Best of 2011!

I finally finished my Best of 2011 playlist. I cheated this year and have a list of runners-up because it was really tough to choose. This post is actually going to be a copy/paste from an email that went out minutes ago. If you want to be on that email list, I send weekly emails with playlists throughout the year - with the Best of 2011 mix at the end. My former radio show co-host Ida might add occasionally (she has a best of list up today, too). If you're interested, email me at sundaynightsleepover(at)gmail.com to be added to the list.

So here's the list with full on commentary:

Best of 2011 - albums that I loved as a whole have a * before the name:

*Jay-Z & Kanye West - Ni**as in Paris: Ok, this one was a tough tough choice. I had Otis in here for while, but eventually settled on this one for a few reasons. First, part of why I love Otis is because I already love Otis Redding. On the other hand Ni**as in Paris feels very 2011 to me. "That Shit Cray" seemed everywhere. Aziz Ansari and his friend texted the song to each other in emoticons, and the lyrics just make me giggle. Working out this morning, this song came on, and at the part where Kanye says "What she order?" everyone around me said in unison "Fish fillet." Plus they sang this song over and over and over and over (I think up to about 10 times at one show) as the encore or finale at their concerts. So I heard. I didn't go. So it won the "best" over Otis simply because it felt a little more relevant to the year. See how complicated this is? That's why it takes me so long to make these lists. I overthink everything. :)

*The Rapture - Children: I hadn't heard of The Rapture until this past year when a friend gave me an old album of theirs. Then very soon afterward, they announced that they were releasing a new album. I felt so-so about the old album that I was given, but I really like the new one.

*Future People - Naturally

Foster the People - Pumped Up Kicks: I got a little sick of this song over the year, honestly. So much that I wasn't going to put it on the list. But if I'm being honest, I did really love it this year. If it was playing on the radio as I was scanning stations, I always stopped.

*Portugal. The Man - You Carried Us (Share With Me The Sun): I only listened to this album because of Spotify. 2011 was definitely the year of Spotify, although now I'm getting the feeling that 2012 is going to be the year of Rdio. I hate changing trends. Why can't we pick something and stick with it? Man, that makes me sound old. In truth, I tried Rdio, and I didn't love it, but it may be because I was used to Spotify already. Who knows. Anyway, I found this album through Spotify and listened to it a ton. It was hard to pick a single track off the album, but I think this one is the best.

*The Black Keys - Lonely Boy: This album is great. I was never a big fan of The Black Keys until their last album, but they're keeping up with the good. This was the first single off the album, and I still think it's the best.

Tune-Yards - Gangsta: I can't decide what I think about this album as a whole. Sometimes I like it. I listened to Ida's Best of 2011 mix, and I like Bizness in her mix, but I don't always love it when it comes on my iTunes. So it confuses me. I do always like this song, though.

*Florence + The Machine - Shake It Out: I had a hard time picking the best song from this album. I like a bunch of them pretty equally. This song ended up making the cut because it's so versatile. I heard so many remixes of this song, and actually liked them. That never happens.

TV on the Radio - You

*M83 - Midnight City: I can't tell if it's just synth or weird vocal manipulations or what - but the sounds throughout this song intrigue me so much.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Maniac

*Lykke Li - Jerome: This album was full of great songs, but this one always stood out to me.

Adele - Rolling In The Deep: I did not share the world's obsession with Adele. I think this album is "ok" but I don't love it. This song, however, is really great.

*I Break Horses - Pulse: This is another Spotify discovery. The album grew on my each time I listened to it, and it ended up being one of my favorites from the year.

*Cults - You Know What I Mean: If you go purely on iTunes number of plays, this album wins big time. I think I listened to the whole album on repeat through the month of June. I almost put Go Outside on the list, but this one grabs me a bit more for some reason. Seems a little more impassioned.

Gotye - Somebody That I Used to Know: So this video has been making the rounds over the last few months, but I didn't pay that much attention. Then in the last few weeks, it was being referenced all over the place. And then my friend's band played a show with him that sold out. And I was like, "ok, jeesh, I'll listen! I'll listen!" Turns out, I am not that crazy about the album as a whole, but this song is really great. If you watch the video with it, I think it's even better.

*Bon Iver - Calgary: It was incredibly tough to pick a song off of this album. I think I started with about 5 on the list. I could have ended up with any of them, really.

*Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues

*Washed Out - Amor Fati: I felt so-so about Washed Out before his first full-length album came out last summer, but this album sucked me in so fast. It was the album that finally got me out of my Cults rut.

*Blind Pilot - New York: Another really tough decision from this album, but seeing them perform these song live in November really changed the way I heard this song. It is beautiful and felt like a really great way to end the list and end the year. You can see a live version of it on Vimeo.

And...cause I'm a cheater...here are the contenders for best-of-2011:

James Blake & Bon Iver - Fall Creek Boys Choir: James Blake put out a pretty good, interesting album this year. But his collaboration with Bon Iver really stood out more to me. Even with the dog barks. Or maybe it's because of them...

*The Decemberists - This is Why We Fight: I really loved this album, but none of the songs stood out enough to me to make the final list.

Feist - How Come You Never Go There: I was honestly a little disappointed in the Feist album this year, but it may not be that fair since I had pretty high expectations. The problem with putting out a great album is that your next album has to measure up...

Waters - Take Me Out To The Coast: This is another case of "good, but not quite good enough to be the 'best.'"

Thao & Mirah - How Dare You: This song is the best blend of their sounds on the whole album.

*Florence + The Machine - Landscape (Demo): This song only appears as a bonus on Ceremonials, but I love it.

Beirut - Santa Fe: I wanted this to be a best, but it just didn't seem to fit quite right.

*Washed Out - Far Away: I went back and forth between this one and Amor Fati for the final list. It almost came down to a coin toss...

Lana Del Rey - Video Games: I wanted to put this song on the final list just because I felt like people wouldn't stop talking about her in 2011. Is she fake or not? Are her lips fake or not? Is her music good? When deciding what music to listen to, I don't really care what someone's lips look like. Although having seen her interviewed a couple of places, I'm not sure how crazy I am about her in general. And her lyrics in general are not so hot. But this song still sucked me in, so she gets credit for that. Fake lips or not.

The Antlers - No Widows

St. Vincent - Northern Lights

Death Cab for Cutie - Some Boys: I was done with Death Cab until this album came out this year, but decided to give them another shot. It wasn't my favorite album by any means, but it was much better than expected.

*Blind Pilot - We Are The Tide: I almost put this on the list, but since I have heard them play this at shows since 2008, it didn't quite feel as 2011 as New York did. It's still an awesome song and always makes me want to dance.

Starfucker - Bury Us Alive

*Jay-Z & Kanye West - Otis

Tom Waits - New Year's Eve: This song just felt appropriate to end with. :)

Links:

Best of 2011

Almost Best of 2011

Spotify:

Best of 2011

Almost Best of 2011

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! Wishing you best in the 2012.

[Old Best-of lists: 2008, 2009, 2010]

Just in Time: Best of 2010 in Music

I took my sweet time this year making this list. Around the first of December, I realized that I had missed a few album releases this year that I wanted to check out, so I ended up listening to a lot of new stuff in the last few weeks. In order to give them a fair shot, I wanted to listen a few times, which, of course, delayed the whole "Best of 2010" list thing.

A few things about this list. In years past, I have only made a "Best Tracks" list, meaning that the albums themselves may not be that amazing, but for whatever reason, I loved those particular songs. This year, I planned to do the same, but I realized that there are a few albums I liked that don't have a song that stand out. I thought, "eh, I'll just pick a random song," but that didn't work either. Basically, I would add a song to the track list, and it just seemed like that song was a let-down in the mix of great tracks. So I've included a short list at the end of my track list of albums that I really liked this year, but that didn't really have any standout songs.

As usual, these songs are not in any particular order. I take that back, they are in a particular order, but it has nothing to do with which is the "very best." Instead, I try to make it flow like a playlist.

Also different from prior years, I allowed 2 songs from 1 album. I usually don't do that, which means that some songs don't make the cut that would have if they hadn't been on the same album as an even better song. I broke the rule one time this year because the Eclipse soundtrack had 2 songs that I couldn't choose between. It's not a huge rule-breaker since each song is by a different artist, and neither of those artists had any other songs on the list. That Eclipse soundtrack, by the way....say what you will about Twilight, but the music is great...

You can listen to the playlist here.

1. Yeasayer - Ambling Alp: This song was released as a single in 2009, but the album Odd Blood came out in 2010. When it did, I listened to the whole album over and over for quite a few weeks. I guess I start the list with this one, since it's sort of how I started my 2010.
2. Sufjan Stevens - I Walked: This entire album is so phenomenal. Sufjan basically abandons the world (other than random side projects) for a few years, and then blows us away with an EP and an album released a month apart. The EP was good, but the album, The Age of Adz, was another one I could listen to on repeat.
3. Beck and Bat for Lashes - Let's Get Lost: This song is from the Eclipse soundtrack. It's just beautiful. I also love musical collaboration, and Beck has been doing that a lot lately. I approve.
4. Beach House - Norway: It was a serious toss-up between Zebra and Norway. I kept going back and forth, but in the end, I think the vocal back-up in Norway won me over.
5. CocoRosie - Lemonade: This album, Grey Oceans, was only so-so, in my book. But this song, was too beautiful not to include. It just makes me smile and want to seriously go get some lemonade and have some innocent little picnic somewhere.
6. Broken Bells - Sailing to Nowhere: Broken Bells came out of nowhere this year, and their album seemed so perfect. Then I stopped listening to it because it seemed annoying for some reason. Maybe it's too perfect? Regardless, this album got a ton of playtime on my iTunes this year. I saw them in May, and it was a really great performance. James Mercer seems like a total perfectionist, but it pays off because his voice never falters.
7. The Morning Benders - Excuses: I saw these guys in March, and the performance of this song was fabulous. I wrote about it here. That alone pretty much secured the song's spot on my year-end list. They weren't as great when they opened for Broken Bells a couple of months later, but I'll forgive them for that one.
8. Jonsi - Around Us: I had a lot of trouble picking a song from this album. I had Sinking Friendships on the list for a while. But this song really stood out from his concert last October. I wrote about that concert, too. These songs all feel really powerful, yet relaxing for some reason. I love listening to the album straight through, but most of the songs can also stand on their own.
9. Arcade Fire - Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains): I wrote about this album when it came out, and it all still holds true. I love this album, and I'm sort of surprised it wasn't on more people's Best of 2010 lists. Maybe they're too mainstream, so it's not "cool" to like them anymore? Oh well. I'm not turned off yet. Their concerts are still up there on my best of all time list. And Regine Chassagne sings this with so much energy at the shows, it's definitely a stand-out.
10. Caribou - Odessa: I forgot about this album (Swim) for a lot of the year. Then, when going through 2010 stuff, I started listening more. The album is good, but not great. This song, though, catches my attention whenever it pops up on shuffle.
11. The Black Keys - Everlasting Light: I've never liked The Black Keys. Everyone raves about them, but each time I try to listen, I am disappointed. So much so that I didn't even want to give this album a shot. The album is good, although I didn't love it. I did love this song, though.
12. Efterklang - Modern Drift: I downloaded this album on a whim. They were playing LA, and my roommate at the time mentioned that I might like them. They released an album in the spring (Magic Chairs), and it was good. Again, not great, but good. I really like the vocals on this track, though. Apparently enough to make it to the best of list.
13. Janelle Monae - Cold War: This album was good. Everyone seemed to be talking about her this year. I liked a few songs, but when I saw the video for this song, I was sold. She toured with of Montreal this year, which seems like an odd match in some respects, but it worked.
14. Florence + The Machine - Heavy in Your Arms: This is another one from the Eclipse soundtrack. I have a bit of a crush on Florence Welch. Mostly because her voice is so consistently smooth and unwavering. I saw her at The Wiltern this year, where she sold out 3 nights in a row. She definitely has a presence on stage, which makes her sort of mesmerizing to watch. This song was one of her encores.
15. Sleigh Bells - Rill Rill: I kept going back and forth with this band. Did I like them? Or were they too abrasive? I'm still not sure how I feel about them overall, but I'm sure that this song just puts me in a good mood.
16. Hot Chip - Take It In: I wasn't sure whether I would like this album or not since their last one was only so-so, but I'm glad I gave it a shot. The crazy video for I Feel Better probably helped get my attention. This is my favorite song on the album, though.
17. LCD Soundsystem - I Can Change: It was between this song and Dance Yrself Clean, but that song is 9 minutes long, which really makes for a long playlist... Seriously, that was my only deciding factor. I saw them live a few years ago, opening for Arcade Fire, and they were "eh." But I saw them on their headlining tour this year at the Hollywood Bowl, and they were awesome.
18. Best Coast - The End: I usually dislike lo-fi music. The droning noise sort of irritates me. But for some reason, it doesn't bother me with Best Coast. I don't love every song on this album (Crazy for You), but I like it.
19. Robyn - Dancing On My Own: This was one of the albums that I just started listening to. I kept reading about her new stuff and decided to check it out for myself. I have tons of guilty pleasures when it comes to music, and I often listen to Top 40 crap on the radio, not because it's good, but because I like cheesy dance riffs. Robyn is like the best of both worlds. It's pure dance pop. But it's so much better quality than the crap that gets played on the radio. (Note: I know she WAS typical Top 40 crap in the 90s, but her stuff is different now that she's, you know, not 17 years old...)
20. Kanye West - Runaway: Ok ok. I just said I listen to Top 40 sometimes. I also have a thing for celebrities who go a little crazy and write absurd things on their Twitter accounts, yet also produce really great music. I loved this song from the first time I saw the video. I also figured it was fitting to end the list with a toast. Happy New Year, all. Let's have a toast for the douchebags. May they be relatively absent from your 2011!

Albums that didn't have standout tracks, but were still pretty good albums of 2010:

• Band of Horses - Infinite Arms
• Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record
• Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest
• Gayngs - Relayted
• Laura Veirs - July Flame
• Menomena - Mines
• Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More
• The National - High Violet
• The New Pornographers - Together
• Wolf Parade - Expo 86

Jonsi's Live Performance - 17 October 2010, The Wiltern, Los Angeles, CA

I can't even call this a concert. It wasn't. I've seen some really great concerts, some of them quite recently, but this doesn't even compare. Not because it was so much better, but it was just different. It was an experience. An emotionally intense experience that has lasted for at least an hour since I left the theatre.

I kept meaning to write reviews of shows here, but I'd get home, feel tired, go to bed, and then the recollections would fade, making it tough to write. But tonight. I'm writing. Mostly because I can't get this show out of my head.

My view during the show was honestly not that great. I had floor tickets and ended up behind tall people. Mix that with the fact that Jonsi often leans over (bends over, really) when he sings, and I basically had little to no view of the actual musicians. I had occasional flashes of them - mostly Jonsi's head when standing and the drummer. But that didn't really matter. Jonsi worked with a team of visual artists to create an accompanying visual show to go with the music. My first thought when I heard of this was, "yeah, I see A/V stuff at shows all the time. What's the big deal?" Last week at Arcade Fire, they had visuals that went with their songs. It's cool, but it doesn't really set Jonsi apart from others. Wow, was I wrong.

The visuals for the Jonsi show are so stunningly beautiful. Animals and flowers and birds and rain and storms - manipulated nature scenes, but like I've never seen them before. Further, the imagery is so incredibly well matched to the songs. The visuals seemed to intensify every emotion evoked by the music and vice versa. The use of color and light was perfect. A friend of mine at the show cried, and I was on the verge of tears. My head and my heart just felt so full of.....something I can't explain in words.

I had never noticed the drums in Jonsi's songs quite like I did tonight. They are phenomenal, and I was happy to have a good view of the drums throughout the show. Jonsi's voice is so intense, and the richness of the music as a whole was so beautiful.

The show was streamed live by NPR tonight, and they are replaying it tomorrow (Monday), as well. I will be watching it again just so that I have the chance to experience it all over again. I highly recommend it to others, as well. And of course, if he is playing a show in or around where you live, please go. You will not regret it.

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

I am in love with this album - in a completely new and different way than the way I love Arcade Fire's older albums. Honestly, I think this is the way a band should be. I should love each album for new and unique reasons, otherwise a band is just repeating itself over and over. I love when a band can retain their own sound, yet recreate it for each album. The latest from the Arcade Fire doesn't have the epic, larger-than-life tracks like "Wake Up" and "Rebellion (Lies)" or the overdramatic tracks like "Intervention" and "My Body is a Cage" but it doesn't need them.

Perhaps I am simply buying into their package, but it really fits as a whole piece titled The Suburbs. Listening to Funeral or Neon Bible sort of feels like when you're talking to your best friend about HOW THAT GUY WAS SUCH AN ASSHOLE or THE BEST THING IN THE WORLD JUST HAPPENED TO ME, but The Suburbs feels like your everyday best friend. It's the general conversation that makes life comfortable. There are some climaxes, but overall, it just...is.

In sports, if you play the sport perfectly, truly to perfection, there shouldn't be any "highlights" because there wouldn't be any "so close" moments. It would all be clean and smooth and appear like every moment was orchestrated just so. To me, that's how The Suburbs is. Played just right, so nothing stands out as a highlight. Instead, the whole thing is orchestrated just so, so that while you're listening, you feel as if life is supposed to be...just like this.

Scala and Kolacny Brothers

I recently watched the trailer for the new Facebook movie (ok, it's actually called The Social Network). The music fits perfectly, and is a beautiful rendition of Radiohead's Creep. So I looked it up. It's done by Scala and Kolacny Brothers, which despite the masculine name, is actually a Belgian girls choir. They have a few albums where they cover pop music, and if their version of Creep is any indication of what their stuff is like, I would like to buy their discography...immediately.

If you read my music posts much or ever listened to my radio show, you know there are some specific characteristics of music that will suck me in pretty assuredly. Beautiful, layered, choral harmonies are included in that list. So this is sort of a sure thing.

By the way, the movie actually looks really good. My first thought was, "A movie about Mark Zuckerberg, really? Who the hell cares about that guy?" But it really does look good. So I guess the answer is me. I guess I care...or at the very least am intrigued.

Music Updates

I am on a blog kick today. Maybe because I have been spending so much of my time looking for apartments and then looking for furnishings for said apartment that I have run out of time to blog and/or things to blog about.

Well, some people read this for random info about me. Some people read this for info about music, and since I have acquired a lot of music recently, I figured I'd share. Rather than writing long reviews about just a couple of albums, I'm gonna try to give a quick overview of what I'm really liking lately.

First, Islands - Vapours. I know, I know. This came out last year. One of the tracks was on my Best of 2009 list. But I am just now really listening to the album as a whole, and man, I love it. I am not sure why I wasn't obsessed with it last fall. Maybe because I was instead obsessed with Fanfarlo and then with the new Yeasayer. Regardless, I'm making up for lost time. Some favorite tracks are obviously the one I put on my Best of list, but also: "Vapours," "Shining," "On Foreigner."

I'm going to see the Morning Benders and Broken Bells play a show together on Wednesday, which I'm pretty excited about. Stay tuned for a review of the show maybe next weekend if you're interested. I loved the last Morning Benders concert I went to, so I'm expecting good things.

Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record. This brings me back to my favorite BSS album, You Forgot it in People. Lots of good meshing of melodies.

Gayngs - Relayted. This is a "super group" of sorts, with people from Bon Iver, Megafaun, the Rosebuds, Solid Gold, POS, and more. The album kind of has an old R&B feel to me, but I mean that in a good way... Different members take bigger roles in various songs, so it's a little varied overall as an album. I like: "Ride" and "No Sweat" the best, but "The Gaudy Side of Town" and "The Last Prom on Earth" are also worth a listen.

Hot Chip - One Life Stand. This is another one that I had sitting around for a bit before I really listened. Also, like Islands, I loved their first album and felt "eh" about their second. (ok, technically I'm referring to the 2nd and 3rd albums for Hot Chip, not the 1st and 2nd, but did anyone listen to Coming on Strong, Hot Chip's debut album?) But this one is great. The video for "I Feel Better" is amazingly weird. There's no song quite like "And I Was a Boy from School" or "The Warning," but it's good in a new and different way.

LCD Soundsystem - This is Happening. Pitchfork just put this on their Best New Music list. It's pretty great. A little inconsistent overall, but "Dance Yrself Clean" and "I Can Change" are a good place to start. "Drunk Girls" is the one that got all the hype early on via the internets, but it's actually one of my least favorites on the album.

The National - High Violet. This also made Pitchfork's Best list. It's classic music from The National, but a little more consistent as a whole, I think.

The Rest - Everyone All at Once. So I actually wrote about this last November. But apparently I loved it then and promptly stopped listening to it. I rediscovered it this week - and my thoughts have not changed.

Wow, scrolling through my iTunes list, I am finding a ton of music that I haven't mentioned. I'm not going to get into it tonight, but if you've come across something and aren't sure if it's worth your time, I might have an opinion. So let me know if you have review requests.

Old Music

Apparently it's reunion tour time, as Pavement, Soundgarden, and A Ha are all touring right now. Yes, I said A Ha. The 80s band. I actually just realized I have no idea if it's a reunion tour or if they never broke up. All I know is that I heard it referred to as a "Farewell Tour" and thought, "oh, this is my last chance to see A Ha perform live." And then I realized that all I would want to hear them play would be "Take On Me" over and over again. Probably not worth the ticket price...

Music

Do you remember Marcy Playground? I almost forgot about them, too. But then I was reading today's concert listings in LA - and they are playing. Great bands like The Beatles, Pavement, The Unicorns, etc. have not been able to keep it together for various reasons, but a shitty band like Marcy Playground apparently has what it takes to have a long-term committed relationship. At least as a band. I can't speak to their personal lives...

(Turns out it's really only 2 consistent people - the lead singer and the bass player. But still. They're around 12 years after their 1 hit song...)

Covers

If you like somewhat ironic covers of Top 40 songs, then you must check out Pomplamoose's Tribute to Famous People. Some of the highlights: "Single Ladies," "Beat It," "Telephone," "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing."

For a flavor of what to expect: Pomplamoose's video for "Single Ladies"

Guilty Pleasures

I go to Pure Barre workout classes, and they use a broad mix of music in their classes, including some Top 40 stuff (note that they have workout playlists through iTunes that you can access - to purchase - through their website). So I'm exposed to a lot of music that I might not otherwise listen to.

So...I'm a little embarrassed about this, but I have to admit it. I really like OneRepublic's All the Right Moves. I can still hate the fact that they don't have a space in their band name, though, right?

The Morning Benders @ The Troubadour 3/25/10

I saw The Morning Benders last week and thought about writing a long concert review about it. You see, I have this goal of reviewing music and concerts on the blog since I no longer have a radio show to talk about my music loves. Plus I figured that maybe I could get really good at it and get into shows that I may not otherwise be able to get into - like I used to with the radio show...

But then I remembered - I can ramble about music easily on radio, but typing/writing is different. Somehow the same things I would say out loud on air read as overly simplified and somewhat boring. Anyway, I'll attempt. I'll just ramble and see what happens.

So back to the concert review. Here's the deal. It was good. Lead singer, Chris Chu, is adorable - looks like a baby - and has a great voice. He started the evening talking about how they had opened for other bands at The Troubadour in the past, but this was their first headlining show there. "You're really here to see us?! " Of course, I won't tell him about the guy in front of me who had just asked "Who are these guys?" He was there to see Miniature Tigers, one of the openers. [Speaking of the openers, they were ok, but noteworthy was how much We Barbarians sound like The Walkmen. So if you like the latter, perhaps you should check out the former.]

Their entire set sounded flawless. They had someone playing extra percussion and keyboards with them, but I didn't catch who it was. The clear stand-out of the show to me was their closing song and most recent single, "Excuses." The album version of this song is great, but the performance was amazing. Chris Chu's voice was vibrant and crisp (and more focal since he ditched the guitar for the beginning) and the use of live-looping can be really entertaining when done right. The a capella portion of the song (where the vocal loops start) lasted the perfect amount of time to build anticipation without leaving you too bored. And the culmination of instruments and voices and loops truly filled the crowd and left everyone energized. So energized that people stuck around after the show, despite the lights and house music suggesting that the concert was really over.

Approximately 5 minutes or so after leaving the stage, the band came back. "We aren't really into encores, but you guys are just sticking around..." So they played their first encore - a cover of Neil Young's "Bad Fog of Loneliness." A totally appropriate encore given the fact that they had "already played all [their] songs" during the show.

Note: I found video of another performance of "Excuses" that is great. There is video of their Troubadour performance online, but the sound quality is so poor, it doesn't do it justice - so poor that I won't even give you the link. :)

A couple more albums

I recently acquired a lot of new music, but I want to give it all a chance before I start writing too much and then have to back-track and change my opinions upon further listening.

But I have a couple I can start with.

Jonsi - Go: This album is fabulous. Beautiful and smooth. If you like Sigur Ros, you're probably going to like this, which makes sense since he's their guitarist/vocalist. Sometimes when people sing in falsetto too much, it becomes grating, but Jonsi's falsetto never does. I would say that this album is more "accessible" than older Sigur Ros stuff. Some people will take that to mean that it's a sell-out pop album. I disagree. This is rich and layered - but he does so in a way that will appeal to more people. That's not selling out - it's just making good music. Airy vocals, strings, percussion... There are flavors of The Postal Service at times (like on Around Us), as well as some of the recent orchestral pop albums that seem to be coming out from all different places lately (Lady & Bird and Noah and the Whale recently released orchestra-heavy albums). But this album is more emotional than any of those. And I say that in a good way. As I said, I have a lot of new music to listen to lately, and despite having albums just sitting here waiting to be heard, I find myself wanting to go back to Jonsi again before I can move on. This album currently suits my needs quite well for putting me in a good mood to do work and also as a pre-bedtime soundtrack. (Update: You can stream the album here)

MGMT - Congratulations: It took me 3 listens to like this. First listen, I was disappointed that there were no big standouts like Kids or Electric Feels or Time to Pretend. Second time, I was too busy trying to figure out who each song sounded like because I wasn't so sure. It didn't sound like the MGMT that I knew from Oracular Spectacular. The opener on the album, It's Working, starts out with the same chord progression that comes up throughout The Decemberists' Hazards of Love, which I hated. So maybe I was set up with a negative bias? And at times the songs had too much of a 1960s beach party feel to them. It just didn't fit. It didn't fit with the strong electronic, dancey vibe I loved about the last album. It didn't fit with the hip and progressive category I had previously placed this band. And that categorization was part of why I loved them. So then listen #3. Maybe it was simple familiarity that made it more appealing this time? Or maybe I just had to give up on my expectations - because by the time listen #3 happened, I had certainly given up hope for an album that would arouse my excitement as Oracular Spectacular had. This is a pop album. Peppy, sometimes cheesy. Almost always happy. It is full of vocal harmonies, but not in a smooth, full, rich sort of way - instead it feels like a 1950s or 1960s high school musical. Andrew VanWyndarden's falsetto (I must be into falsetto's lately...) doesn't show up as often as I would have liked, and when it does, it feels almost BeeGees-ish. Siberian Breaks could fit in with the soundtrack to Hair. Lady Dada's Nightmare is an instrumental that I couldn't even get through on listen #2. Ha, it might even have lyrics and I just have no idea because I tried to tune it out so much. And then it ends with Congratulations. Which is a song I actually really like. I sort of want it to keep going instead of having the album end. That said, it reminds me of Dionne Warwick's I Say A Little Prayer. It's slower and not so cheesy, but for some reason that song keeps popping into my head when I listen to Congratulations. So at this point, you may be wondering, "Didn't she say it took 3 listens to like it? But it doesn't seem like she likes it." And that's sort of true. I don't like the fact that this is MGMT, but feels like music from 40-50 years ago. MGMT is progressive and new, not some copycat band. But the thing is, I actually like music from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. I like the musical Hair. I like Dionne Warwick's I Say A Little Prayer, no matter how cheesy it is. And so I guess you could see this as an album that updates a genre. Brings the good parts of the past into the present. Is it what I expected? No. Is it what I hoped for? No. And for that, I'm still disappointed. I wanted a new Kids to fall in love with again. But will I listen to this? Sure. At least when I'm not going back to listen to Jonsi again. (Note: You can listen to the album from their website: http://www.whoismgmt.com/)

Update: And in an interesting connection between my two album choices for this post...Jonsi covers MGMT's Time to Pretend and streams it online here.

Titus Andronicus

The Titus Andronicus album The Monitor is excellent. Lead singer Patrick Stickles' voice sounds like Conor Oberst, but I like the music so much better than Bright Eyes. I've always thought Oberst's voice sounded a little whiney on Bright Eyes tracks. So maybe think Bright Eyes without the whine.

And The Morning Benders

Although they don't come with the hype that Broken Bells does, this album, available via stream now on Stereogum, is pretty great, too. Official release is also next week - the 9th.

Broken Bells

Broken Bells is the joint project of James Mercer (lead singer from The Shins) and Danger Mouse (who has worked on lots of stuff incl Gnarls Barkley, Dangerdoom, some Gorillaz albums, etc.). Their first album comes out next week, but KCRW is streaming it now. This is great, and I can't wait to have the album for real...

Yeasayer

This has been the Pitchfork commentary blog lately, but yet again, Pitchfork has failed. They gave Yeasayer's Odd Blood 6.1 rating. This should be on the best new music list. Seriously. I have listened to this album on repeat since I first heard it in December. It is so good! Their last album was so-so. Some good stuff, but also some filler. This album, though, is fabulous. I see what Pitchfork's saying about lyrics being a bit weak, but even the "makin' love til the morning light" lyric comes off catchy to me because of the rhythm and the melody.

And the long line of people waiting in the rain to see them at LA's Natural History Museum a good 10 hours before they were scheduled to perform is evidence that I'm not alone in that feeling.

Sometimes Pitchfork is right

In this case, they are correct in labeling this news story as "WTF." Susan Sarandon joined of Montreal on stage to spank men dressed as pigs and throw streamers into the audience. I heard she recently broke up with (former) life parter Tim Robbins. Either this is part of a life crisis she is going through, or she is amazing, and it's Tim Robbins's big time loss.

Also on the same Pitchfork news post is Solange (Beyonce's sister) singing with them on a Jackson 5 cover. Supposedly she sings on the new album, too. Sort of an odd mix, to me, but Kevin Barnes is just constantly trying to outdo whatever he did last time. So I guess while it is in fact deservedly tagged "WTF," that's also expected from this band... And most of the time I end up loving them for it.

Finally - Kevin Barnes with beard also throws me. When I think of his glam costumes and rocker-style combover (comb-forward?), the beard doesn't quite fit.

Love/Hate

Reason to love LA: when something happens that warrants charity concerts, they are all over the city. Fiona Apple with Jon Brion and Gillian Welch (and others) on Saturday. Radiohead benefit show on Sunday. Jenny Lewis and Azure Ray (and others) on Tuesday.

Reason to hate LA: Fiona Apple show sold out before I even heard about it. Radiohead is selling tickets auction style to raise the most money. That makes a lot of sense from a charity standpoint, but also means that I can't afford tickets. So while I have the potential to actually go to these shows because of geography, the whole population of LA also has that potential...and apparently doesn't have a low-paying day job that keeps them from affording the tickets and from hearing of the shows in time to even buy them.

Pitchfork is wrong

Pitchfork just reviewed Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros - Up From Below. They are wrong. They gave it a 4.1 and basically said it was boring. It reads mostly as a review/judgement on the lead singer Alex Ebert for changing from a punk band to this. The reviewer didn't like Ima Robot (Ebert's former band) and started the review already hating this album for the basis under which it came about.

Well, boo. This is why my music "reviews" don't give much backstory. I just listen to music and either like it or don't. Cause when you get into the "he used to do poor 'jerk-punk' and now he's a hippy" sorts of things, it taints otherwise great and fun music. Really that's why I love Edward Sharpe. It's music that makes me feel good and happy, and their live sets makes me want to be dancing on stage with them. I don't care what was when it comes to music. I just care what is.

(And yes, this post was basically a review of a review.)

Music

Just listened to a couple of new albums, although I've been spending a lot of time lately revisiting old stuff. That's the problem with new music. There is so much of it, that it leaves little time to listen to really great stuff from years ago and still be up on all the new...

Well, here is a new and a new-to-me:

• Alec Ounsworth - Mo Beauty: Lead singer of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! goes solo. Nothing stands out as ridiculously amazing so far, but it's nice, and I'm a sucker for odd-sounding voices, which is why I like the CYHSY stuff in the first place.
• The Submarines - Honeysuckle Weeks: This came out in 2008, but I just got it a few weeks ago. This is a husband/wife duo that writes pretty indie pop. Her voice has been compared to the lead singer of The Cardigans and to Lily Allen. I think I can hear some of that in certain songs. And of course there are the male/female harmonies that remind me of Mates of State, etc.