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"

The Best Indie Songs of 2010 (so far); 10-6

The Best Indie Songs of 2010 (so far)

I’m a little late to the draw on this one, but here are the best Indie songs of the first half of 2010:

Note: The definition of Indie Rock is particularly broad nowadays – it’s more of a state of mind than a musical genre. I consider Hot Chip and LCD Soundsytem to be Indie bands, even though they do not make rock music (in the strictest sense). Gorillaz is even harder to define, as it has many elements of Hip-Hop, but is the brainchild of one of Alternative rock’s icons (Blur’s Damon Albarn). For these purposes, I consider Indie Rock to be anything that is widely covered by the alternative music press, spearheaded by Pitchfork and Stereogum (and other blogs of that nature). So, M.I.A. and Robyn would fit that broad category of Indie Music, along with disparate acts such as The National and The Hold Steady or Sufjan Stevens and Andrew Bird.

Honorable Mentions:
“Tell ‘Em” – Sleigh Bells
“Wild Winds” – Free Energy (“Dream City” would have easily cracked the top five, but I first heard it in Early 2009)
“Fast Jabroni” – Surfer Blood (“Swim” was a similar case to “Dream City,” as it might have topped this list, but it was released in late ’09)
“Friendly Ghost” – Harlem
“All I Want” – LCD Soundsystem
“King of Spain” – The Tallest Man on Earth (really, this is a stand-in for all of his songs on The Wild Hunt, which are equally excellent and almost indistinguishable from each other)

The List:

10. “Rhinestone Eyes” – Gorillaz



I should say here that I could probably substitute this song with three or four songs (“Some Kind of Nature,” “Superfast Jellyfish,” “Sweepstakes,” “On Melancholy Hill”) from Plastic Beach and I would be just as satisfied. I had to choose “Rhinestone Eyes,” however, because it best creates the type of danceable apocalyptic dread that Gorillaz does so well. Though lyrics don’t really make much sense when you see them on paper, they paint some vivid images when you’re listening to the song (“your rhinestone eyes are like factories far away”) and overall reflect the album’s main theme of industry corrupting nature. There are all kind of weird, twinkly electronics that echo throughout the song, turning what would be a pedestrian, yet haunting, song into a symphony of synth. The synth breakdown that acts as a chorus is particularly effective, framing Damon Albarn’s verses and giving them a significance that they wouldn’t otherwise have. “Rhinestone Eyes” is the centerpiece of one of the year’s best albums and manages to combine all the best elements of the band’s sound into three minutes.

9. “A More Perfect Union” – Titus Andronicus (click for full song)



If I were to break down the sound of Titus Andronicus, it would look something like this: the booze-stained Celtic Punk of the Pogues mixed with the epic Jersey rock of Springsteen, the anthemic pop-punk of the Thermals and the hardcore sound and story-telling sense of Husker Du. These are all bands that I love, and Titus Andronicus manages to fuse their sounds into an ambitious form of prog-punk-bar band hybrid that’s exhilarating to listen to. “A More Perfect Union” is the opening track of their latest album, The Monitor, and it is as good an entry point as any to the world of the band. It contains all the hallmarks: the snarling vocals, furiously strummed power chords, a great “oh oh oh oh” part, and lyrics stuffed with references to history, literature and rock music (Sample lyrics: “I don’t wanna change the world/I’m just looking for a new New Jersey/Because tramps like us/baby we were born to DIE!” and “Glory, glory Hallelujah, his truth is marching on!”). The song kicks into gear about halfway through, when an Irish guitar lick gives way to an entirely new melody for a few minutes, and then returns to its main riff at the very end. It’s always good to hear a straight-up rock song that still manages to surprise you, but Titus Andronicus seem to do it every time out.

8. “Norway” – Beach House



The first line of “Norway,” represents the trajectory of Beach House as a whole before the release of Teen Dream earlier this year: “We were sleeping until you came along.” On "Norway", instead of merely sleeping (as, honestly, I was before the end of their last album, Devotion), Beach House are dreaming, lending all of their songs an otherworldly and magical feel. I’m not sure what instrument they’re using at the beginning of “Norway,” but it’s entrancing and when meshed with the ethereal female backing vocals, it’s transcendent. Despite the multi-layered track and the large number of instruments used in the song, “Norway” still feels wonderfully delicate and understated.

7. “Bloodbuzz, Ohio” – The National



The key to listening to “Bloodbuzz, Ohio,” the most straightforwardly anthemic song on High Violet, The National’s latest, is to pay attention to the performance of the drummer, Bryan Devendorf. Notice how much more active he is than the rest of the band. It’s a great performance that adds a sense of urgency to singer Matt Berninger’s contemplative monotone, as well as kicking what could have been a standard rock song into high gear. When the rest of the song finally catches up to the drums in the final minute, it’s a revelation. While it seems as if some of the virtuosity has left rock music, it’s great to hear a showcase like this, especially from a band as normally laid-back as the National.

6. “Excuses” – The Morning Benders



“Excuses” starts off in a fairly similar manner to Beach House’s “Norway,” but instead of building on the slow intro, the Morning Benders change gears entirely, morphing “Excuses” into what a 50’s-style ballad would sound like if performed by The Walkmen (this is a big compliment). “Excuses” is essentially a doo-wop ballad, but mastered with a George Martin-esque studio sheen, even mixing in a “dum-da-da-dum” vocal section in the middle eight, mixed with 60’s strings and a modern Indie sensibility. If all of that seems like a jumble of musical references, it’s because I can’t exactly find the right one to describe “Excuses,” a song that I heard for the first time in April, but feel like I’ve known my entire life. It’s one of those songs that draws so deeply and successfully from music’s past that it sounds achingly familiar even at the first listen.