not gonna fly.

I live in Nashville. I like a lot of music, but I really like garage rock & americana. Lime is the worst flavor of Skittle. Some quick notes on the ratings: Steer Clear - Not worth your time. Take it or Leave it - Not bad, but not great either. Give it a Spin - Worth at least a listen or two. Who knows, you might end up really liking it. Must-Hear - If you like this band at all, you need to hear this album. Mind-Blowing - Masterpieces don't come along very often.

[notgonnafly]

Favorite Albums of 2011

I know we're already well into 2012 and I'm just now putting out a 2011 list, but I think the current trend of releasing a best-of list one week into December is a little silly. I also have been procrastinating tremendously. Don’t read into the individual album order too much; I spent less time on it than you might think. If an album is in the top 5, it’s probably spent some portion of the year as my top record, and if it’s on the list at all, it’s worth your time. The “Honorable Mention” records may not hold up from start to finish, but they also bring something to the table.

I've included Spotify links to the albums when available.

  Real Estate - Days - I feel odd naming this the best album of the year. There is an expectation that an “album of the year” should be a grand statement, and there is absolutely nothing grandiose or earth-shattering about Days. But it’s also the perfect Real Estate album; their sound is glistening, sepia-toned, and unassuming. I don’t really think any of the rest of the albums on this list are flawless, so it wins by default.

Black Lips - Arabia Mountain - It’s a little on the long side, but this is the album I’ve been waiting for the lips to make. Mark Ronson is getting a lot of credit for “cleaning” up their sound, but the production wasn’t exactly muddy on Good Bad Not Evil or 200 Million Thousand. What Ronson has brought to the table is that dap-tone sheen, which suits the vintage garage rock that these guys have mastered.

PJ Harvey - Let England Shake - love the autoharp and the vocals. The lyrical content is a little heavy-handed at times, but it’s such an atmospheric album that I find it fairly easy to overlook the preaching.

Beirut - The Rip Tide - Short and sweet. I can’t really think of much to add beyond that. It’s immediately satisfying.

The Dodos - No Color - Return to form. Dropping the vibraphonist is addition by subtraction - he was an outstanding complement live, but what made Visiter great were the rough edges and vibraphone just muddied the songs up. The songs here are more fully developed, but still pack a ton of punch.

The Black Keys - El Camino - The Black Keys struck while the iron was still hot. The last single from previous release Brothers had barely faded away before they announced El Camino. It’s inevitable that these two records will be compared against each other; as it turns out, they make pretty good companion pieces. Brothers was justifiably criticized for its length, so the Black Keys responded appropriately: El Camino is leaner and faster, but still fully developed. Outside of opening track “Lonely Boy,” I don’t hear the much ballyhooed Clash/Cramps influences; what I do hear is continued conflation of the band’s iconic blues rock with glam, soul, and neo-psychedelia, only this time, they’ve turned the tempo up. Danger Mouse’s production is very suitable - clean guitars, reverb, R&B backup vocals, and haunted house synths are great touches that never overshadow the songs themselves. The album reaches its apotheosis with the stunning “Sister.” There are occasional missteps: “Little Black Submarines” is a little obvious, and that reggae drum break in “Hell of a Season” is quite corny. Maybe they’re just put-ons, but it’s the first time I’ve heard the Black Keys do anything trite; in the case of “Hell of a Season,” I think it kills a song I otherwise love. But this is still a great record. The Keys have a gift for creating tight, instantly memorable songs.

Colin Stetson - New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges - It’s difficult to imagine one guy with a massive saxophone, standing in a room full of microphones, recording these entrancing songs by himself. They’re alien and apocalyptic and wonderful. The snippets of spoken word and the stark blues wail on “Lord I Just Can’t Keep from Crying Sometimes” are the only accompaniments, and they’re quite powerful.

Smith Westerns - Dye it Blonde - I am having a really, really difficult time pegging this one. On the one hand, every song is a shimmering flash of glam, brimming with teenage zeal. On the other hand, none of the songs really stick in your ears, and outside of the killer guitars, there is nothing of real substance - nothing to make me believe that these guys have any staying power. But if I’m reviewing this album on its own merits, it’s absolutely one of the best of the year.

The Decemberists - The King is Dead - My two favorite Decemberists songs were two of their twangiest (“Shiny” and “As I Rise”), so hearing that their new album was country-influenced and had Gillian Welch on backing vocals got me excited. It lived up to my expectations; the newish sound really breathes some life into the band. 

Atlas Sound - Parallax - The lines between Deerhunter and Atlas Sound have been blurred. Parallax is less rocking, but it retains the pop hooks and sad beauty that were the hallmarks of last year’s Halcyon Digest.

My Morning Jacket - Circuital - What a relief. I had written off MMJ after they dumped half-assed Evil Urges in our laps; I was convinced that they had lost sight of the fact that their listeners aren’t in on every musical in-joke. Circuital isn’t without its flaws, but the songs are fully developed and there aren’t any awkward goofball jokes like “Highly Suspicious” or that awful “interwebs” line in “Librarian.” 

Megafaun - Megafaun - Somewhere between Blitzen Trapper and Tame Impala, but with twice the pop sensibility and half the haste of either.  Neil Young is another readily apparent touchstone; “Resurrection” borrows the opening chords from Neil Young’s “Pocahontas” before reaching a slightly faster cruising speed. The only complaint I have about this album is its length; 61 minutes is a long haul, and there isn’t quite enough variation in the songs for it to hold your close attention the whole way. But it’s great soundtrack music for a rainy afternoon or a drive on the highway.

The War on Drugs - Slave Ambient -  Slave Ambient gets off to a bit of a difficult start. Some of the most grating, off-key vocals are present in the first three tracks, and the backing tracks don’t really go anywhere interesting. Stick with it, though; once the big machine gets moving, you’ll discover some truly beautiful moments. I’m not sure what it is that changes between those listless three openers and the rest, but the final three quarters are a seamless thread of rambling - individual songs blur into each other blissfully. The runaway highlight of Slave Ambient is “Baby Missiles”, an incessantly catchy Springsteen pastiche. I am reminded of the feeling i get staring out at the vastness of nature from the windows of trains and airplanes. 

Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring for My Halo  - Maybe it's hacky to rank The War on Drugs & Kurt Vile back to back, but I really have a hard time extracting one from the other. Kurt Vile is sleepier and a bit less electronic, but these two guys are equally obsessed with texture. Kurt's apathetic, occasionally sneering vocals do quite a bit to conceal his thoughtful lyrics, but he lets true beauty shine through via catchy, melodious guitars.

Tristen - Charlatans at the Garden Gate - Tristen has already begun to leave behind the americana and pop-rock that anchors this album, which is kind of a shame, because she's so good at it. But even if she never releases another rootsy album, we at least have this gem to hold onto. 

Bass Drum of Death - GB City - Sleazy two-man garage rock. It’s a familiar trope these days, but that doesn’t mean it’s played out. “Velvet Itch” makes me want to run through a brick wall.

Dum Dum Girls - Only in Dreams - The band continues down the path hinted at on January’s excellent He Gets Me High EP. The drums get noticeably repetitive in the middle tracks; following them up with 6 ½ minute heartache ballad “Coming Down” was an odd sequencing choice.

Thee Oh Sees - Carrion Crawler / The Dream - When Thee Oh Sees focus less on start-stop freakouts and just hammer away on a riff, they're capable of truly transcendent psychedelia. Case in point: "Contraption/Soul Desert," a cover/reinterpretation of some old Can song that turns krautrock fluff into holy roller madness. 

Honorable Mention

There is a lot of what can loosely be described as garage rock on this list, which is unsurprising, because (a) I love garage rock and (b) it's very rare for a garage band to be capable of releasing an album that stays fresh and holds my attention from front to back. I know a lot of people aren't into it, so I've split the list into Garage and Non-Garage divisions:

Garage Division:

JEFF the Brotherhood - We Are the Champions 

Ty Segall - Goodbye Bread

Jacuzzi Boys - Glazin’

Night Beats - Night Beats

Mikal Cronin - Mikal Cronin

Bad Sports - Kings of the Weekend 

The Ettes - Wicked Will 

Reigning Sound - Abdication . . . For Your Love

The Strange Boys - Live Music - Not as crazy as And Girls Club. Nowhere near as sparse as Be Brave. Just solid and rootsy all around. Ryan Sambol’s vocals are still bleary and only marginally melodic - they’re probably a deal-breaker for many, but I think it mostly works.

Those Darlins - Screws Get Loose - The twang is mostly gone; instead, it’s garage rock & 60s girl power. Less consistent than their debut, but somehow an improvement. I’ll also note that they appear to have transformed from a band best heard on record (due to their sloppy, drunken sets) to an invigorating live act. Jessi Darlin has emerged as the best songwriter and also the most distinctive voice; everybody else’s songs are ok, but “Screws Get Loose,” “Be Your Bro,” and “Tina Says” are in another league.

Non-Garage Division:

Washed Out - Within and Without

Radiohead - The King of Limbs

Unknown Mortal Orchestra - Unknown Mortal Orchestra

The Features - Wilderness 

Nikki Lane - Walk of Shame

Jonathan Wilson - Gentle Spirit - Extended, sleepy, and yet memorable, in the vein of CSN. Wilson’s guitar lines are great; his style is reminiscent of Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour, but don’t let that comparison (or the extended run times) scare you off - there’s no trace of prog-rock’s stereotypical self-indulgence. Lots of atmosphere. Made to be played on a lazy summer afternoon or a rainy winter day.

Peter Bjorn & John - Gimme Some

Alabama Shakes - Alabama Shakes EP 

AgesandAges - Alright You Restless

[notgonnafly]

Sound Opinions is a great music show put on by WBEZ in Chicago. A couple of weeks ago, they did an in-depth discussion of Rust Never Sleeps, which really is one of the best written and 'realest' albums ever. Check it out (accompanying show notes).

[notgonnafly]

Jacuzzi Boys - Glazin'

Rated: Take It or Leave It

Production notwithstanding, this is a good album. The songs are more of the same - fast, catchy garage perfectly suited for napping on the beach or rolling around town on a humid night. The mix just doesn't suit the band. I don't expect them to fully capture their live energy on record - few bands can. But this record doesn't even come close. All of the wonderfully rough edges are sanded down. In concert, frontman Gabriel comes off like a whacked-out Sam the Sham, all deranged stares, screams, and divebomb howls. Whatever vocal effects they're using here make him sound wispy and tired. Likewise, Danny's typically thundering bass drum is often buried too low in the mix to be felt. "Cool Vapors", "Silver Sphere (Death Dream)", and title track "Glazin'" are notable exceptions - the drums are right up front, giving the songs immediacy.

If you're already a fan of Jacuzzi Boys, Glazin' should prove a satisfying listen, and I imagine many of these songs becoming live staples. But I just don't anticipate it drawing in new listeners. If you're curious, I'd recommend their previous release, No Seasons, or the vinyl-only Live at Third Man Records (if you can find a copy).

Spotify link & goofy stock footage music video after the jump.

Jacuzzi Boys - Glazin' (Spotify)

[notgonnafly]

The War on Drugs - Slave Ambient

Rated - Give It a Spin

The War on Drugs is a Philadelphia-based outfit fronted (and primarily directed) by Adam Granduciel. Slave Ambient is a relatively upbeat record, but still very much in the same vein as occasional bandmate/collaborator Kurt Vile's acclaimed 2011 release, Smoke Ring for My Halo. Granduciel has a vocal and lyrical style highly reminiscent of protest-era Bob Dylan. But where "early Dylan" appeared unconcerned with production and arrangement, the primary focus of Slave Ambient is atmosphere. 

Slave Ambient gets off to a bit of a difficult start. Some of the most grating, off-key vocals are present in the first three tracks. Stick with it, though, and you'll discover some truly beautiful moments. The runaway highlight of Slave Ambient is "Baby Missiles", an incessantly catchy Springsteen pastiche. Elsewhere, individual songs blur into each other blissfully. I am reminded of the feeling i get staring out at the vastness of nature from the windows of trains and airplanes.

The War On Drugs – Slave Ambient

Official Video for "Baby Missiles" (I was quite excited to see that it's filled with the same sort of imagery that the album generates in my own brain):

[notgonnafly]

The Ettes - Wicked Will

Rated: Give it a Spin

The Ettes are an L.A. garage rock band transplanted to Nashville. Somehow I've managed to hang around the nashville scene for a couple years now without seeing them play a show (same story with Cheap Time - maybe I'll catch them eventually as well). While I've read mentions of them for quite a while, the extent of my previous exposure to them has been repeated listens to "Take It With You", an outstanding track from their previous release, Do You Want Power.

Lead singer/guitarist Coco Hames has a beautiful, soulful voice. Her confidence comes from someplace sinister and mysterious; that fits the sound of this record perfectly. Wicked Will is a bluesy, slow-burning album, which is quite a departure from the majority of garage rock coming out of Nashville right now. The guitar alternates between fuzzy and ethereal, but remains understated throughout, allowing the outstanding rhythm section to keep the album cruising. Seriously - try listening to "One By One", "Trouble with You", or "Stay Where You Are" without stomping along.

This is a purposeful album, masterfully trimmed of excess. Only two songs top 3 minutes. I can't wait for a chance to hear them fleshed out in a live setting.

The Ettes – Wicked Will (Spotify)

Ridiculous video for "Excuse" (featuring the ever-hilarious Patton Oswalt):

[notgonnafly]

Ty Segall - Goodbye Bread

Rated - Take It or Leave It

First of all, what an excellent album cover. Kudos. Unfortunately, that bloodhound's dour expression is all too indicative of the music that lies within. Ty Segall's focus on this album was evidently songwriting, and it has taken a step forward, but aside from a couple tracks ("My Head Explodes" and "Where Your Head Goes"), nothing here is of particular interest. The energy of Lemons and Melted is largely stripped away. Chalk it up to growing pains, perhaps; I had similar feelings about the Black Lips' 200 Million Thousand, and they came back from that diversion with a vengeance. I definitely see more great records in Ty Segall's future, especially if he can integrate the complexities of this record with the psychedelic battering rams he's cut in the past. But for now, best to explore the back catalog and (above all) see him play live every chance you get.

Not available on Spotify (yet), so here's a link to it on grooveshark.

[notgonnafly]

King Tuff - Was Dead

Rated: Must-Hear

King Tuff is Vermont guitarist Kyle Thomas. He's involved in several bands, including Feathers, Witch (with Dinosaur Jr. frontman J. Mascis), and Happy Birthday. I first came into contact with Thomas via Happy Birthday's s/t record, which received a fair amount of blog hype last year. Happy Birthday is framed in scuzz, but ultimately an airy, dreamy retro-pop record - not the sort of thing I gravitate towards. I was a little surprised to learn that Happy Birthday's singer had released a more "conventional" garage rock record back in 2008, so I checked it out.

A couple of things make Was Dead stand out among the seemingly millions of garage rock records that have dropped in the past decade: the vocals and the riffs. King Tuff can sneer and scream with the best of them, but he also sings in a quaver that hints at the sensitivity and vulnerability that lies beneath the hardened surface of every great songwriter. And oh, those riffs! I love the meandering, glammy guitar lines streaming through tracks like "Sun Medallion" and "Freak When I'm Dead."

King Tuff – Was Dead (Spotify)

[notgonnafly]

Starting this back up.

  I barely used this blog before I lost interest. I am going to try to get things rolling again. I'm not entirely sure what the theme or format will be. I'm going to at least start with the intent of sharing new & old music discoveries to my brothers, both of whom share my love of americana and garage rock. Maybe I will post my thoughts on albums. Maybe I will link to videos I like. Maybe I will keep a concert journal. Who knows.

I guess I should link to some sort of music, so here's Turbo Fruits, an excellent 4-piece from Nashville. They've got their own label and a new album in the works. The "Keepin' On" 7" came out last December.

Turbo Fruits - "Keepin' On" (mp3 link)

[notgonnafly]

If I had to pick a favorite instrument, it would be pedal steel guitar. I don't think I've ever heard a song and thought "too much steel." So it's no surprise that my favorite part of "Old Man" is Ben Keith's steel guitar blasting forth like the first rays of the rising sun.

[notgonnafly]

Favorite Radiohead Songs

Paste Magazine recently posted a list of "Radiohead's 20 greatest songs" in anticipation of their new album, The King of Limbs, which drops on the 19th. I can't say that I agree with their list much at all - for starters, "Fake Plastic Trees" is incredibly overrated. It's a Radiohead song for people that don't like Radiohead (moreso than "Creep"). So I'm going to do my own.

Trying to put together this list has taught me that ranking songs by any of my favorite musicians is just about impossible. I've likely spent more time listening to Radiohead in my life than any other band. They, along with The Beatles, are the only artists to have kept their spaces in my pantheon for the entirety of the 11 or so years since my musical awakening (good idea for a followup post!).

The list follows. I will be updating the list to include some notes on each song as they materialize in my brain.

30. My Iron Lung

29. Electioneering

28. Planet Telex

27. A Punchup at a Wedding  

26. Jigsaw Falling into Place 

25. Myxomatosis

24. Sail to the Moon

23. Reckoner

22. Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box

21. Just

20. Polyethylene

19. Creep

18. Karma Police

17. Everything in its Right Place

16. Knives Out

15. Bodysnatchers

14. Idioteque

13. Exit Music (For a Film)

12. Nude

11. The National Anthem

10. Street Spirit [Fade Out]

9. Let Down 

8. No Surprises

7. Pyramid Song

6. Paranoid Android - The song that put the hook in me. I remember seeing the music video on vacation in Florida when I was 10 or 11 and having my mind blown. Then I heard the song again in a friend's car in ninth grade and deciding I had to find more. The logical comparison is to The Beatles' "Happiness is a Warm Gun" - both are amalgams of unrelated song fragments that sound great despite the abrupt transitions.

5. I Might Be Wrong

4. Airbag - OK Computer has always been my favorite Radiohead album. I've never had a very good answer for what my favorite song on OK Computer is, though. It's a consistently great album - none of the individual tracks stand very far out from the crowd. Put a gun to my head and I guess I'd pick "Airbag". The lyrics aren't anything particularly arresting, but the vocals in the coda give me chills. Really neat guitar effects during the solos, too.

3. How to Disappear Completely

2. Optimistic

1. There There

[notgonnafly]

2010

I work in a field related to residential & commercial building construction. I work in a county that grew significantly in the 1990s and early 2000s. The recession was particularly tough on us. Things here still haven't truly recovered. Some new construction is taking place, but it's mostly small-scale commercial & industrial stuff; the housing market was terribly bloated. As a result, my work hours have dwindled. When I started working here, I pulled 45 hours a week. Now it's around 30-32. The company also closed for roughly 2 weeks in late December in both 2009 and 2010.

Having two weeks off work left me with some of time to sit and think. Boredom set in a bit. I spent time listening to records. I decided to re-listen to all of the 2010 music releases I had acquired. Then I decided to make a list of my favorites. Then I decided to write a few of my thoughts about each. I had no plans to show this list to anybody. Then I did share it with a few friends. I never got any feedback, which I assume means that it really was the self-indulgent drivel that I feared. I've yet to tell anybody about this tumblr, so I'm exiling it here.

This is a list of my most-enjoyed albums of 2010. Trying to rank albums is difficult, but I did my best. It might have made more sense to just delineate different levels of enjoyment - Albums 1 & 2 stood far above the rest for me, 3-6 were all on a similar level, as were 7-11 and 12-16. I also included an “honorable mention” list, which are another ten or so albums that I particularly enjoyed. The writeups are a sort of pathetic attempt to describe each album and what made me rank it where I did. Feel free to make fun of them.

16. The Morning Benders - Big Echo - I’ve had a difficult time trying to come up with a good way to sum up this album, but I love it. I am generally indifferent towards indie pop, especially the uptempo & airier stuff. So what makes this album an exception? I have no idea. They do remind me of The Shins; maybe that’s it. Perhaps it’s the slow, experimental numbers peppered in (“Hand Me Downs”, “Mason Jar”, etc.); think Grizzly Bear, but less boring. Either way, this is probably one of the most “mainstream” or “accessible” albums on this list.

“All Day Day Light” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QtWTRW4R-Y

15. Gorillaz - Plastic Beach - Initial impression from back in March still holds true: “Settles into a very nice groove. Of course that also means that the standout tracks don't shine quite as bright as they did on the first two albums. As usual, lots of guest spots - some are brilliant (Mos Def, Bobby Womack), while a few seem a little out of place and even distracting (looking at you, Snoop). Favorite tracks thus far are ‘Sweepstakes’ and ‘White Flag.’” “Stylo” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhPaWIeULKk  14. Harlem - Hippies - Harlem don’t really compare to any of the other musicians on this list when it comes to technical skill, vocal ability, or lyrical complexity. But they rock out like nobody’s business and have a knack for writing great garage punk tunes. None of the songs stick around long enough for the simple riffs to wear out their welcome, and they change up the pace enough to keep things from getting reaching the boring Ramones zone. “Friendly Ghost” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lc8kyhiKKuY 13. Arcade Fire - The Suburbs - Lots of good songs.  A few fantastic ones. Starts off like another great Arcade Fire album, gets bogged down by the preachier suburb songs, then totally redeems itself with “Sprawl II.” Neon Bible was noticeable indebted to Bruce Springsteen; The Suburbs is more inspired by 1980s electronica. One noticeable exception is “Month of May,” a terrifically raw punk song in need of a bridge. “Ready to Start” (live) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oI27uSzxNQ 12. Wolf Parade - Expo 86 - Expo 86 never builds to any of the emotional highs of the second half of Apologies to The Queen Mary, but it’s a consistently good record that closes with the breakneck “Cave-O-Sapien”, which quickly became one of my favorite Wolf Parade songs. If you aren’t already a Wolf Parade fan, this probably isn’t going to convert you, but if you’ve enjoyed their previous work in the slightest you’ll find it very satisfying. “Ghost Pressure” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luqjh1wpk4s 11. The National - High Violet - The National (much like The Walkmen) have always been a band I wish I enjoyed more than a band I actually enjoyed. High Violet is my personal breakthrough album for them. Best suited for listening at night or when you’re feeling especially numb. “Bloodbuzz Ohio” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfySK7CLEEg 10. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy - His magnum opus; probably the single toughest album for me to rank. I’ve never been a Kanye fanatic - loved his singles, but I never had the patience to make it through his albums (same goes for many rappers, actually). Listening to this the for the first time was a jaw-dropping experience. The production is fantastic - it takes a genius like Kanye to make Bon Iver and King Crimson samples sound this effortless and unironic. But my infatuation with this album wore off a bit after a month or so. Kanye’s wordplay is still a bit suspect, and the subject matter gets pretty dark and depressing. “Lost in the World” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqqB5LmA1zs 9. LCD Soundsystem - This is Happening - It’s hard not to compare this to Sound of Silver, which is unfair; Sound of Silver was one of the greatest albums of the decade. It would have been virtually impossible to top it, and I get the impression that LCD Soundsystem weren’t trying to, anyway. Krautrock & slow-burners wasn’t what I was expecting this time out, and none of these songs really stood out from each other, so I was fairly disappointed the first time I gave it a listen. I came back to it a month or two later and couldn’t belive I had panned such a solid album. “I Can Change” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tW8FKkVnqng 8. Wavves - King of the Beach - The poppiest, brattiest punk album I’ve ever loved. Wavves’ first two releases were washed out & distorted to the point of being unlistenable, so I took the massive pre-release buzz surrounding this album with a grain of salt. But trading in a macbook for a recording stuido (with real microphones) and hooking up with Jay Reatard’s old rhythm section allowed Nathan Williams to embrace his talent for writing incredibly catchy songs. “King of the Beach” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5biCmyJQtM 7. Surfer Blood - Astro Coast - I nearly forgot to include this because it came out so early in 2010. Winter seems an odd season to release such a surf-y album at first blush, but I’ve listened to this in the dreary cold just as much as the oppressive heat. Catchy, anthemic, power-pop with just enough guitar distortion and vocal effects to keep things interesting. Their songs all sound pleasantly familiar, but beyond the pretty obvious Weezer connection, I can’t really place who they remind me of - I’ve read quite a few comparisons to Pavement, but there’s nothing shambolic about these guys. “Swim” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps1wS5w2HfQ 6. Sufjan Stevens - The Age of Adz - The soundtrack to a nightmare of futuristic apocalypse. Sufjan has cut an electronic album before, but it seemed like nothing more than a diversion; he’s gone off the deep end here. Glitch noise and electro beats pervade orchestral pop like the obsessive, suffocating thoughts of a troubled mind. There are occasional breaks where the delicate beauty of his previous work begins to bud, but then the massive blank-faced machinery of the world comes crashing back down the alley after you. The album is bookended by two more traditional quiet pieces, which further frames the whole thing as a foreboding daydream. Listening to The Age of Adz can be a bit exhausting, particularly “Impossible Soul”. It’s also incredibly cathartic. The majority of the songs here make little sense by themselves, but the whole thing wraps together into another great (if bizarre) Sufjan Stevens album. “Too Much” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0g7R3xqdcM 5. Janelle Monae - The ArchAndroid (Suites II and III) - I normally hate describing bands in terms of their influences, but Janelle Monae’s such an extreme genre-crosser that it’s impossible not to: she’s equal parts Outkast, Prince, and Motown, with David Bowie’s theatrical flair thrown in for good measure. The individual songs on The ArchAndroid are all over the stylistic map, but the album’s concept is so well-developed that the whole thing doesn’t sound schizophrenic (at least not any more than she wants it to). “Tightrope” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwnefUaKCbc 4. Phosphorescent - Here’s to Taking it Easy - I didn’t know much about these guys before seeing them pop up on the Exit/In’s concert calendar with Caitlin Rose, one of my local favorites, as the opener. They blew me away, and they’re just as great here. I belive this is the first album Matthew Houck has recorded live with a full backing band. Here’s to Taking it Easy is a kindred spirit to the first couple My Morning Jacket releases, though frankly Houck is a much better lyricist than Jim James ever was. “The Mermaid Parade” is a real tear-jerker of a breakup song - I want to give him a hug after listening to it. “It’s Hard to be Humble (when you’re from Alabama)” is one of my favorite song titles ever. “It’s Hard to be Humble (when you’re from Alabama)” (live on Letterman) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ujntsw4xZFs 3. Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest - Three years ago I would never have believed that a band so intentionally abrasive as Deerhunter could produce one of the catchiest, hook-loaded albums of the year, but here it is. Both “Revival” and “Coronado” are short, sweet songs with melodies that never leave my head, and the two Lockett Pundt songs are groove rockers on par with “Nothing Ever Happened”. The only (minor) blemishes on this record are the languid “Sailing” and “Basement Scene”, both of which feel underdeveloped; maybe this is intentional, but they end up getting skipped every time I’m listening in the car. But the rest of Halcyon Digest is just too outstanding to deny. “Revival” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uowHgu2ZYSg 2. Caitlin Rose - Own Side Now - I’m cheating a bit by including this - it’s not going to get a US release until March 2011, but it’s been out in the UK since August. She’ll invariably be described as alt-country, but Caitlin Rose doesn’t have any more in common with Lucero or the DBTs than she does Taylor Swift. Why can’t mainstream country be more like this? Great songwriting, even better singing. Not a forced note on the whole record. Caitlin Rose’s voice is a perfect match to her music; gentle, twangy, soulful, yet matter of fact. “That’s Alright” is a Fleetwood Mac cover, but I’d say she owns it now. Conversely, the first time I heard “Sinful Wishing Well” I thought it was a Gram Parsons cover (I mean that as a compliment). “Shanghai Cigarettes” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpHYYUZqX1A 1. The Black Keys - Brothers - I love everything about this album, from the T. Rex bop of “Everlasting Light”, to the funk of “Next Girl”, on down the line to the Motown groove of “Never Gonna Give You Up”. I can’t recall the last time I was so blown away by a record on a first listen. Brothers is both a marked departure and a return to form. Adding bass, keyboards, and falsetto were all risks that paid off huge. It’s not as raw as their earliest stuff, but it’s every bit as grimy, if that makes sense. It’ll be very interesting to see where the guys go from here. “Tighten Up” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpaPBCBjSVc

Honorable Mention:

Avi Buffalo - Avi Buffalo - Innocent voices and sunny melodies belie just how dirty this indie pop gets. They’re all fresh out of high school, so keep your eye on them. Beach Fossils - Beach Fossils - Spare, washed-out surf rock, full of shimmering guitars and reverb. Great for lazing on a summer night or driving around on a sweltering day with the sun in your eyes. Beach House - Teen Dream - The band name and album title are telling. Ethereal dream-pop. You’ll either love it or hate it. The Budos Band - Budos Band III - Instrumental funk isn’t for everybody. Much like the Meters’ early stuff, you’re going to enjoy this more as background/mood music. Cotton Jones - Tall Hours in the Glowstream - This album makes me think of lens flares and sunsets and old home movies played at half-speed. Whitney McGraw’s backing vocals were one of my favorite parts of Paranoid Cocoon; she’s just in the way here. Conversely, Michael Nau’s drawl is more pronounced (not forced), and he takes better advantage of his upper register. Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma - This should probably be on the list up top, but I just got it about a week ago and I haven’t given it enough listens to properly rate it. Flying Lotus is a DJ/Electronica producer. He’s also John Coltrane’s grand-nephew, which would be a meaningless bit of trivia if this album weren’t so heavily influenced by the kind of free jazz that Trane championed. Free Energy - Stuck on Nothing - Glam rock bubblegum so over the top that you begin to wonder whether this is a send-up or they’re just pleasantly oblivious. Saw them in Nashville last summer and I’m guessing it’s the latter. The Fresh & Onlys - Play it Strange - More garage rock. Not a single bad song here. Dude can really sing, too. Justin Townes Earle - Harlem River Blues - Another great roots record from JTE, whose career was at yet another crossroads after his most recent stint in rehab. The title track is a classic. LCD Soundsystem - London Sessions - Only 4 of the 9 tracks are off the new album, so I think it’s fair to include this (unlike The Black Keys’ iTunes Session, which is great but basically Brothers Live in Studio). Titus Andronicus - The Monitor - Mixing up civil war imagery with a contemporary storyline makes for an oddly mesmerizing album. Patrick Stickles’ voice has two settings: an earnest scream-sing and a ragged, world-weary croon. Do you really need anything else for a punk record? I say no. Another album that doesn’t stand up well to cherry-picking but makes for a great listen in its entirety. Ty Segall - Melted - One of the heaviest garage punk records I heard this year. Also one of the best-produced. Too many garage albums skimp on the low end; they need to take notes from Ty. Vampire Weekend - Contra - I like synths well enough, but I really miss the punch of electric guitars. My favorite songs are the ones that sound the most like their debut album.

[notgonnafly]

Stuttered chorus. I love it.

[notgonnafly]

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE INANIMATE OBJECT?

My pair of sunglasses.

[notgonnafly]

Went to an Apache Relay show in Mike Harris's basement last night. It was pretty cool. This other band called Mumford & Sons played too. They were good. Some guy named Jake Gyllenhaal was standing with them in front of us during Apache Relay's set. They had another friend with them named Carey Mulligan. She has a tomboyish haircut. This fat drunk guy to our left kept taking pictures of them over and over and over again. The flash on his iphone was really annoying. I could tell they were annoyed by it too, but they didn't ever tell him to stop, just looked the other direction every time they saw it coming.