Favorites from 2007

I did a favorite albums list for work and I thought, what the hell, i'll share with you guys as well.

1 Rainbow – Boris with Michio Kurihara (Drag City)
this album just restores my faith in the guitar solo. it's also a reminder of music's ability to transcend language. it's the reversal of all of those middle school Japanese girls singing "Take on Me" word for word in karaoke bars. and, let's be honest, there's no more compelling reason to learn the English language than to understand A-ha lyrics. also, if you put Boris's "My Rain" next to The National's "Start a War" in any mix, you're going to the bonus round, receiving a full ride to the Yale graduate school of Mix tape Theory and being awarded a gold star in my book, buddy. so anyway, yes. buy this album. it’s “incendiary,” “transplendent,” reaching “maximum heaviosity,” et al.

2 Weirdo Rippers – No Age (Fat Cat)
i wish someone could satisfyingly explain to me why music is better with a layer of tarnish and fuzz over it. understanding that would help me to determine why No Age is so great. until then, it's simply pop music for fuck-ups.

3 Reflexxions – Von Sudenfed (Domino)
does it make us weak if we prefer to hear a little humanity cued on our Mouse on Mars records? i couldn’t have more respect for these two but, i’m not gonna lie, none of their other albums are probably going to make it to my favorite albums of the year list. Smith evens everything out, saves us from the machines like T2, and helps Mouse on Mars pen their most accessible record.

4 All Hour Cymbals – Yeasayer (We Are Free)
“2080” is kind of a shock out of the gate. i wasn’t sure music like that was possible. these guys toe the line between grandiose and utterly ludicrous Jethro Tull and CSN&Y rehashing. they managed to finish favorably on “All Hour Cymbals.” it’s absolutely stunning and earthy and refreshing. feed that emaciated and long-neglected hippie in you. we’re all a little bit granola.

5 Pride – Phosphorescent (Dead Oceans)
Mr. Oldham, eat your heart out. “The Waves at Night” is the best song that you never recorded. okay, mostly kidding. there’s no inappropriate time to put this record on. plus, Matt Huock sounds a bit like Eef Barzelay which makes me sad that Clem Snide have all but vanished.

6 Woke on a Whaleheart – Bill Callahan (Drag City)
this is my soft spot. i know this album is far from perfect but I listened to this on repeat for six months and still go back to it giddily. it was one in which I kept finding songs that I couldn’t get enough of. at the end of the year, “The Wheel” is one of my favorite songs ever recorded by Bill. his next record should be a gospel record.

7 Let in the Light – Shannon Wright (Quarterstick)
i had the privilege of seeing Shannon perform for the first time this fall. she’s been one of my favorite musicians here since i started. this softer side – lush piano, minimalist accompaniment, giant vocals – is a completely welcome departure.

8 Ears Like Golden Bats – My Teenage Stride (Becalmed)
i’ve successfully hooked almost everyone i know on this record. that’s why I’m so mystified that they’re not being completely mauled by bloodthirsty A&R folks. but i feel like this album is merely the beginning of an extremely accomplished and prolific career for Jedediah Smith. i love the Chills, Orange Juice, the Kinks, the Smiths, GBV...if you say it's derivative, then you're too uptight. it's a melding of all of the very best things in life.

9 Fun Is Near EP – Artifact Shore (Interference Shift)
these Minneapolis gents haven't made their masterpiece yet but they're not far from it. they've got a lot of odds and sods scattered around on comps and splits and stuff but these are the most accessible compositions that they've released yet. maybe it sounds a little bit like eavesdropping on an argument at a construction site. maybe the construction site is underground. and maybe somebody just dropped a cinder block on somebody's hand.

Other 2007 discoveries:
Pictures for Sad Children – this is a daily comic strip that my friend John Campbell does. It’s funny and sad and cute and brilliant.

Mel Kadel – One of my new favorite artists. His drawings make me think of a more surreal Edward Gorey. Maybe someday, when I’m a rich man, I’ll have a couple of framed originals in my, err, apartment.

Stalking Detroit - It's been my latest obsession to find a copy of this out of print book. I've been absorbing Detroit history and literature like a 21st century "post-apocalyptic wasteland" tick.