27 January 2010

Rock Top 10s - 2009


dearest rock - below you'll find our (belated) top 10 lists for 2009.

Check the fanpage for pertinent statistics!


Don Harrison - Radio Wowsville

Favorite New Albums:


Neko Case - Middle Cyclone - Anti-
Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion - Domino
Le Loup - Family - Hardly Art
Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse - The Dark Night of the Soul - "unreleased"
The Dodos Time to Die - Frenchkiss
Phoenix Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix - Glass Note
The Clientele Bonfires on the Heath - Merge
Thomas Function - In the Valley of Sickness - Alive

Reissues:


Elvis Presley - Elvis 75: Good Rockin' Tonight - RCA-Legacy
The Beatles Box Set - EMI
Various - The Sound of Wonder! - Finders Keepers
Dukes of Stratosphear - 25 O'Clock and Psonic Psunspot - Ape
Johnny Paycheck -Nowhere to Run: The Little Darlin' Years -Omni
Big Star - Keep An Eye on the Sky -Rhino
Stone Roses Stone Roses - Silvertone
Ernest V. Stoneman The Unsung Father of Country Music - 5-String
Monks - The Early Years 1964-1965 - Light in the Attic
Bee Gees - Odessa -Rhino


DJ Hummingbird Feeder – Madame Psychosis Hour

Grouper - Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill - Type - Murky fog of previous albums lifts to reveal an unexpectedly gorgeous songsmith. Quiet, gentle music that is best played LOUD. Topped this list despite its Fall 2008 release date.

the Flower-Corsano Duo - the Radiant Mirror – Textile - Former Vibracathedral Orchestra dude spews maelstrom of chime over legendary young journeyman drummer's restless improvisational brilliance. 40min of raw, unfiltered Bliss.

Wavves - Wavvves – Woodsist - Logical endpoint of dumb teenage rock. Thrillingly charming, hilariously stupid, breathtakingly abrasive, intriguingly incomprehensible, and embarrassingly catchy. What's not to love?

Sanhedrin - Sun Head Ring - Breathing Bass - Unstoppable japanese noise-rock power trio: Keiji Haino on guitar, Tatsuyo Yoshida of Ruins on drums, and a pretty fucking good bassist. Furious, cathartic mess does not disappoint.

Caboladies - Body Tides - Mountaain -Obscure trio from Kentucky tops all other competitors for retro synth-drone album of the year. Post-shoegazery mess of warm drone-pleasantry, gentle chirps etc. You will love this record.

Everyday Loneliness - Appropriation - Callow God - Emaciator side-project is suitably sad, minimal, low-fi and hand-made. Four sides of gentle, warbling, 4-track guitar/etc patterns and tones, spread across a double-cassette (seriously!!)

Hell-Kite - You Make the Blood- self-released- Awesome young lady from AZ resembles sparser, darker, scarier version of early Cat Power. Occasionally veers into screaming, transgressive, Jandekian territory. Hypnotic and lovely.

The Invisible Hand demo CD-R - self-released - Best band in Charlottesville hits home run with this incredibly solid quartet of songs. Like Wire meets the Zombies meets early Pavement(-ish?) Distills their kick-ass live show quite well.

DBB Plays Cups - self-titled / Sequel to Cups - not even really released- Local radar-ducker drops weirdly AM-radio sounding pair of puzzling mini-albums; reminiscent of Silver Jews or early Magnetic Fields, but more "Outsider"-y. Inscrutable and infectious.

Liv – Please Like Me, OK?

Real Estate - Real Estate - Woodsist
Kurt Vile - Childish Prodigy - Matador
Grass Widow - Grass Widow EP - Captured Tracks
Dizzy Jaguars - Spinning - Self-released
Little Girls - Concepts - Paper Bag Records
Ancient Crux - Interracial Coupling - Family Time
The Fresh & Onlys - Grey-Eyed Girls - Woodsist
Sic Alps - Description of the Harbor - Awesome Vistas
Spectrals - Spectrals 7" - Captured Tracks
Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Glassnote

Honorable mention:

Sorcerer - Neon Leon - Tirk - I don't care if it sounds like 80s aerobics music. Perhaps that is why I like it so much.
Madlib - Beat Konducta, Vol. 5-6: Dil Cosby & Dil Withers Suite - Stones Throw Records

DJ Sanitize – Flashin' Lights

La Roux - La Roux - Cherrytree Records
Kid Cudi - Man on the Moon: The End of the Day - GOOD Music/Universal Motown
Kid Sister - Ultraviolet - Fool's Gold/Downtown Records
Wale - Attention Deficit - Allido Records/Interscope
Amanda Blank - I Love You - Downtown Records
Dragonette - Fixin' to Thrill - I Surrender Records
LMFAO - Party Rock - Interscope Records
Major Lazer - Pon de Floor - Downtown Records
Passion Pit - Manners - Frenchkiss Records
The XX - Shelter - Young Turks


DJ Poubelle – Radio Freedonia

Micachu and the Shapes – Jewellery [import] – Rough Trade – “Lips” made me a fan, “Golden Phone” made me an acolyte. Gotta specify the import because “Hardcore” is missing on the US version.

Liechtenstein – Survival Strategies in a Modern World – Slumberland – Go-Go’s meet Jesus & Mary Chain for echoey, harmonized fuzz pop; simple perfection.

Freddie GibbsMidwestgangstaboxframecadillac - mixtape – The "don't-sing-out-loud-at-the-gym" album of the year. And if there’s any city that needs a new hero this year, it’s Gary.

Real Estate – Real Estate - Woodsist – Tranquey guitar pop so natural it becomes environmental.

Borrowed Beams of Light – Borrowed Beams of Light – self-released – Unbridled exuberance, like if Bowie’s “Five Years” was a happy song. Surrender Dorothy – to the sun!!!

Outrageous Cherry – Universal Malcontents - Alive – Power-pop is alive and smoking cigarettes in the 7-11 parking lot.

Rameses III – I Could Not Love You More – Type – Drony soundscapes for yoga sessions that end with the instructor saying something like “ok, cool."

The Clean – Mister Pop – Merge – You start to wonder if you even know what good indie pop is, because this all sounds so good.

Various artists - Virginia Rocks! The History of Rockabilly in the Commonwealth – JSP – Sixty-one reminders of why our lives were saved by rock and roll.

DJ Helvidius, Radio Freedonia

1. Jeremy Jay - Slow Dance- K Records - Power Pop and Hobby Horse Jams

2. Micachu & The Shapes - Jewellry - Rough Trade Records- I think when I was little this is what I thought 21st Century music would be like.

3. Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca – Domino - everybody, all together now

4. Jim O’Rourke - The Visitor - Drag City Records - 1 track, 38 mins., gorgeous

5. Real Estate – s/t – Woodsist - Winner in the Superlatively Benign Category

6. Borrowed Beams of Light - s/t - (s/r) - Adopting the hit it and quit it concert method: left us all wanting more.

7. Various Artists - B-Music and Finders Keepers Compilations - Take Your Pick. A little too much recycling of Turkish Psychedelia, Hungarian Funk, and French Prog. These are problems I didn’t have up until 2009.

8. Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs - Matador Records & The Clean - Mister Pop - Merge Records - Oblique Strategy for Both bands: Continue with immaculate consistency

9. The Fresh & Onlys - Grey-Eyed Girls - Woodsist - The Fungus Album of Late-09.

10. Various Artists - Score!: 20 Years of Merge Records Compilations- Merge Records- What better way to honor the Merge narcotic than with mixtapes from David Byrne, Miranda July, Peter Buck, Kara Walker, Andrea Zittel, Amy Poehler, Marcel Dzama and others. And David Chang, you were the tastiest of them all.

Bonii:

Raekwon – Only Built for Cuban Linx, Pt. 2 -ICEAL- Uhm. favorite hip-hop album of 2009/1996


Dave, Ye Olde Tuesday Night Rocke Show

1. andrew bird- noble beast - fat possum records - what can i say? i'm
a total nerd for the bird, and this album is great. maybe his best yet.
ok- definitely his best yet.

2. vetiver- tight knit - Sub-pop - i heard this first on that source of
so many fine things, radio freedonia, and then couldn't take it out of
my cd player for a long time. this album has legs.

3. tortoise- beacons of ancestorship - thrill jockey - i am also just a
huge tortoise nerd. i still listen to tnt all the time, and especially
on sundays, but this new album is great. i am unsure how these guys
continue to make such interestingly listenable instrumental music, but i
really don't care as long as they keep doing it, and keep playing it
live. which by the way, if you haven't ever: go see tortoise live.
like in february in d.c.

4. various artists- red hot presents: dark was the night – 4ad - we only
ever got a 9 song sampler of this at the station, but even just that had
some pretty incredible tunes on it. just EVERYBODY is on this album,
doing great covers. another homerun for the fine folks behind the red
hot organization.

5. various artists- the present soundtrack - brushfire -another
comp., another example of me getting hooked by the freedonia boys...a
ton of great bands on here, and a solid hour or more diverse and
evocative tunes that will make you forget it is a jack johnson-produced
surf movie soundtrack.

6. lafayette afro-rock band- darkest light. - strut - ok- my
last compilation album, most likely. trying to do a little research
here, it seems like this is a reissue of a 1999 best-of, but i don't
care because it was in the 'new' drawer this year and is real funky.

7. borrowed beams of light- s/t/. - local. - holy smokes this record is
good. anytime you can start talking about the kinks, guided by voices,
the flaming lips, etc. and not be talking about anything being
derivative then something good is going on. when will this great band
break worldwide? only time will tell. incredibly sharp lyrics that
don't ever forget about melody and harmony, and also songs that remember
what a bridge is for. am i done gushing? for now perhaps...

8. drunk tigers- 3 song ep. - Local. - but while i'm at it, let me gush
about this perfect, if all too brief, debut by our local favorites. and
i'm not just saying that 'cause you're a nice guy and my friend, matt
beirce. these songs are great, the live rock version is great, it's all
pretty great. i don't think i'm the only one who can't wait for more by
these fellas, esp. now that it's the year of the tiger. b/t/w- i think
one of my favorite memories of 2009 is dj-ing at the halloween party at
the teahouse, having already planned 'overland' into my set, and having
zach and his peoples in front of me when it came on...

9. le loup- family - hardly art- this is a relatively new one
at the station, and big thanks to my dj partner courtney for turning me
on to this. what initially seems kind of a sleeper of an album, after a
few listens ends up being a sort of 45 minute sonic time machine or
something. i think this is going to have some staying power for me into
the new decade.

10. various artists- virginia rocks! compilation. jsp records/ the
orchard. ok, so i lied: here's one more comp. to round out my list.
how can i not give love to this album, about our very own commonwealth,
and with erudite liner notes from our very own and much-beloved don
harrison? that is a rhetorical question: i must give the love.

Courtney - Ye Olde Tuesday Night Rocke Show

1) Yo la Tengo- Popular Songs- Matador
2) Animal Collective - Merriwether Post Pavilion - Domino
3) M Ward- Hold Time- Merge
4) Trainwreck Riders- Perch - Alive
5) Le Loup - Family - Hardly Art
6) Akron/Family - Set em Wild, Set em Free - Dead Oceans
7) Fanfarlo - Reservoir - Atlantic
8) Harlem Shakes - Technicolor Health - Gigantic
9) Various Artists - Crayon Angel: Tribute to the Music of Judee Sill - American Dust
10) Avett Brothers - I and Love and You - Sony


Dominic – Nowhere Near

COMET GAIN - BROKEN RECORD PRAYERS - WHAT'S YOUR RUPTURE? - What if God himself made you a mixtape?

YO LA TENGO - POPULAR SONGS - MATADOR - Doing what so few other bands can even conceive of, and doing it well.

DIRTY PROJECTORS - BITTE ORCA - DOMINO - "Avant" pop will never sound this sexy again, ever.

GIRLS - GIRLS - TRUE PANTHER SOUNDS - None more emo. Need to work on the live show, though.

ATLAS SOUND - LOGOS - KRANKY - Kaleidoscopic no-gaze basement jam perfection blues

REAL ESTATE - REAL ESTATE - WOODSIST - I don't smoke weed, but if I did this would probably be my favorite record of the year.

JIM O'ROURKE - THE VISITOR - DRAG CITY - JImmy the Geek is back! And he brought his Fahey and skipping jazz records with him!

WYE OAK - THE KNOT - MERGE - Children who are wise beyond their years. Inspirational.

SONIC YOUTH - THE ETERNAL - MATADOR - Old folks who never grew up but learned the power of restraint. Magical.

BONNIE 'PRINCE' BILLY - BEWARE - DRAG CITY- Not nearly as dark as I had hoped, but still incredibly sloppy fun.

honorable mentions:

TORTOISE - BEACONS OF ANCESTORSHIP - THRILL JOCKEY

TIMES NEW VIKING - BORN AGAIN REVISITED - MATADOR

BLACK TO COMM
- ALPHABET 1968 - TYPE

CONDO F**KS - F**KBOOK - MATADOR

VIVIAN GIRLS - EVERYTHING GOES WRONG - IN THE RED

THE WOODEN BIRDS - MAGNOLIA - BARSUK

THE LOVE LANGUAGE - THE LOVE LANGUAGE - BLADEN COUNTY

JUNIOR BOYS
- BEGONE DULL CARE - DOMINO

JAY REATARD - WATCH ME FALL - MATADOR

WAVVES - WAVVVES - FAT POSSUM


DJ Law – Aunt Beast's Radio Theatre

1 Dan Deacon - Bromst – Carpark - Well-composed throughout, it starts building and by the final note, you're short of breath with amazement at the hypnotic and swirling synthesizers and chanting vocals. One of the few albums this year that works perfectly as just that, a complete album, to be listened to in one sitting.

2 JEFF the Brotherhood - Heavy Days - Infinity Cat - Sometimes you just really want to listen to fast-paced rock music that melts your brain a bit as evidence of its own awesomeness. Nothing extravagant: just solid drums, guitars, bass, and vocals. It's a tricky thing to do in a way that's not forgettable, but it seems effortless here.

3 The Sandwitches - How to Make Ambient Sadcake - Turn Up! - At times, reminiscent of 1950's rockabilly and 1960's girl groups, there's some Fleetwood Mac and Beat Happening in there well. Man, it's just so catchy - I can't stop listening to it! It's great rock music, without the distortion and fuzziness that seems to be everywhere else. And it's these ladies' first LP, which blows me away... Your feet will be tapping from the moment you start listening, and it'll be hard to pick which bandmember to have a crush on, I guarantee it.

4 Neon Indian - Psychic Chasms- Lefse - I never asked for the track 'Deadbeat Summer,' never wanted it stuck in my head for weeks at a time, but Neon Indian gave it to me anyways, and perhaps I'm the better for it. Full of distorted, synthy, pop space sounds and danceable rhythms, the rest of the album might take a little bit longer to grab you, but is just as great in the end.

5 Atlas Sound – Logos - Kranky - Say what you will, but I like Bradford Cox's solo work better than Deerhunter. Add input from members of Animal Collective and Stereolab and you've pretty much stolen my heart.

6 Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career - 4AD - The song 'French Navy.' That's all it took. "You make me go oooh, with the things that-chya do, that-chya do, that-chya do." Yup. It's got swelling instrumental backing, beautiful vocals, and captivating composition. And the rest of the album is just as superb at that one song.

7 Tyondai Braxton - Central Market – Warp - Yeah, it's one of the dudes from Battles. (And yeah, I kinda like Battles.) Braxton's solo work is a lot more concerned with instrumentation and experimentation than Battles though, and is far more amazing as a result. The album works as an impressive composition, full of heart-quickening peaks and somber, melodic valleys.

8 Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest - Warp - Yeah, everyone's praising this one this year. But I have to admit it lives up to the hype. It's full of lovely songs, and perfect for lazy end-of-summer nights on tin rooftops or middle-of-winter afternoons next to the radiator.

9 Night Control - Death Control - Kill Shaman It's noisy and melancholic, but each track is noisy and melancholic in a new and interesting way. There're at least three layers of stuff heaped on top of more stuff in each song, which makes for either a maddening descent into chaos or, in this case, an infinitely listenable album that can be approached from any mood or circumstance.

10 MV + EE - Barn Nova - Ecstatic Peace! - Simultaneously twangy and breathy, with good use of drums to offset everything else, this album is full of pretty music. I admit I've never been a huge fan of Matt Valentine and Erika Elder's past work, but this album struck my fancy.

Lady D, Aunt Beast's Radio Theatre

Dan Auerbach - Keep It Hid – Nonesuch- A mellow, blues-y take on The Black Keys' signature sound

Julie Doiron - I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day - Jagjaguwar - A little french, a little fuzzy - lots of fun

Dirty Projectors
- Bitte Orca - Domino - Kaleidoscopic harmonies

Andrew Bird - Noble Beast - Fat Possum - Andrew Bird can't make a bad album

Tune-Yards - Bird-brains - Marriage Records - Lilting, wailing, almost Jamaican sound - fantastic album and stellar performance at the tea house

Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs - Matador

Liechtenstein - Survival Strategies In A Modern World - Slumberland - Swedish Indie-rock goodness

Thao - Know Better Learn Faster - Kill Rock Stars - Not as strong as the debut album, but her distinctive sound is eminently listenable

Here We Go Magic - Here We Go Magic Secretly Canadian/Western Vinyl "Fangela" makes my Top 10 songs of the year

Various Artists
- Dark Was The Night (compilation) Red Hot Organization This compilation to benefit an HIV/AIDS charity topped the WTJU charts for over a month, and stayed in my CD player all year.


Chris McRae – The Hep Imp Show

This Immortal Coil - The Dark Age of Love - Ici d’ailleurs – Extraordinary collaboration including artists such as Yael Naim, Bonnie Prince Billy, Yann Tiersen and more. Tearfully beautiful renditions of the music of Coil.

Rapoon - Dark Rivers - Lens Records - Flowing music from a master of experimental soundscapes. One of several memorable releases in 2009 for Rapoon

Inade - The Incarnation of the Solar Architects - Loki - There’s a lot of darkness under the sun...

Lunar Abyss Deus Organum - Tuntury - Aquarel - 6 tracks of weird fun from one of Russia’s finest ghost-industrial acts

Cyclotimia - Deja Vu - Shadowplay - Re-release of 2 rare 10inch lps, plus extras. Fun and disturbing at the same time.

Nurse With Wound -The Memory Surface - United Dirter - 3 cd collection including "The Surveillance Lounge" and 2 cds of film score for the 1922 Murnasu film "Der Brennende Acker". Surreal and spectacular!

Land:Fire - Shortwave Transmission - Loki - The end of the world...or at least the end of the spiritual world. This music and accompanying samples are colder than this January’s deep freeze.

Black to Comm - Alphabet 1968 - Type - Enjoyable mysterious sounds...and not all that dark!

Stahlwerk - Retromekanik - Steinklang - Post Industrial expulsion at its finest. A collection of rare Stahlwerk 9 tracks that show power and breadth.

Bardoseneticcube – Monolith – Radionoise - Bardosenetticcube may be from another world entirely. How else to explain their music?

Danny, Carry the Zero

David Lynch, Mark Linkous, Danger Mouse - Dark Night Of The Soul - EMI-ish
Cass McCombs – Catacombs -4AD
Dan Deacon – Bromst - Carpark
King Khan & The Shrines -What Is?! - Vice
The Antlers – Hospice - Frenchkiss
Yo La Tengo – Popular Songs - Matador
Bill Callahan – Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle – Drag City
St. Vincent – Actor - 4AD
Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest - Warp
The Flaming Lips – Embryonic – Warner Bros.
Akron/Family - Set 'Em Wild, Set 'em Free - Dead Oceans

Matthew – Carry the Zero

Borrowed Beams of Light – s/t – s/r – This year I am thankful for the sun, the moon, and BBOL.

Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion – Domino – yup.

Yo La Tengo – Popular Songs – Matador - popular is cool again

Sun Araw – Heavy Deeds – Not Not Fun - ownmindblownmindblownmindblownmin…

Medeski, Martin and Wood – The Evolutionary Set – Indirecto – the music, the packagin, the music, the idea, the music

Lindstrom & Prins Thomas – II – Eskimo – winner of the “what is this you're playng?” award

Phenomenal Handclap Band – s/t – Friendly Fire – underrated dance party of the year

Atlas Sound – Logos – 4AD/Kranky – Special guests Laetitia and Panda Bear??!! Come on now...

Cave – Psychic Psummer – Important – easy math rock for your listening pleasure

Honorable Mentions:

Various Artists – This LP Crashes Hard Drives – Light in the Attic

Various Artists - Score! 20 Years of Merge Records: The Covers! - Merge

Dengue Fever - Sleepwalking Through The Mekong - M80


Zak Krone – Washed and Fried

1 Fuck Buttons - Tarot Sport - ATP - Very hard sound this experimental, this catchy, and this dissonant all at once

2 The xx - The xx - Young Turks - Sparse but very intense record.

3 Girls - Album - True Panther - Finally got it after 4/5 spins and I listen to it regularly now.

4 Vivian Girls - Everything Goes Wrong - In the Red - They had to make the list after that show at the outback lodge.

5 Flaming Lips - Embryonic - Warner Brothers - After doing Dell commercials, it's good to see them going back to left field.

6 Various Artists - Horse Meat Disco - Strut Records - Don't ask questions

7 Jay Reatard - Watch Me Fall - Matador - Amps me up but leaves a bitter taste in my mouth

8 Sonic Youth - The Eternal - Matador - As a whole, the album feels kinda surfer-y but it works most of the time. What is Mark Ibold doing exactly?

9 Various Artists - Blakroc - V2 - Good to hear Ol' Dirty Bastards voice again. No father to the style of this album.

10 YACHT - See Mystery Lights - DFAV - Existential dance music?

DJ Burma Shave, Heavy Surveillance


Ahleuchatistas - Of the Body Prone - Tzadik - Minutemen’s east-coast, long lost cousins on a one-way trip to chaos, hopped up on Adderall and Adorno

Bill Callahan - Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle - Drag City- Smog: the good kind!

Buckethead - Forensic Follies / A Real Diamond in the Rough - TDRS/self-release - Dark, comforting, wacky and disturbing all at once. This is the sound of divine guitar violence.

Camera Obscura - My Maudlin Career - 4AD No less than sweet, sorrowful perfection on the latest cuts from these Scottish lasses and lads.

Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse- Dark Night of the Soul - unreleasable! - Created to accompany a book of David Lynch photos, this album will never see the light of day! But that doesn't mean you shouldn't find and enjoy it.

Drakkar Sauna – 20009 - Marriage - Kansans who work the Louvin charm like yeomen work the soil with songs of astronauts, population control and, of course, love.

Gutbucket - A Modest Proposal – Cuneiform - Punked-up jazz that your brain and intestines will remember for weeks after the first digestion. “More More Bigger Better Faster With Cheese”; “I Am A Jelly Doughnut”; “Carnivore”; “Lucy Ferment?”

Jeffrey Lewis and the Junkyard - Em Are I - Rough Trade - Smart, catchy and inspired songwriting from one guitar-pickin', comic book drawin', politically active dude!

Nomo - Invisible Cities - Ubiquity- Afrobeat-influenced jazz full of hooks and grooves to get stuck in your ears for the next decade or so.

The Pastels / Tenniscoats - Two Sunsets - Domino - A match made in heaven: Scottish twee-poppers and Japanese purveyors of cute. “Vivid Youth” = Summer warmth to get you through the winter.

Tune-Yards - Bird-Brains – Marriage- Equal parts ukulele strums, vocal explosions and booty-shakes.


Sam Richardson – WTJU Alumnus / Sub

Destino Final – Atrapados - La Vida Es Un Mus
Death - For The Whole World To See - Drag City
Vee Dee - Public Mental Health System - Criminal I.Q.
Wasted Time – Futility - Grave Mistake
The Imposters - The Time Has Come - Secret
Leathervein- s/t - Hjernespind
Rational Animals - Distorted Temptation EP - Feral Kid
Face The Rail - s/t - Tankcrimes
Masshysteri - Var Del Av Stan - Feral Ward
Quick Fix- 6 Track EP - Adult Crash


Colin Powell - Rock Programming Director


Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion - Domino - A really dreamy, well-executed record that has wiggled its way into Mega-Hit-Land

Real Estate- Real Estate - Woodsist - jangly!

Wavves - Wavvves - Fat Possum - A few guys get together and record a catchy surf punk album with that rad tape deck you had as a kid.

F**k Buttons - Tarot Sport - ATP - Layers and layers (and layers?) of noise surround a very tasty core. You might even be able to dance to some of this. I think.

Fever Ray - Fever Ray - Rabid - Karin Anderrson splits off from the Knife and tones down the bouncy electro-noises in favor of something more austere, eerie, and personal.

Oneohtrix Point Never - Zones Without People - Arbor - Synth-laden soundscapes with just enough LFO and crunch thrown in to make things edgy.

Dan Deacon - Bromst - Carpark - Dan Deacon expands his palette of sounds to awesome effect.

Various Artists - The Sound of Wonder! Rare Electronic Pop from the Lollywood Vaults - Finders Keepers - An amazingly funky collection of songs recorded for the Lahore film industry during the 1970s. Probably my favorite album of the year.

Sunn0))) - Monoliths and Dimensions - Southern Lord - Storytime with Satan.

Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest - Warp- I have a soft spot in my heart for these folks. An album totally deserving of all of its attention.


1 comment:

Unknown said...

Thanks Dave! We're honored to be on this list. And we are about to release some new stuff very very soon.

-Matt / Drunk Tigers