3:49 a.m.
December 27, 2006
11. Built to Spill - You in Reverse
The main fault with this album is the length of the songs. Goin Against Your Mind is absolutely epic, Conventional Wisdom is fantastic, you can listen through the whole song, through countless guitar solos and not get sick of it. The problem is that when you're done with one song, you're reminded of how good it was, and want to listen again. It's hard to get through an album that way.
10. Barenaked Ladies - Barenaked Ladies Are Me/Barenaked Ladies Are Men
BNL delivered a LOT of music this time around, so it was rougher to get the cohesive flow, to bond with all the songs. It took a lot more time. But they're getting older and better. Maybe You're Right gets bigger and bigger as time goes on, Easy has a great riff, and I Can I Will I Do finally made the cut in a well polished, jazzy version. The discs are different, sure, but the amount of time it takes to get into it with its simultaneous promise manages to make it a worthwhile long-term investment.
9. Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
It was no surprise that Crazy wasn't the only good song off this. The song had a solid quality that suggested a band that thinks things out, not just craps them out. And the album was quality. Overhyped? A little. But their initial reception was lukewarm and they only gradually caught on in the states until it was the song of the summer. Crazy is a classic, the album is solid, but the band's mystique (or, for the cynically-inclined, ability to hype) is what will make them legends. The whole album is a weird introspective self-portrait. Transformer is a standout. Kudos to DM and Cee-Lo.
8. Shawn Lee - Bully (soundtrack)
This has something for everything, and does everything right. It's like Tim Burton and Danny Elfman did their thing, but with a little more edge to it. A little bit of funk mixed in there. The entire score is excellent and the quality of the game makes it that much more recommendable. Great riffs, excessively catchy and even listenable outside the game.
7. Lupe Fiasco - Food & Liquor
Solid spot, but a disappointing placement nonetheless. After Intonation, my anticipation for Lupe's album was unrivaled - it was the only thing I've tried to get on release day in several years. Don't get me wrong, it's a solid album. The beats are great, the focus is on Lupe, his messages are from the heart. It's real, true, passionate rap, which we don't have enough of. But this was an album from the heart, and the problem with that is that there aren't enough catchy hooks. Sure, there's the singles - Kick Push, I Gotcha, and Daydreamin'. But there's the bizarre back to back pairing of The Instrumental and He Say She Say, in both of which he repeats a verse nearly word for word, just changing a pronoun here or there. Look, Lupe, it's a great trick, but don't put those tracks back to back, it looks sloppy. This isn't to say he hasn't made a great album. He has. But I expected it to be my number one of the year for so long that there was bound to be disappointment.
6. The Decemberists - The Crane Wife
I'll be frank. I like the Decemberists. They are fun live, I like their style, and they've got good singles. But their album cuts often tend on the annoying side for me, and I can't always get all the way behind their 18th century chic (it seems a bit too overexposed as of late. Might just be me). Here, though, they really wrote a full album of catchy, listenable songs. It's a shame I got into it late as I did, but I think I've given it a few fair listens, and they've made an album with the potential for a series of re-listens, new favorite tracks every time.
5. Weird Al Yankovic - Straight Outta Lynwood
My expectations were sky-high, and every one of them were met. I still think the whole album is solid. The style parodies are all spot on, funny, well-written, and expertly composed - Pancreas does for instrumental composition what Hardware Store did for layered vocals. The Polka is effortlessly satisfying on multiple listens, Trapped in the Drive Thru is consistently hysterical, and I'm forever fond of Confessions Pt. III. This is his best album yet, by such a longshot. The funniest song, I think, must be You're Pitiful, but thank god it was left off the album - or else we wouldn't have the wonderful that comes from White & Nerdy or Do I Creep You Out. Thanks, Al.
4. Thunderbirds Are Now! - Make History
Their sound just keeps on getting better as they figure it out more and more - you definitely get the sense they know exactly what they're doing on this one. (The Making Of...) Make History is one of my favorites - I find myself humming an alternate version of it all the time - and when something is inspiring enough to make you want to write your own music, well, it's a great album.
3. Justin Timberlake - FutureSex/LoveSounds
Boy did something incredible. Fucking incredible. I got hooked on SexyBack, but I've moved deeper into the album, and I contend that LoveStoned/I Think That She Knows Interlude is the best song of the year. He's the fucking king. He's got the best beats, the whole way through, and lends an adorable vulnerability that just wraps it all up. Add his effortless suave and sense of humor, and you've gotcha self a winner.
2. Girl Talk - Night Ripper
The first time I heard this, I was giggling my dick off. This is a total hugsfest for every music lover - every time I heard a song I recognized, I just hummed to myself a bit. He manages to make irritating songs great, and catchy songs doubly catchy. I find myself wanting to scream the chorus to Hollaback Girl or Galang out car windows, wanting to dance whenever I have two odd songs stuck in my head. He's multiplied catchy by itself.
1. Rhymefest - Blue Collar
Going into Intonation, I expected Rhymefest to be some sort of rap collective, like a Jon Brion for the rap crowd. I wasn't the biggest fan of Jesus Walks, but I checked him out anyway. I was instantly a fan. Fest has made the year's best rap album, something that feels more viable, more relatable, more real than anything I've heard come out of the rap world. And I'm in no way Blue Collar - I'm entitled, supported, well-endowed and off to ultimate success with a few emotional problems. But Fest just made an album that's just full of things that everyone goes through, a world that you walk through in Chicago, something everyone knows. In Fest's world, things aren't good, but the way he presents it, there's nothing but promise. There's always something positive around the corner. There's always a bright spin that can be put on things. And if there's a better rap song about being in love than "Build Me Up," I'd be surprised. It's not a perfect album - there are a few songs I don't love, but the album as a whole shines through. It's the biggest hitting album of 2006, and I can't wait for El Che in March. Thanks, 'Fest, for painting a perfect portrait of the part of the city I love that isn't in the travel books. Upped Sufjan, even.
prev
next
archive