2010 was a good year for music. Then again, I don't know I'm the best judge...my musical tastes seems to vary drastically-- day to day, month to month-- and I certainly wasn't genetically blessed with my brother's ear for music (or his instrumental talent, for that matter). However, over the last 12 months, I've gathered an impressively diverse array of new music for my collection. I'll readily admit many of these are single songs from certain CDs (thanks to a recommendation or a top-40 hit I Shazam-ed [new verb, Webster] from the radio), but there are a few full albums I eagerly purchased and which remain on constant rotation in my headphones, in the car, or on the laptop. In no particular order, my ten favorite albums of 2010:
1. Arcade Fire: The Suburbs
Favorite Songs: "The Suburbs" and "Sprawl II"
2. Passion Pit: Manners
Favorite Song: "Moth's Wings"
There's a line in this album's second song, "Little Secrets," that begs the question: "Have you ever felt so god damn strong?" While I'm 95% sure it's a reference to being on illicit drugs, the listener nevertheless has to hold back a triumphant answer. The "Biography" section of Amazon.com gives the following explanation of the CD: "Redemption. Paranoia. Guilt. And brief glimpses of a better tomorrow, all cloaked in pop hooks that truly help the medicine go down." Because I don't know how to accurately describe musical rhythms, beats, and the aforementioned "hooks," I'll say that's about right. The lyrics and sounds are different, bizarre, and take at least a second listen to appreciate--for me, at least. However, once I'd listened to this album all the way through a few times, the catchy beats are almost impossible not to like.
3. Jimmy Eat World: Invented
Favorite Songs: "Movielike"and "Invented"
I will always have a soft spot in my heart for Jimmy Eat World. Their 2001 album, Bleed American, helped get me through college, and I ended up having to replace the disc due to overuse. I was 22 years old when Futures was released, and the poignancy of the album's final song struck a chord in me like few songs ever had: "Amazing still it seems/ I'll be 23/ I won't always love what I'll never have/ I won't always live in my regrets...I'm here I'm now I'm ready/ Holding on tight/ Don't give away the end/ The one thing that stays mine." In the list of my top 50 favorite songs of all-time, Jimmy Eat World holds at least two spots ("Catch this Light"? Captivating). That being said, I don't think Invented is their best album. Don't get me wrong; it's beautiful, catchy, mellow but not weak...in fact, there are quite a few songs here that sound (almost too) reminiscent of their previous work, just...not as good. However, it's still a solid album from one of (what I believe to be) the best bands out there right now, one whose staying power has not only lasted for over a decade, but will continue to. This CD may be "nothing movie-like; nothing magic," but that doesn't mean it isn't excellent.
4. Eminem: Recovery
Favorite Songs: "Space Bound" and "25 to Life"
This album received, at best, only mediocre reviews; in fact, most critics deemed it muddled and too-familiar, pompous and underwhelming. According to Rolling Stone, this disc's songs "hearken back to [Eminem's] freewheeling early records — rhymes as goofy and imaginative as they are violent and profane." I don't listen to every song when I play it...to be completely honest, probably only half. Yet, those "chosen" pieces, at least to me, are honest, intelligent, and brave; confessions from a drug-addled and highly-criticized lyrical talent. In "No Love," Eminem boasts he's "'bout to spit the greatest verse of all time," claiming he'll "set fire to the mic and ignite the crowd"...overstatement? Absolutely. However, with the exception of Kanye and Jay-Z, I can't think of another modern rapper able to create an album both as controversial or as brutally candid.
5. Ray LaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs: God Willin' & the Creek Don't Rise
Favorite Song: "For the Summer"
What Eminem does for angst-ridden teenagers and bitter, mad-at-the-world audiences Ray LaMontagne does for the mellow members of the Thursday Night Wine Club. This CD is overflowing with rich, summer-evening-porch music, perfect for watching that "big yellow moon risin' up over them old hills." Not surprisingly (given LaMontagne's montrous and James Taylor-worthy talent), listening to this disc varies only slightly from hearing LaMontagne and his talented ensemble serenade live, which I was lucky enough to experience in September. While I hesitate to say so, just because it sounds so cheap and belittling, God Willin' & the Creek Don't Rise is perfect "background music" for dinner parties or lounging beach days; easy to absorb and appreciate.
6. The Dirty Heads: Any Port in a Storm
Favorite Song: "Believe"
I listened to a lot of reggae--namely Rebelution, SOJA, and these guys--this year, but apparently I'm behind the times, since a lot of it wasn't released in 2010. I almost didn't include this CD. I actually had The Black Keys' Brothers here first, which is absolutely and irrevocably a more powerful and impressive musical accomplishment. However, while The Black Keys are certainly a more expected (dignified? correct?) choice, I feel like I'd be doing The Dirty Heads (and, by association, my entire summer) a disservice if I didn't mention this album. I spent a good deal of my June-August blasting this disc; a reggae-infused CD that sounds a lot like a vibrant fusing of Pepper and Slightly Stoopid. They toured with Sublime with Rome and Cage the Elephant over the summer, and it's one of the few shows I was genuinely sad to miss. They also do a pretty killer acoustic version of Coldplay's "Viva La Vida." "Six damn strings [almost] never sounded so appealing."
7. Broken Bells: Broken Bells
Favorite Songs: "The High Road" and "The Ghost Inside"
I remember being really excited when I heard The Shins' James Mercer was coming out with a side project, and I remember being even more excited when I found out the co-contributor was Danger Mouse-- while I like Gnarls Barkley, Danger Mouse is a musical genius in my mind due to his work with and for Gorillaz. While this disc lacks Damon Albarn's pure talent (which may or may not be of my own mind's making) and the pulse-heavy beats of Gorillaz, it's one I can put on from start to finish without skipping a song. The lyrics are poetic but not sappy: "Remember what they say/ There's no shortcut to a dream/ It's all blood and sweat/ And life is what you manage in between." Brilliance.
8. LCD Soundsystem: This is Happening
Favorite Song: "Dance Yrself Clean"
It kills me that it took me until this month to discover this CD. According to LCD Soundsystem, "There's lights and sounds and stories/ Music's just a part." True, but it's a big part, and This is Happening should be proud to join the ranks of some of the most memorable and risk-taking modern music makers. I'm not usually a fan of techno/electronic type music, and this is probably the closet I've come to embracing the genre. In my mind, the songs on this CD are a little too long and contain too many open spaces of dance beats and blank verse, but that could very well be because I'm not used to listening to much lyric-free music. LCD Soundsystem sounds a little like Daft Punk (which is ironic--or perhaps purposeful--seeing as how "Daft Punk is Playing at My House" is the title of one of their previous songs), however this disc seems less like the TRON soundtrack and more like an appropriate homage to David Bowie.
9. Gorillaz: Plastic Beach
Favorite Songs: "On Melancholy Hill" and "Superfast Jellyfish"
Pure. Genius. Arguably the most notable CD of 2010. I realize that might be a little dramatic or pretentious, but I'm fascinated by the entire arrangement and force of even the concept behind the world's first animated band. The not-so-subtle message behind this album (America is not disposable, folks) is well-dressed in calculated but not patronizing lyrics, and the frontman, Damon Albarn, just can't seem to make a musical misstep. Plus, impressive collaborations with nearly a dozen other artists (i.e. De La Soul, Snoop Dogg, Little Dragon) provide for a brilliantly executed musical canvas--not only does Albarn utilize his own musical talents, he also knows when to step back and allow his "cast" to shine. I saw them live in October, and don't plan on missing a tour of theirs again. Ever. Buy this CD.
10. Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Favorite Songs: "All of the Lights," "Runaway," and "See Me Now"
I don't like Kanye West: The Person. Granted, I've never actually met the guy, but the persona put forth to the media seems highly-arrogant, selfish, annoyingly flashy, and entitled-- (from his own mouth: "[I'm] young, rich, and tasteless"). Kanye West: The Artist, however, is a different story. Whether I think his diamond teeth and twitter over-shares are obnoxious and unnecessary or not, this adept rapper has a way with words and harmonies. According to Paste Magazine, West's 5th studio release is "perhaps this century’s definitive portrait of torment, vanity, self-delusion, and pathos." The title of this disc is pretty self-explanatory: Dark? Yes. Twisted? Definitely. Beautiful? Absolutely. The rhymes are catchy and truthful, the beats are memorable and varied, and the collaborators are highly skilled (Kid Cudi, Jay-Z, Beyonce, Elton John, Bon Iver, John Legend, Swizz Beatz...the list goes on). Like it's creator, there are certainly times this CD feels self-centered and boisterous, but I can't deny it's a masterpiece.
* * * *
And the winner for most anticipated album of 2011...Unwritten Law: Swan.
Disclaimer: This album won't win any awards. The members of Unwritten Law won't be invited to the Grammys, let alone be asked to perform there. And while their previous CDs have contained (some) impressively dark and meaningful lyrics, the leaked mp3s I've heard from Swan seem relatively tame and--dare I say it--"mainstream." But it doesn't matter. I'll follow this band to the ends of the earth and back. Cheers to the next effort...
