as we approach the halfway point in 2005, perhaps its time to take a moment and look back on the music we've heard, loved, and enjoyed. well, at least i will. presented here are twenty albums that i've really taken to over the past several months; albums that have soundtracked the hectic process of moving twice, settling in, and falling deeper in love. take a look, maybe something on here will tickle your fancy. come on, you know you want your fancy tickled. admit it.
the top 5...
1. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm (V2)
recommened tracks to check out: "Like Eating Glass", "Blue Light", "This Modern Love"
this kicks off with one of the strongest opening tracks i've heard in years with "Like Eating Glass" and doesn't let up until long after. Bloc Party is one of the most promising young bands in Britain today, and if this album is any indication they are going to have an extremely long and amazing career. start following them now,
2. The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday (Frenchkiss)
tracks: "Your Little Hoodrat Friend", "Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night", "Multitude of Casualties"
without a doubt this is the best straight-ahead Midwestern rock and fucking roll album you will hear all year. music with heart snd from the heart. Huey Lewis was right, the heart of rock and roll is still beating, but who knew it was hanging out in Minnesota?
3. M.I.A. - Arular (XL)
tracks: "Hombre", "Sunshowers", "Galang"
if you haven't heard of this girl by now, this must be your first time ever reading a music blog. she's been the darling of the online hipsters since her first mixes with the Diplo crew surfaced, and big expectations have been laid upon her since then. her debut delivers and then some. it may not have blown up with mainstream audiences like it should have, but she will eventually. rumored collabs with Missy Elliott and Kanye West are on the way. hotness.
4. Okkervil River - Black Sheep Boy (Jagjaguwar)
tracks: "For Real", "A Glow", "In A Radio Song"
this band came out of absolutely nowhere for me and astounded me. i really can't being to explain how hard this album struck me, its an album that must be heard to be fully appreciated. chock full of soaring melodies, this is a haunting album that will stick with you for a long time.
5. LCD Soundsystem - LCD Soundsytem (DFA/EMI)
tracks: "Daft Punk is Playing at My House", "Disco Infiltrator", "Tribulations"
some people will try to tell you that this album is only worthwhile for the bonus disc of all of James Murphy's previously vinyl-only singles. those people are so. fucking. wrong. this album is like a crash course that plows through the world's greatest record collection - bouncing from the Beatles to Can to Daft Punk to Neu and back again, keeping you ass shaking the whole way through.
and the rest...
6. M83 - Before the Dawn Heals Us (Mute)
tracks: "Don't Save Us from the Flames", "A Guitar and a Heart", "Lower Your Eyelids to Die with the Sun"
7. The Kills - No Wow (Rough Trade/RCA)
tracks: "No Wow", "Dead Road 7", "Murdermile"
8. Bright Eyes - Digital Ash in a Digital Urn/I'm Wide Awake It's Morning (Saddle Creek)
tracks: "Take It Easy (Love Nothing)", "Easy/Lucky/Free", "First Day of My Life", "Road to Joy"
9. Spoon - Gimme Fiction (Merge)
tracks: "I Turn My Camera On", "Sister Jack", "I Summon You"
10. The National - Alligator (Beggars Banquet)
tracks: "Abel", "Looking for Astronauts", "Karen"
11. Ryan Adams - Cold Roses (Lost Highway)
tracks: "Magnolia Mountain", "Beautiful Sorta", "How Do You Keep Love Alive"
12. Youth Group - Skeleton Jar (Epitaph)
tracks: "Skeleton Jar", "See-Saw", "Why Don't the Buildings Cry"
13. Sleater-Kinney - The Woods (Sub Pop)
tracks: "Jumpers", "Let's Call It Love", "Wilderness"
14. Dalek - Absence (Ipecac)
tracks: "Asylum (Permanent Underclass)", "Culture for Dollars", "A Beast Caged"
15. Magnolia Electric Co. - Trials & Errors (Secretly Canadian)
tracks: "The Dark Don't Hide It", "Almost Was Good Enough", "Cross the Road"
16. Stephen Malkmus - Face the Truth (Matador)
tracks: "Baby C'mon", "Post-Paint Boy", "No More Shoes"
17. Oasis - Don't Believe the Truth (Epic)
tracks: "Let There Be Love", "Turn Up the Sun", "Lyla"
18. Low - The Great Destroyer (Sub Pop)
tracks: "Everybody's Song", "When I Go Deaf", "Pissing"
19. Gorillaz - Demon Days (Virgin)
tracks: "November Has Come", "Feel Good Inc.", "Last Living Souls"
20. Weezer - Make Believe (Geffen)
tracks: "The Damage in Your Heart", "This is Such a Pity", "My Best Friend"
others to consider:
Queens of the Stone Age - Lullabies to Paralyze, Coldplay - X&Y, Nine Inch Nails - With Teeth, Archer Prewitt - Wilderness, Bonnie "Prince" Billy & Matt Sweeney - Superwolf, Doves - Some Cities
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