Since there are a lot of newcomers to the game lately I thought I'd mention a rule that doesn't get brought up very often:

Technically you're only supposed to vote in a matchup if you've heard both albums. The reason this game was set up in a draw format instead of a straight vote was to give a fighting chance to albums fewer people have heard of, and people voting against albums they haven't heard would defeat that purpose.

I don't know if anyone's been voting against albums they haven't heard, but since lesser heard albums have been winning close votes lately, I don't think it's influenced the results.

Division 2 final (1971-1982):

Marvin Gaye - Here, My Dear (1978)
def Prince - Controversy 5-3
def The Cure - Faith 6-4
def Pink Floyd - Meddle 6-5
vs
Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue (1977)
def Leonard Cohen - New Skin For The Old Ceremony 7-3
def Neil Young - Zuma 6-3
def Bruce Springsteen - The Wild, The Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle 7-5

Two albums that have had tight victories in low-vote matchups. There's no clear favorite.

Division 4 final (1993-1997):

Elliot Smith - Either/Or (1997)
def Aimee Mann - Whatever 12-1
def Sleater-Kinney - Call The Doctor 11-1
def Pavement - Wowee Zowee 14-3
vs
Belle and Sebastian - Tigermilk (1996)
def Fountains of Wayne - s/t 7-5
def St Etienne - So Tough 6-3
def Pavement - Brighten the Corners 9-6

The only album left from two acts that started out with three. Either/Or is tied with Silent Shout as the least voted-against album of the tournament in the first three rounds, so it has to be expected to win, but you never know.

Division 6 final (2000-2002):

Beck - Sea Change (2002)
def Low - Things We Lost In The Fire 10-2
def Aimee Mann - Bachelor #2 6-5
def Sleater-Kinney - One Beat 10-5
vs
Super Furry Animals - Rings Around The World (2002)
def Kings of Convenience - Quiet Is The New Loud 6-3
def The Shins - Oh Inverted World 8-7
def Beth Gibbons - Out of Season 8-4

One of the more popular albums of the decade against an album with a big cult following. This is one of those matches where the 'No voting unless you've heard both albums' rule works in the underdog's favor.

Division 8 final (2005-2007):

The Knife - Silent Shout (2006)
def Broken Social Scene - s/t 11-0
def The National - Boxer 11-2
def White Stripes - Icky Thump 14-3
vs
The Decemberists - The Crane Wife
def The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday 8-4
def Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam 8-6
def Belle and Sebastian - The Life Pursuit 8-6

Both albums have had a pretty tough draw, but Silent Shout has dominated it and Crane Wife has snuck by with narrow victories. Will the domination continue or will the highest AM rated album in the draw be upset?

Finally got around to listening to Marvin, but it didn't impress me that much. So:

Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue (1977)
Belle and Sebastian - Tigermilk (1996) (very close one)
Beck - Sea Change (2002)
The Knife - Silent Shout (2006)

*abstain*
Either/Or
Sea Change
The Crane Wife

Looks like "Silent Shout" will probably win it all, but I still don't get it. "Sea Change" is the best album out of this group by far, even the ones I voted for are simply good, not great.

Pacific Ocean Blue
Either/Or
Sea Change
Crane Wife

Marvin Gaye
Elliott Smith
Beck
The Knife

Pacific Ocean Blue
Tigermilk
Sea Change
Crane Wife

Div. 2: Pass
Div. 4: Either/Or - One of Smith's best beats one of Belle and Sebastian's middle ones.
Div. 6: Sea Change - It's not close
Div. 8: The Crane Wife - This one's pretty close, but I'll take a good story anytime.

Elliot Smith - Either/Or (1997)
Beck - Sea Change (2002)
The Knife - Silent Shout (2006)

Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue (1977)
Belle and Sebastian - Tigermilk (1996)
The Elliott Smith album is very excellent too.
Beck - Sea Change (2002)
The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

Div 4 : Either/Or, favourite album ever
Div 8 : Silent Shout (Decemberists album is very good, but Silent Shout is just incredible)

I don't like Sea Change much, but I have to listen to SFA once more to get a real idea.

Just listened to Elliott Smith again, and I'm gonna have to change my vote; it's better than Tigermilk. In fact, it's grown on me so much I'm gonna listen again.

2. (pass)
4. Elliott Smith - Either/Or
6. Beck - Sea Change
8. The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue (1977)
Elliot Smith - Either/Or (1997)
Super Furry Animals - Rings Around The World (2002)
The Knife - Silent Shout (2006)

And that's all for today, now I'm going to see Richard Hawley live

I didn't vote in the matchup between Boxer and Silent Shout, but of course Boxer should have won that one.

Easy votes for me all around this week.

Marvin Gaye

Tigermilk

Beck

The Knife

I'm certainly rooting for Silent Shout, but I don't expect it to win it all. Though, I do think it's one of the five albums that had a shot, the other four being Either/Or, XO, Sea Change, and Aeroplane. Those five going in I wouldn't have expected to ever lose to anything except each other.

Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue
Belle and Sebastian - Tigermilk
Super Furry Animals - Rings Around The World
The Knife - Silent Shout

Marvin Gaye - Here, My Dear
Elliott Smith - Either/Or
Beck - Sea Change
The Knife - Silent Shout

Dennis Wilson
Elliott Smith
Super Furry Animals
The Knife

Tigermilk

Rings Around the World

Silent Shout

Division 2 final (1971-1982):
Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue (1977)

Division 4 final (1993-1997):
Elliot Smith - Either/Or (1997)

Division 6 final (2000-2002):
Beck - Sea Change (2002)

Division 8 final (2005-2007):
The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue
Elliot Smith - Either/Or
Beck - Sea Change
The Knife - Silent Shout

I wanted to take the political route and vote for B&S knowing that E/O would be a harder match-up for In the Aeroplane, but I just cant bring myself to do that.

Also, I listened to a Super Furry Animals album for the first time. I wasn't particularly impressed.

One more day to vote.

Nothing's particularly close right now.

Just one vote for me this week.

The Crane Wife

And, the results:

Division 2 final:

Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue 9 def
Marvin Gaye - Here, My Dear 3

Pacific Ocean Blue becomes the lowest AM ranked album to make the quarterfinals, and faces against fellow underdog Brigitte Fontaine.

Division 4 final:

Elliot Smith - Either/Or 13 def
Belle and Sebastian - Tigermilk 5

But a flesh wound. Either/Or takes it's closest scrape yet, winning by a mere 8 votes. It goes up against first time underdog Life's Rich Pageant.

Division 6 final:

Beck - Sea Change 13 def
Super Furry Animals - Rings Around The World 4

Beck coasts through the division final, and now gets to take on Neutral Milk Hotel in the toughest matchup of the round.

Division 8 final:

The Knife - Silent Shout 11 def
Decemberists - The Crane Wife 8

After dominating the first three rounds, The Knife takes a lot of backlash and scrapes by it's final to face surprise quarterfinalist Michigan.