Best Albums of 2010 (25-21)

2010 was a pretty stacked year for music, so I had to make some tough cuts when compiling my list. Last cut was the BAWSE! I hope he can find it in his giant heart to forgive me.

Probably not too broken up about his near miss on my list

Honorable Mentions:
Completely Removed - Medications: These guys are kinda like a poppier Dismemberment Plan and Completely Removed is a very solid record.

Friday Night Lights - J. Cole: It's a Cole World and we're just living in it. Though loaded with great tracks ("Villematic," "Home for the Holidays"), Friday Night Lights barely missed the cut because it plays more like a J. Cole greatest hits collection than a cohesive album and because of the lack of references to the amazing television show.

The Wild Hunt - The Tallest Man on Earth: Scandinavia's answer to Bob Dylan continues to flourish and write fantastic, yet nearly indistinguishable, songs about death and love.

The ArchAndroid - Janelle Monae: Monae wrote two of my favorite songs of the year ("Cold War" and "Tightrope" are better than almost everything else found on the albums on my main list), but I found the album a tad too conceptual and experimental for my tastes. Still, The ArchAndroid is a fascinating debut and Monae is capable of even greater things if she hones her pop instincts.

Teflon Don - Rick Ross: I wrote a glowing review of this one back in the Summer, but it just barely missed the cut because of the pure volume of quality music released this year.

Now on to the list:

25. Kush & OJ - Wiz Khalifa

"Everything is better when you're high" - "Up"

Wiz Khalifa reached the Billboard top 20 this year with the Stargate-produced "Black & Yellow," but his most buzzworthy release, the Kush & OJ mixtape, proves that Wiz is strongest when rapping over reverb-drenched guitar and 70s drums. Kush & OJ is a comprehensive chronicle of Wiz Khalifa's favorite things: smoking in the morning, orange juice, smoking in the afternoon, video games (see Chrono Trigger sampling "Never Been,") smoking with girls, Chuck Taylor shoes, smoking with his boys (he invites fellow stoners Curren$y and Big K.R.I.T. to join him in his "Glass House"), singing, smoking at night and rapping. By the end of listening to the record, they'll likely be your favorite things, too. Wiz boasts an infectious laugh (he seems to giggle on every track) and an even more infectious flow, reminiscent of stoner legends Snoop Dogg and Devin the Dude. Kush & OJ posits Khalifa as the quintessential 21st century partier, inviting you into his world of blunts, 40s and beautiful girls. Once you step in, its hard to leave.
Standout tracks: "Never Been," "Glass House," "Supply," "Still Blazin" (download link for the whole mixtape above)

24. Stuck on Nothing - Free Energy

"Bang pop pop. When does this searching stop?" - "Bang Pop"

Stuck on Nothing is what music would sound like if Big Star and the Replacements were the most popular artists of the past 30 years, instead of Madonna and Michael Jackson. Free Energy makes excellent pop songs with guitar and drums, instead of MPCs and 808s. More importantly, Free Energy is one of the few bands that do not try to hide their enthusiasm for their music. Stuck on Nothing is a fantastic synthesis of modern and classic rock, giving it a sense of timelessness that most music does not have . "Dream City," with its "na na na" chorus and sax outro, could have been written any time since Sgt. Peppers and "Hope Child" resembles what you would get if you let Julian Casablancas sing for Beggar's Banquet era Rolling Stones. That's the essence of Stuck on Nothing: a throwback that manages to convince you that it isn't a throwback.
Standout Tracks: "Free Energy," "Dream City," "Wild Winds."

23. The Hybrid - Danny Brown

"'Bout to live the title of the GREATEST RAPPER EVER"

Instead of posting a capsule review of Detroit MC Danny Brown's The Hybrid, I'm going to list some of my favorite lines from what might be, pound-for-pound, the best album for one-liners to come out in years:
"I rap like I bet my life on it/cause in all actuality, n***a I did/you rap like you used to hit the pipe/no that ain't dreck that's crackhead shit" - "Greatest Rapper Ever"

"I'm spittin' that shit, smokin on the regular/Writin' sixteens like internet child predators" - "Greatest Rapper Ever"

"Parque floor, green like Celtic/furniture you touch and be like 'what's that, velvet?'" - "Nowhere 2 Go"

"Sittin' in an Audi, L.A. hit the do-over/throwin' up the middle finger yelling f*ck Oprah!" - "The Nana Song"

"Eatin' Cheese Doodles, don't let the size fool you/tonight we eat shrimp take a break from the noodles" - "Thank God"

"Used to get domed up by crackheads/and still got my balls licked by pretty bitches" - "Re-Up"

22. Str8 Killa No Filla - Freddie Gibbs

"My sentiments exactly n***as can't outrap me" - "Crushin Feelin's"

Freddie Gibbs has a booming, authoritative voice and packs a lyrical punch to back it up. Gibbs has an uncommon versatility behind the mic, lending the same virtuosity and gravitas to weed anthem "Personal OG," as his autobiographical standout "The Ghetto." Like Danny Brown, Gibbs excels at painting a portrait of his unfortunate life for his readers, but unlike Brown, he has a fantastic ear for hooks. "National Anthem (F**k the World)" is Gibbs' mission statement, cursing out record labels who wouldn't sign him and the radio stations that wouldn't play his tracks, saying "all my sh*t still be bumpin/Never change my style up for any of them I'm strictly thuggin'." Str8 Killa lives up to its name, with great track following great track. Gangsta Gibbs is ready to hit it big and he's gonna do it his own way.
Standout tracks: "National Anthem," "The Ghetto," "Crushin' Feelin's," "Do Wrong," "Personal OG"

21. Astro Coast - Surfer Blood
"If you're movin' out to the west, then you'd better learn how to surf. The tide will break in on itself. There are no ghosts to exhume or unearth." - Floating Vibes

Astro Coast starts with the best 1-2 punch of 2010, when the Feelies-esque groove of "Floating Vibes" makes way for "Swim," a Weezer-like power ballad. "Floating Vibes" rides a distorted, yet melodic, guitar line to create atmosphere that lives up to its title. "Floating Vibes" is a perfect song to listen to when lying on a float in a public pool. "Swim," one of those songs that sounds like the band took the best parts of four or five songs and combined them, boasts a big guitar riff and an even bigger chorus. There's even a glockenspiel in the build-up to the chorus. Though the album tails off slightly after its exhilarating start, West Palm Beach's Surfer Blood out-California's most bands from California, recording the first great surf-rock album since Dick Dale died. (Bonus points for the red Gibson SG in the "Floating Vibes" video)
UPDATE: A little research shows that Dick Dale is not dead. Whoops! I still like the line though, so it's staying in. I hope you never die, Dick Dale! Here's "Misirlou"!
Standouts: "Floating Vibes," "Swim," "Harmonix"