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Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes

the second half of 2008 is gonna have to produce something really special to stop this album from my number one spot of the year. rolling stone magazine compared these guys to the likes of the beach boys, band of horses, animal collective, and crosby, stills & nash. that really sounds about right. my first listen was such a great experience. lot's of interesting flavors of brian wilson's pet sounds and smile. beautiful harmonies, and a wonderful array of instruments.

this very young band hails from seattle, and you can hear the call of the great pacific northwest with song titles such as blue ridge mountains, ragged wood and meadowlarks.

here is their performance of blue ridge mountains on letterman:


this is the most musically exciting album of the year so far. i can't wait to see these guys live. fleet foxes & my morning jacket? that would be a fantastic tour.

essential tracks:
White Winter Hymnal
Quiet Houses
He Doesn't Know Why
Blue Ridge Mountains
Oliver James

here is their video for white winter hymnal:

best records of 2008 (so far) Part 2

The Ting Tings - We Started Nothing

having one of your songs in an itunes commercial has got to be one of the biggest breaks for a band now days. that was when i first heard the ting tings and their song "shut up and let me go". thinking it may just be some poppy teenage girl, i never moved on to check them out. then i heard the song "fruit machine" on a podcast and decided to give the record a listen. yes it's very poppy. yes it's all very catchy, but it's so good. this duo is a reverse white stripes with the guy on drums and the girl on guitar and vocals. while the album sounds great i have yet to see how they come across as a live act. way more music going on here besides drums and one guitar, but i have yet to experience that.

choosing a song and video was tough on this one cuz it's full of great stuff, so here are three videos for you to enjoy. you decide what the best one is.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8AH7yYQpro

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StP-yIQeT2o&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GF5wvycotuo





start with these tracks:
great dj
we walk
fruit machine shut up and let me go
that's not my name

where i want to be

best records of 2008 (so far)

2008 is half over, and what am i loving right now? this begins my list of my favorite records
so far from 2008 (in no particular order).




Estelle - Shine

at first glances you wouldn't believe that i would dig this record, and neither did i. 99% of the music my wife hands me ain't my bag. this however was something very different. what should have been this summers biggest hit machine has stayed relatively quiet. my only guess is that this but beautifully crafted and soulful album has more substance musically and in style than most of it's contemporaries.

this has a big 60's sound which is a likable trend as in duffy's record "rockferry". but it's not a complete throwback. it's still very much a 2008 sounding record. yeah, this is a strange recommendation from me, and it's the only one like it on this list, but check it out guys.

start with these tracks:
pretty please (love me) (featuring cee-lo of gnarls barkley)
more than friends
american boy (featuring kanye west)





Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend

before these guys take over the world (well at least the hipster world), let me just say that i was into vampire weekend way before all their recent and well deserved attention. nothing makes me happier than to hear fantastic new bands get recognized. vampire weekend's self titled debut has been all the buzz around indie stations & hangouts lately. if you do not own this record than pause this blog right now and run out to your local... just go to itunes and get it.

these ivy league kids are the furthest thing from what seems would be cool, but their beautiful, simple, paul simon, african sound is all that i am listing to right now ( and i consider myself way cool).

i have told you to go get the record & i'm not going to do a review of this. just go get it. don't believe me? go to itunes and sample oxford comma, bryn & cape cod kwassa kwassa. you will see what i am talking about.

enjoy these two amazing videos. a-punk may be my favorite new video.







that was my review from earlier this year. the buzz seems to have settled down, but i think it's still a great record. i look forward very much to their next offering.

oh, i'm way hip to that!

before these guys take over the world (well at least the hipster world), let me just say that i was into vampire weekend way before all their recent and well deserved attention. nothing makes me happier than to hear fantastic new bands get recognized. vampire weekend's self titled debut has been all the buzz around indie stations & hangouts lately. if you do not own this record than pause this blog right now and run out to your local... just go to itunes and get it.

these ivy league kids are the furthest thing from what seems would be cool, but their beautiful, simple, paul simon, african sound is all that i am listing to right now ( and i consider myself way cool).

i have told you to go get the record & i'm not going to do a review of this. just go get it. don't believe me? go to itunes and sample oxford comma, bryn & cape cod kwassa kwassa. you will see what i am talking about.

enjoy these two amazing videos. a-punk may be my favorite new video.

top 5 so and so

i love top five lists so much. so much that i will be posting many of them from now on. todays is top 5 movies about music.

5. a hard day's night (1964) - obviously the songs are amazing, but this is one of the most fun films you could ever see.

4. high fidelity (2000) - frears & company perfectly capture the spirit of the book. made the whole top 5 list process even more relevant.

3. this is spinal tap (1984) - what more should be said? fantastic music and possible the funnest movies of all time.

2. nashville (1975) - an epic sprawling masterpiece. one of altman's finest achievements.

1. almost famous (2000) - i know a lot of people who dismiss this film, but it's one of my favorites. it truly captures the spirit of the era.

in rainbows

one month later, we finally get to my number one album of 2007. not to be extremely boring & predictable, but radiohead have consistently produced my yearly favorite records. with their latest effort, in rainbows, they have once again succeeded. first listen and i was surprised how non-electric the album sounded. with lots of guitar and lots of real drums, in rainbows sounds and feels like a wonderful sample of each of their previous albums. there is no fat on this album. every song is great. from the frantic opener "15 step" to the bleak final track "videotape", in rainbows is a mature and fine tuned masterpiece. thom york has never sounded better, and his lyrics are decipherable & actually poignant. never ceasing to amaze me radiohead continue to prove that they are not only one of the best bands around, but also one of the only important.

23

23 sent blonde redhead from a band i liked, to one of my favorite current bands. the track 23 opens the album, and sets the tone for what is a much more accessible record, but i feel like it's also their smartest. there isn't a bad song on the record, but dr. strangeluv, the dress and spring and by summer fall, are easily some of 2007 best. out of the very few live shows i went to in 2007, i enjoyed blonde redhead twice. both were fantastic, and made me see the album in a whole new light. the airy vocals of kazu, the strange and beautiful guitar tones of amedeo, and the complex, yet steady rhythms of simone make 23 sonic crack to me, and i couldn't imagine a better record this year.....until.......

sky blue sky

my two current favorite american bands are my morning jacket and wilco, and although my morning jacket have been silent this year, wilco have made another masterpiece. sky blue sky was a complete collaborative effort by the seven members of the band creating quite a different sound. it's still very much wilco, just not so tweedy driven i guess. the band says the record was very improvisational, and was actually recorded in "the round". we don't hear the weird noises like we did on yankee hotel foxtrot. in fact, it's quite a mellow album. tweedy says he was inspired by the byrds and fairport convention, but songs like hate it here and walken sound straight off of abby road. the haunting lead guitar part on you are my face is one of the greatest moments in wilco's history. impossible germany has a wonderful jam moment, and please be patient with me is one of the years most beautiful songs. wilco have made an eclectic collection of albums, and sky blue sky fits in perfectly.

wincing the night away

it's the final four!

the shins - wincing the night away

you know that feeling when a band you love finally finds a bigger audience? after the all too hip garden state, the shins became indie darlings to hoards of 15 year old girls. wincing the night away is the first release since than, and i am happy to say that they have in no way catered to anyone. it's a mature record with what sounds like a bigger budget. my favorite thing about this album are the truly poetic lyrics. way to many rock lyrics are thrown away these days, but james russell mercer hits you line after line with clever and poignant words. it is most apparent in the song a comet appears. musically it's mostly light and fun. songs like australia, turn on me, & sleeping lessons are total sing alongs, while phantom limb, sea legs & spilt needles are filled with tasty musical nuggets of goodness. the shins are a consistently great band, and wincing the night away is going to be tough to top....but i hope the do it!



three more albums to go. any guesses?

ryan adams - easy tiger

this incredibly prolific artist has made one of his best albums. ryan adams is absolutely one of my favorite artists, and easy tiger proves that he is one of america's greatest song writers. 2005 was a good year for adams fans. we got 3 albums (one being a double album). 2006 saw nothing from him, but my first listen to easy tiger filled that void very quickly. good night rose is almost epic sounding, and is one of those perfect album openers. two (which is the second track) the sun also sets and everybody knows, shows what adams is capable of. with all the songs he has written, he is still able to create these gems. halloweenhead is the rocker on this album, and brings to mind his aptly titled rock n roll album. on tears of gold, adams shows us his country chops. i taught myself how to grow old ends the album perfectly. easy tiger is an album that impressed critics this year, but i feel it will never be completely appreciated. could adams be this generations neil young? easy tiger thinks so.

...one more tie...one more time...

the bird and the bee - the bird and the bee



the bird and the bee's self titled album came to me early this year. ten songs, 35.6 minutes long. it's a quick but solid record. again and again opens the album. with keys, acoustic guitar and singer inara george's breathy vocals, you are immediately drawn in. the following few songs are really good (excluding i hate camera, which is just too poppy). the last half of the album is absolutely fantastic. i'm a broken heart sounds like a missing track from pet sounds. la la la is ripe for an ipod commercial, and my fair lady sounds like it should be used in some sort of neo-musical. the final two songs on the album are preparedness & spark. both are wonderfully space. preparedness is mainly drum loops, haunting vocals, and a few keys & noises. spark is only synth and vocals, and is a perfect album closer. this electro-pop duo have made my most listened to album of the year. here is a strange live version of i'm a broken heart. it's very different from the album version, but i still can't get enough of it!



sondre lerche - phantom punch



this norwegian singer-song writer has made four great albums, phantom punch being the most recent. airport taxi reception opens the album, showcasing lerche's typical jazzy chords & unusual guitar noises, but phantom punch is not typical lerche. the tape and face the blood are much more ruckus than anything we have heard from him before. the title track gives a slight disco flare, and is one of the years catchiest songs. the drum-driving after all breaks down into some sort of nintendo sounding guitar solo, and it works like gang busters. she's fantastic makes my top ten songs of the year, and could easily have been on a paul simon record. sondre lerche is a wonderful artist and phantom punch is his strongest record to date.

roots and echoes

if you have never heard the coral, i could play you any of their songs and you would think it was recorded in 67'. the coral have always sounded like a band from the best part of the 60's. it's not just their style, but the recording technique, lyrics etc. unlike many other groups who mimic that period of music, the coral never come off sounding like a novelty. roots and echoes is their fourth album, and they continue to do what they do best. this album has a softer side than some of their previous releases. songs like fireflies & music at night weave a trippy dreamlike spell while on remember me, the coral play around with their signature "pirate sound". don't be frightened by the word pirate, you just need to here it for yourself. the video below is who's gonna find me, trippy and psychedelic, it's a good gauge for the band if you are new to them. roots and echoes is a perfect choice for my number seven album of the year.

The National - Boxer

once you hear the song mistaken for strangers, you will understand why this album is in my top ten. boxer keeps blowing me away with every listen. with guests like regina spektor, ryan adams and sufjan stevens you would expect something special, and it delivers. the national's previous record alligator, was impressive, but with boxer the band really steps it up. fake empire opens the album with paino and singer matt berninger's deep baritone voice. just like berninger's voice, his fellow members make up the band's distinctive sound from the drummer's constant pounding, to the raw guitar and bass tones. then, songs like start a war & racing like a pro show a lighter side to the band. closing the record out is gospel. it's a perfect ending to the album and has hints of dire straits. boxer is my number 8 record of the year. enjoy he video.

a tie?

i know ties should not show up on top ten lists, but it's my blog & my rules. whatever.





air - pocket symphony
melancholy is one of the greatest feelings that music can give me. it's not depression, it's that feeling of rainy sadness that comes while listening to certain songs. air have made a record that fits in there nice and snug. air's music has always been heavily electronic, but never techno or dance. much more atmospheric. it's music i like to write to. pocket symphony is their most mature sounding album yet. where as some of their former albums my be a bit unfocused and varied, pocket symphony stays straight on track. i would not call it a "safe record," but they maintain a consistent vibe, which is very important to me. the instrumental space maker opens the album. it establishes the tone nicely with it's real drums and synthesizers. once upon a time (the first single from record), napalm love, and mer du japonis are more upbeat while keeping the vibe. the highpoint of the record comes with lost message, a slow instrumental tune that is one of the most played tracks on my itunes playlist.






kanye west - graduation
i am not much of a hip-hop fan at all, but collaborating with coldplay's chris martin, john mayer & daft punk, and sampling steely dan's "kid charlemagne," make west's graduation much more than typical hip-hop. champion & stronger give a one-two punch after the opening good morning. lyrically graduation deals with the past few years of west's life. he is very vulnerable admitting that he does stupid things, and doesn't understand everything. it is far from the typical superman attitude in most of his peers songs. the finest song on graduation, and one of my favorite songs of the year is flashing lights. with heavy synthesizer, it has an almost 70's grove to it. it's one of the biggest surprises of the year, and if you have the same attitude towards the hip-hop, i ask you to give it a whirl.

battles - mirrored

call it math rock or new wave prog, mirrored is a collage of noise and beauty. battles have created a record that walks a fine line of being complex, yet has just enough groves and amazing breakdowns to make it very listenable (thanks to former helmet drummer john stanier). singer tyondai braxton (son of jazz musician athnoy braxton) plays with noises and heavy vocal effects. in fact, upon my first listening, i couldn't help thinking that just maybe king crimson & the surviving cast of munchkins from wizard of oz may have started a super group.

battles push the limits on every song, creating one of the most original sounding records of the year. race: in kicks the album off with a barrage of snare, arpeggiated guitars, and whistles that slowly continue to build. songs like atlas and tonto break into hypnotic groves, and are two of my favorite music videos of the year, and i am going to share them with you below. battles are defiantly a fresh and exciting band that i look forward to catching up with at their live show.

neon bible

my 11th favorite album of the year is neon bible by the arcade fire. their first major label release funeral, was my favorite album of 2004. it was a fresh, and completely original album. on neon bible, the band seems to have matured. songs like keep the car running, and black waves/bad vibrations sound like the best part of the 80's while keeping their distinctive style. the first hit off of neon bible was the epic intervention. i really think this is one of the best rock songs in the past few years. lyrically, this album focuses on the commercialization and the completely un-biblical state the church is starting to become. in the song intervention they sing:

been working for the church
while your life falls apart.
singing hallelujah with the fear in your heart
every spark of friendship and love
will die without a home
hear the soldier groan, "we'll go at it alone"
hear the soldier groan, "we'll go at it alone"

there are many other bold statements on the album, and they are derived with a passion and urgency that could have made this album one of my favorite of the year except for 3 or 4 songs that just do nothing for me. this is definitely one of the most important and relevant bands of today, and i have not lost any faith in them.

movies number 12 & 11 will be posted over the next few days, and then we get down to the best stuff.

back to the pre-countdown

number 12 on my pr-countdown list is amy winehouse's back to black. the first time i heard what has turned out to be 2007's theme song "rehab", i was immediately turned on to the freshness of it. maybe it was the powerful vocals, or the arrangements. it just sounded like nothing else on the radio. back to black is more than just a throwback to the 60's. musically it is fantastically arranged and produced, but each song showcases her amazing voice. with songs like me & mr. jones, just friends and tears dry on their own, back to black will stay on top of my playist well into 2008. i hope all her "problems" won't overshadow her talent. sometimes the best art comes out of troubled souls.

the number 13

my 13th favorite film of the year so far is control (i am guessing that my list will change after watching p.t. anderson's there will be blood). since i just posted on it a few days ago, i have decided to post this video from the soundtrack. it's the killers doing a cover of shadowplay, and it contains scenes from the film. enjoy!

13-11

as the year comes to an end, i am thinking back on my favorite films and albums of the year. i'm gonna be posting my top ten of each a bit later on this month, but for now i'm gonna start listing those that almost made it. think of it as my 13 through 11.

my 13th favorite album of the year is ga ga ga ga ga by spoon.

with an album name like ga ga ga ga ga, you can expect a very interesting album. i can't imagine anyone going through this year without having heard "the feel good song of the year", and spoon's first single off the album, the underdog. it hearkens back to the good old days when billy joel dominated the air waves...well maybe that's not the good old days, but it's still a fantastic song that just builds with mariachi style trumpets and percussion galore (check out the video below). ga ga ga ga ga has much more to offer than just the underdog. the opening song don't make me a target, sets a good blueprint for the album, although we are going to experience many flavors and styles here. the song the ghost of you lingers, has a wonderful and abrasive piano riff throughout the whole song. spoon says the title of the album ga ga ga ga ga came from that track. ga ga ga ga ga was the old title for this song because of the piano sound. it's a stripped down track that is almost completely piano and vocals. you got yr. cherry bomb really sounds like phill spector sneaked into the studio. not that you hear gunshots or anything like that, but it has that wonderful 60's girl group sound that you would hear on a ronettes album. acoustic guitar is very prominent on this album, but it has plenty moments of rock. i am really impressed with the production. lot's of interesting sounds and arrangements keep ga ga ga ga ga sounding like nothing else from this year, or for that matter any other year.

enjoy the underdog video below!