Top 25 Albums of 2010

So it's been a long time since I've put anything up, but you had to know that this was coming: 2010 List Season!

I noticed this year my list is more full of hip-hop than in previous years, I'm not sure if that's my taste shifting or this being an exceptional year for it. Either way I like it.

And without further ado here it is:

25. Band of Horses - Infinite Arms

One of my favorite bands of the 00's, this isn't their best effort. That being said given most years it was certainly strong enough to push a top 10 spot; however, this year is just too strong. Good but not great.

24. MGMT - Congratulations

This might be one of the more polarizing albums of the year, and I'll admit it took me a while to get on board. I had to include this video for this title track because it reminds me of Tatooine on LSD. Though this is a much slower album than their now classic 2008 Oracular Spectacular, there's certainly value here and I recommend you check it out.

23. Gorillaz - Plastic Beach

One of my favorite albums of the year at the beginning of the summer, it began to wear on me a bit by the time fall came. I'm not sure if I listened to it too much over too short of a time or maybe it was just drowned out by all the other outstanding albums in 2010, either way this is a great album and a welcome return by one of the more innovative bands around.

22. Tallest Man on Earth - The Wild Hunt

I'm not sure this album is for everyone, mostly due to his nasal/folksy sounding voice; however, if you don't mind it I highly recommend this to anyone who likes strong songwriting and 1960's folk rock "Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard" sounds channeling Bon Iver, Dave Matthews, or even sometimes Bob Dylan. I'm a big fan.

21. Broken Bells - Broken Bells

The ONLY reason this album is so low on the list is due to its short length, or maybe its the perceived short length; either way I need about 10 more tracks. Danger Mouse continues to be the most active member of the music industry to this day and adds another excellent addition to his resume. I will have to say that this album did leave me wanting a new Shins album though...

20. Titus Andronicus - The Monitor

This is the first time I've really listened to one of their albums, and I'll admit it's because I read that Craig Finn (The Hold Steady) made an appearance. Goddamn this is good stuff though, high energy Punk/Rock/Indie feel with a bit of melodrama and great lyrics. Oh yeah, and Craig Finn reading Walt Whitman at the end of the above song...that never hurts.

19. Beach House - Teen Dream

A solid entry into the NROP (Noise/Rock/Pop) category that made its resurgence in 2008, this a what I consider a good "driving album". What I mean by that is simply, if you've got a long distance to drive and have already burned through your "Pump Up" music, this is a good chill album, especially when driving through the Mojave Desert. If you're into the NROP stuff you probably already know this album well, but if not I'd give it a go. Plus this video is super creepy.

18. Kid Cudi - Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager

2010 has proved to be one of the strongest Hip-Hop years in the past decade. Kid Cudi, who I consider to be one of the more underrated "mainstream" rappers out there, put out the sequel to his 2009 Man on the Moon: The End of Day. Additionally he teamed up with Best Coast and Vampire Weekend members to put out one of the year's best singles All Summer. Simply put go get this album if you're Hip-Hop inclined.

17. Spoon - Transference

One of the great bands of the '00s puts out its first album of the '10s (that's right, right?), and while not their best effort its certainly a welcome addition to their Canon. They say emulation is the sincerest form of flattery, perhaps in this case though emulation is the reason this album didn't quite click like their past efforts. It seems these days there's about ten or so mainstream Spoon "sound-alikes", and while that's indicative of their influence on modern music it has slightly diluted their own efforts.

16. Atmosphere - To All My Friends, Blood Makes the Blade Holy

Being that I hail originally from Minnesota, Minneapolis/St. Paul rap will always have a soft spot for me. Sometimes there are albums I like from these rappers simply because of their intrinsic reminiscent value, other times there are legit rap albums coming out of the Twin Cities--this is certainly a case of the latter. At this point, I'm fairly certain Atmosphere will never garner the mainstream radio play and praise he deserves, and maybe it's because of his relative lack of "hooks" on his tracks but anyone who's into hip-hop or rap will find this album hard not to love.

15. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Before Today

I made the mistake earlier this year of skipping out on seeing these guys for about $12 at the Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa, I won't be doing that again. This is another of those NROP lo-fi bands that have become all the rage with the youngin's these days, but there are also tinges of MGMT and The Flaming Lips psychadellica in their music. Be warned if you're tripping balls you might want to skip the YouTube clip above.

14. Big Boi - Sir Lucious Left Foot : The Son of Chico Dusty

Maybe it's bias from going to college in the early 00's but looking back, besides maybe Phish and DMB, was there a more memorable soundtrack besides Aquemini and Stankonia? It's been a while since Outkast has released an album (I'm not sure I count Idlewild given it's a soundtrack essentially), and frankly I think they've been missed. Now while this isn't a full blown Outkast album because of the absence of Andre 3000, I think it certainly whets the appetite for a new one...though I think the odds are slim.

13. Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More

Labeled as an English "folk-band", though that may be debatable, this foursome broke through the mainstream radio with an unlikely profanity-dubbed smash hit Little Lion Man. While this is a great song, and certainly the most approachable with it's Crazy Game of Poker-esque jamming and wailing bridge, it's just one of many on this album. Truthfully I may have listened to this album more than any album of the year, and while I can certainly recognize its musical faults (simplicity and repetition being two of the glaring ones), I can't look past how addicting it is. I blame the banjo...

12. Das Racist - Sit Down, Man

The creators of the infamous/awesome Combination Pizza Hut & Taco Bell of 2009, this Brooklyn duo sarcastically put out one of the year's best rap albums. With lyrics like:

Meet me where I beat beats, drop street heat

I'm on the block like street meat

Call me Dwight Schrute from the way that I eat beats

It's sometimes hard to take them seriously. Whether they're serious or not they've put out some damn good songs on this album. Somehow this year Pitchfork gave this album an 8.7, which is weird for a website that hates all music that isn't Lil' Wayne or some electronic band no one's heard of yet, and maybe that's a reason not to like these guys...I didn't let it stop me though.

11. The Walkmen - Lisbon

One of the last vestiges of what I consider to be the true rock bands of the 00's. Keeping with their tradition of channeling The Cure, The Strokes, and U2 while putting their raw twist on it, Lisbon is a fantastic alt-rock album and what I consider to be their best since 2004's Bow and Arrows.

10. No Age - Everything in Between

When I first listened to "Glitter", the track above, I half expected them to break into a cover of Twisted Sister's "We're not Gonna Take it". I have a feeling in ten years I'll be listening to more No Age then maybe any band from the past five years. It's amazing to me that there are only two members to this band and they can maintain such a BIG sound in many of their songs. They're still a staple at The Smell in downtown Los Angeles, though I have yet to attend I hope to change that soon.

09. The Hold Steady - Heaven is Whenever

A departure from their norms, The Hold Steady, have struggled to maintain their mainstream success of "Boys and Girls in America". Many critics panned this album, it garnered a paltry 6.2 from Pitchfork.com, but I certainly don't agree. This is just another strong entry into The Hold Steady catalog, and it may be the most Springsteen-inspired yet. I think the major issue with the critics is the growing theme of Craig Finn singing on more songs over the past few albums rather than simply "free style" speaking. Guess what though, The Hold Steady has been pretty consistent since about 3 albums ago so this sudden criticism of them no longer being "raw" is kind of bogus. Craig Finn is still awesome.

08. Black Keys - Brothers

Speaking of duos delivering huge sounds, #9 belongs to one of the best in the business. The garage rock phenomenon has long since morphed into the lo-fi movement performed by the likes of No Age and Dr. Dog, but there are still a few staples remaining from it--particularly The Black Keys and The White Stripes. Though its hard to not to make comparisons between the two they really are very different in their musical styles, especially of late. The Black Keys have managed to stay true to their garage/bar-band/guitar driven rock and roll while The White Stripes have taken a more experimental course. The Black Keys are using their inner Chris Robinson and The Black Crowes this time around and I'll be the first one to say, though I'm most certainly not the first (in fact there's a distinct chance I may be the LAST of the year), that it works like a charm. Well done guys.

07 The National - High Violet

This really was a banner year for my favorite bands apparently. The National put out yet another outstanding album this year, I'm not sure what more to say. These guys continue to put out some of the best albums of the year every time they release a new one, I love it. I've got my fingers crossed for a The National and the LA Philharmonic collaboration concert at the Hollywood Bowl next year...that's not too much to ask right?

06. The Morning Benders - Big Echo

I reviewed this album in January and said then I was pretty sure this was going to be a top album of mine back then, well it nearly cracked the top 5. I wont delve into further detail on this besides saying that it's worn well over the year, they're a great concert, and here's my previous review.

05. Arcade Fire - Suburbs

Anyone who knows my musical tastes knows that there are six bands that come before all others: The White Stripes, Arcade Fire, The Flaming Lips, Wilco, Sigur Ros, and LCD Soundsystem, so it should be no surprise to see one of the "sweet six" in the top five albums of the year. That being said, I'm not sure this is their best album. It is definitely great, but when comparing to "Neon Bible" and "Funeral" those two are pretty tough to top, so they've kind of dug themselves a hole. Most people reading this by now will have listened to this album repetitiously, and have developed their own opinions of it but let me just say that it had been many years before I was so excitedly anticipating the release of an album, and I certainly wasn't let down.

04. Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

I'll go on record as saying I wasn't a big "808s and Heartbreaks" fan, the overuse of autotune took away from the album to the point that it was distracting. "Graduation" was outstanding and remains one of the best hip-hop albums of all time, and "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" takes a step back in that direction. Never known for being a modest, rational, non-douchey guy Kanye's talent outweighs all of these criticisms and never before has he had such free reign to experiment as he did on this album. Though this is only at the #4 spot on my Top 25, I have a feeling I lowballed this one, it's just that there's too many damn good albums this year!

03. Local Natives - Gorilla Manor

Remember those Spoon "sound-alikes" I was referring to before, well here's a great example, especially in song linked above. This is one of those albums that you'll listen through the first time, love it, stash it, get it in your head, wait a few weeks, wonder who sing's that song that's ingrained in your brain, remember who go back to it, rinse and repeat. Local Natives blend their best Spoon impression with the afro-pop stylings of Vampire Weekend and throw in a little Bon Iver and orchestra to create one hell of a debut album. I'm very excited to hear more.

02. LCD Soundsystem - This is Happening

James Murphy, you son of a bitch, you do it to me every time, I'm not supposed to like techno or electronic rock or whatever the hell classification of music this is. Even though that's true this is perhaps the best and most underrated band of the 00's, a blend of techno/rock/pop that's cutting edge and fresh on each of their now three full length albums. "Dance Yrself Clean" was basically on an infinite loop over the course of the year and I don't really see any reason to stop with that. If you aren't a huge fan this might be their toughest to break into; however, I promise it's well worth it. With rumors of their inevitable dissolution always popping into my music news feed one has to wonder how many more albums they'll release before becoming the next in a long line of band's that people wish made "just one more album". Personally I'm hoping for a long drawn out slow drug riddled fade into the sunset, but I'm a little selfish I guess.

01. Vampire Weekend - Contra

Two for two. They've released two albums, their self-titled Vampire Weekend in 2008 and this year's Contra. These guys are freaks of nature. Very rarely, if ever, does a band come out with two albums as strong as their first two efforts. My take on them has always been good, they are certainly not free of their critics who say they're "too smart for their own good", but guess what. F*ck you, and enjoy it because this could be Nickelback, would you rather more Nickelbacks? No? Okay then...This video sort of signaled their full blown acceptance into the mainstream meme with cameos by about ten (at least) recognizable celebrities. I really could have picked any song on this album to post here as an example of their music since nearly every song on the album is as strong as the next. Here's to hoping their next album stays atop the Power Rankings whenever it's finally released.

Day 63: Starting Fresh

Just a little heads up, I'm going to get this badboy rolling again here in the next few days so be prepared to have your minds...wait for it....BLOWN!

In the meantime here's a .gif of Ozzie Guillen imitating Big Papi bunting...and apparently "rolling" down the bases in a wheelchair??

Either way it's phenomenal!

http://i550.photobucket.com/albums/ii426/kensai808/Memories%20Of%20Kevin%20Malone/OzzieGuillenDavidOrtizWheels.gif

Day 62: Hot Air, High Speeds (Part 1)

The sun was just starting to permeate the venetian blinds of the his studio apartment as James awoke a little late that morning, slightly agitated that his alarm clock didn't wake him up. He looked at the black Casio LCD screen, picked it up and pretended to scold it before letting it off the hook by setting it back on the nightstand next to his futon bed. He hadn't slept well the night before so 5:45 AM felt especially early this morning; maybe it was a blessing the alarm hadn't gone off. James leaped out of bed into the kitchen, started a pot of coffee and then jumped into the shower.

He left his studio that morning wearing a shoddy looking overcoat, some worn trousers and his favorite blue and grey checkered sweater, carrying a battle-worn brown leather briefcase. By the time he left that morning it was already 7:00 AM, exactly one hour later than he had originally planned. He wasn't worried though, he had a lot to do this morning, but a sense of calm had come over him. He would be late for work, but he didn't care. He took a swig out of his coffee mug and walked down the rickety steel spiral staircase from his upstairs apartment down to his parking spot.

The sky blue paint of his Prius was noticeably tainted by the black and white calling cards of passing by birds. This annoyed him, but he appreciated the irony in nature literally shitting on his "green car". He set the coffee mug atop the roof of the car, opened the door and threw the briefcase into the passenger seat to the sound of his phone ringing. Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York" played muffled from inside his handbag. He quickly sat down into the car popped open the briefcase, fished through the piles of file folders and loose binder clipped reports to find the phone. He didn't recognize the number, but he knew who it was.

"Sikes here," he answered in his more formal than usual tone. He nodded his head to the voice on the other end as if the caller could somehow acknowledge his gesture.

"I know, I told you it's fine. I'll be there, just make sure you carry out your end of the deal. I don't want..." He was interrupted by the caller.

"Alright, listen I've got to go, if I'm too late they'll be worried, and I don't need the extra attention," he said, clearly agitated by the caller on the other end. He paused for a moment, listening to the caller, who's tone had taken a much louder inflection.

"Okay don't worry I'll take care of it. I'll call you when it's over," James said as he hung up. "Fuckin' son of a bitch, just leave me the fuck alone!" he screamed from within the vehicle, falling on deaf ears. He sat for a minute, wiped his perspiring face with his hands and then backed out of his parking spot. He meticulously navigated the narrow parking lot while looking over his right shoulder, then double-checking it by using the back-up camera built into the dashboard of his vehicle. He threw the car in drive and stealthily lurched forward. As he took the right turn out of his parking lot he saw something out of the corner of his left eye. The coffee cup he'd forgotten on the roof took a slow motion half-parabolic path down to the ground as it shattered on the asphalt. He slammed on the brakes, thinking he'd stop to pick it up, but quickly realized the futility in such an effort as he sped off.

As he drove to work, the image of the coffee mug shattering on the ground just a few feet away from him replayed in his mind. Why had he forgotten the mug on his roof? He'd had that mug for over 10 years now. "PAR for the Course" was printed in bold yellow lettering on the Kelly green mug, commemorating the first time he'd shot an even PAR at his Country Club. The mug itself wasn't worth a damn, but it was a connection to his former life; yet another of the many that were seemingly severed on a daily basis. He resented his new studio apartment, he resented the part-time job he was forced to take to pay the bills, he missed his old life. He missed his boat, he missed his fairway view from atop his canyon-side estate. He even missed living with Patty.

They had been married twelve years now and were in the midst of the roughest patch of the twelve. Things had always been easy between them, there had always been a great rapport between the two of them; people frequently commented on how easy going their marriage was and lamented upon the contrast to their own. That was then. Since the financial crisis of 2007, James had lost over 85% of his net worth, including all of those perks he once proudly flaunted. His house had been lost to foreclosure a few months ago and Patty went back to live with her mother. It had been almost three months, and while they were actually starting to patch things up it wasn't the same. He felt like a college dropout living in a shitty studio apartment in the worst part of the run-down city of El Cajon. Meanwhile Patty was living in La Jolla near the beach with her 80-year old parents.

Her parents had always disapproved of James. They said he was too much of a risk, and that she should hold out and marry a "sure thing", something that she liked to point out, like clockwork, in the middle of their fights. Maybe they were right though, maybe he was a risk. Lord knows these past few years had taken their toll and he was by no means a "sure thing"; but he had always resented this. He'd spent his formative years building his own wealth, he was never given anything, never asked for a handout and never demanded anything of anyone else besides that they work their tails off just as he did. He had built a real estate empire from a start-up run out of their basement. In a span of four years, he'd gone from making just enough to pay the rent in their condo to pulling down nearly seven figures a year. All of that was now gone, he was a "victim" of speculation and the volatility of the real estate bubble. As fast as he had built his empire, it came tumbling down even faster. Within a span of six months, he had lost millions and had his entire was life swept out from underneath him.

As he pulled into the Westfield Mall parking lot he couldn't help but wonder what he had done to deserve this. He had been a devout Christian his whole life, he'd lived his life according to the bible. He'd given money to George W. Bush and the local food shelf. He'd organized a Christmas toy drive for underprivileged children. He'd gone to church most Sundays, at least before the collapse. He had felt like he'd been forsaken, and he couldn't understand why.

As he donned his blue smock with the bright yellow smiley face sticker on the red, white and blue name tag he caught a glimpse of himself in the reflection off of the passenger side window. "What happened to you?" he asked himself as he shook his head and exited the car. The dim yellow sodium lighting of the parking garage illuminated the path to the elevator. He felt nearly as gloomy as his surroundings. He had a lot on his mind these days, but today his mind was racing even more than usual. Today was the day that things would finally turn around for him. Today was the beginning of the comeback.

*****

As the day wore on, James knew the time for his redemption was quickly approaching. He spent the morning unloading boxes of discount clothing and snack foods; using a forklift to lift a pallets of Hanes-Her-Way and Pringle's boxes down from the truck bed to their masking tape marked resting spot on the stockroom floor. Everything had to be arranged to a plan-o-gram.

"A place for everything and everything in its place," his floor manager told him during his first few hours on the job. He'd hated that saying before and loathed it now. "You know you're way overqualified for this position, don't you Sikes?" the gristled faced manager facetiously prodded.

"Thanks Bill, I hadn't noticed. I appreciate your candor though," James said as he walked away. "Fuckin' prick," he muttered under his breath.

"What's that?" Bill responded, knowing that James wouldn't respond.

For two months now, James had driven to Wal-Mart from his studio apartment, everyday, and put in his ten hour shift. He got thirty minutes for lunch and thirty minutes for dinner with a few discretionary smoke or bathroom breaks interspersed between. He hated his job. But with the economy the way it was, there wasn't a huge market for failed real estate investors at the moment. So he took the stockroom job as a means of paying the rent on his god-damned studio apartment and to make the monthly payments on his Prius. The payments stood as a stark reminder of his previous life, why he didn't just pay for it in cash he still doesn't understand. He's sure that top trim package seemed like a good idea at the time, when money was just another thing he had too much of, but now he can't understand why he opted for leather seat warmers in San Diego. When the fuck was he thinking?

He felt the vibration of his phone in his pocket as he took it out and read the text message. It read:

"MAKE IT BELIEVABLE OR NO DEAL. DON'T FUCK THIS UP GRANDPA!"

"All caps. That's annoying," he thought to himself. "Who are these people, I can't wait to be done with this, just one more day and we're back James, just keep it together."

It was nearly lunchtime, which meant that his plan was about to go into action. In a few hours he'd be back on top, and his life would finally be on the upswing. He didn't like to deal with such dishonest people, but he felt that what he was doing actually served a larger purpose. He felt that by this one simple action, given the timing of the event, it would right the economy, thereby making it possible for J.S. Realty to re-open and begin anew. Not to mention the cash they were paying him. The $400,000 they promised would go a long way in ensuring his startup is successful, turns out that kind of money can still do a lot if you used it right. He'd get the cash from them in a few days and then he'd start looking for office space. If only he'd be able to tell Patty that they could soon be together again, that all of this could end in just a few hours. Telling her was far too dangerous, he couldn't tell anyone what he was planning. If even one person knew the truth, this could all be for naught; he couldn't risk it.

He took the elevator back down to the parking lot and lit a cigarette as he walked towards his car. He'd always hated smoking, his mother died of lung cancer and he'd always hated how Patty smelled and tasted after she smoked. He'd recently taken it up, and he finally understood what all those people meant about it being a stress reliever. He didn't smoke often, maybe two or three cigarettes a week. Sometimes he'd smoke a cigarette and sip some Windsor on the rocks from a paper cup before bed, Glenmorangie it was not, but it got the job done. He only took a few drags of the smoke before extinguishing it beneath his boot as he approached his car.

He got into his Prius looking it over for a moment, before hitting the Start button and leaving work. He normally didn't take a lunch break, except for maybe brown-bagging it in the break room, but there wasn't much that was normal about today. He took his phone out, found Patty's number, looked it at it retrospectively and contemplated calling her. He hit the "Call" button and let it ring once before thinking better and hung up the phone. "Not yet, call her later," he said aloud to himself. As he was waiting to exit the parking ramp, the solitary incessant clicking of his right turn signal sounded like the ticking of a giant clock counting down the seconds until his release from this hellish existence. He pushed the CD button as "Casey Jones" by The Grateful Dead erupted loudly over his speakers and he took his right turn out of the parking ramp.

*****

James accelerated onto Interstate 8 and merged into a relatively light traffic, turned down the stereo volume and hit the repeat button on the CD player. Casey Jones began to play again as James stepped onto the accelerator taking his speed from 45 MPH up to 95 MPH within a few moments. He looked merged all the way over to the left lane, pulled out his phone and dialed "911".

"Help me, I can't stop my car!" James screamed over his cellphone as the sky blue Prius careened down the road. "I'm stepping on the brakes and its not doing anything, please send help!" he screamed with a convincing cadence of fear in his voice.

"Sir where are you, please try to pull your vehicle to the side of the road," the dispatcher said in a calming voice. "Have you tried applying the brakes?"

"I'm in El Cajon, westbound on The 8, and of course I've tried braking, what are you dense?"

A few moments passed as he steered around cars weaving back and forth between the two leftmost lanes. The sound of police sirens faintly catching up to him could be heard over the roar of the engine.

Trouble ahead, trouble behind

And you know that notion, just crossed my mind

The sound of The Grateful Dead could be faintly made out in the background. James had a strange air of calmness around him, especially since even a slight miscalculation and he'd roll his car, killing himself or possibly someone else. He was reassured numerous times that this would be a "sure thing", that once this was over with, they'd give him the money and he'd be on his way back to his normal life. Soon this would all be over and he'd be back with Patty sipping on martinis talking about that one missed putt or chip and how Doug Albers needs to shave before coming into the formal dining room at the Country Club.

"Sir, SIR," the 911-dispatcher jolted him out of his daze, "We have four officers coming to assist your situation. Please try to maintain stability of the car and stay in the left most lane so the officers may assist. Have you tried turning the car off or putting it in neutral or pulling the parking brake?"

"I'm trying to keep control of the vehicle!" James yelled, essentially ignoring the dispatcher's suggestions. "My brakes are almost burned out!" he continued.

James had spent the past few weeks driving his car at high speeds and braking quickly, driving around with the parking brake applied and accelerating the car with his left foot compressing the brake pedal slightly. The goal was to wear out his brakes to the point that they would look like they were worn completely, this way his story would look more legit later.

The cops were now directly behind him, he could hear the loudspeaker, "Sir, try to slowly steer your car in the direction of the Jersey Barrier." James feigned a slight fishtail motion which sent his car into a minor swerve, but he kept it under control. The cops were now taking positions to his right, behind him and directly in front of him in hopes of slowing the vehicle down enough to cut the power safely. This was all happening exactly as they had said it would. James navigated the vehicle to a stop by simply letting off the gas pedal and emerged from the Prius with his best terror stricken look on his face. He walked over to the police and hugged one of them, exclaiming that they saved his life. He then fell to his knees and began weeping. It was done.