A good live show can lift you out of a funk, make you look around and realize there is no where else on earth you’d rather be, make the hairs on your arms stand on end, remind you that there is still magic in the music being made today. These are the eight shows from 2010 that achieved all the above and then some.
Octopus Project @ SXSW + KFN
[MP3] Wet Gold (Daytrotter Session)
[MP3] Cousins (Vampire Weekend cover) – Mumford & Sons
[MP3] When My Time Comes (Daytrotter)
Beach House @ The Sanctuary of The First Unitarian Church
[MP3] Norway
Menomena & Suckers @ The Sanctuary of The First Unitarian Church
[MP3] It Gets Your Body Movin
[MP3] Wet & Rusting
Futureheads @ The Basement of The First Unitarain Church
[MP3] Struck Dumb
[MP3] Candy Sin (Live SXSW 2010)
Roots & John Legend @ NonComm
Chris is another Philly writer whose listening habits are a total breath of fresh air for me. He points me towards a ton of new music through his twitter feed. I was super anxious to see what his look back would consist of and he’s delivered in ace form; haikus and a playlist to boot!
Heartbreak and hopes. What else is there? My 15 favorite songs of 2010, with haiku descriptions.Top 15 Songs You Might Have Missed in 2010
1. The Radio Dept. – Heaven’s On Fire
Thurston Moore intro
Swedes are always pop masters
Dance in your bedroom
2. Daedelus & Teebs– You’ve Heard
Would Barry White call
This hip-hop disco trip
J Dilla-esque?
3. Crystal Stilts – Shake the Shackles
Romance about gloom
That cylindrical bassline
Gets me all the same
4. Love is All – Bigger Bolder
Scream out your lovin’
Don’t care if it’s out of key
Power to destroy
5. DOM – Burn Bridges
Wallflower writes song
Leaving party with hopes dashed
“Make oneself an isle”
6. John K – These Dreams Are Never Coming True
Bedroom written jam
In the confines of West Phil.
Write more, Mr. K
7. Beach Fossils – Calyer
Double vocals stretch
Bassline pulses at the heart
Guitar noodle bliss
8. Teebs – Anchor Steam
Piano hits deep groove
Heavy in atmosphere
Arrested ears smile
9. Twin Sister – Daniel (Live at WNYU)
So many textures
live on a radio show
Help those hips shimmy
10. Thick Shakes – (Baby) You’re A Starfish
Boston upstarts wax
on Asteroidian crush
East Coast surf pop, brah
11. Reading Rainbow – Underground
Loud, fast, cut the fat
Philly duo own this sound
I learned all the words
12. UV Race – Gore Orphanage
Proof a good accent
All that’s needed for lyrics
Check out those horns too
13. Pangaea – Neurons
Dubstep for headphones
Crisp clacks, sound shoot off distant
London tradition
14. La Sera – Never Come Around
Noise pop does dream pop
Katy’s voice sounds huge, it’s bliss
Viv Girls need not rush
15. Sambassadeur – Sandy Dunes
Twee not shy to sheen
Trying to fight the heartbreak
Adequate beauty
And because he is so awesome Chris put together this mixtape so you can hear all 15 of these tracks.
I can say with 100% confidence that if it weren’t for Guha I wouldn’t have the same appreciation for and curiosity about indie music of all varieties. He was the booker for The Cave, the student run pub on my college campus, and in my four years there was instrumental in bringing some exceptional musicians to my attention. Even though the college years are long gone Guha still sends me new artists he has discovered and carries on the conversation about music past, present and future. If there is anyone I’d love to have as a regular contributor to TWIAPC ia would be this man. Alas, he is off doing super honorable environmental research which makes him a very very busy fella. However, he did take some time to pull together these awesome lists looking back on the music that grabbed his attention in 2010.
21 Worded Songs
Antony and the Johnsons, “Thank You For Your Love“
Arcade Fire, “Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)”
Black Keys, “Everlasting Light“
Das Racist, “Who’s That? Brooown!“
Roky Erickson with Okkervil River, “Goodbye Sweet Dreams“
Frightened Rabbit, “Living In Colour“
Gorillaz, “On Melancholy Hill“
Grinderman, “Palaces Of Montezuma“
Konono No. 1, “Konono Wa Wa Wa“
LCD Soundsystem, “All I Want” (Live)
Janelle Monae featuring Big Boi, “Tightrope“
The New Pornographers, “Crash Years“
The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, “Say No To Love“
Retribution Gospel Choir, “Hide It Away“
Superchunk, “Digging For Something“
11 Wordless Albums
The Bad Plus, Never Stop
Brooklyn Rider, Dominant Curve
The Nels Cline Singers, Initiate
Emerson String Quartet, Old World – New World
Hilary Hahn; Vasily Petrenko Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Higdon/Tchaikovsky: Violin Concertos
Vijay Iyer, Solo
Rudresh Mahanthappa & Steve Lehman, Dual Identity
Rudresh Mahanthappa and Bunky Green, Apex
Brad Mehldau, Highway Rider
Jason Moran, Ten
Steve Reich (eighth blackbird/Bang On A Can), Double Sextet/2×5
1 Greatest Musical Moment EVER
No Age/Sonic Youth/Pavement at the Hollywood Bowl
Next up in the Best of 2010 guest posts is Will Hines, one of my favorite people with whom to banter about music. Will lives in London so he has a perspective on the music scene that is very different from my own so I’m always interested to find out what he’s listening to. That is, when he isn’t plotting his next major move. His best of 2010 contribution is a great albums list and awesomely shameless best tracks list. It certainly made me rethink a few of the bands I had breezed over.
Best Albums Of 2010
10. Mount Kimbie – Crooks And Lovers
9. Foals – Total Life Forever
8. Two Door Cinema Club – Tourist History
7. Trent Reznor And Atticus Ross – The Social Network OST
6. Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
5. Arcade Fire – The Suburbs
4. Caribou – Swim
3. These New Puritans – Hidden
2. Big Boi – Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son Of Chico Dusty
1. Janelle Monae - The ArchAndroid
Best Tracks of 2010
10. Mark Ronson & The Business INTL – Bang Bang Bang
9. Erykah Badu – Window Seat
8. Teeth – See Spaces
7. Gold Panda
6. Willow Smith – Whip My Hair
5. Patrick Wolf – Time Of My Life
4. Duck Sauce – Barbra Streisand
3. Gorillaz – Rhinestone Eyes
2. Cee-Lo Green – Fuck You
1. Kanye West – Runaway
My process for compiling my year end recap is a lengthy one consisting of rereading posts, revisiting albums, looking at my iTunes play count etc. The part I like doing the most though is asking friends, other writers, musicians what the highlights of their years was. So, this year I decided to ask some folks to guest post their “best of.”
The rules were very simple. They could choose theme, length and level of detail. The selection of guest writers is a truly random assortment and I look forward to introducing you to some folks whose opinions I respect and tastes I learn a lot from.
To kick things off I asked Chris, the man at the helm of Battering Room and one of the most fascination minds to pick about music, to share his favs from 2010. The resulting list is pretty sweet- a few I knew would be there and a few bands that are entirely new to me- and I think you’ll find the same.
1 Foals – Total Life Forever
2 Midlake – The Courage of Others
3 Mussels – When We had Nothing
4 Born Ruffians – Say It
5 Local Natives – Gorilla Manor
[MP3] Airplanes (live)
6 Junip – Fields
[MP3] Always (Runroc Remix)
7 Best Coast – Crazy For You
8 Tame Impala – Innerspeaker
[MP3] Vital Signs (Midnight Juggernauts Cover)
9 The Thermals – Personal Life
10 Fang Island – Fang Island
11 Dinosaur Feathers – Fantasy Memorial
[MP3] Fantasy Memorial
12 Crime In Stereo – I Was Trying to Describe You to Someone
13 Matt & Kim – Sidewalks
14 Surfer Blood – Astro Coast
15 Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
16 Broken Social Scene – Forgiveness Rock Record
17 Working For A Nuclear Free City – Jojo Burger Tempest
18 The Press – INTEOTWIJTEOAE
19 Medications – Completely Removed
20 Mumford & Sons – Sigh No More
[MP3] Little Lion Man
21 Titus Andronicus – The Monitor
22 The Mugs – Gracias
23 The Besnard Lakes – Are The Roaring Night
24 The Megaphonic Thrift – Decay Decoy
25 The Black Angels – Phosphene Dream
26 Girl Talk – All Day
27 Male Bonding – Nothing Hurts
28 Menomena – Mines
[MP3] Wet & Rusting
29 Cloud Cult – Light Chasers
30 Black Mountain – Wilderness Heart
If EPs are more your thing Chris was kind enough to toss in his top five of those too. In no particular order…
Highlife – Best Bless
Sufjan – All Delighted People
[MP3] Too Much (Short Version)
Milagres – Tour EP
Magnetic Island – Out At Sea
Keepaway – Baby Style
Marie Stella – Trust
Yawn – Yawn
[MP3] Kind Of Guy
Harlan Pepper are on album number one and Young & Old is a stellar way to come out of the gate, especially for a group that is made up of a recent high school graduates. If ever you need proof that exposing kids to the classics, be it rock, country, rap etc, can make them decidedly more awesome adults than Harlan Pepper is it. Having a sincere love for roots rock, blues and folk has given their music the kind of sonic patina bands usually attempt to create using way too many affects. With this as their starting point I have a feeling Harlan Pepper will be leaving a mark in no time.
[MP3] Great Lakes
Lovelikefire’s new album Dust is most delicious. The San Francisco group is back with an evolved sound – richer harmonies, well thought out lo-fi effects -heard through out this album. Don’t get me wrong, the group has had keen indie rock sensibilities from the start but now its more focused. Whether it is the experience touring their material or simple getting more comfortable with their skills you can hear it through out. The track “Saint Martin” is so clean and beautifully haunting you won’t be able to resist looping is a few times. Get to know Lovelikefire, you won’t regret it.
[MP3] Signs
I love pretty much everything about Adele. From her strong beautiful voice to the striking way she presents herself. This video pretty much sums all of that up fantastically. “Rolling In The Deep” is the first single of her much anticipated album 21, due out February 22nd. If the entirety of the new release is as awesome as this small taste I’m sure it’ll be on incessant reply for most of next year.
[MP3] Hometown Glory (Chewy Chocolate Cookies Remix)
I love the quirk factor in this video. The Singing Adams is the new project from Broken Family Band member Steven Adams and marks a definite departure for the poppier side of music making. Born of some bedroom recording shenanigans he then roped a few friend into the project and now they’re getting ready to release an album, Everybody Friends Now, in 2011.
This video is sort of a vintage treatment of styles previously put forth by Ok Go and the Ting Tings but although it isn’t new it is still very well done. Cordelier Club is the bro sis duo of Richard & Alice Smith who clearly to lengthy dips in the talent end of their gene pool. Their sound is best described as infectious and laden with hooks. The single is out now; hopefully soon to be chased by a full length.
Last evening Badly Drawn Boy took to the pulpit of First Unitarian Church’s sanctuary for a nearly full house. I’ve missed opportunities to see Damon Gough in the past so I was excited to finally be in town for his gig. If you’re not familiar with the name you’re still probably familiar with Gough’s music – he wrote the soundtrack for About A Boy and has had songs featured on a number of commercials. In the 10 years he’s been releasing recorded material he’s travel quite a trajectory of musical development; proving his ability to create wonderful little worlds with his lyrics and arrangements. After catching yesterday’s hour plus set I’m disappointed to say the magic of his work remains mostly in his recorded work.
To open the solo set he nibbled at the songs most familiar to the audience – pieces from About A Boy & his album Have You Fed The Fish- but there was admitted discomfort with playing some of the songs because he had grown accustomed to playing with a band. While he was a bit weak to start he eventually found his footing and was at his best when it was just him and his guitar. That was when you could really hear the layers in his arrangements and pay attention to the delicacy of his lyrics. “I’ll Carry On,” a song written for the BBC movie Fattest Man In Britain, was a prime example of Gough talent for setting a vivid emotional scene without exploiting it. After playing a good mix of his earlier stuff he began to pull out some of the new pieces from It’s What I’m Thinking pt 1 his most recent release. It quickly started going down hill.
The newer material lacks the charm and creativity that has always appealed to me in Badly Drawn Boy’s work. At times it felt too much like tired hippy pop of the mid nineties and at others it was weak aimless soundscapes void of any real hook . To help fill out these new track Gough brought a guitarist and bassist on stage to join him which really only muddied the waters. There clearly wasn’t much time for the trio to practice which left made it feel like an unraveling jam session. I would have much rather the solo set had remained a true solo set. Even if it meant dropping some of the effects and depth I think it would have made to last part of the set manageable. Alas, with the chaos of accompaniment unfamiliar with the material left me feeling rather anxious and disappointed.
While it is brave stuff to explore new territory I would hope that Gough doesn’t sacrifice the essence of what makes him a notable songwriter – his lyrics & unique arrangements.
As I am busy combing through the last 12 months of music and shows trying to figure out to fit this fantastic year of music into a respectable recap I thought I would give you a few of the delicious covers that I’ve discovered lately. So dig in, listen carefully and enjoy.
Dynamite (Taio Cruz Cover) – Sarah Winters
Go (Daniel Johnston cover) – Sparkelhorse + Flaming Lips
The Wrote And The Writ (Johnny Flynn cover) – Laura Marling
Sleepyhead (Passion Pit cover) – Emil & Friends
My Doorbell (White Stripes cover) – Strangefolk
Radioactive (Kings Of Leon cover) – Cee-lo Green
Pull My Heart Away (Jack Penate cover) – Alex Winston
I Love You Always Forever (Donna Lewis cover) – Jukebox The Ghost
Lisbon, the new album from The Walkmen, is the group doing what they do best; providing a fully tailored neo-retro musical experience. The five piece from D.C. has been plugging away creating well thought out indie pop albums for 5+ years and while they may not be straying into major new territory they continue to live up to the reputation their early releases, like the impressive Bows + Arrows and P***y Cats, established.
The Walkmen’s loose but carefully structured sound – created by snappy guitars, captivating strings, rich horns, concise percussion and keys played with the appropriate amount of swagger – was incredibly distinct when they first emerged. Now that every third band “breaking” onto the scene is claiming some sort of retro lo-fi angle it is easy for them to get lost in the shuffle. However, with Lisbon the group proves what sets them apart is not only a dedication to their sonic aesthetic but also to the level of skill required to make it a true experience and not just a song.
The Walkmen isn’t a group for an anxious listener. You have to be fairly chill – or at least open to the prospect of becoming chill- really appreciate the levels of wonder their structure and delivery can reveal. Whether it is a cool track like “Torch Song” or “Stranded” which swagger with a steady confidence – achieved mainly by the interplay between the assertive guitars and solid percussion- or an epic ballad like “Blue As Your Blood”, whose full emotional weight is accomplished by the rise and fall of tautly executed instrumentals, you’re not going absorb the true wealth of The Walkman’s offering. Listen carefully and you will notice the mask Hamilton Leithauser’s affected croon places over the chorus of horns clean and simple bass line on “Stranded;” if the vocals were to be pulled away it would be an entirely different song. Or, close your eyes and take in the full soundscape being created with the waltz like “While I Shovel Snow.”
If you only give Lisbon a cursory listen you’re apt to find it a little tedious and too much like all the other “retro” bands out there; and I admit perhaps the greatest weakness of this album is that it doesn’t immediately set itself apart from the masses, or even their own previous work. However, if you make some time to really dig into the layers being offered up on Lisbon you’ll find yourself wrapped in astounding music.
