Been catching up on various outlets' Best Of lists, and seeing if there are any albums I missed over the year and/or re-listening to albums that didn't blow-up my skirt first time through. As usual, plenty I disagree with, with the pop-hipster media - Rolling Stone, Spin, Alt Press, Punknews, etc - but that's to be expected from those...starfuckers. As Johnny C has commented a few times, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy should lose points for both title and cover art, and I found it less than stellar (Kanye:his albums::Vince Vaughn:his movies). Lotta love for Black Keys...eh (still) don't get it. And outright pop music continues to be 100% soulless and completely devoid of sincerity (the world's been Bieber'd). BUT, there was plenty of good stuff, and this list isn't about necessarily disagreeing with so-called experts, as their job is to make those lists on something so very subjective...they're just wrong (heh). So here's my favorite albums of 2010 in as close to a ranking as I could agree with:
10. Fire Works - The Sainte Catherines
A punk band out of Montreal with definite (alt-)country leanings. A surprisingly good collection of catchy bar rockers with clean-coarse vocals (if that's possible).
Checkout: "Reinventing Ron Hextall"
9. Chamberlain Waits - The Menzingers
This band continues to get better with each release, and this albums seems like the tip of good things to keep coming.
Checkout: "Deep Sleep," "Time Tables," and "So It Goes"
8. Special Moves - Mogwai
This is why Mogwai is great. A live record, with next to no vocals (they're primarily an instrumental, prog-rock band) that is epic. It's live!
Checkout: Start with track 1, "I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead" and go from there.
7. The Suburbs - Arcade Fire
Well, the critics and I don't disagree on everything. Arcade Fire is starting to operate on another plane, like Sigur Ros...really great, subtle albums. And The Suburbs was a positive step back from Neon Bible. "Now the music divides us into tribes/You choose your side, I'll choose my side" [from "Suburban War"].
Checkout: "Ready To Start" is amazing.
6. Live From Orensanz - Taking Back Sunday
An unplugged album that caught me by surprise. Really strong while keeping the original emotion intact.
Checkout: "Everything Must Go"
5. This Addiction - Alkaline Trio
My least favorite A3 full-length, and easily the most listened to record of 2010. It's the Trio after all.
Checkout: "This Addiction," "Dead On The Floor," and "Fine"
4. White Crosses - Against Me!
AM! gets a lot of flak with each new record that sounds less like their previous efforts. Well fuck that, I think they keep getting stronger.
Checkout: "Ache With Me,""Spanish Moss," and "Bamboo Bones"
A quick programming note: It became very apparent that the best albums were a 3-horse race, each distancing the competition (it's not a competition).
3. The Five Ghosts (+ The Séance EP) - Stars
Finally the stars aligned for...well, Stars. An amazing album of macabre pop, taking all their best elements from previous albums, and forming a cohesive effort. Catchy and haunting, and The Séance EP may be, pound-for-pound, better than anything else this year.
Checkout: "Wasted Daylight," "I Died So I Could Haunt You," "We Don't Want Your Body," and the rest of them!
2. American Slang - The Gaslight Anthem
Now this is what The Gaslight Anthem sounds like. A diverse record, that manages to make their sound more whole in my opinion, and hopefully shedding the Bruce-knockoff title - a complete record. Great weekend music to dance with your lady.
Checkout: "Bring It On," "The Diamond Church Street Choir," "The Queen Of Lower Chelsea," "Orphans," and the very powerful "We Did It When We Were Young"
1. High Violet - The National
It's no secret I'm a BIG National fan, and when I sat down to think about albums of the year, this one's strong points kept rising to the top. Beautiful, and the alternate version of "Terrible Love" is even more amazing. In the end, The National's good songs are just better (to mine ears). And, yes, this has topped a lot of the lists I previously cast-off (blind squirrels, nuts, look it up).
Checkout: it's my favorite album of the past year...all of them.
So what were your favorite albums of the last year? Had to leave off some good to so-so efforts from heavy hitters (Jimmy Eat World, Interpol, Circa Survive, Deftones, Sundowner, Blackpool Lights new EP, and BK's half of Wasted Potential), but them's the breaks!
In the category of best album title: Bring Me The Horizon's There Is A Hell, Believe Me I've Seen It. There Is A Heaven, Let's Keep It A Secret. Unfortunately, I'm not as in to their punishing style of screaming.
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