Two Thousand and Four........
okay so excuse any grammar and livejournal mistakes n shit.....
My Top Ten Of '04
1.The Arcade Fire-Funeral: This is the indie Hype album this year, critical snobs united and lavished praised upon this album. Well it deserved it, it's from start to finish flawless in my opinion. Infamously recorded during a time in which the band expierenced three close family deaths. This album is about grieving and coming to grips with it. Universal themes that everyone moving towards adulthood has had to, or will deal with and Win Butler and Company handle difficult subject matter in near perfect form. Partly orcheastrated and overwhelming uplifting if you pay close attention and album like this doesn't come along very often so it needs to be properly appreciated when it does. This album is emotional, without any doubt and for someone out their looking to reclaim that adjective from emo bands that often times seem to be feigning it, i suggest you look no further than Funeral.
2.Brian Wilson-Smile:Brian Wilson gave up this album. In 1967, he was 24 years old and had just had a mental breakdown. It was supposed to be the greatest record ever. It was supposed to be the brilliant mind behind pet sounds answer to Sergeant Pepper's, it was supposed to be a lot of things but it didn't really work out as planned, so how about it now? Will this record change the world or even your life? Probably not, but it's still damn good. This album has been heavily anticipated by beach boy fans for years, they've circulated bootleg copies of the unfinished product's demos around for years, and this album delivers. I've heard those demos and I prefer this, and you can't sit around and wonder, what if he didn't break down, what if he finished it then? You can't live asking those questions of anything, because you can't change the past so the choice you just have to deal with it, this album can't be put into the context of the 60's and have the ramifications thought about now, it's a masterpiece just accept it and cherish it now that you have it and if you don't have it go
fucking get it.
3.Modest Mouse-Good News For People Who Love Bad News: Issac Brock the brain child behind modest mouse wrote a perfect mainstream hit and struck radioplay gold. I'm not sure if it was intentional, he claims to have been under the impression sony was going to drop them after them after this album. It's far from their best work, but it's a hell of a lot better than most of the shit i've heard this year. Brock has one of the quirkest voices i've ever heard, his lyrics are insightful and intelligent if you really think about what it is he's saying. There is a hidden philosophy and understated brilliance to the words Mr. Brock puts on wax, well at least for the most part. I mean dance hall is on this album, and dance hall is the one track that does kind of suck but it's still probably better than the best song on the new nickelback album or whatever shit passes as rock music these days.
4.Secret Machines-Now here is nowhere: This album was brought to my attention by a young mr. fred, and it's enjoyed countless rotation on my ever growing itunes playlist. It has some amazing drum work that you notice soon during the 9 minute opening track, the very song which may be the one major flaw in what these new yorkers via dallas have managed to do on their debut album. The first track takes too long to build up to an amazing climax, i could stand waiting i can be very patient sometimes but it lumbers too much before the payoff and the song could loose a minute and a half and be perfect, they aren't a band that can pull it off just yet. The rest of the album however is marvelous. Nowhere Again the fourth song into this beauty has a sexual tension that you can just feel, it's superb. I'm really excited for the future of this band.
5.TV on the radio-Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes: This record is simply put magical. Words can not describe. You have to work to appreciate this record, it's genius isn't evident on the first or second listen but god damn. If you aren't blown away, well then we can't be musical friends anymore. And Just for the Record Brittany L. Turner deserves credit for showing this to me, so thank you so much for enriching my musical life this year, as well as my regular one.
6.Air-Talkie Walkie: This album is beautiful and whisks you away onto a journey that combines simplisitic emotional feeling on top of stiring musical arrangements. It's hard for me to describe and album like this but seriously check it out.
7.Interpol-Antics: Is this record as good as 'Turn on the bright lights'? Ummmm....Well.....No, not exactly. Have Interpol come more into their own on this record? Without a doubt, the lyrics are improved on this one and people will still probably cry that the man behind the mic is still doing his best joy division impersonation, well they'll probably never come around, so fuck them.
8.Franz Ferdinand-Franz Ferdinand: Sure this album was over hyped, and it's not the only one on my list that was, but you can't fault the band for that. They make a solid album, with great songs. Take Me Out was a hit song, but the other songs on the album are just as good, and some are even better.
9.Les Savy Fav-Inches: This album isn't an album at all, it really shouldn't be on this list. It's a collection of b & a sides from singles the band has put out on a variety of different labels throughout their career collected and released on one disc. They're are so many great songs on hear, with some really inventive gutair playing and it's just really good.
10.Scissor Sisters-Scissor Sisters: This is the gayest album, i've ever heard. Gay not in a i'm an ignorant high school kid equating gay as some sort of derogatory term. This album is screamingly homosexual. It's a send up of classic rock in the vein of elton john at the top of his game in the seventies, combined with disco and electronica. Every song is worth a listen, and for good meausre there is one of the most interesting cover's i've heard in awhile, as the sisters take on 'comfortably numb' and gay it up.
honorable mentions
Wilco-A Ghost Is Born: This record was recorded while jeff tweedy was all high on painkillers? Well, let'spretend i don't know that's necessairly true. First this record is far from being YHF(part deux) so if that'swhat you wanted you are in for some real dissappointment. If you want to listen to some stunning pieces of music, well then you've come to the right place. Tweedy really pushes himself on this record, paying homage to some of his heros with songs that stretch your mind, and by putting 10 minutes of noise in the record the point of which i'm still not clear about but it does make you think, or at least it gave me time to think and to listen, and the first as well as every time after it still affected me, when i sat down and gave the record my full attention.
The Good Life-Album of the Year: Oh Tim Kasher, How i love thee. You can do no wrong. Everything Cursive puts out is fucking awesome, and these good life records are just so beautiful. Songs about being drunk, women, fights, breaking up, making up, love lost over the course of an album, with smart often self depricating lyrics, delivered in tim's unique voice that can really tug at your heart.
Eminem-Encore: Encore's biggest flaw is the fact it fails to deliver on the signs of mautrity that really first became evident on his last lp the Eminem Show. Eminem has grown significantly as an artist and it shows on more than half the songs on encore, but has managed to become even more juvenille on the rest of the record. Hopefully this record is just the transistion record artists sometimes have to make in order to either reach a higher plateau or to fail miserably and then go and remake one of their earlier albums.
The Hives-Tyrannosaurus Hives: The hives returned to this year with a really short, but full force rock and roll explosion. With the one of most interesting supposed 'ballad's i've ever heard. The Hives Rock, and are incredibly cocky, this is what made rock n roll back in the 50's and the hives don't miss on their third outing.
Straylight Run-Straylight Run: John Nolan and Shaun cooper departed from Taking Back Sunday, and really left that type of emo music behind them. They crafted along with John's sister Michelle and some guy on drums, a really beautiful album, which is conveyed not only in the soft piano driven songs but by the emotionally powerful lyrics that you can relate to universally.
My Chemical Romance-Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge: I once heard the lead singer of this band respond to an interviewers question of how emo are you guys with "we're so emo we shit stellar tradjedy." This record is fun, much more appealing to a high school mentality but sometimes you just wind up in that sort of mindset for awhile, and if you feel that way throw this on and you should enjoy it.
Head Automatica-Decadence: Glassjaw frontman makes album worth listening to, and not being 14 years and angry. It's a cool combination of different genre's and it's just a whole lot of fun. Dancey = swell.
Taking Back Sunday-Where You Want to Be: This record was too harshly judged by me originally it's one of the better emo records i've ever heard, and i think the band is showing signs of possibly escaping pigeonholing themselves as just an emo band, but haven't made the move on this record. But I'll cross my fingers for the next one.
Iron & Wine-Our Endless Numbered Days-This Album is good. Listen to it. Beyotch.
My Top Ten Of '04
1.The Arcade Fire-Funeral: This is the indie Hype album this year, critical snobs united and lavished praised upon this album. Well it deserved it, it's from start to finish flawless in my opinion. Infamously recorded during a time in which the band expierenced three close family deaths. This album is about grieving and coming to grips with it. Universal themes that everyone moving towards adulthood has had to, or will deal with and Win Butler and Company handle difficult subject matter in near perfect form. Partly orcheastrated and overwhelming uplifting if you pay close attention and album like this doesn't come along very often so it needs to be properly appreciated when it does. This album is emotional, without any doubt and for someone out their looking to reclaim that adjective from emo bands that often times seem to be feigning it, i suggest you look no further than Funeral.
2.Brian Wilson-Smile:Brian Wilson gave up this album. In 1967, he was 24 years old and had just had a mental breakdown. It was supposed to be the greatest record ever. It was supposed to be the brilliant mind behind pet sounds answer to Sergeant Pepper's, it was supposed to be a lot of things but it didn't really work out as planned, so how about it now? Will this record change the world or even your life? Probably not, but it's still damn good. This album has been heavily anticipated by beach boy fans for years, they've circulated bootleg copies of the unfinished product's demos around for years, and this album delivers. I've heard those demos and I prefer this, and you can't sit around and wonder, what if he didn't break down, what if he finished it then? You can't live asking those questions of anything, because you can't change the past so the choice you just have to deal with it, this album can't be put into the context of the 60's and have the ramifications thought about now, it's a masterpiece just accept it and cherish it now that you have it and if you don't have it go
fucking get it.
3.Modest Mouse-Good News For People Who Love Bad News: Issac Brock the brain child behind modest mouse wrote a perfect mainstream hit and struck radioplay gold. I'm not sure if it was intentional, he claims to have been under the impression sony was going to drop them after them after this album. It's far from their best work, but it's a hell of a lot better than most of the shit i've heard this year. Brock has one of the quirkest voices i've ever heard, his lyrics are insightful and intelligent if you really think about what it is he's saying. There is a hidden philosophy and understated brilliance to the words Mr. Brock puts on wax, well at least for the most part. I mean dance hall is on this album, and dance hall is the one track that does kind of suck but it's still probably better than the best song on the new nickelback album or whatever shit passes as rock music these days.
4.Secret Machines-Now here is nowhere: This album was brought to my attention by a young mr. fred, and it's enjoyed countless rotation on my ever growing itunes playlist. It has some amazing drum work that you notice soon during the 9 minute opening track, the very song which may be the one major flaw in what these new yorkers via dallas have managed to do on their debut album. The first track takes too long to build up to an amazing climax, i could stand waiting i can be very patient sometimes but it lumbers too much before the payoff and the song could loose a minute and a half and be perfect, they aren't a band that can pull it off just yet. The rest of the album however is marvelous. Nowhere Again the fourth song into this beauty has a sexual tension that you can just feel, it's superb. I'm really excited for the future of this band.
5.TV on the radio-Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes: This record is simply put magical. Words can not describe. You have to work to appreciate this record, it's genius isn't evident on the first or second listen but god damn. If you aren't blown away, well then we can't be musical friends anymore. And Just for the Record Brittany L. Turner deserves credit for showing this to me, so thank you so much for enriching my musical life this year, as well as my regular one.
6.Air-Talkie Walkie: This album is beautiful and whisks you away onto a journey that combines simplisitic emotional feeling on top of stiring musical arrangements. It's hard for me to describe and album like this but seriously check it out.
7.Interpol-Antics: Is this record as good as 'Turn on the bright lights'? Ummmm....Well.....No, not exactly. Have Interpol come more into their own on this record? Without a doubt, the lyrics are improved on this one and people will still probably cry that the man behind the mic is still doing his best joy division impersonation, well they'll probably never come around, so fuck them.
8.Franz Ferdinand-Franz Ferdinand: Sure this album was over hyped, and it's not the only one on my list that was, but you can't fault the band for that. They make a solid album, with great songs. Take Me Out was a hit song, but the other songs on the album are just as good, and some are even better.
9.Les Savy Fav-Inches: This album isn't an album at all, it really shouldn't be on this list. It's a collection of b & a sides from singles the band has put out on a variety of different labels throughout their career collected and released on one disc. They're are so many great songs on hear, with some really inventive gutair playing and it's just really good.
10.Scissor Sisters-Scissor Sisters: This is the gayest album, i've ever heard. Gay not in a i'm an ignorant high school kid equating gay as some sort of derogatory term. This album is screamingly homosexual. It's a send up of classic rock in the vein of elton john at the top of his game in the seventies, combined with disco and electronica. Every song is worth a listen, and for good meausre there is one of the most interesting cover's i've heard in awhile, as the sisters take on 'comfortably numb' and gay it up.
honorable mentions
Wilco-A Ghost Is Born: This record was recorded while jeff tweedy was all high on painkillers? Well, let'spretend i don't know that's necessairly true. First this record is far from being YHF(part deux) so if that'swhat you wanted you are in for some real dissappointment. If you want to listen to some stunning pieces of music, well then you've come to the right place. Tweedy really pushes himself on this record, paying homage to some of his heros with songs that stretch your mind, and by putting 10 minutes of noise in the record the point of which i'm still not clear about but it does make you think, or at least it gave me time to think and to listen, and the first as well as every time after it still affected me, when i sat down and gave the record my full attention.
The Good Life-Album of the Year: Oh Tim Kasher, How i love thee. You can do no wrong. Everything Cursive puts out is fucking awesome, and these good life records are just so beautiful. Songs about being drunk, women, fights, breaking up, making up, love lost over the course of an album, with smart often self depricating lyrics, delivered in tim's unique voice that can really tug at your heart.
Eminem-Encore: Encore's biggest flaw is the fact it fails to deliver on the signs of mautrity that really first became evident on his last lp the Eminem Show. Eminem has grown significantly as an artist and it shows on more than half the songs on encore, but has managed to become even more juvenille on the rest of the record. Hopefully this record is just the transistion record artists sometimes have to make in order to either reach a higher plateau or to fail miserably and then go and remake one of their earlier albums.
The Hives-Tyrannosaurus Hives: The hives returned to this year with a really short, but full force rock and roll explosion. With the one of most interesting supposed 'ballad's i've ever heard. The Hives Rock, and are incredibly cocky, this is what made rock n roll back in the 50's and the hives don't miss on their third outing.
Straylight Run-Straylight Run: John Nolan and Shaun cooper departed from Taking Back Sunday, and really left that type of emo music behind them. They crafted along with John's sister Michelle and some guy on drums, a really beautiful album, which is conveyed not only in the soft piano driven songs but by the emotionally powerful lyrics that you can relate to universally.
My Chemical Romance-Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge: I once heard the lead singer of this band respond to an interviewers question of how emo are you guys with "we're so emo we shit stellar tradjedy." This record is fun, much more appealing to a high school mentality but sometimes you just wind up in that sort of mindset for awhile, and if you feel that way throw this on and you should enjoy it.
Head Automatica-Decadence: Glassjaw frontman makes album worth listening to, and not being 14 years and angry. It's a cool combination of different genre's and it's just a whole lot of fun. Dancey = swell.
Taking Back Sunday-Where You Want to Be: This record was too harshly judged by me originally it's one of the better emo records i've ever heard, and i think the band is showing signs of possibly escaping pigeonholing themselves as just an emo band, but haven't made the move on this record. But I'll cross my fingers for the next one.
Iron & Wine-Our Endless Numbered Days-This Album is good. Listen to it. Beyotch.