It sure is the time of year for lists, huh? I’m seeing them everywhere, especially now that every other jerk-off out there has their own blog and thinks that their opinions of the year’s top stuff really matters. Well, unfortunately for you, I’m one of those jerk-offs but at least I’m going to admit that I don’t listen to a ton of new music and can concede that just about any other list you’ll find will be more accurate and attuned to popular modern society.
I am also going to spare you my enormous lists of great NYC vegan restaurants and best foreign films made in Hollywood of 2007 and only give you my listy opinions about music (and you will hopefully share yours) so as not to drive the whole end-of-the-year requisite lists into the ground. So, that being said, I’m going to try to list my Top 10 Favorite New Album Releases of 2007. Since I may not be able to come up with a full 10, I’m going to allow myself (and us) to pad the list with albums that you were turned on to during 2007, but came out whenever. Cool? Let’s do it after the jump….
All righty, I’ll go first, then…
(In no particular order, although the number 1 slot may very well be my favorite album of the year)
1) Panda Bear - Person Pitch
2) Black Mountain – In the Future (I’m picking this one even though it actually comes out ‘in the future’, Jan. 22, but I first heard it a couple months ago and I think it’s fantastic)
3) Black Lips – Good Bad Not Evil (the studio album)
4) Black Lips – Los Valientes del Mundo Nuevo (the live album)
5) Mother Hips – Kiss the Crystal Flake (see a couple posts below this one for a song from this one)
6) Ween – La Cucaracha (studio genius that we’ve come to expect from the brown boys)
7) Of Montreal – Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? (comfortable enough with my sexuality to admit that I love this album)
Arcade Fire – Neon Bible (sorry, this is on everyone’s list for a reason)
9) Libertines – A Time For Heroes (Yes, this is Pete Doherty’s ex-band and this is a ‘best of’ that just came out in December; it’s the first I’ve heard of the Libertines and I realized they’re really good)
10) Kings of Leon – Because of the Times (love this band)
I can’t believe I just came up with ten albums from 2007. I guess my ears aren’t completely living in the past!
NOW YOU>>>
12 responses so far ↓
Dave // December 19, 2007 at 8:14 pm |
I know what you mean, Newms. I haven’t listened to enough new music this year to come up with a top ten list myself. I would like to share a couple of records I found this year that I really dig, but you and your readers probably haven’t heard of.
1. The Shaky Hands
A brand new band out of Portland, these guys remind me of an early R.E.M., but with a more hippie/folk vibe and a bit more laid back. The grooves are infectious and it’s been in heavy rotation on my Ipod since I got it over the summer.
2. Sister Flo – The Healer
I read somewhere that these guys are “Finland’s best pop band” and I believe it!. A lot of the songs start out with a kind of Beach Boy-esque melody, but then progress into something quite different, moving into different keys and employing interesting and unexpected rhythms. Just don’t try to understand the lyrics. They’re in English, but it’s pretty obvious that English is a second language as they’re mostly gibberish (as far as I can tell).
kevmoore // December 19, 2007 at 10:07 pm |
Dave, I can confirm that, having gigged in Finland, even gibberish is preferable to Finnish, in which each word seems to consist of about 28 different letters!
Dave // December 20, 2007 at 5:24 am |
I just googled ‘longest finnish word’ and found the following:
Say that five times fast!
newmradio // December 20, 2007 at 3:17 pm |
What an amazing word. I wish we had a word for that.
kevmoore // December 20, 2007 at 3:26 pm |
I learnt three words when I was in Finland…Kurma, which means cream, Kiitos, which means thank you, and vastanotto, which means reception. Strangely enough, Ive never been able to use it in a meaningful sentence, even throwing in the name Jukka Tolonen!
newmradio // December 20, 2007 at 4:04 pm |
By the way…I just realized that I forgot to include the Liars self-titled album that came out this year. It’s a great (and listenable) album.
Kilitos for the kurma vastanotto, Jukka Tolonen.
Dave // December 20, 2007 at 4:04 pm |
OK, now I have to google “Jukka Tolonen” and lo and behold, he’s Finland’s national guitar hero. I’ll have to check out some of his records since I’ve never heard of him. Kevmoore, do you have any recommendations?
I only know one other Finnish musician, and that’s Jean Sibelius. If you’re in a classical mood, check out his Symphony No. 2 (or any of his symphonies, they’re all pretty good), it’s powerful stuff.
Red David // December 20, 2007 at 9:10 pm |
Not gonna struggle to come up with 10, but the albums that come to mind immediately that you haven’t mentioned yet are:
Feist – The Reminder
and for those of you who are into the dance/electronica realm, check out
LCD Soundsystem – Sound of Silver
and
Justice – †
Actually, Sound of Silver is so good, you should check it out even if that’s not your scene.
Happy New Year!
RobbyP // December 20, 2007 at 10:08 pm |
Okay, i know it’s kinda weak to comment on other’s choices before providing some of my own but for now i have to put my votes in for Neon Bible and Sound of Silver. Really liked both of those albums.
I was disappointed by “Because of the Times.” I loved about 2 of the songs but other than that i couldn’t get through the entire album more than 3 times.
I’ll duck as I throw these out there:
FIrst – i greatly enjoyed “In Rainbows” but then again I like most of what Radiohead does.
Also liked “Sky Blue Sky” too, but it’s really the first time I tried to give Wilco a listen so that fit’s into your Libertines category as well as the top 10 for the year.
I guess I didn’t buy that many new albums. More disappointing to me is that I can’t even think of one hip-hop album I really liked that much this year. Maybe I’m just getting old!
newmradio // December 20, 2007 at 10:51 pm |
Hmmm….Feist. Don’t know what to make of her. I can’t help but like that super-catchy counting song. I need to get the LCD album…it’s on EVERY list out there. I had the first album and just didn’t listen to it too much. I liked a couple songs a lot and that was about it. I hear this Silver one is badass though.
Wilco and Radiohead will be my fave bands when I’m 65 years old, I’ve decided. That way, I don’t feel bad for not feeling them now.
Cool…thanks for the lists, cats. Let us know if you think of anymore.
2 killer old bands I discovered this year…Exmagma and Edgar Broughton Band.
Lisa // December 22, 2007 at 6:49 pm |
I’m with you on Wilco, and what about The Kinks – timeless. There’s something about rocking out with a tiny trapazoidal guitar that says watch out New Year, here I come.
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