favorite songs?
off the top of my head...
Good Intentions Paving Company- Joanna Newsom
Stylo- Gorillaz
All I Want- LCD Soundsystem
Drunk Girls- LCD Soundsystem
I Can Change- LCD Soundsystem
Walk in the Park- Beach House
Cousins- Vampire Weekend
Sing- Four Tet
It's Working- MGMT
Briano Eno- MGMT
Bloodbuzz Ohio- The National
Terrible Love- The National
Born Free- M.I.A.
Written in Reverse- Spoon
One Life Stand- Hot Chip
I Feel Better- Hot Chip
I usually don't find out about the "big pop singles" until the EOY lists come in. So for now all my "favorite songs of 2010" are just from my favorite albums of the year so far.
Beach House - 10 MILE STEREO
Beach House - LOVER OF MINE
Beach House - WALK IN THE PARK
Jónsi - GO DO
Tallest Man on Earth - KIDS ON THE RUN
Broken Bells - VAPORIZE
Jónsi - TORNADO
Gorillaz - ON MELANCHOLY HILL
Yeasayer - AMBLING ALP
Laura Veirs - JULY FLAME*
(*in place of yet another track from Teen Dream, which unsurprisingly, gets my vote for best album of the year. So far.)
Shining - Fisheye
Erykah Badu - Window Seat
Drive By Truckers - You Got Another
Lindstrom & Christabelle - Baby Can't Stop
Gorillaz - Song with "Is this looove!"
Most of Charlotte Gainsbourg - IRM
Most of disc 1 of Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me
Shining - The song with the jazzy sax
Shining - 21st Century Schizoid Man
When I play albums I tend to just put the CD in and press play, so I have trouble remembering song names.
Favorite song so far is Attack Music by These New Puritans.
My favorite songs of the year so far:
Plan B- Stay Too Long(absolutely amazing, top 20 of all time for me)
Sade- Soldier of Love(normally I find her boring, but this is great)
and some other Plan B songs.
Laura Veirs - July Flame
Owen Pallett - Keep the Dog Quiet
Gorillaz - Stylo
Midlake - Acts of Man
Beach House - not sure which song to pick over the others, they're all nice
It has been a good year so far.
Albums:
Four tet - There is love in you
Angus and Julia Stone - Down the way
Beach House - Teen Dream
Pantha du prince - Black noise
Erykah Badu - New amerykah part two......
Songs:
Angus and Julia Stone - Draw your sword
Four tet - She just like to fight
Pantha du prince - The splendour
Beach House - Norway
Susanne Sundfor - The Brothel
Joanna Newsom - '81
Anna von Hausswolff - Pills
Owen Pallett - Keep the dog quiet
Cocorosie - Lemonade
Broken bells - The High road
65daysofstatic - Crash tactics
Four tet deserve to have a few more songs on the list. The same goes for Angus and Julia!
I am eager to hear the new Cocorosie album and also The National. Also the Shining album is one i have to check out.
My favorite albums are for the time being :
MGMT - Congratulations
Chapelier Fou - 613
John Grant - Queen of Denmark
Beach House - Teen Dream
New Young Pony Club - The Optimist
And "Je déteste Serge Gainsbourg" because I love Serge Gainsbourg (covers of SG legally downloadable).
Here comes May, and we have so far, these ones:
The New Pornographers - Together (leaked)
Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles (leaked)
Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record (leaked)
The Hold Steady - Heaven Is Whenever (leaked)
LCD Soundsytem - This Is Happening (leaked)
The National - High Violet (leaked)
Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma (leaked)
Band Of Horses - Infinite Arms (leaked)
Cocorosie - Grey Oceans (leaked... since march)
I know these ones. Any other releases? Especially the ones that haven't leaked yet!
The Mynabirds's What We Lose In The Fire We Gain In The Flood, has someone listened to it?
There's a Blitzen Trapper album coming in early June. I don't know if it's leaked yet.
It's not. The new Robyn album leaked though.
I've benn loving Flying Lotus's new album since the day it streamed, it is really good!
I just finished my first listens for the albums that came out May 4th. The real standout of the four is Flying Lotus, but all four beat my expectations.
I saw review comparing The New Pornographers - Together to Challengers. But, it's more in the vein of their first three than Challengers. Probably not up to the same level, but the Pornos are certainly back on track.
I liked the Hold Steady, but it didn't stand out to me the same way Boys and Girls In America did. They seem to be evolving further in the direction of Stay Positive.
I was surprised how much I liked the new Broken Social Scene, seeing as I didn't like You Forgot It In People that much. Maybe I should go back and listen to that again.
I'm going to listen the new Woods album, now. I listened Songs of Shame last year, but didn't care much by that time, i will listen to that one again.
I really like Anais Mitchell - Hadestown.
The National's new one sounds good on first listen, but they're a band that take a while to absorb.
My top 10 songs so far:
1. LCD Soundsystem- "All I Want"
2. Gorillaz- "Empire Ants"
3. LCD Soundsystem- "I Can Change"
4. Janelle Monae- "Cold War"
5. LCD Soundsystem- "Dance Yrself Clean"
6. Gorillaz- "Plastic Beach"
7. James Murphy- "People"
8. LCD Soundsystem- "One Touch"
9. Hot Chip- "One Life Stand"
10. Marina and the Diamonds- "Mowgli's Road"
Moonbeam, cool list!
Woohoo, The National's High Violet finally wove its magic on me, only took 4 listens.
I'm really diggin Janelle Monae's new album! Might be the best R&B record of the year, so far.
I'm surprised that a lot of people aren't into the LIARS new LP "Sisterworld". I think the new stuff is fantastic. I've always been a fan, but Sisterworld is a benchmark. Not quite as complete as "Drum's Not Dead", but amazing none the less.
Other albums I've loved this year.
Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me. I saw her live in Toronto, it was a fantastic show.
Gorillaz - Plastic Beach - Damon Alborn is one of the great musical mind of our generation, and plastic beach only confirms that status.
Beach House - Teen Dream - I've been a fan since the Self titled debut, but Teen Dream is on a whole different level. One of the greatest records ever made.
LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening - I'm a bit biased when it comes to LCD SOUNDSYSTEM. Too me they can do no wrong. This is Happening might not top Sound Of Silver, but it is as close to perfect as you can get. I love James Murphy's self awareness, and comedic undertones. What a fantastic album.
Can't wait for Arcade Fire, Panada Bear,l MIA, Radiohead. Could this year get any better?
I must say that after listening to the Liars album, Delorean's album started playing and i must say "Stay Close" is a great opening track and Subiza is a very solid record.
I'm in the middle of listening to LCD Soundsystem's new album for the first time. I'm *floored* by the awesomeness of this album. It's an instant #1 of the year for me.
I'm also enjoying the new album by Horse Feathers.
The ArchAndroid may just overtake This Is Happening as my album of the year. Holy wow.
The Janelle Monae album really is excellent.
Is it me or is this the best month for new releases in a long, long time?
An album that is quite nice and hasn't been mentioned here: The Radio Dept. - Clinging to a scheme. Formerly a schoegaze band, now I suppose "dream pop", whatever that might mean. From Sweden.
I also like all 3 singles by Joy Orbison, not often mentioned in this forum. But all his singles and b-sides are excellent, very danceable. And they sound great.
Still haven't heard Sleigh Bells! I can't find it as a lossless download (which is the only way I allow myself to hear anything; one cannot fully judge a work if anything from it is missing, such as from compression), and it doesn't get released until next week. But I am hearing so much hype about it. Cannot wait.
That and the new Crystal Castles and Paul Weller.
Yes, it was a very good month and I'm looking forward to the Mega-Critic update.
Idiots at Rolling Stone caused Sleigh Bell's 92 rating on Metacritic to drop to 89 thanks to their all too familiar 3.5 rating. I'd like to see every record in the history of music that Rolling Stone gave 3.5 stars to. It would be the size of War and Piece.
August!
This is turning out to be an incredible year so far. My two favorite 2010 albums so far are John Green's Queen of Denmark, which quite unexpectedly knocked me for a loop (and made me go back to The Trials of Van Occupanther and realize I'd sold that album very short), and The ArchAndroid, which - depending on how good the Arcade Fire album is - could very well end up being the album of the year. It's utterly brilliant, and for all its density is fully accessible and easy to appreciate on a first listen.
I am looking forward to the May Mega-Critic update with almost the same anticipation as a full site update; I fully expect the National and LCD to enter the chart in the top 5, and deservedly so, but Monae might surprise and join them there as well. (Also, look for Sharon Jones to make a big jump - I'm guessing I Learned the Hard Way hadn't been released in the U.K. before the April update.)
I just listened to Paul Weller and Sleigh Bells. Both great albums. 2010 is turning into a seriously awesome year. I seriously think by the end of the year my entire top 20 would have made my top 5 last year, and I think there are already three or four albums better than anything since In Rainbows.
This year looks like a 2007 revival. Arcade Fire, LCD Soundsystem, The National, M.I.A. and some others. And the good thing is that they all keep consistent. I'm excited about this M.I.A. album to come, since people are saying it's already receiving great reviews. It was hard to imagine she could make something as good as Kala again!
But it will be hard for any of these artists to top The Archandroid. An instant classic, for sure. Moonbeam said it remembers Sign O' the Times, for me it sounds a bit more like The Love Below, but in a much better way. That medley of the first songs is probably my favorite music moment of this year!
My top 5 of the year so far:
1) Janelle Monáe - The Archandroid
2) Gorillaz - Plastic Beach
3) Vampire Weekend - Contra
4) Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté - Ali & Toumani
5) Beach House - Teen Dream
Random thought, but I CANNOT wait for the new Walkmen album, whenever it may come out (definitely sometime in the late summer or fall, I'm guessing). In my opinion they are one of the most underrated bands of the decade. Their debut was great, and Bows + Arrows and You & Me are both masterpieces. I anticipate their next one as much as anything else this year.
A lot of real gems so far and I gotta agree: May 2010 could go down as one of the best months in history for new records. Seriously.
Two albums I'm really digging right now stand as anomalies against some of the great records of the year (LCD, Crystal Castles, FlyLo, Titus Andronicus etc) which all tip the hour mark; they are bouncy, exuberant, loud, raucous, nuts and capture the essence of youth really quite nicely: the much doted-upon 'Treats' by Sleigh Bells and the eponymous Fang Island record. Both worth checking out. CRANK IT LOUD.
Listening to the LCD Soundsystem album right now for the 2nd time. It was a surprise for me, since I had hated their self-titled album back in 2005. Maybe that had happened cause I listened only to a version of horrible sound quality, but anyway, I'd never looked for another thing by them since that. The excess of repetition annoyed me a lot.
Now this one really seems a great album! Drunk Girls, specially, is a perfect track, kind of a more urgent, epic and catchy version of Common People. The album reminds me of Talking Heads most of the time, but there's much of current indie in it also.
Have to check out Sound of Silver...
I didn't like LCD Soundsystem's s/t, but Sound of Silver is in my top 50 all time. If you like This Is Happening, definitely check out Sound of Silver.
Janelle Monae
I finally got a chance to listen to it. I think it is fairly good. Not perfect like so many have said. I read a few reviews before listening to it and alot of them were trsh talking the collab with OF MONTREAL. I thought it was some kind of an inside joke between publications. I really wasnt expecting it, but that song almost ruins the album. Without it, it would undoubtably be one of the best of the year. That song takes you completely out of the loop, thus destroying alot of what has been built up to that point on the album.
7/10
3 points taken off simply on the stinker
Don't forget LCD Soundsystem's 45:33. I still listen to that one as much as Sound of Silver.
I'm going to listen to the new Ariel Pink for the first time right now. It has received great reviews and i'm more curious about the guy now cause i just read at Pitchfork that he is going to record some vocals to the new (long awaited) Avalanches album. Now.. if the avalanches release this album this year, 2010 will be without a shadow of a doubt the year to beat, this new decade! It's being amazing and it only gets better! I also can't wait to the new M.I.A. album, i'm so desperate to hear something by that girl that i'm even digging her collaboration with Christina Aguilera: Elastic Love, the only worthy track of Bionic, since this album sucked big time, completely dated for someone who claimed to bring something futuristic and had such collaborators as Goldfrapp, Ladytron, Le Tigre, Peaches and Santigold.
And there's the Best Coast debut album coming in July, haven't heard a lot about them, but people usually compare the vocalist to Liz Phair (i'm a huge fan of hers, the 90's era!).
The new Ariel Pink is excellent.
That's what makes this year so great. It's not just that the anticipated acts are (for the most part) meeting or exceeding expectations (Vampire Weekend, Erykah Badu, The National, LCD Soundsystem...) but that a lot of good stuff is coming from left field as well (Ariel Pink, John Grant, Sleigh Bells, Avi Buffalo...). And then you have the previously impressive-but-nothing-special artists who have broken out this year (Flying Lotus, Beach House, Titus Andronicus, Janelle Monae...).
Ariel Pink and his Haunted Graffiti band have given me my #2 record of the year. I don't see how anyone could not like that album. It's such an ecletic blend of pop styles, yet it remains in the "not pop" category.
I've heard nice things about Hjaltalin's Terminal. I'll check this one out.
Ed O'Brien said that the new Radiohead album is in "the finishing line."
from Pitchfork
"Talking about a timetable for the release, O'Brien offered the following: "Ideally, it would be great if it came out sometime this year. It has got to; I hope so. We're at the finishing line. When you're making a record, a film, write a book for ages and ages you think the finishing line is miles away. Now it feels it's in touching distance. But of course, it being a creative process, at the last bit also, you have bursts of energy, you achieve a lot of things in a small period of time and then you're nearly there. It might slow down. But yeah, hopefully it will be a matter of weeks.""
if this happens... damn what a year!
This year is certainly going to be better than any year for the last decade. No album so far hasn't lived to it's hype, while some new acts are coming to the fore and showing us how it's done. With only half the year gone I think we can say this is a golden year, but how golden? Better than 1997? Better than 1995? Dare we say better than 1991? If someone put every album of 2010 in one pile and every album of 1991 in another, I'd pick 2010 in an instant.
Loving the new Roots album! Amazing colabs! That album is truly "Right On"!
Laurie Anderson's album is getting major acclaim too.
Seriously, who *won't* release a really good album this year? Next thing the Rolling Stones and The Who will come out with new classics.
This new band Perfume Genius has been receiving some pretty great reviews so far for their debut album, Learning. I'll check them out.
Bjork and the Dirty Projectors are going to release a collaboration LP: now that's something i can't wait to listen...
Wolf Parade's and Interpol's upcoming albums might be nice albums too... and yesterday i listened to Tame Impala, pretty good stuff.
Then I could hear it, but I want to own a hard copy of it.
BLK JKS - Zol!
An EP that is an homage to the World Cup. I'm surprised I didn't hear about it until I happened to check the divider for BLK JKS at the store.
One I'm not liking at all is Robyn - Body Talk Part One. She's getting away from the melodic dance pop I liked in her s/t and more toward, I don't know, trying to be Lady Gaga. With a lot of the lyrics it's obvious she's trying to sound hip-hop. And she sounds like a Swedish woman trying to sound hip-hop. It's the first album I've bought this year that I hardly even find listenable.
Anyone listened to the new (leaked) M.I.A. album? I wasn't a big fan of either of the previous ones, although I liked Paper Planes, but this one really is wildly uneven. It starts out kind of annoying, then XXXO is quite good, Teqkilla is bad, Lovalot interesting but I don't really see what that Spin reviewer is seeing, and it goes on like that.
Every 2010 album I've heard, ranked best to worst. (Not to say the last album is bad, so far every album I've heard I've at least liked.)
1. This Is Happening- LCD Soundsystem
2. The ArchAndroid (Suites II and III)- Janelle Monae
3. Teen Dream- Beach House
4. Have One On Me- Joanna Newsom
5. Contra- Vampire Weekend
6. Plastic Beach- Gorillaz
7. High Violet- The National
8. Treats- Sleigh Bells
9. There Is Love in You- Four Tet
10. Cosmogramma- Flying Lotus
11. Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty- Big Boi
12. Congratulations- MGMT
13. Transference-Spoon
14. Blackjazz- Shining
15. Wu- Massacre- Method Man, Ghostface Killah, and Raekwon
16. One Life Stand- Hot Chip
17. Broken Bells- Broken Bells
18. I’m New Here- Gil Scott-Heron
I'm listening to the new Liz phair album. "Funstyle". Well it sounds like a big Fuck You album. She really didn't care about anything when she recorded that. I really don't know what to say... it's not a return to form, it's a mess, it's all over the place, it's an experiment, she must be mocking someone or some people. People are saying she is abusing of irony in this record, and it does sound like that, but it's no Girlysound... it's an interesting mess, i hope she's not being fucking serious then it will be another kind of mess. It's sad cause everyday a girl comes out doing something that liz phair did and even receiving raves sometimes (Whip-Smart is so underrated). I love Best Coast and i swear all i can think about is Liz and Kim Deal when i hear that girl. There was no better time for Liz to come back than now , doing some lo-fi, noisy-rock or noise pop kinda stuff, not this messy-easy-to-be-overlooked all over the place failed experiment. This is a big irony or just the end of Liz Phair (yeah she has beaten her self-titled). I hope she at least come out of the ashes stronger... or maybe i should give up...
Konono no 1's new album is really good. A mix of electronica and african beats.
The bad reviews for M.I.A. seem to be from the more mainstream oriented sources like Entertainment Weekly. I'm glad she released an album that alienates all the people who only liked her when Paper Planes broke through to mainstream. It's like, 'We found her first!'
But with those divisive reviews I may have to change my Megacritic guess. Although I'm unsure whether rap gets good reviews from Europe.
Listened to 4 Arcade Fire tracks today -
The Suburbs
Month Of May
We Used To Wait
Ready To Start
I don't like any of them. I fear that AF are becoming a bit "poppy".
Wow, maybe Ann Powers is right... maybe Liz phair has always been a genius and no one notice. After listening to the album for a fourth time and reading some stuff about it i found out what each song means. She's mocking everything about music: the each day more homogenous female Singer/Songwriter genre, M.I.A., music critics, major labels, her fans, vampire mania... now things not only makes more sense, but also even more interesting. Funstyle is not the album of the year, but it's fun, full of ironies and it's the most pleasant liz phair album since 1998, even if it is all a joke and a waste of time. She's following her muse and having fun indeed. At first i felt like: mess, but i saw between the lines and i must say that is some stuff i saw at liz delivery i hadn't seen since the good ol' Girlysound days. I'm now laughing with Phair, cause you know... i'm not a huge fan of the new MIA either and she mocked her with "Bollywood"
By the third listening i found myself really liking the new Perfume Genius... short and great.
I just bought Big Boi's Sir Lucious today. I've listened to it about 5 straight times now. I just had to come here to say how excellent it is. After a slow June, the year is back on track.
A Panda Bear limited edition vinyl single is coming out next week. Not a new Panda Bear album.
I've only heard the new Big Boi once, but I agree it's awesome. Maybe the best rap album since Speakerboxx/Love Below.
Just finished listening to Best Coast's debut album "Crazy For You" (it leaked). It doesn't disappoint, it's currently climbing steadily my top 10 of this year. It's not a masterpiece, is kinda like Girls last year: great pop songs that eventually ended up in the same album. It is a terrific album. Her voice is full of personality and easily takes you to the mid-90's circa The Breeders, Liz Phair and even Hole in some parts. The production is noisy, though very clean in comparison to let's say wavves. She has this great ear for a melody and a hook. It is an album very easy to overlook: noise pop songs with such direct lyrics, but don't dismiss it. Debut albums fully formed like this one only come, especially for females, is rare. It is no "Exile in Guyville" or "Last Splash" or "Live Through This", just a great bunch of californian noise pop tracks and it's amazing how it sounded fresh to me. If you like Girls, the more accessible tracks of Deerhunter's Microcastle, this year's Dum Dum Girls and noise pop/rock in general there's a huge chance you will like them.
Here's lead single and opening track "Boyfriend" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sA0GWb3XzF8), believe me, there's much more after this: "Goodbye", "The End", "Summer Mood" and "When I'm With You". Some easy listening music doesn't hurt and honestly even non-album tracks like "Sun was High (So was I)" released last year proved to be as worthy. So here is where Best Coast's promise finally fulfill after so many promising EPs and in a year marked by so many great releases and a good, but slow, June-July period, they'll certainly find their place among other bands inside some EOYs.
I listened to Best Coast for the first time yesterday having never heard anything of theirs. Hit me like a ton of bricks. Bricks of gold.
Very apt comparison w/Girls - gorgeous little nuggets of mid-fi alt-pop. As 2010 an album as you could get. I see it slotting alongside Wavves' rather excellent (no seriously, he's cleaned up production and thrown a load of amazing Blink 182-esque tracks into the mix) 'King Of The Beach' as one for summer.
Big Boi's album: HOLLLLLLLYYYYY CRAP. It further cements BB/Andre as an act that will be revered in the highest light as long as musical analysis lives on. There's barely a weak track on there - I've picked out less in the way of lyrics that make me grin ear to ear (there were heaps in Speakerboxxx) but that's because the album as a whole seems more hyperactive, propulsive and hook-laden. Stirring stuff. I'm picking up the Janelle album this week, wanted to wait to buy it physically (pretty rare occurrence for me nowadays) but I don't want Big Boi to get eclipsed!
New M.I.A: did not like at all.
The Active Child EP is superb - wistful, melancholic but uplifting 80s indebted mix of gloom and pop; ceo's White Magic is joyous, breezy and a solid 8/10. Suckers' 'Wild Smile' on first listen sounded pretty great as well.
2010 for me has been a year of endless discovery, a veritable landslide of records I enjoy, appreciate and can get into; however the 'know every word, total band devotion' thing I did with Maxïmo Park/Kaiser Chiefs/Futureheads/Muse/Franz Ferdinand/Kanye West when I was five or six years younger...that's not happening quite as much. Probably as I'm trying my hand at a wider array of music now, much of it challenging and intricate.
I agree with a lot of the things you said Ddiamondd. And i need to listen to thew Wavves album! If they have cleaned up their sound, it's just another damn fine reason for me to listen to!
And still there's Arcade Fire in August and Deerhunter and Antony coming back in September. Wow there's a lot of great albums already, but keep they coming!
Baths - Cerulean. Just heard it over the weekend, and really liked it, even though I am not a big fan of glitch/chillwave. I've heard alot of people call it Flying Lotus with Passion Pit vocals.
Maybe I like it so much because I have a pretty funny story about the artist. Baths, the guy, goes to another forum that I visit. He personally uploaded his first album (which was only available as an Asian import) there. But when he went to post this album up there, he found out that a low quality version of it had already leaked there!
Now that I've heard MAYA, I like it. It's no Kala, and it is a bit uneven, but I think all the reviews slamming it are unfair. They're a combination of hype backlash, annoyance at her public behavior, and general outrage that she's not giving them exactly what they wanted. It's not one of the best albums of the year, but it is a good album.
MAYA = YAWN
and you can get all funky with the slashes if you want, the album sucks, extremely disappointed