MUSIC THREAD

I thought Isbell's solo record was a little more polished than I would've liked -- I wish it was a little more raw -- but the man is a damn fine songwriter. Just got my hands on the upcoming DBT record, and it is fan-fucking-tastic -- 19 tracks of unadulterated goodness.

 

I'm still compiling my list of best songs of 2007. I shall check in soon.

 

For fans of the Drive-By Truckers and/or The Boss, check this out. Patterson Hood (of DBT) covering Bruce:

http://southernshelter.com/2007/12/patterson-hood-as-bruce-springsteen-40.html

 

Very sad day for southern rap as Pimp C was found dead in a Los Angeles apartment this morning.

I know I'll be listening to 1996's Ridin' Dirty all week.

Prayers for Bun B. Rest in Peace, Pimp.

 

Against Me! were horrible. They blatantly lip-synched and didn't even try to make it look like they were in sync with the words.

The others were great. Mute Math only played for a half-hour, but it was a high-energy set. And the Spoon set (45 minutes or so), I was lukewarm on at first, but as the night wears on, it's growing on me a lot. Cold War Kids also were good.

 

Get the Band of Horses album. ASAP.

 

For anyone who digs good folk music ... I have a suggestion.

The Everybodyfields.

I saw them recently, and they put on a phenomenal show. One of the best I've seen this year, for sure. Plus, the female co-lead singer is, no exaggeration, one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen. Her voice being so beautiful helps, but my girlfriend didn't even punch me in the ribs once during the show despite me going out of character and simply staring at her. She admitted she has "a girl crush" on her.

Visual evidence...
http://www.aquariumdrunkard.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/the-everybodyfields.jpg

The other co-lead singer is her boyfriend. Good get for him, in my opinion, though my girlfriend swears he's good-looking despite the hideous beard.

 

Lupe Fiasco's The Cool, hits stores in six days.

http://www.mediafire.com/?bmtgtt34gjx

This is DEFINITELY going to be one of the few albums I buy this year. I never gave the cat enough of a chance the first time around. Now I can't wait to see him at the Fillmore in San Francisco Jan. 13.

 

Paste Magazine's 100 Best Albums of 2007
http://www.pastemagazine.com/action/article/5893/review/music/signs_of_life_2007_best_music?page=2

1. The National - Boxer
2. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
3. Bruce Springsteen - Magic
4. The White Stripes - Icky Thump
5. Feist - The Reminder
6. M.I.A. - Kala
7. Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
8. Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
9. Band of Horses - Cease to Begin
10. Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog
11. Radiohead - In Rainbows
12. Avett Brothers - Emotionalism
13. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black
14. Loney, Dear - Loney, Noir
15. Kanye West - Graduation
16. Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger
17. Josh Ritter - The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter
18. Miranda Lambert - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
19. Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Living with the Living
20. Blonde Redhead - 23
21. Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala
22. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver
23. Black Lips - Good Bad Not Evil
24. Patty Griffin - Children Running Through
25. Over The Rhine - The Trumpet Child
26. The Shins - Wincing the Night Away
27. Derek Webb - The Ringing Bell
28. Mary Gauthier - Between Daylight and Dark
29. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
30. Bjork - Volta
31. Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
32. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
33. PJ Harvey - White Chalk
34. Bright Eyes - Cassadaga
35. Peter Bjorn & John - Writer's Block
36. Joe Henry - Civilians
37. Eleni Mandell - The Miracle Of Five
38. Olof Arnalds - Vid Og Vid
39. The Perishers - Victorious
40. Damien Dempsey - To Hell Or Barbados
41. Brandi Carlile - The Story
42. Lifesavas - Gutterfly
43. The Everybodyfields - Nothing Is Okay
44. Norah Jones - Not Too Late
45. Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings - 100 Days, 100 Nights
46. Justice - (symbol SportsJournalists.com won't let me post)
47. Linda Thompson - Versatile Heart
48. The Weakerthans - Reunion Tour
49. Carolina Chocolate Drops - Dona Got A Ramblin’ Mind
50. Battles - Mirrored
51. The Frames - The Cost
52. Thurston Moore - Trees Outside the Academy
53. Fionn Regan - The End Of History
54. Broken Social Scene Presents: Kevin Drew - Spirit If...
55. Sunset Rubdown - Random Spirit Lover
56. Kate Nash - Made of Bricks
57. The Clientele - God Save The Clientele
58. Romantica - America
59. Imperial Teen - The Hair The TV The Baby & The Band
60. The Broken West - I Can't Go On I'll Go On
61. Prince - Planet Earth
62. Joseph Arthur - Let's Just Be
63. Explosions In The Sky - All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone
64. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam
65. Caribou - Andorra
66. Apples In Stereo - New Magnetic Wonder
67. St. Vincent - Marry Me
68. Office - A Night At The Ritz
69. Bat For Lashes - Fur & Gold
70. Ween - La Cucaracha
71. Josh Rouse - Country Mouse City House
72. Bettye Lavette - Scene Of The Crime
73. Warm In The Wake - American Prehistoric
74. Beirut - The Flying Club Cup
75. Great Lake Swimmers - Ongiara
76. Okkervil River - The Stage Names
77. Jeremy Fisher - Goodbye Blue Monday
78. The New Pornographers - Challengers
79. Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity
80. Akron/Family - Love Is Simple
81. Art Brut - It's A Bit Complicated
82. Dan Deacon - Spiderman of the Rings
83. Deerhunter - Cryptograms
84. Liars - Liars
85. Menomena - Friend and Foe
86. Ruthie Foster - The Phenomenal Ruthie Foster
87. White Rabbits – Fort Nightly
88. Do Make Say Think - You, You're A History In Rust
89. Anat Cohen - Noir
90. Devendra Banhart - Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon
91. The Fratellis - Costello Music
92. Jesse Sykes – Like, Love, Lust & the Open Halls of the Soul
93. Lori McKenna - Unglamorous
94. Suzanne Vega - Beauty & Crime
95. The Good, The Bad & The Queen - The Good, The Bad & The Queen
96. Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare
97. Marissa Nadler - Song III: Bird on the Water
98. Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond
99. The Fiery Furnaces - Widow City
100. Stars – In Our Bedroom After The War

 

Well, one thing all those albums have in common is that I don't own any of them. Guess I'm missing out.

 

That might be the first time I've agreed with the No. 1 on a best-of-the-year list. Boxer is just a tremendous album.

The new Wilco (which finally grew on me), Shins, Weakerthans, Bright Eyes and Ryan Adams were all solid, too. At first glance, the list's biggest omission is Son Volt's latest, which wasn't spectacular but was probably worthy of a mention.

 

Just looking quickly at the list I think it's pretty good. I would have liked to see Stars album up higher.