack-- gone are Hope for Men's extended exercises in textural noise terror ("People Person") and piano-blues concrète ("Scrapbooking"). In its place are two-minute Germs infections ("Human Upskirt"), Buttholes blurts ("Pleasure Race"), and crazed Nick Cave cattle calls ("Half Idiot"-- a soulmate to "Zoo-Music Girl"). And in "Request for Masseuse", we hear the closest Pissed Jeans will probably ever get to a slow-jam: over guitarist Bradley Fry and bassist Randy Huth's oozing Iommi/Butler riff, Korvette lists off a series of instructions for his personal-ad pleasure-giver; when drummer Sean McGuinness kicks into the lurching groove 90 seconds in, Korvette lets out the creepiest sigh ever, graphically confirming the ending was a happy one.

But if "Request for Masseuse" represents a rare expression of joy for Korvette, King of Jeans' centerpiece track, "Spent", underscores how fleeting such moments really are. At seven minutes, the song is about three times as long as the average track here, but rather than being the most elaborate piece, it's the most despairingly regressive. Where King of Jeans' more compact tracks provide us the opportunity to scream or laugh along with Korvette's complaints, "Spent" is a 16-rpm Melvins-grade sludge feast that slows down the self-loathing commentary to ensure we feel every second of his agony; after counting off the ways his life sucks ("I went and got my car back/ There's a new noise this time"), he finally loses it when he realizes that even a "cold glass of water... [doesn't] satisfy." Recent history tells us that angry, confrontational music tends to flourish during Republican administrations, but King of Jeans illuminates the problems that plague the working man-- receding hairlines, the inability to relate to girls, the transactional nature of romance, the impossibility of proper cuticle maintenance-- regardless of who's running the country or how the economy is doing. The bumper sticker may say "Yes we can," but the guy driving the leased Hyundai on which it's affixed is still left there staring at himself in the rearview mirror, thinking, "No, dude, I really can't."" (8.3)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: mouthbreather (#3)

Amazon Link

Duff.

Dec 28 2009, 02:57 PM

QUOTE (Paul @ Dec 28 2009, 12:04 PM)

#94.
Vivian Girls - Everything Goes Wrong

SonicAlligator

Dec 28 2009, 02:58 PM

QUOTE (Paul @ Dec 28 2009, 03:07 PM)

“Love the intro and outro to every song. The big parts in the middle where the lyrics go don't move me.” - Loop

That's awesome.

Raj (Noble Con)

Dec 28 2009, 03:12 PM

Great to see Further Vexations make it - really rich, detailed record that doesn't lose any of its color with repeat viewings. Would not have expected that to squeak into the top 100. Long live the Lonely Enders.

Pat Sansone

Dec 28 2009, 03:21 PM

Further Vexations is incredible!

Mitchell

Dec 28 2009, 03:44 PM

QUOTE (SmashNapCrash @ Dec 28 2009, 07:31 PM)

Kinda surprised Big Pink is this low in the poll.

Wouldn't say I was, didn't see the board fall for this at all and I bet more than a third of those votes were in the last ten of people's lists. Far too much filler on the album. I'd imagine the singles might fare better.

James D

Dec 28 2009, 03:46 PM

Hmm, I loved that last Black Dog which makes it strange that I never bothered to check out that last one.

Chronodiggity

Dec 28 2009, 04:34 PM

splendid list so far

monotony

Dec 28 2009, 06:11 PM

Bibio, Mumford, and Big Pink all placing. I am happy.

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 06:13 PM

“Anyone who doesn't like The Pet Shop Boys is a heretic and will be burned at the stake and their families raped: FACT” - The Curse Of Millhaven

#84.

Pet Shop Boys - Yes
(595 Points, 10 Votes)

US Chart Position: #32

UK Chart Position: #4

Charting Singles: "Love, Etc." (#14 UK), "Did You See Me Coming?" (#21 UK)

Pitchfork Review: "The big source of stagnation here, though, is the music. Tennant and other-guy-in-the-band Chris Lowe made their reputation on paying attention to what was happening in dance clubs and hitching their wit and pop-sense to it, which is how they ended up collaborating with the likes of Bobby Orlando and Frankie Knuckles and Shep Pettibone in the 1980s. Yes, though, was produced by Xenomania, the pop chop-shop behind Girls Aloud's singles, leaving the Boys lagging a few years behind the sound of the UK charts when they used to be ahead of the game or at least above the fray. "Pandemonium" recapitulates the 6/8 lope and major/minor switcheroo of their own 1993 single "Can You Forgive Her?" The up-with-persons anthem "More Than a Dream", co-written by Xenomania, just sounds like a Girls Aloud discard. And the cryptic, bombastic slow one that ends Yes, "Legacy", circles around the phrase "you'll get over it". It's hard to tell if that's a tongue-in-cheek valediction, or if it's just Tennant and Lowe resigning themselves to disappointment." (4.9)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: Waterloo, blaze(#2)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 06:20 PM

“Frengers --> Kites --> Stories is just a godly streak. All three are such quality, and none of them really stands out as worst or best. Almost as good as Bends --> OKC --> Kid A.” - Liffey

#83.

Mew - No More Stories / Are Told Today / I'm Sorry / They Washed Away // No More Stories / The World Is Grey / I'm Tired / Let's Wash Away
(604 Points, 13 Votes)

US Chart Position: #130

UK Chart Position: #110

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "Another of those songs is the other single, "Repeaterbeater", which, the way it kicks in with a hard rock rush before lifting off with multi-tracked vocals and high-wattage keyboards, seems designed as a follow-up to Glass Handed's biggest hit, "The Zookeeper's Boy". It's like "Heat of the Moment" if it was played by Phoenix with the Bee Gees sitting in on vocals. While these songs and a few others ("Beach", especially) foreground the band's accessibility and odd arena appeal, they do still chuck a few knee-buckling curveballs at you. "Sometimes Life Isn't Easy" could contain the seeds for five songs if you cut it up. The intro is a total mindfuck, with super-high falsetto outbursts and saxophone that comes out of nowhere, but it quickly winds down with some warm synths and a gentle verse vocal backed by what sounds like a choir of children. The chorus may be the most joyful thing this band has ever put to tape.

Mew show signs of trying to shake themselves out of habits, reversing their slow build approach on "Cartoons And Macramé Wounds" by starting the song at its peak and slowly ramping down from there. "Hawaii" is raw and rhythmic, with the guitar taking more of a lead role than usual in the opening verse, before giving way to a xylophone solo and anthemic final movement. The same method of through composition shapes closer "Reprise", a song that could easily be used to re-soundtrack Blade Runner in a pinch. Over the course of a long career (they formed in 1994), Mew has succeeded in developing a good sound from some of the least hip ingredients imaginable, and No More Stories... feels like a consolidation of every stride they've made to date. I'm still not sure if the word Mew means something in Danish or they're just named after something their cat said, but I'm ready to start using it as shorthand for quality prog-pop." (8.1)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: Liffey, Soundscape(#3)

Amazon Link

monotony

Dec 28 2009, 06:23 PM

Right. Mew. OK

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 06:24 PM

“This was me listening to the album for the first time:

"I wear the customary clothes of my time"

Me: "Ehhhh...well, maybe he can recover or flip it into something good."

"like Jesus did"

Me: "Or not."” - UselessRocker

#82.

WHY? - Eskimo Snow
(611 Points, 11 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "To a large degree, Eskimo Snow comes off like an acknowledgment of that gap rather than a collection of songs culled from the same sessions that birthed Alopecia. For better or worse, Eskimo Snow eschews the musical and emotional contours of Alopecia for a resigned saunter to the gallows. The shift is made apparent from the album's killer first line: "I wear the customary clothes of my time/ Like Jesus did with no reason not to die." But as "These Hands" progresses, it never builds into a larger statement, just an insular word collage.

But thereafter, the latest from WHY? is almost completely devoid of the black humor that typically undercuts Wolf's most uncomfortable confessions, save for centerpiece "Into the Shadows of My Embrace", which serves as the album's reservoir of nebbish quotables. The drum roll that follows "it'd take a busload of high school soccer girls to wash those hospitals off me" could just as easily be replaced by a rimshot. By the song's midsection, Wolf can barely contain himself, hyperventilating, "I wish I could feel close to somebody, but I don't feel nothing/ Now they say that I need to quit doing all this random f-f-ff...," biting his lip at that last word, embarrassed as much by his situation as the ease of the rhyme itself." (6.9)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "Alpocia" (#29 of 2008)

Ranked Highest By: solace (#4)

Amazon Link

monotony

Dec 28 2009, 06:26 PM

List is suddenly spiralling downhill.

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 06:33 PM

“Aim & Ignite is still the pop album of the year though.” - Liffey

#81.

fun. - Aim and Ignite
(614 Points, 7 Votes, Two #1 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

AbsolutePunk Review: "Album opener, “Be Calm,” is exactly the opposite of what the title suggests. It’s vibrant and unpredictable, delighting your auditory senses. Ruess’ voice is as great as ever; poignant and full of confidence. “Benson Hedges” begins as if Ruess is leading the church choir before transitioning into a fast-paced tempo with riffs peppered throughout. “All the Pretty Girls (On a Saturday Night)” is a breezy track with a strong chorus, as strings, hand claps, and gang vocals shine in the background.

But fun. is not The Format Pt. II, as Aim & Ignite is truly a beautiful adventure for your ears. It maintains the same kind of pop sensibilities that The Format possessed, but fun. delves deeper. It’s eclectic, as it change tempos and vibes consistently, whether it’s busting out the horns (a Format favorite) or diving into Beach Boys-influenced pop. While Ruess maintains his signature biting lyric style, he also appears to be happier than ever. Tracks like the piano-paced “I Wanna Be The One (BaBaBa)” and the delicate “Light A Roman Candle With Me” are prime examples.

But Ruess does feature some fine wordplay in the vibrant “At Least I’m Not As Sad (As I Used To Be),” as he mentions, “I don’t keep friends/I keep acquainted./I’m not a prophet,/but I’m here to profit.” The instrumentation here is just delicious; there is always something new you’ll catch with repeated listens. The beach-flavored “Walking the Dog” grooves beautifully, with repeated “nah-nah-nah’s” yearning to be stuck in your head." (89%)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: n.k., Andyroo(#1)

Amazon Link

stephen thomas erlewine

Dec 28 2009, 06:37 PM

QUOTE (andystripes @ Dec 28 2009, 06:26 PM)

List is suddenly spiralling downhill.

what?

what.

what!

i can't co-sign on mew, but that why? album was way better than conventional wisdom will tell you. solace is good people for putting it so high on his list.

monotony

Dec 28 2009, 06:38 PM

QUOTE (stephen thomas erlewine @ Dec 29 2009, 10:37 AM)

QUOTE (andystripes @ Dec 28 2009, 06:26 PM)

List is suddenly spiralling downhill.

what?

what.

what!

i can't co-sign on mew, but that why? album was way better than conventional wisdom will tell you. solace is good people for putting it so high on his list.

For some reason, I have never been able to enjoy the recordings of Why?

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 06:39 PM

“John Paul Jones was just one member of Led Zeppelin. Think about that for a second......” - Montana

#80.

Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
(615 Points, 16 Votes)

US Chart Position: #12

UK Chart Position: #13

Charting Singles: "New Fang" (#156 UK, #12 US Alternative)

Pitchfork Review: "As he's done with past iterations of QOTSA and his long-running Desert Sessions project, Homme takes the lead here, serving as frontman and steering the musical direction. The record features all the trademarks of a Homme-led affair-- druggy, mutant blues, loud/soft dynamics, songs about sex, and regular forays into the silly and absurd. The musicianship throughout is as phenomenal as you'd expect, and on a gut level it's thrilling just to hear these three men play together-- the way Grohl's snapping drum hits ricochet off Jones' rapid-fire bass notes on songs like "Scumbag Blues", for instance. (Grohl, in particular, is excellent throughout, affirming once again his destined place in a rock band.) And the guys themselves are clearly having fun. Amidst all the technical shredding, there's a looseness at play that seems to stem in part from Homme and Grohl getting to live out a boyhood fantasy. Oddly that becomes kind of a problem on the record.

One of the negative aspects of a supergroup is that the presence of multiple stars tends to disrupt the natural hierarchy of a band-- meaning that there's no one to shoot down bad or unnecessary ideas. If you're Josh Homme and John Paul Jones or Dave Grohl wants to take a bass or drum solo, you let him. And Them Crooked Vultures often feels overstuffed with the weight of too many ideas. This is especially true on longer cuts such as "Elephants" and "Warsaw or the First Breath You Take After You Give Up", the latter nearly eight minutes of prog-fueled, time-signatured madness that closes with an extended instrumental outro. Sure, these guys have earned the right to do that, but that doesn't make it a good song. Yet for each of these trying numbers, there's a muscular hard-rock track like "Dead End Friends" that helps make up for it. And if you simply want to hear Homme/Jones/Grohl sync into a furious, interlocking groove, there are songs like "Gunman" that offer that too. Having said that, Them Crooked Vultures still feels like a record to be checked off a list rather than one to live with and fully invest in." (6.2)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: Limeinthecoconut (#5)

Amazon Link

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 06:45 PM

“Sounds like something the SOMB would get a kick out of.” - demoncleaner

#79.

Franz Ferdinand - Tonight: Franz Ferdinand
(629 Points, 16 Votes)

US Chart Position: #9

UK Chart Position: #2

Charting Singles: "Ulysses" (#11 UK, #20 US Modern Rock), "No You Girls" (#22 UK, #7 US Modern Rock)

Pitchfork Review: "In his review of You Could Have It So Much Better, Pitchfork's Nitsuh Abebe praised Franz Ferdinand for making albums that played like compilations of discrete but equally great singles, refreshingly bereft of the conceptual heft that marked the band's indie-rock peers at the time. Here the group dial that back from the start: "Ulysses" is less immediately striking than the band's previous headlining singles, as well as more lean and mechanistic. But it ably asserts Tonight's slow-burn methodology: If that "la la la" chorus sounds unremarkable at first, by the third round, it's unstoppable.

Instead, Tonight's patient pacing supports Franz singer Alex Kapranos' claims that these tracks share a nocturnal theme, reinforced by a gradually arced dusk-to-dawn sequence, a wandering spirit, and surprises that spring out of the shadows: "Send Him Away" comes on as a cool snap-along Sly Stone strut before intensifying into an unlikely but effective Afro-psych-funk jam; "Bite Hard" is a piano ballad reborn as a thick-heeled glam-rock gallop; the slo-mo-disco group chant "What You Came For" explodes into roadhouse-metal thrashing. But seeing as many of these arrangements were extracted from improvised jams, the shifts rarely feel forced, sounding more like the inevitable climaxes to Kapranos' seedy, increasingly desperate, club-crawling narratives.

It's only on Tonight's would-be epic "Lucid Dreams" that the album's exploratory approach works against the band's pop instincts. Appearing in a considerably different, elongated eight-minute version than the one that debuted on the band's website last fall, the song is now outfitted with a re-arranged, slowed-down chorus that makes it stumble where it should soar. But if the extended fade out feels overlong and anti-climactic on its own terms, in the context of Tonight it provides an effective, slate-cleaning set-up for the album's two sweetly serene closers: space-age bachelor-pad lullaby "Dream Again" and a solo acoustic-troubador turn from Kapranos on "Katherine Kiss Me"." (7.3)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: "Franz Ferdinand" (#2 of 2004), "You Could Have It So Much Better" (#11 of 2005)

Ranked Highest By: tager, hinsey21 (#6)

Amazon Link

monotony

Dec 28 2009, 06:46 PM

Now there is an album I thought was grossly underrated.

Paul

Dec 28 2009, 06:50 PM

“Rather enjoying their second album.” - Mitchell

#78.

Wild Beasts - Two Dancers
(631 Points, 13 Votes)

US Chart Position: n/a

UK Chart Position: n/a

Charting Singles: n/a

Pitchfork Review: "Fans of Limbo, Panto's chandelier-swinging flamboyance may be less enthused with Two Dancers' more organized presentation, but it allows Wild Beasts to better achieve their singular balance of aristocracy and anarchy: the debonair funk of "We Still Got the Taste Dancin' on Our Tongues" speaks of class warfare under the serious moonlight ("Us kids are cold and cagey rattling around the town/ Scaring the oldies into their dressing gowns/ As the dribbling dogs howl"), while the two-part title track suite finds Fleming sharing a grim, first-person account of some horrible attack before the song erupts in a tribal, psychedelic surge. He could very well be talking about a public stoning in the 15th century or a gang rape from last week-- and it's not even entirely clear if he's singing from a male or female perspective-- but the lack of specificity makes the transgressions described all the more unsettling, as if they could happen to anyone.

Wild Beasts certainly aren't the first rock band to stand up society's dregs and outcasts, but few others immortalize them on such a wondrous, mythic scale. And in the grand "This Is Our Lot"-- the sort of song everyone wants Radiohead's perpetually imminent "return to rock" to sound like-- we quite literally have an anthem for the ages. Over top a rubbery bassline and shimmering guitar riff, Thorpe tips his tipple to the enduring passion of youth: "We find ourselves dancing late/ Like young reprobates/ By the milky light of the mighty moon/ Find someone to nuzzle you/ And waltz from the room." Of course, come sunrise, those kids will have to clean themselves up and get to work on time. And perhaps the more accessible approach of Two Dancers suggests a greater willingness on Wild Beasts' part to interact with the straight world. But for them, every night is still a full moon-- and when it comes, Thorpe will be ready to howl." (8.4)

Artist's Previous Rankings on Our Albums Lists: n/a

Ranked Highest By: Nowhere Fast (#3)

Amazon Link

Mitchell

Dec 28 2009, 06:52 PM

Going to pull out should be higher imo on that one.

stephen thomas erlewine

Dec 28 2009, 06:55 PM

QUOTE (andystripes @ Dec 28 2009, 06:46 PM)

Now there is an album I thought was grossly underrated.

i wouldn't say grossly, because reception was relatively positive. there just didn't seem to be any excitement about it. and it wasn't an exciting album, really. but still, definitely a good one. not a bad song on it.

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