Wednesday, January 04, 2006
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2005
The early part of the year will be filled with subjective "best of" lists coming at you faster than...ten fast things (sorry...it's early). You will not be spared here at The Rick. These music releases made my year a little more bearable.
Death Cab For Cutie - Plans.
I became a big fan of Ben Gibbard through Postal Service. After listening to the album Give Up about a million times, I went looking for Death Cab stuff (Death Cab being Gibbard's band, Postal being Gibbard's side project). I liked Transatlanticism quite a bit, but I fell absolutely in love with Plans. The guy just knows how to write beautiful pop songs. And not in a Burt Bacharach kind of way, which is good too. It's just music that speaks to me...sometimes speaks for me. Get it.
DangerDoom - The Mouse and the Mask.
I picked up this album in a little Santa Barbara record store while on holiday there (a record store whose name I can't remember but was really cool and had great prices). I liked both members of this duo (DJ Danger Mouse of The Grey Album, famously remixing Jay-Z's Black Album with the Beatles' White Album, and MFDoom, fan favorite underground rapper). What I didn't realize was that this little project was also an Adult Swim concept album (Adult Swim being the adult-oriented block of cartoons on the Cartoon Network). And it's a ton of fun, with cameos from just about the entire Adult Swim roster (I'm lookin' at you, Meatwad!) and great beats and lyrics from the Mouse and the Mask. Hip hop fans, do not delay.
M.I.A. - Arular.
I'm not sure where or when I heard M.I.A. for the first time. Perhaps Lindsey played it for me. Perhaps it was when my friends, bluegrass band The Cousin Lovers, did a cover of one of her songs. However that first listen happened, it prompted getting the whole album, which I immediately fell in like with. There's a lot going on in it: hip hop influences, Jamaican influences, world music (but not annoying), and a smattering of political and sexual commentary from the perspective of a Sri Lankan immigrant raised in London. And the beats are nice as hell.
Kanye West - Late Registration.
West's sophomore effort not only tops his first album, but surpasses nearly all other releases this year. See my review here.
Common - Be.
I'm all for experimenting, but I really didn't care for the level of experimentation Comm messed with on his previous album, Electric Circus. I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to hip hop (although I have been known to be hypocritical on that point). Well, you don't get much purer than Be. Common's one of the most intelligent guys on the mic these days and with Kanye doing much production on the album, it's a match made in rap heaven (Brooklyn by way Chicago?). You might have heard the seemingly ubiquitous The Corner playing on the radio, on television, on ringtones, just about everywhere last summer. It owned the summer and it's a beautiful spokesman for the rest of the album. Overall, just a pleasure to listen to.
Honorable mention list. Still worth spending your hard-earned cash on (or hard-earned download time, depending on which little bastard on your shoulder you're listening to).
M83 - Before The Dawn Heals Us.
LCD Soundsystem - LCD Soundsystem.
Beck - Guero.
The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan.
Franz Ferdinand - You Could Have It So Much Better.
The Game - Documentary.
I keep seeing an album called Illinois by Sufjan Stevens make all the critics' top lists this year. I've never heard of 'em (or him). But it's on the list of things to look for.
Fatlip's latest release TheLonliest Punk might have made the list had I picked it up earlier than yesterday. So far so good, though.
The early part of the year will be filled with subjective "best of" lists coming at you faster than...ten fast things (sorry...it's early). You will not be spared here at The Rick. These music releases made my year a little more bearable.
Death Cab For Cutie - Plans.
I became a big fan of Ben Gibbard through Postal Service. After listening to the album Give Up about a million times, I went looking for Death Cab stuff (Death Cab being Gibbard's band, Postal being Gibbard's side project). I liked Transatlanticism quite a bit, but I fell absolutely in love with Plans. The guy just knows how to write beautiful pop songs. And not in a Burt Bacharach kind of way, which is good too. It's just music that speaks to me...sometimes speaks for me. Get it.
DangerDoom - The Mouse and the Mask.
I picked up this album in a little Santa Barbara record store while on holiday there (a record store whose name I can't remember but was really cool and had great prices). I liked both members of this duo (DJ Danger Mouse of The Grey Album, famously remixing Jay-Z's Black Album with the Beatles' White Album, and MFDoom, fan favorite underground rapper). What I didn't realize was that this little project was also an Adult Swim concept album (Adult Swim being the adult-oriented block of cartoons on the Cartoon Network). And it's a ton of fun, with cameos from just about the entire Adult Swim roster (I'm lookin' at you, Meatwad!) and great beats and lyrics from the Mouse and the Mask. Hip hop fans, do not delay.
M.I.A. - Arular.
I'm not sure where or when I heard M.I.A. for the first time. Perhaps Lindsey played it for me. Perhaps it was when my friends, bluegrass band The Cousin Lovers, did a cover of one of her songs. However that first listen happened, it prompted getting the whole album, which I immediately fell in like with. There's a lot going on in it: hip hop influences, Jamaican influences, world music (but not annoying), and a smattering of political and sexual commentary from the perspective of a Sri Lankan immigrant raised in London. And the beats are nice as hell.
Kanye West - Late Registration.
West's sophomore effort not only tops his first album, but surpasses nearly all other releases this year. See my review here.
Common - Be.
I'm all for experimenting, but I really didn't care for the level of experimentation Comm messed with on his previous album, Electric Circus. I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to hip hop (although I have been known to be hypocritical on that point). Well, you don't get much purer than Be. Common's one of the most intelligent guys on the mic these days and with Kanye doing much production on the album, it's a match made in rap heaven (Brooklyn by way Chicago?). You might have heard the seemingly ubiquitous The Corner playing on the radio, on television, on ringtones, just about everywhere last summer. It owned the summer and it's a beautiful spokesman for the rest of the album. Overall, just a pleasure to listen to.
Honorable mention list. Still worth spending your hard-earned cash on (or hard-earned download time, depending on which little bastard on your shoulder you're listening to).
M83 - Before The Dawn Heals Us.
LCD Soundsystem - LCD Soundsystem.
Beck - Guero.
The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan.
Franz Ferdinand - You Could Have It So Much Better.
The Game - Documentary.
I keep seeing an album called Illinois by Sufjan Stevens make all the critics' top lists this year. I've never heard of 'em (or him). But it's on the list of things to look for.
Fatlip's latest release TheLonliest Punk might have made the list had I picked it up earlier than yesterday. So far so good, though.
Comments:
I have put them all on hold at my local library. Yes, all of them! Except Fatlip. They didn't have Fatlip.
we've been listening to death cab at the studio lately. i have decided i really like it despite it's inherent suckyness
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