Here is my list of 10 favorites from this year in music.
10. Ray LaMontagne -- Gossip in the Grain
One incredible soul number and a bunch of really great ballads that utilize Ray's smooth voice to its fullest, and you've got another high-quality Ray LaMontagne album. Oddities are hit-and-miss: the old-timey Oh Me, Oh Mama hits, but the throw-away ode to Meg White misses.
9. Headlights -- Some Racing, Some Stopping
Musically a little more expansive than the first Headlights CD, but containing the same great pop songwriting. These songs are all catchy and accessible, and the female lead singer's vocals are awesome. (All bands should have female singers.)
8. The Grand Archives -- The Grand Archives
This album came out early this year and I kept listening to it all year long, and even heard the band in concert twice. They look like bearded, tattooed motorcycle-riders, but they sing sensitive indie rock, and they do it with great melodies and great harmonies and varied instrumentation.
7. Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band -- Conor Oberst
Once again, I am wowed by Conor Oberst's songwriting talent. The way this album was put together, raw like a bunch of friends were just hanging out in Mexico making music and decided to record it, makes it seem so easy for this guy to write incredible songs. Maybe there was a lot more work put into it than it seems, but either way, this is another great record from a guy who doesn't make bad records.
6. Noah and the Whale -- Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down
These guys are the quirky indie pop/rockers on this year's list (the Bishop Allen slot). They're obviously smart guys, they write meaningful songs but they wrap them in bouncy 3-minute pop songs (though they also have some nice ballads in here, too). Their song Five Years Time seems to be ubiquitous these days in ads. You would know it if you heard it. It's a great song, but there are lots of others on here, too.
5. Little Joy -- Little Joy
This is the most unique album on my list, sounding different from all other indie rock, thanks to its Brazilian influences and laid-back style. This music is just plain cool and wins because I love any CD that you could play on a winter night sitting and chilling out by the fire.
4. Bob Dylan -- Bootleg Series Vol. 8, Tell Tale Signs
The latest in Bob's Bootleg Series was a bunch of outtakes and unreleased tracks from the last 10-20 years of his recording. That means it covers the amazing 'comeback' albums like Oh Mercy, Love and Theft and of course, the huge Grammy-winner Time Out Of Mind. It's amazing to hear alternate versions of released songs that sound like completely different songs (but generally just as good). In case anyone still thinks Dylan's good work was behind by 1970, here's more proof that isn't true.
3. Tyler Ramsey -- A Long Dream About Swimming Across The Sea
I can't even remember now where I heard about Tyler Ramsey, but somehow he got on my radar. I had been anticipating this album's release, got it the day it came out, and loved it from the first listen. It's basically acoustic folk music, with a little bit of indie rock thrown in. I love Ramsey's guitar playing, I love his voice, and I love his songs. I used to throw this in a rotation with Band Of Horses and Grand Archives and never had to hit the Skip button for hours.
2. Vampire Weekend -- Vampire Weekend
Way back in the beginning of the year, I started sharing my music with a friend at work, and this was the first CD I loaned her. Of course, she loved it. And then I'd give her other great CD's, and she'd always, to my frustration, say "I liked the Vampire Weekend better." I tried to explain to her that the Vampire Weekend album was "special" and unfair to compare against. Even back in January, it was clear this was one of the best records of the whole year. It's different and new and memorable and fun. Let's just hope they can follow it up with more great music, not just retreads on their unique style.
1. Bon Iver -- For Emma, Forever Ago
This is the ultimate wintertime, fireside record, written and recorded in a cabin in mid-winter Wisconsin. The falsetto harmonies and layered acoustic guitar will warm you. This is another of those rare albums where the songs all fit together to create a collection that's stronger than the sum of its parts. Though the theme of lost love is a bit bleak, the lyrics are obtuse enough to not be depressing. The music is very spare, but it manages to create an atmosphere and a feeling and maintain it throughout the whole CD. What I'm saying here is, don't just download a song or two, buy the whole thing.
PS -- Looking forward to a great 2009. New albums coming from:
Green Day, The Bird and the Bee, Au Revoir Simone, M. Ward, U2, Jill Sobule, and a new EP of unreleased Bon Iver from the For Emma sessions. And that's just from the already-announced stuff... Maybe this is the year we finally get new Devin Davis and new Sufjan Stevens...
The Patriots finished with 4 wins in a row to go 11-5. Since the NFL went to 12 playoff teams, no 11-5 team has ever missed the playoffs. Until now -- D'oh! Even with a record as good or better than 7 of the 12 teams that did make the playoffs, the Pats will be golfing this January. Oh well, at least we broke the NFL record for least-penalized team ever!
The Patriots got to hold onto a small glimmer of hope, thanks to the Jets' pitiful loss in Seattle yesterday.
Unfortunately, the NFL brass may have crushed the Pats' chances today, when they announced a shuffling of the TV lineup for next weekend. They moved the Jets-Dolphins game that will decide the Patriots' fate to 4 PM on Sunday. But if the Patriots win their game at 1:00, the Jets will be out of the playoffs and have nothing to play for. Why would they play hard just to get their rivals the Patriots into the playoffs? I expect the Pats will win, then the Dolphins will kill a despondent Jets team, and the Patriots will miss the playoffs at 11-5.
But for now, they're still alive...
I'm pretty sure I closed out my 2008 concert-going last night. I closed the year the same way I started it -- with a tribute band (1/5 - U2 tribute Zoo Station; 12/20 - The Unauthorized Rolling Stones and Beatles tribute The Sun Kings). This was another good concert year. Besides seeing Beatles tribute bands in San Francisco, Las Vegas, and Tokyo, I also lots of real bands. I saw Conor Oberst in both San Francisco and Denver, saw shows in both eastern and western Massachusetts, and for the 2nd year in a row, joined a nephew for his first concert. (I'm afraid, unlike Norah Jones last year, The Plain White T's did not make my top ten list.) I attended top ten shows with my brother, my sister, and my fellow out-of-state Obama volunteers in Colorado. In the end, the top ten is a pretty familiar list...
10. Sea Wolf @ The Independent, June 17
Sea Wolf is one guy, Alex Church, and his music is mostly folk and mostly acoustic guitar. And the music went over very well live, with a backing band besides just him and his guitar. The highlight was "Middle Distance Runner".
9. Ben Folds @ The Warfield, Nov. 13
Ben Folds is such an amazing piano player, it is exciting to just sit and watch him do his thing live. And I had a perfect seat, in the balcony on the left, where I could see his hands in action. This concert, he seemed to have a little less of the snarky attitude that bothered me last time I saw him in concert, and his new songs let the band rock out a little more, too.
8. Au Revoir Simone @ The Indpendent, Jan. 26
OK, they're not the best singers in the world. Their harmonies, which are beautiful on their records, don't quite work as well live. But what they lose in missed notes, they get back in attitude. They really seem happy to be up there on stage. And it's cool to see 3 women just standing in front of a bunch of synthesizers and drum machines and making music with them.
7. She & Him @ The Academy of Music (Northampton, MA), Jul. 18
Formula for a great concert: Put Zooey Deschanel on stage and have her sing and act cute. Movie star charisma works well in concerts, too. But she also has a great voice and surprised by playing piano, too. (And she wrote most of the songs.) I would have liked a little more M. Ward (the songs in which they harmonized together were the best) but this was still a great concert. (And also won the award for Worst Opening Act I've Ever Heard. Lauri and I had to go up to the lobby to avoid hearing them.)
6. The Acorn and Shaky Hands @ Hi-Dive (Denver, CO), Oct. 28
While campaigning in Denver, I managed to see this concert with two bands I'd never heard before. I like both on record, and both were different, but also great live. The Shaky Hands rocked out a lot more, driven by the most amazing drummer. He is like a human version of Animal (from Dr. Teeth's band), banging crazily on his drums with his mouth hanging open. I also loved this venue -- sort of a Bottom of the Hill vibe in Denver.
5. Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band @ Bottom of the Hill, Aug. 1
I saw these guys again in Denver a few months later, which was a good show, but couldn't match the intimacy of the Bottom of the Hill and the looseness of the band in one of their first shows of the tour. Just like the album, the concert seemed like just a bunch of guys having fun playing songs together. And Conor Oberst always puts his all into every song, especially on the night's highlight, "I Don't Want to Die (in the hospital)".
4. The Decemberists @ The Warfield, Nov. 25
As long as there's a Decemberists show in a year, there will probably be a Decemberists show in my top ten list. Colin Meloy was in good form, probably playing the showman more than ever, and the new songs were great. The highlight was "Culling of the Fold", with Meloy jumping down into the audience and playing up the wicked tone.
3. People Under The Stairs @ The Independent, June 26
People Under The Stairs are an amazing, but sadly little-known, rap group out of LA. I'm no expert on hip-hop shows, so I couldn't tell when the guys were freestyling and when they were singing songs, but it was all great. They did some crowd chanting, but didn't go overboard, and musically the show was better than most rap shows I've seen. This also won the distinction of overtaking the Dead shows I've seen and the Steely Dan show as The Pot-Smokingest Show I've Ever Seen.
2. Los Lobos @ The Fillmore, Dec. 5
After an amazing show that had included mostly older Los Lobos songs and a lot of great jamming (incredible guitar work by both David Hidalgo and Cesar Rosas and great solos on saxophone and especially flute by Steve Berlin) and even great covers of songs by The Grateful Dead ("West LA Fadeaway") and Jimi Hendrix ("Little Wing", the highlight of the night), I realized that the only fault had been that they had never broken out the acoustic instruments for some Mexican-American songs. Then, incredibly, they came out for a second encore and did just that.
1. Radiohead @ Outside Lands Festival, Golden Gate Park, Aug. 22
This festival was expensive and had serious issues, but Radiohead made it worth it all. After a long day spent on my blanket near the stage, all hell broke loose and the crowd trampled everything around. It was almost like a giant mosh pit (except there was no room for anyone to move). It was too much for my friends to take, but I stood strong with a good grip on my backpack and blanket, and was able to enjoy the best show of the year. Their 2007 record In Rainbows was one of the best of last year, and they were in great form on the new music and the old. The light show, what I saw of it, was cool, but the performance made this the best show of the year.
I have to admit, when I heard the drummer from The Strokes (Fabrizio Moretti) had a side project, I didn't think there was any chance it would be something I'd like. I apologize, Fabrizio. After reading all the hype about Little Joy, I finally checked them out, and it is one of the best records released this year. Here is one of many great songs on the album:
Another from the Reclining Pig Rock Album archives...
The Patriots have won 2 games in a row now and gotten to 9-5, but their chances of reaching the playoffs are rapidly reducing. Their magic number is 3 with only 2 games to go. That means someone has to lose, either the Ravens or both the Jets and Dolphins. Our best chance is the Ravens losing to the Cowboys in Dallas on Saturday. That would give us the wild card (and a winnable match-up with the winner of the Jets-Dolphins game in week 17). There is still a chance at the division, but it would require either the Jets losing to the Seahawks this week or the Dolphins losing to the Chiefs, neither too likely, and then the loser winning the next week.
Oh yeah, and of course, we have to beat Arizona this week and Buffalo next week.
Go Cowboys!
