Okay, there’s been much debate between myself and my other music nerd friend, Dan, on just which albums are the best of the best.
Last year’s list was fun and all, but I had put on an album there that, looking back, shouldn’t have been on there at all. …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead was a decent record at best. But at the time it had just come out, we were excited about it, and we got carried away.
So this year we’ve talked more about why our favorite albums of the year are favorites, and his list is looking quite different from mine. I prefer more pop/traditional songwriting stuff and he likes the more indie leaning stuff. Which is great, as it shows the contrast between our own tastes. While I can certainly enjoy and love a few of his fav tracks and albums, I’ve ranked my Top 10 by those that brought me the most joy. I’m positive you’ll dig them as well.
#10 – Burial – Untrue
Here is the most recent addition to my best of the year. This is an electronica album that is absolutely perfect background music for working. I know that sounds a little odd, but finding an album like that is rare and difficult at best. This allows you to keep something going and not worry about keeping up with the verse/chorus changes and you don’t really miss out on the best parts because, as most electronic music is, it’s repetitive enough that you’ll get to hear it in time. I also love the fact that you’ll ‘forget’ that you’re listening to it and then catch the sound of some great riff or sequence. I’m really happy to have this album in my collection.
#9 – The National – Boxer
This album’s opener, “Fake Empire”, is good enough to warrant its inclusion here. Yes, I know, that shouldn’t be something to take into account, but damn. It’s that good. However, lucky for you there are plenty of other solid tracks on this record. Dan thinks that many will put this on their Best Of list simply because they missed Alligator, their previous record, which was far, far better than this one. That thing would’ve been #1 with a bullet had I known about it at the time. Regardless, after an incredible start the goodness keeps coming with new classics like “Brainy,” “Slow Show,” and the other breakout track on the record, “Start A War.”
#8 – Maroon 5 – It Won’t Be Soon Before Long
Ah, a point of contention. My buddy Dan thinks this album is the same track over and over, while my friend Derek loves the hell out of it (and I’m sure it sits on the top of his albums of the year). Me? I think it’s a pop gem. I love me a good pop song, and there are just so many on this record. “Makes Me Wonder” and “Wake Up Call” sit at the top of the charts, but I prefer “A Little Of Your Time” and “Kiwi” to those. Hell, the bonus track, “Infatuation”, is better than those two. If you liked their last record, you’ll love this one.
#7 – Fall Out Boy – Infinity On High
Why do I put notoriously pop albums on here? Because I’ve written songs before. And it’s damn near impossible to write a good, solid pop song. And what you have here is a whole album’s worth of incredible material. Plenty of hooks, cute lyrics, and the best song titles around. C’mon, how can you not love “I’m Like A Lawyer With The Way I’m Always Trying To Get You Off (Me & You)”? Regardless, songs like “This Ain’t A Scene, It’s An Arms Race” and “Thnks Fr Th Mmrs” keep them on the top of the charts while I prefer the subdued fun of “The Take Over, The Break’s Over” and “Thriller”. An accomplished record that is does the thing that all good records do: They make it look easy.
#6 – Arcade Fire – Neon Bible
A given. Arcade Fire simply can’t make a bad record (okay, they’ve only made two, but they’ve both been achingly brilliant, so what can you do?). The standouts on this record are more easily identified and enjoyed than on Funeral (their last record), so that’s good for the new listener. “Intervention” is clearly the high point of the record, but other all-stars like “Keep The Car Running” and the title track keep the goodness alive. This is a cohesive and enjoyable romp from one of the best bands in the world, period. I don’t know a single music nerd who doesn’t giggle with excitement when they hear about Arcade Fire creating new material.
#5 – KT Tunstall – Drastic Fantastic
The best pop record of the year. Easily. While Fall Out Boy covers the ‘power pop’ aspect, KT has it down in both melody and songwriting. This album continued to surprise me all the way through, from the the beginning track, “Little Favors” to the awesome “If Only” moving on to my favorite track on the album, “Hopeless”, and the great “Hold On” and “Saving My Face.” There simply isn’t a bad track on the record. I love good songwriting, and this is probably the closest to pure songwriting bliss on this list. From a woman I was expecting to flare out from One Hit Wonderitis, this girl has proven herself worthy many times over.
#4 – Radiohead – In Rainbows
What? It’s Radiohead for chrissake! From a band that has made a few lackluster albums over the years (and that’s only because when you go from The Bends to OK Computer to Kid A, where you gonna go?), they return to form and in a new distribution format. For the record, I paid 5 pounds for my copy, which was almost $12. I was more than happy to do so, and the music has been great. From the rocking opener “15 Step” to the groovy and heartfelt “All I Need”, you hear Yorke better than you have in years, and his songwriting hits its peak with the last song on the album, “Videotape,” which was used in one of my most popular videos ever to great effect.
#3 – Peter, Bjorn and John – Writer’s Block
Now here’s a perfect indie pop album. While KT keeps the traditionalist in me enjoying her melodies, these guys are the ones pushing the boundaries. Their melodies, lyrics, and timing are second to none. It’s hard to describe how perfectly these songs gel with one another, with the insanely catchy “Old Folks” to the funk of “Amsterdam” to the funky “Let’s Call It Off”, good luck finding a bad track on this disc. When you get so close to the top, you could almost interchange any of these Top 3 as my #1, as these albums bring me great joy and each listen just gets better and better.
#2 – Mobius Band – Heaven
If you like indie/alt rock at all you will die and go to…well, you know, when you hear this record. I’m always a little skeptical of new bands, and it usually takes Dan making me listen to something before I buy in. But this one didn’t take long. Wow, wow, wow! What an incredible record. From the first song you know this is something both different, special, and noteworthy. As I said, I’m ranking these by joy produced (JP), and this one has a pretty high JP count. The awesome and eclectic opener, “Hallie” segues perfectly into “Secret Language,” which is probably my favorite track on the record. The other incredible standout is “Friends Like These”, which has an awesome chorus that is second to none this year. I love this record!
#1 – Blonde Redhead – 23
But not as much as I love this one! Man, another one I hadn’t heard of at all, saw mentioned somewhere like Metacritic, took a chance, and immediately fell in love. From the title track to the awesome “Dr. Strangeluv” to “By Summer And Spring Fall” (my fav tracks), this record delivers. If you like a little Radiohead mixed with some Moby all with a pop sensibility that is second to none, this is the album I most enjoy firing up from 2007. The melodies are tight, the electronica is perfectly used to compliment and not overwhelm, and I always get more out of each listen than the previous one. To listen is to love.
So that’s my Top 10 records of the year. What about my iTunes listen data? What were my most listened to songs?
Top 10 Most Listened To Songs in 2007
(without repeat artists), from Most Listened:
#1 “To Build A Home” (featuring Patrick Watson) by The Cinematic Orchestra from “La Fleur”
This is my favorite track of the year. While the rest of the album can’t keep up the sublime brilliance of this track, I love love love the build-up this one has. It’s so very hard to impacting and emotional with music anymore, but this one seals it.
#2 – “Seventy-Four, Seventy-Five” by Shearwater from “Palo Santo”
Another fantastic track. This is a track that can both get you moving and allow you to appreciate the lyrics, something incredibly rare. Normally you get a track that can pump you up but is generally mindless. It’s so nice when they’re blended. Not to mention this album is ridiculously brilliant. If I had found it last year it would’ve been my #1 with a bullet. So let me say it loud and clear: Please buy this record it’s amazing. It’s better than Blonde Redhead. Yes, really.
#3 – “23″ by Blonde Redhead from “23″
Ah yes, the opener tracks. There are many first tracks in my most listened to, mainly because I just double click the album and go. Regardless, this track is awesome and if you’re curious if you’ll like Blonde Redhead, you could easily start here. Dig it? Then it only gets better from here.
#4 – “Fake Empire” by The National from “Boxer”
Again with the opening tracks! Fortunately, as I mentioned earlier, this is by far the best song on the record. Listen and enjoy this masterpiece
#5 – “Secret Language” by Mobius Band from “Heaven”
Hrm, sense a pattern? Yes, many of my favorite songs are on my favorite albums, shock of shocks. That said, this is my favorite track from the disc, as its chorus is just too good and one of the driving reasons I listened to the rest of the record. Man, so good.
#6 – “Annie Waits” by Ben Folds from “Rockin The Suburbs”
Note I didn’t say ‘top songs from this year’, this is simply a song I fired up a lot. I had never listened to “Rockin the Suburbs” before this year, and I definitely missed out. This is a kick ass track (along with many other tracks on that record, such as “zac and sara”) that you can instantly enjoy. My favorite kind.
#7 – “Secret Meeting” by The National from “Alligator”
Remember what I said about people loving Boxer because of the goodness of Alligator? This track is so good it’s scary. As soon as you hear it you’ll know why every music nerd creams their jeans for these guys. Lyrics, melody, presence, this track has it all.
#8 – “Don’t Make Me A Target” by Spoon from “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga”
The best track on the record deserves plenty of praise. It’s another pop gem from Spoon whose last record, Gimme Fiction, is one of my favorite records ever. The first four tracks on Gimme Fiction are better than some bands will ever produce, ever. No one rocks the tempo like Spoon.
#9 – “Something To Believe In” by Aqualung from “Memory Man”
This is a great track on a truly mediocre album. This just goes to show that it’s easy to have a few good moments on an album (the other notable on Memory Man is “Pressure Suit”), but to carry it from start to finish requires a true master. And Aqualung is no master. Yet.
#10 – “Be Good” by Tokyo Police Club from “A Lesson In Crime”
Why couldn’t this EP have been released in 2007 instead? My God, so good! I love, love, love this EP, I’ve listened to it several dozen times this year and I have yet to get over it. This is a spacey little track with some incredibly rich pop goodness with hand claps, people shouting “Hey! Hey!” in time to the music, and a rocking guitar riff. Diggin it.
So that’s enough for today. I’ll return shortly with my favorite songs of the year. I hope this music is as good to you as it is to me.
I am so tired and fed up with the healthcare system in this country I can’t stand it. I’m tired of healthcare for profit. Healthcare for profit is the most ridiculous idea I’ve ever heard of, and the more you learn about it, the more disgusting it is. Combing through the history of a patient to find a loophole in which to deny a claim. Trying to claim that a needed transplant is “experimental.”
I’ve seen Sicko, and I’m certainly drinking the socialized medicine kool-aid. You can try to use the term “socialized medicine” to mean something evil, but that won’t fly here. When every single other modern western civilization is using it, I’m afraid it’s well out of the evil range.
Looking at the presidential candidates, it’s sad that only John Edwards and Dennis Kucinich have a shot of actually changing the healthcare to a single payor system that covers all Americans no matter what. I can assure whatever hardened conservatives out there, paying taxes for healthcare beats the living shit out of premiums and deductables.
The other day the company I work for was switching to a new payroll and healthcare provider. The woman from said company was explaining the ‘benefits’ of their healthcare package.
“Just imagine in a catastrophic medical event, such as open heart surgery which can run up to a quarter million dollars, you’d only have to pay a total of $8,000!”
Seriously, she said that excitedly. And that amount, by the way, was for an individual, not a family, in which case it goes up to a full $10k, I believe. So in the event of a ‘catastrophic event’ I’d be royally screwed for years while I struggled to pay it off. Hell, we’re still paying for Annie’s birth. She’s five years old now.
Remember this: No matter how much it would be in taxes for socialized medicine, it would be far, far less than what you currently pay for premiums. And if its too much for you now (i.e. you’re young and never go to the doc), wait a few years when problems and genetics start catching up to you.
Half of all bankruptcies in this country are due to medical bills. This is laughed at in other countries. As much as I hated on Europe, they nail healthcare on the head. And I wish we’d wake up. The only people who enjoy the current system are either rich (i.e. they don’t “feel” the premium/deductable horrors), or make money from the healthcare ‘industry’ (which makes me sick just saying it).
As much as I like the libertarian views of Ron Paul, he is absolutely off his rocker in regards to social programs. The fact is, we need a social safety net. Like it or not, the thing that he doesn’t get is that not everyone starts on the same level. Cutting taxes to 0% for the homeless still leaves them homeless. Vouchers don’t help people who continue to struggle to pay bills. The guy is simply rich and removed from everyday struggles. He’s a 10-term congressman, so it’s been a hell of a long time since he paid for his healthcare. And yes he was a doctor, but they don’t exactly have problems making ends meet or finding/purchasing healthcare, now do they?
I’m also growing a little tired of this idea from the Paul camp that everything was better in 1913. I understand the dollar was worth more and the IRS was not in existence. I too would love the tax code to be more fair to all, but give me a friggin break. Harking back 100 years is going to make sense only to those who don’t care to realize what we didn’t have in 1913: A global economy, air travel, interstates, etc.
Anyway, today’s rant was just me being outraged with our medical system.
Next time I may spout about the recent amendment in Knoxville by the City Council for city employees to loudly and proudly practice their beliefs. Nothing like a little Jesus to help with government. It’s worked really well for 7 years running. Bible study in the White House much? Read the rest of this entry »
I’m a pretty jaded computer nerd, so when I find the good stuff I like to share it.
First up is Things, a Getting Things Done app for OSX that is SOOOO sweet. I actually seeing myself using this instead of just poking around and then never touching it again (I’m looking at you, DevonThink Pro). Very cool, and I’m really enjoying it so far. (Note: I got Things by purchasing the kick ass MacUpdate Bundle. WOW is that a great deal, and if you have a Mac you should just go ahead and purchase it already)
Up next is Mint. Wow, wow, wow! I don’t know how else to praise it other than saying it Just. Friggin. Works. That is too cool. The only issue I currently have is that it doesn’t pull a lot of transactions, but perhaps there’s a setting or something I’m missing. Once this thing has at least a month of financial data in it, wow will the sky be the limit.
I was also impressed it could pull transactions from my bank, and did so perfectly. I love me some sweet Web 2.0 apps, and this is definitely one of my favorites so far. Again, considering the fact that I could actually see myself using this is the best part. Most of the time I find something shiny, enjoy it, then leave it behind. Nice to find apps that Just Work and that you want to work with.
Going new places is always nerve-wracking. Going somewhere as famous and huge as New York was certainly no exception.
On Friday I found out after arriving at the airport that my flight had been cancelled. Great. So instead of non-stop service to New York City arriving at 3PM I had a connection through Atlanta to arrive around 6PM.
Then, of course, the plane was delayed in Atlanta. I finally arrived in New York around 7:30PM. By the time I got my luggage and a cab ride to the Javits Center, where the World Championships were being held, it was almost 8:30PM.
I found out an unfortunate (inconvenient?) truth when I arrived: Since I had missed pretty much the entire singles portion of the event, every big name had basically disappeared.
That’s not to say I didn’t see Zvi or Kai or others roaming around, it was just that it was late, everyone was exhausted from playing their favorite game, and so the footage I got that evening was sub-par.
Another inconvenient truth: Turns out that Invitational is special in that when there are just 16 people who can hang out with each other, you get incredible footage of Kenji being Kenji.
At Worlds, each country sticks together. That means the Japanese hang out with the Japanese, and so on.
This may not be 100% the case, but also remember that on Friday night I found out my place to stay had fallen through. This was, of course, bad.
Speaking with my buddy Reuben, he said that the guy + two backups fell through, and that the last few nights they had been drafting then sleeping on the tables at Neutral Ground. Needless to say I didn’t feel like sleeping on a table of all things, and pressed for a hotel.
At Worlds, we ran into a fan of the show who was there with his mother. She said there was a decent (I originally wrote nice and erased it) place called the Golden Gate Motor Inn. Not too expensive, she said. She was right. For five of us over two rooms, it was $60/ea. Not bad for New York, but the travel there was ridiculous.
Subway rides for 45 minutes followed by a long wait for a bus that never showed. There’s nothing like standing alone in the Bronx at two in the morning with a bunch of nerds. I can only imagine what we may have looked like to a thug of some sort.
But that’s the thing: I didn’t think New York was that unsafe. While I certainly _felt_ threatened, I don’t believe the city is actually that dangerous. I mean, as totalitarian as it may have seemed, the broken windows policy and other police measures really have increased security.
Were there shady characters hanging around the subway? Sure. But you simply ignore them and move on. Don’t leave your shit lying around, don’t do anything stupid. Walking on the streets of New York was fun and fascinating, and day or night I never thought I was in danger of losing my stuff.
So on Saturday I got what I would consider the bulk of my footage. I ran around trying to interview everyone I could while getting a few shots of the team coverage. I also ran into Ken Adams, a guy who has been on the show before. He said he was staying with a friend who lived in Brooklyn who may put me up.
I then met Rich, who is a fantastic guy who put me up for two days no questions asked. So myself, Ken, Rich, and Ken’s friend Ryan hung out for essentially the rest of the weekend.
While it was a trek to Brooklyn (45 minutes or so, a good half mile walk and lots of Subway rides including a transfer), you really can’t beat free room and board. Not to mention free room and board with Magic geeks. Playing a 4-man cube last night was certainly a highlight and the only Magic I got to play all weekend.
Anyway, backing up to Sunday the Worlds Top 8 was underway and it was great to see Uri Peleg, an Israeli, in there. Who knew Israel, of all the countries, would be kicking ass at Magic? It was really cool. Also really interesting was the return of Patrick Chapin, who, along with Gabriel Nassif, were playing Dragonstorm, a variant of the deck that won _last_ year’s Worlds.
Patrick made it all the way to the finals where he lost to Uri. An Israeli is the Magic World Champ! How cool is that?
But here’s a weird quirk: The next Pro Tour, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, may not let Uri even in the country.
Why? Because he’s Israeli and Malaysians don’t like Israelis. My God I hate bigotry. I can’t stand religion because of stupid shit like this (arbitrary discrimination) and it blows my mind that the guy who just won $40,000 and 25 pro points can’t attend the next Tour because of politics.
I guess it really is unique to be the Israeli World Champ.
Another funny quirk: Right before I interviewed Patrick Chapin he was smiling, then smacked himself.
"Gotta keep up my image," he tells me. Funny stuff.
Also on Sunday I missed a few opportunities to get some footage due to editing work for Wizards of the Coast. Had I known what little time I’d actually have for the show, in retrospect it may have not been the best decision. But we’ll see.
If anything, I feel a lot of pressure to deliver. For example, I remarked heavily in my donation drive that I’d like to feature Kenji. But Kenji was simply not available. I couldn’t try to chase Kenji around being drunk if I couldn’t be assured of a place to stay. Then when I _got_ a place to stay, I didn’t feel comfortable finding the place by myself. I mean, I’m sure Brooklyn is a nice, safe place and all, but I don’t like the idea of getting lost in New York. So I had to stick with my friends.
So many variables, so much stuff happening, so little time.
For example, they had a big tournament where the gave away a car (or $20,000, your choice). Where in the hell was this tournament? At the end of Sunday, I couldn’t find where the Top 8 was, let alone the winner. The kept moving the tournament around, and so I didn’t get an interview and/or deck tech with the winner. This was frustrating, as you can imagine.
I’m sure I’ll be able to come up with something entertaining. That I’m not worried about. But the expectations I put on myself are so high sometimes I wonder if I can ever reach it. But that may be part of my success: If you don’t reach for the stars, why even try?
It kills me when I see people try to do video production and just half-ass it. I know it’s hard work, and it’s unbelievably time consuming (just ask my wife). But the rewards are incredible.
There is no medium like video. Period. There is nothing more humanizing, there is nothing more immediate, and for a game like Magic, there is also nothing that can teach others easily. I was really happy with my most recent drafting episode. While it took a LONG ass time to compile, I believe it was worth it.
I read a comment recently that said that draft decklists don’t help people. I’m inclined to agree. Why those picks, that build? There are so many variables, it doesn’t make sense to just dump a few opinions, decklists, and call it an article.
Maybe it’s me. I have pretty high standards for myself, and when I see people phoning it in or making shortcuts, it bugs me.
Anyway, I’m rambling so I’ll wrap this up. New York was a blur of fun, Magic, work, fans, and more.
Total # of Giant Solifuge Signed over the weekend? I think around twenty. Playmats? Three. Fans met? Innumerable.
It’s really cute meeting fans of the show. A judge walked up to me and said "I don’t mean to be a fanboy, but…" Too cool, I tell you.
And people wonder why I work so hard. Why? Because the rewards are incredible.