The Top Fifty Favorite Albums Of 2005 - Pt.5

10. Shout Out Louds – Howl Howl Gaff Gaff, (Capitol) 75.05
If you’ve been reading my Top 50 lists for the last few years, you know that I have a certain affection for Scandi-pop. Bands from Sweden really get me going – their blend of 60s proto-punk and proclivity for catchy melody and meaty hooks is second to none. Shout Out Louds, a Stockholm quintet, are the latest in a long line of underrated pop songsmiths. This record is actually a compilation of sorts – culling tracks from various 7” singles, ad hoc recording sessions, and previous Sweden-only full-lengths, but I won’t disqualify them on this technicality. Howl Howl Gaff Gaff is a record full of Scandi-pop-hit after Scandi-pop-hit. Lead Singer, Adam (no last names please) has a familiar but unique voice that delivers the melodies with a strained, but effortless voice (his Swedish accent creeps through more than other groups from his land). The band is at their best when the song is rollicking pop with lots of hooks (see “The Comeback”, ”100 Degrees”, “Please Please Please”, “Hurry Up Let’s Go”, “Shut Your Eyes”), packing their tunes tightly with tons of energy (reminding me of the great Swedish band, The Legends). “Very Loud” is anchored by militaristic-big-beat drums, almost Strokes-like rhythm guitar, and a cacophonic chorus. “Oh Sweetheart” is an endearing country-meets-Merseybeat jaunt with a revolving dynamic. “A Track And A Train” is a bit downtempo with a glorious glockenspiel riff and lovely vocals. Shout Out Louds aren’t all frolicking pop, “Go Sadness” is replete with atmosphere with an ethereal vocal performance; and the closer, “Seagull” wraps itself in repetition and near-psychedelia. But it’s really those rockers with their choruses and hooks that make this record such a wonderful surprise.

09. Andrew Bird – Andrew Bird & The Mysterious Production of Eggs, (Righteous Babe) 77.08
A rich, string-based instrumental opens The Mysterious Production of Eggs, setting the tone in a most melancholic and sublime manner. The following track, “Savoy”, lays an excellent foundation for the rest of the record. Bird’s vocals are as good as ever, a mournful croon akin to Joe Pernice (on his quieter songs), Grant-Lee Phillips, and Mark Kozelek with maybe some early-90s David Byrne in the mix. Bird perfectly combines mellow folk-pop with uptempo pop songs (sometimes within the same track, see “A Nervous Tic Motion Of The Head To The Left” and “Tables & Chairs”). “Fake Palindromes” plays the sweet pop meets disturbing lyrics game (“I want to tie your wrists with leather, and drill a tiny hold into your head") to tremendous effect. Plucked strings and sparse acoustic guitar permeate “Measuring Cups” with a flawless vocal performance with penetrating lyrics, Bird posits - “When you talk about the hand of glory/A tale that’s rather grim and gory/Is it just another children’s story that’s been declawed?” And the record continues in this vein – excellent arrangements, quotable lyrics, and unexpected moments of tenderness, political idealism, and unsettling imagery. Pop isn't always as thought-provoking as this, but Bird songs are for the mind – check out “Masterfade”, “The Naming Of Things”, “MX Missiles”, “Tables & Chairs”. An added bonus: the record’s packaging is the most amazing of the year, artful as the music contained within.

08. Isolee – We Are Monster, (Playhouse) 76.65
Typically, what has become known as “minimal-techno” or “microhouse”, the melodies and beats are sparse, typically downtempo and rarely exhibit a groove. Isolee, who is Rajko Müller, manages to incorporate both into his music – take “Pictureloved” – the tracks opens with the tiniest of house beats until a classic New Order/house beat comes in with a gurgling robotic bass line that plinks-n-plops awkwardly, where the funk comes is the one-one-two beat that jumps up. The track isn’t all robotic minimalism, but it has a groove. “Madchen Mit Hase” grooves along, sashaying down the street, into the club, up to the bar where it orders a goddam martini. If I wanted to be punched in the gut, I’d call this minimal-disco-funk. “Face B” exemplifies all that makes Isolee one of the best electronic acts. The song is so utterly bleak, but so groovy. As I wrote in my songs list: “The mix of a steady beat and oddly placed accents, the application of crescendo-decrescendo, the buried semi-melody, the barely-there vocals all create a track that is so bleak, yet so funky; relaxing as it is tense; cold as death, but full of life.” We Are Monster closes with “Pillowtalk” another track that opens with such cliché microhouse beats I avoided listening to it for months (the track’s length at nearly ten minutes was daunting as well). This track moves forward slowly, but with each movement it picks up layers, steps back, adds a totally different layer, steps back further, returns, picks up where it left off, etc. It’s this process of building, tearing down, and rebuilding that makes the track (and entire record) utterly fascinating and completely listenable.

07. Ash – Meltdown, (Infectious) 73.96
I will admit that Ash’s fifth long player suffers from an incredibly slick production and some really terrible lyrics, and few bonafide duds. To be fair, there are really only four missteps on Meltdown: the overly-produced-disingenuous metal and feeble politics of “Clones”, late-era AC/DC-cheese-metal-meets-Billy-Joel’s-“We Didn’t Start The Fire”-goofiness of “Shockwave” (maybe the worst hook and chorus ever composed by the band), and worst of all, the go-nowhere-fast “Won’t Be Saved”. Still, when the song is there, it is so there. The best track on the record (and one of the best of 2005), “Orpheus”, is the clearest example of this: an insufferable ariba-ariba-howl opens the track as huge metal riffs pummel everything in sight, but once that folly ends, the song enters straight up classic power pop territory. The verses and chorus are as infectious as pop music gets (and the guitar jangle on the chorus is so layered and over-the-top, your mind will be blown). This songwriting excellence enables me to forgive the band for the weird displays of machismo that litter the track (and the record). Even mediocre tracks like “Vampire Love” (which terrible lyrics are barely-redeemed by a great gigantic chorus), “Solace” (a great power ballad), and “On A Wave” (that manages to combine The Who’s “Baba O’Reily”, AC/DC’s “Moneytalks”, and Nirvana’s “On A Plain” into some bizarre power-metal-pop-jam with a killer bridge) have moments of brilliance, basically great hooks and choruses. “Cool It Down” is a great Guns N Roses influenced rocker with a catchy chorus (one of the few tracks where guitarist Charlotte Hatherley’s vocals are able - allowed? - to climb out of the mix). “Renegade Cavalcade” coos-n-kisses then rips-n-snorts on the chorus, and at the two minute mark the track is unrestrained, with Hatherley’s lead guitar squealing like Jimmy Page did on all those Led Zep songs. “Detonator” lays down a filthy metal riff (think The Cult on Sonic Temple) with System of a Down (“Chop Suey”) lead riffs. The chorus is a complete triumph, soaring into the palace of the Gods of Rock with super-id-confidence. Finally, “Starcrossed” is a power ballad (in the vein of “November Rains” and “Faithfully” – and, yes, that’s a good thing – I dare you to deny “Faithfully”!) that is so huge, it puts to shame any band who ever has written (or ever will write) such a song. When that chorus kicks in you have no choice but to sing at the top of your lungs and raise your fist between air guitar jams.

06. Maximo Park – A Certain Trigger, (Warp) 76.70
I love the opening drum fade-in of “Signal And Sign”, the opening track of Maximo Park’s debut full-length, it’s reminiscent of the opening to “Holidays In The Sun”, the opening track of The Sex Pistols, debut (and only proper) full-length. Like “Holidays”, this song is one of the best first-song-side-A tracks ever committed to tape. The track shows all the tricks that the band will play over the next thirty-nine-plus minutes: minimalistic guitar riffs, vintage organ/synth, punchy bass lines, multi-rhythms, group vocals, great big hooks, and those Geordie lead vocals from Paul Smith. This Newcastle quintet doesn’t play a tune too far from The Futureheads, and that may be a bit off-putting to many discerning music listeners. I think it’s more about timing and the bands gigging together (reportedly, they are "friends"). So, yes, this is herky-jerky post-punk with a massive pop sensibility bringing to mind early XTC, The Jam, Wire, etc. But comparisons are rock-write fool’s gold, so I’m done with it. A Certain Trigger has no less than four serious hits: the aforementioned “Signal And Sign”, “Going Missing”, “Apply Some Pressure”, and “Graffiti”. Each is stuffed to the gills with energy, blistering leads, big rhythm (guitars and section), and Smith’s wonderful vocals (which have an uncanny knack for being sung just enough to make them melodic, but talked just enough to make them rock). The songs don’t have the obvious harsh changes that typify most bands of this post-post-punk revival. The songs move, move, move with a raucous killer instinct via the hooks and catchy melodies. The secondary tracks are first-rate: “Postcard Of A Painting”, “The Night I Lost My Head”, “Now I’m All Over The Shop”, and “Kiss You Better”. A Certain Trigger isn’t all jip-tick-jip-tick and dun-dun-dun-jerk-jam, “The Coast Is Always Changing” is a sweet jangle pop and “Acrobat” is a moody spoken word/mournful track, which help break up the same-y vibe of the other tracks. It’s a complete record in every way. Wonderful.

05. Teenage Fanclub – Man made, (PeMA) 77.17
A friend and I were discussing how to deal with records by our all-time favorite bands when it comes to year-end rankings. He was saying that maybe his fanboy tendencies get the best of him when it comes to these late-era records – Are the songs really as good as I think? Am I giving the band too much grace? Can I even be objective? I replied that I don’t think it matters; these lists aren’t that objective, because (as we both admit), one cannot possibly come up with anything near a definitive list. I said that he should rank his all-time favorite band’s record where he thinks it should go. “I mean, that’s what I’m doing with Teenage Fanclub”, I glibly replied. He didn’t offer a response, and when his list was published, his all-time favorite band was absent. Well, as you can see I didn’t follow his course. For this fanboy, 2005 was the Year of Teenage Fanclub: I interviewed Norman Blake and had the story published in Bandoppler magazine, saw them play two shows (one in Chicago and one in Minneapolis), and they gave me one of the greatest records of the year. Fanboy aside, you cannot deny the pure pop songwriting domination here. Man made has the “original” TFC lineup back together (drummer Francis McDonald rejoins guitarists Blake and Raymond McGinley, and bassist Gerard Love), and the results are amazing. Every song on the record is an example of incredibly great songcraft (well, except the nowhwere, “Nowhere” and the can’t-put-my-finger-on-what’s-wrong-with-it “Save”). There are Blake’s songs: the gradual rocker “It’s All In My Mind”, the pure mid-80s jangle pop/60s Nuggets vibe “Cells” and the most classic-styled TFC track “Slow Fade” – a rocker that would have worked well on 1995’s Grand Prix. Then you have McGinley: the piano and fuzzed out guitar love song “Feel” and the amazingly beautiful and stirring “Only With You” (one of the best songs on the record). Love’s contributions: the slow-burn-rocker “Time Stops”, the brilliant-dynamic-laden “Fallen Leaves” (one of the best hooks and choruses on the record) and the 60s-drenched “Born Under A Good Sign”. The amazing thing about Teenage Fanclub is how each songwriter continues to write such well-crafted songs. They don’t seem to losing the proverbial “it” that many bands do late in their rock n roll life.

04. The New Pornographers – Twin Cinema, (Matador) 77.64
I don’t know if it’s just me, but it seems the Carl Newman and his band, The New Pornographers, are incapable of receiving any bad press. Newman is widely hailed as a songwriting genius (because he is), and no one has an ill word towards the bands records (none of which deserves). When Mass Romantic was released in 2000, the indie illuminati smartly jumped on right quick. Now, even the mainstream media has joined in the New Porno lurv. StarTribune (the Minneapois daily) junior critic Chris Riemenschneider has sung their praises, “Use It” became a staple on Minneapolis commercial alternative radio/Triple A station Drive 105 and indie-friendly-public-radio-station 89.3 The Current, and they were positively reviewed in nearly every publication from Pitchfork to Entertainment Weekly to GQ. I’m not complaining (honestly), the band deserves it, even though it’s for their weakest record. You know what songs I love on Twin Cinema; yeah, they are the obvious ones (“Use It”, “Sing Me Spanish Techno”, “Jackie, Dressed In Cobras”, “Star Bodies”). Let’s look at the surprises – and thus, the reason I kept listening. “The Bones Of An Idol” is a difficult track – perhaps because there is so much going on; a pretty standard piano line, tinkling glockenspiel, the prominence of slide guitar, a simple electric guitar lead, the non-chorus, but the hook is indisputable. In many ways, the song seems incomplete; maybe the hook is the key to understanding the track: “Something keeps turning us on” – there is an intangible, uniqueness about this song that kept me listening and turning it up. “Jackie, Dressed In Cobras” is the obvious Dan Bejar (Destroyer) track, but he actually has two that are better: “Broken Beads” and “Streets Of Fire”. The former is absolutely bizarre – big huge riffs careening down on the verses, then the chorus comes in and it’s like some weird medieval-Bowie-indie-pop jaunt (it doesn’t help that he mentions “minstrels”). The lyrics are so odd and I’m not sure of a meaning (this can be slippery when it comes to Bejar). The words are so absurd, yet work perfectly (“Who was I to come between a whore and her money/Yes there is a war/Boys vs. Girls” and (the second best lyric of 2005) “I invested well and heavily into your antics/I requested ‘Suicide Blonde’ [pause] loudly.” The song is one his best. That is until we get to “Streets of Fire” – a wonderful duet of Bejar and Kathryn Calder (I believe that the female vocals are not Neko Case, but could be Nora O’Connor) with Bejar delivering one of his best vocal performances (in or out of the New Pornos). The juxtaposition of Calder’s (?) sweet vocals with Bejar’s prickly tenor is stunning. The song was criminally overlooked by critics and fans. I think it’s because it should have been the record’s closing track – it’s so obvious – with the mid-track musical swell and its riding-off-into-the-sunset coda. On Twin Cinema, the arrangements are as interesting as ever, the hooks are all over the place, and the songs are still simply top-shelf.

03. The Mountain Goats – The Sunset Tree, (4AD) 77.39
John Darnielle’s records always seem more like musical novels to me. Every song is seemingly dependent upon the other, and The Sunset Tree totally exemplifies this. Darnielle has an exceptional ability to craft real songs around his lyrics. For most it comes to the words, first, music second. For me, if the songs aren’t there, I don’t care how literary the lyrics, I’m not going to listen. These songs could be simple neo-folkie jams on acoustic guitar or an aging upright piano, but they aren’t. The arrangements are terrific – adding layers of electronic noise, harmonics, and/or other instrumentation – he even can go all out pop (see “This Year”) or rock (see “Lion’s Teeth”). He has the ability to choose the right instrument for the right words (constantly adapting the volume of his guitar strums, for example). Having the songs to back up the words makes this record that much more remarkable. The Sunset Tree is a personal record (apparently the first time Darnielle’s gone completely autobiographical?), a memoir of growing up with an abusive stepfather with all the teen angst and rebellion, the feelings of alienation and betrayal, the confusion of being hurt by someone who should have protected (interestingly, Darnielle says little about his mother’s role in this personal hell), and, eventually, renewal. It can get quite uncomfortable (see “Lion’s Teeth” – an extraordinary tale of fighting back – and “Hast Thou Considered The Tetrapod” – accepting the inevitability of the abuse and the darkness of taking the pain, like “get it over with, just don’t break what I value (his stereo”). He finds consistent comfort in his record collection (on “Lion’s Teeth” he has more concern about his record player than his face as punching bag and on “Dance Music” he escapes his stepfather’s tirades by running to his room to listen to “dance music”). The Sunset Tree exudes a balance, when he could go all emo, he restrains it, further proving the power of his narrative; which is surprising given the subject matter. “Broom People” finds him a teenager, seemingly alone (“friends who don’t have a clue” and “well-meaning teachers”) except for a lover-friend who is his solace (“In the long tresses of your hair, I’m a babbling broooooook”). “This Year” is an extension of “Broom People” with the rebellion of “twin high maintenance machines” (for more on “This Year” see #26 on my Top Songs list). “Up The Wolves” is his fantasy of exposing the terrible family secret, rightly accusing his mother of being absent, and ensuring that “the wolf” will have no escape by taking over all in authority to ensure justice is done. It’s bloodlust and it’s vindication. When he fatalistically contemplates the horror, inevitability (and relief – the pain will end) of his own death on “Song For Dennis Brown”, Darnielle doesn’t go Conor Oberst; he gets Kozelek. The real corker of the entire record is the closing song, “Pale Green Things” when, years later, he learns his stepfather has died. It’s not that the door closes on these memories/stories of the pain, resentment, anger, and self-loathing (they will never disappear), but through death the chance to heal manifests itself. This record is an achingly real document of abuse and the lifelong affect it has on a person. I thank John Darnielle for this record.

02. Art Brut – Bang Bang Rock N Roll, (Fierce Panda) 77.33
Much has been (and/or can be) said about Art Brut, but one thing I read somewhere (that I can’t find, so I can’t quote the source) said something like, “You either love ‘em or hate ‘em.” Uh huh. Bang Bang Rock N Roll is probably one of the snarkiest and silliest, ironic and inspirational records to come out in years. “Formed A Band” (a white-hot jam) opens the record with a giant punk rock riff as lead singer, Eddie Argos, launches into his rant-sing-rage (while some make a comparison to the Fall, it really doesn’t apply as Argos’ delivery is too coherent, his words are too literal to be compared to the mystery and the post-modern-apolyptic-culture-criticism-poetry of MES), “Formed a band! We formed a band! Look at us! We formed a band” – the implication is perfectly clear and you know exactly what the fuck they mean. “Modern Art” is cheeky, but a complete fanboy anthem on how much our singer loves modern art. “Bang Bang Rock N Roll” is chock full with lyrical insanity that will set any discerning music listener into an argument (“I can’t stand the sound of The Velvet Underground” and “I just want to find a drug that works” then “No more songs about sex and drugs and rock n roll/It’s boooooring”). The punk ranting continues on “Bad Weekend” where Argos claims he doesn’t read NME (“I don’t know what genre we belong” and “Popular culture, no longer applies to me” – yeah right, but that’s the point right?). If the entire of this record were made up of snarky ironic indiot bullshit, it probably would’ve been too much. It’s the moments of, oh my god – should I even say this … tenderness and innocence that strike an odd sort of balance (and I suppose uber-ironic). The stellar pop jaunt of “Emily Kane” is absolutely sweet and real (I especially love the Frank-the-Man-Sized-Rabbit way he relates the time since he last saw his long-lost-love of how long it’s been since he last saw his long-lost love). “My Little Brother” is a great tale about Argos’ sibling becoming a music geek (“He no longer listens to a-sides/He made me a tape of bootleg and b-sides”). The most eye-opening line comes when he relates how every song on the mixtape says, “Why don’t our parents worry about us?” What the hell is that? “Good Weekend”, one of the best songs on the record (hooky as hell, and it just moves), is an absolutely fucking adorable way to express the excitement of having a brand new girlfriend. It may be more than a bit high-school-ish, but there is something entirely refreshing in the youth and exuberance and, even, naivety. The songwriting is simple (this is straight up three-chord punk or late-70s pub-rock) and there are a few underwhelming tunes, but these weren’t enough to keep me from spinning Art Brut like mad all year.

01. The Hold Steady – Separation Sunday, (Frenchkiss) 76.36
Minneapolis-to-NYC transplant Craig Finn perfectly captures late-80s Minneapolis/Minnesota teenage life, so the nostalgia I experience with each listen is undeniable (oh Lord, how I wish you would squah those damn annoying-richie-rich Hornets from Edina!!). Because I grew up in Minnesota and now live in Minneapolis, all the name dropping of landmarks and locales across the Metro (Highway 169, Nicollet, Har Mar, Stillwater, buses, City Center, the Mississippi River, Lowerton, etc. etc.) makes me feel like I’m in on the story. The music, really this is classic bar-rock with all the schlock (and Finn’s band is one of the best out there – they are completely a band executing the songs with an amazing tightness considering they play with intensity and viciousness), plays off the words and vice versa. Finn’s raspy-talk-sing delivery fits everything perfectly. But it’s more than Minneapolis and a platinum band that makes me so giddy. It’s the storytelling. Each song is a short-story wit captivating and real characters that taken as a whole perfectly encapsulate conflict of late-teen life, yet there's a certain universality (regardless of turning 16 or turning 30) because the struggle is about relationships, substances, religion, and confusion. Still, this is the stuff of after-school specials or made-for-teen-dramas, except Separation Sunday approaches these topics with much more realism and honesty. The record is the ultimate album, because it demands to be played starting at track one and not stopping until the last note of track eleven. Naturally, a record wouldn’t hit number one on my countdown if it didn’t have the songs. “Hornets! Hornets!” is the perfect track to open the record – a raunchy rocker that introduces the hoodrats, the irrational behavior, the alienation and the camaraderie. In “Banging Camp” (a seriously amazing tune), I love the line, “Holly wore a cross to ward them off” – I, being a youth group kid who was fully confused (Am I going to hell for continuing to sin? Or will the blood of the cross wash me clean and I gain admittance to heaven?), knew that if I expressed my faith outwardly it would keep the youth leaders and pastors off my back while I attempted to sort things out on my own. “Stevie Nix” reflects the fact that whatever path you take on a faith journey, the reality of life will smack you upside the head (kids will tell lies in the hallways on Monday morning, religion and people and drugs will fuck you up, sorting out life is always confusing). “Multitude of Casualties” is propelled not so much by the guitar riffs, but a wonderfully pretty keyboard line, and the lyrics are litany of heartbreak and life’s injustice. “Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night” is a terrific Stones-y rocker that is an incendiary commentary on religion and art. Finn spits, “We gather our gospels from gossip and bar talk and we declare ‘em the truth/We salvage our sermons from message boards and scene reports/We come on to the youth/We try out new testaments on the guys sitting next to us in the bars …” Actually, there are a hundred other lyrics that are quotable. The closer is an amazing coda that closes the record in happy tragedy: “Hallelujah was a hoodrat/And now you finally know that/She’s been disappeared for years/Today she finally came back” and then you have the female backing vocals singing, “Walk on back, Walk on back” as the song crescendos to a close with that keyboard line from “Multitude of Casualties”. The Hold Steady are one of the few bands who have merged rock music and literature.

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The Top Fifty Favorite Albums Of 2005 - Pt.4

20. The National – Alligator, (Beggars Banquet) 75.08
The first line from The National's fourth full-length is: “I think this place is full of spiders, I think they’re on to me … didn’t anybody tell you how to gracefully disappear into a room?” Whether it’s metaphorical or real, the stage is set. Alligator (what an odd title) is thirteen songs of nearing-middle-aged paranoia (after 30 you are irrelevant). Like last year’s Bows & Arrows by The Walkmen, The National are singing tales of growing out of the “scene”, dealing with lost innocence, realizing you can’t stay out late, your so-called corporate life is going nowhere, you’re a terrible lover, you’re a rotten friend, and your hair is falling out (it’s a very masculine record, accentuated by Matt Beringer’s baritone vocals and his themes of sex, hope, violence, disgust, and regret). The rockers like “Lit Up”, “Abel”, and “Mr. November” are anxious and earnest. The mid-tempo tracks such as “All The Wine”, “Baby, We’ll Be Fine”, and “The Geese Of Beverly Road” capture the anxiety (the mantra of “I’m in a state, I’m in a state” and “I’m so sorry for everything”) and the hope (“Baby, we’ll be fine, all we have to do is be brave and be kind” and “We’ll get away with it, we’ll run like we’re awesome”) that seems to be Beringer’s obsession. The real triumph of Alligator is how it has to be taken as a whole – it’s not a concept album, but it’s like a collection of Raymond Carver stories – it all fits together with its cohesive themes. I don’t believe the songs are autobiographical, but they do reflect a philosophy that is planted on terra firma (today) rather than a billion miles away (a distant future).

19. The Joggers – With A Cape And A Cane, (Startime International) 74.90
The Joggers 2003 debut record, Solid Guild, took me completely by surprise – only a couple listens and I was hooked on the band’s eccentric approach to the post-post-punk revival (all the requisites were satisfied – complex rhythms, lots of noisy energy, stop/start changes, etc. – but they transcended these standards adding a sense of oddness with maniacal changes, lots of harmony, and a real pop sensibility). While the band has inexplicably dropped the harmonies, crazy lead guitar licks dominate the entire record. “Wicked Light Sleeper” has a dance punk drum beat, crazy rhythms, and a chorus that comes out of nowhere. “Horny Ghost” is propelled by a drawn out melody and heavy guitar riff that creates what is called “the groove” to the same effect of the best Parliament/Funkadelic tracks. An instrumental breakdown at the 2:14 mark sounds like a broken record and continues for the next minute-and-fifteen until it’s zapped by a chaotic sub-chorus that jarringly segues back into the original guitar groove and the track abruptly ends. “Ziggurat Traffic”, the album’s opener, incorporates a zither-like riff and possesses an alternate universe pop ambiance. “Since You’re Already Up” typifies The Joggers musical approach – bizarre rhythms, each part of the song revolving over itself, exploding into a triumphant sing along chorus (this is the standout track). The Joggers are writing some of the most interesting, if I may be so bold, experimental, pop songs.

18. Stars – Set Yourself On Fire, (Arts & Crafts International) 74.60
Stars are one of those pop groups (The Delgados, Arab Strap, Belle & Sebastian, Pernice Brothers, to name a few) that weave the web of depressing/angsty lyrics with sweet perfect pop melodies. Like The Delgados (there is a lot of Delgados in Stars), they have two lead vocalists (Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan) who add a much needed variety. If you’ve read the rundown of my favorite songs, you know about the perfection of “Ageless Beauty” (see #1 on that list). “Your Ex-Lover Is Dead” opens the record with both Campbell and Millan singing backed by a wonderful string arrangement, driving guitar, and a steady beat. The title track is a solid and pretty slab of synth pop with the bounciest of bass lines juxtaposed against the noisiest blasts of distorted guitar and dreamy synth lines. The lyrics are wonderful too (a clever take on the "breakup song"), Campbell runs down a variety of locales across the world (“the 97th floor overlooking Tokyo” to “a cancer ward where patients sit” to “an airplane” to “Hirsohima Los Angeles and each town in between”) and says to his (ex-)lover, “… only one thing could be free/and it’s not you and I.” There are many moments of pop perfection: the chorus on “Reunion” and “The First Five Times”, the incredibly hooky “What I’m Trying To Say”, Millan’s vocals on “One More Night (Your Ex-Lover Remains Dead)", the shoegaze-y “Sleep Tonight”, and, again, the four minutes of absolutely perfect pop of “Ageless Beauty”.

17. OK Go – Oh No, (Capitol) 74.04
It seems like every time Pitchfork gives a record a terrible review (scoring a 3 or below), I’ll love that record. Oh No suffered (well, depending on your perspective) a damning, damning!! review from the kids at DuhFork (it scored a 2.2). I will concede that the record is comes up more than a bit short in the lyric department, and I shudder when I consider what I’m about to write, but if OK Go should be bitched out, it most definitely should be for the Kravitz-esque “Do What You Want”. The track is painfully retro-chic like any number of Mr. K’s hit songs, and the “whoas” sound way too much like the formerly dreadlocked fashion banshee! Still, the song is much better than anything he could dream up because it actually has actual song structure. I could point out a few more travesties on this record (which kept it from making my Top Ten), but I don’t want to go negative. OH KAY, FINE, I just watched a couple episodes of Scrubs I taped, and I love Dr. Cox, so I’ll dish out another dis. On “A Million Ways” the backing vocal lazily sings, “One zero zero zero zero zero zero … cruel”. That’s just plain stupid. But enough about Pitchfork and Lenny and stupidity; the record is full of solid power pop jamz that are as classic as anything by Shoes, Tommy Keene, Eddie & The Hotrods, The Scruffs, hell any number of obscure 70s little hits. They inject their songs with some angular guitar work which may bring on a Franz Ferdinand comparison, but this is lazy because the songs are too true to pop and lack the Duran Duran disco. I prefer when OK Go plays it heavy: “It’s A Disaster”, “Crash The Party” (try to deny this chorus! I dare you), “Here It Goes Again”, and “A Good Idea At The Time”. Unlike my friends at DuhFork, I say, “OH NO!! An amazing slab of hits!!!”

16. The Go-Betweens – Oceans Apart, (Yep Roc Records) 74.80
I did not expect another great record from this classic Aussie band. Honestly, ever since they made their triumphant return on The Friends of Rachel Worth (2000, Jetset Records), I thought they’d fall back into obscurity (not that they aren’t obscure now, but you know …). The record opens with the kick-ass, “Here Comes A City” – as I said in my songs write up, “the song contains the best lyric of the last five years: “And why do people … who read Dostoevsky [pause] look like … Dostoevsky?” But there is more to it than just one great song. “Finding You” is achingly gorgeous. There’s, “This Night’s For You” is another amazing song with it’s chorus that jumps on you and it’s rich acoustic guitar tones. And I can’t forget, “Darlinghurst Nights”, a classic and I love how it continues to build to a climax filled with horns and crashing cymbals and hard strummed acoustic guitar. And there’s “No Reason To Cry” and “Lavender” and “Boundary Rider” and “The Statue”. Finally, it comes to the end with “The Mountains Near Dellray”, the perfect song to close the record.

15. Black Dice – Broken Ear Record, (DFA/Astralwerks) 75.29
DFA is known for all the chk-chk-disco-punk-beat, the open-hi-hat-smacking, the blurring of indie and dance music. So how the fuck did Black Dice join the party? I don’t know, and I guess I don’t care. Because I’m pressed for time, and I just really like what I wrote about Black Dice in my mini-review of “Snarly Yow” (the opening track on Broken Ear Record), I will reprint it here: “Black Dice songs can meander in ambience or they can assault your senses with noise or they can totally fuck with the dance music paradigm.” Over the seven tracks that comprise this record, Black Dice are out to assault the senses (whether with overt blasts of manufactured noise or subversive periods of silence or micro-electronics), but there is, and I mean this, an ugly-beauty. It’s not just noise for the sake of noise; it’s not just interjecting weird sonic blasts and electro static like some sort of masturbatory art school project, there is something conscious and something sublime going on. “Smiling Off” was the single, but what does that mean when it comes to Black Dice? “Street Dude” is interesting – the track opens with some extreme noise for a good two-plus minutes before it shifts into an ultra-percussive jackhammer, but the really interesting thing is how it becomes freaking musical by the end of the track. Dare I say, there’s even a melody to the whole atmosphere? Well, maybe not pure melody, but you can hum it. The record closes with a total primal monkey jam of clipped whoops and a simple (and messy) guitar lead that descends into some bizarro take on minimal techno. Or something like that. Great record.

14. Richard Davis – Details, (Kitty Yo) 74.03
The archivists and electronic music nerds would call this micro-house (I suppose). I like micro-house. A lot. I actually just discovered it in 2005, and this record was my first exposure to the sub-genre, but I knew it was entirely house music, that is dance music, but it isn’t – tiny beats, sparse arrangements, melodies peppered with space and silence, I mean, it’s barely danceable, except maybe in your mind. Davis’ vocals fit his music and melody wonderfully: oddly distant, but filled with emotion (loneliness, sadness, regret); at times out front, other times deep in the mix; he practically whispers the words, or at least pushes them out like you would a sigh. A friend in NYC talked about how this was the perfect soundtrack for his train ride to a dead end job. For me, it was similar, but it was a bus ride home from a demanding job that drains me physically and emotionally. It was the entire record, that would calm my mind and prepare me for a night with my love, Sharon. Pieces of songs like “Empty” (the hook of “I’m empty” and “I feel nothing”), “Sometime” (the icy but intense beats, opening line “I know that times have been worse”), “The Truth” (“I don’t care, I don’t care”), “Honest With You” (“I will always be honest with you”) and "This Time" ("No I don't feel like reading your mind") would move me, but never to the extremes of emotion – just even, just calm, calm, calm.

13. LCD Soundsystem – LCD Soundsystem, (DFA/Capitol) 71.81
James Murphy is my kind of guy. He’s obviously a fellow music geek-snob. He likes all the same kinds of music I do (I’m especially digging how much he loves The Fall). He’s reverent towards the history of rock, but he’s also willing to challenge it. He mostly does this by throwing a lot of cool sounds and influences into the blender and seeing what happens. So what does happen? To be honest, it can be hit or miss (more hits than misses). “Daft Punk Is Playing At My House” is a bit jokey, but the sentiment is pretty fresh (it’s making fun of the hipsters as much as proclaiming how he was FIRST to getting into Daft Punk). “Movement” is one of the best song MES didn’t write. “On Repeat” continues in the vein of great LCD Soundsystem singles like “Yeah” and “Beat Connection”. “Tribulations” is a slab of pure electro brilliance – one of the best vocal performances from Murphy. The thing that makes LCD vital is the sincerity behind the words and the music – sure it may be ironic or (more often) sarcastic, but the points cannot be lost behind some cute outfit and fancy haircut. The real kicker of this release is the second disc which compiles nearly all the 12” singles – every fucking track is a cracker. “Losing My Edge” is silly, but dammit if it isn’t relevant; “Beat Connection” is a sick victory for bridging the gap between rock and dance music; and both versions of the incredible “Yeah” are freakouts for anyone who loves good music.

12. The Boy Least Likely To – The Best Party Ever, (Too Young To Die) 76.38
The Best Party Ever is a hot platter of twee-pop with a healthy dose of folky instrumentation (acoustic guitars, banjo, glockenspiel, harmonica, etc.), not unlike the more innocence moments of Belle & Sebastian. From the first track, “Be Gentle With Me” to the closer “God Takes Care of the Little Things” you aren’t gonna be rocking out, but you are going to hearing some of the most addictive pop tunes of the year. Typically something this cute, precious, childlike requires a certain mindset to listen, but this isn’t the case. It’s the strength of the songs. The songwriting is incredible – the melodies are much catchier and much more memorable than they should, they can write an excellent bridge, and the hooks are all over the place. Upon further review, the words are reflective of anything on The Walkmen or The National records – the fear and loathing of aging – it’s the approach that is completely unique (songs about paranoia shouldn’t be so damn cheery and giddy - at least musically, check “I See Spiders When I Close My Eyes”). “Paper Cuts”, “I’m Glad I Hitched My Apple Wagon To Your Star”, “Hugging My Grudge” are bloody remarkable.

11. Satellite Beach – The Haunted Sea, (The Record Camp Label) 76.38
Satellite Beach is John Reading, a Brooklyn dude who has spent time in Paris and London. Interesting, but I don’t know how much it has to do with this record (maybe a lot, the recordings were begun in Paris in 2001, and finished in Brooklyn in 2004). What we have here are six songs that are fairly different, but entirely the same. Reading is working in the convention of minimal techno with hints of experimentation and plenty of atmosphere. “Elektra” combines minimal techno one-two-one-two-one-two-three-four beats with strains of shoegazer guitar and dark ambience (add a manipulated creepy vocal sample, and you've got dark ambience); the slow-burn crescendo is to die for. “Echo Angel” employs a gorgeous synth melody with organic-sounding instruments (horns/trombones, Javanese zither, guitar) with lots of weird noise and samples. “You Can’t See It From The Ground” plays Richard D. James like Kid A. “Nothing Good Comes Easy” is a super melodic track in the RDJ tradition, quick step breakbeats duke it out with a repetitive synth melody and four-on-the-floor beats. “Univoice” closes the EP with a whimper, but the other five are so demanding, that it’s ok.

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The Top Fifty Favorite Albums Of 2005 - Pt.3

30. Josh Rouse – Nashville, (Rykodisc) 73.80
This is the second best Ryan Adams record released in 2005. Nashville is a misleading title, but that may be the point. One would think that if Nashville provided the inspiration or locale for the record, a healthy dose of country would be injected into the tunes. This really isn’t the case, as the record is full of mature and classic pop songwriting referencing 60s baroque pop, 80s brit pop, and a myriad of classic songwriters more than country songsmiths (although the record contains elements of the country sound: a yawning slide guitar, a moaning pedal steel, a mellow honky-tonk piano). This is Rouses’ sixth record and a complete step forward in quality. The biggest problem with Rouse is he’s a nostalgia hound (his previous record 1972 was an emulation of the sounds of the 70s – fun, but imitation doesn’t last), singing about a specific experience (the under-the-radar 80s kid-geek, the heartbroken-down-in-the-mouth dude). His melodies are absolutely top-shelf with plenty of hooks, so classic that the music undoubtedly has the qualities to be a timeless record. “Carolina”, “Winter In The Hamptons” (this is amazing pop), “My Love Has Gone”, “Sad Eyes” (an absolute epic track with a string flourish that would make Joe Pernice proud), and “It’s The Nighttime” are all hits (sheepishly, I admit, I overlooked Mr. Rouse on my year-end song list).

29. The Ponys – Celebration Castle, (In The Red Records) 74.68
I’d lump The Ponys in with this whole crazy post-punk revival jive, yes, I know they’d most likely hate it, but … that’s how it goes. I will say one thing, they are one of the most unique – incorporating 60s garage, early-80s XTC, and mid-80s jangle pop – kind of like lumping Mudhoney with grunge. It’s a compliment. Celebration Castle is a definitive step forward from their debut, Laced With Romance (a pretty damn good record too). The songwriting is more concise and catchier, while retaining that sloppy-idiosyncratic brilliance heard on the debut. The group benefits from three members who can assumed lead vocal duties (guitarist Jered Gummere, now-ex-Pony, multi-instrumentalist Ian Adams, and bassist Melissa Elias) which adds a nice diversity to the songs. Elias’ vocals on “She’s Broken” are part Sleater-Kinney, part-Throwing Muses. Like many of the songs on Celebration Castle, the track is marked by a slinky lead guitar line, jittery rhythm, and catatonic drumming. “Another Wound” has such a great sound, from the “Just Like Heaven” guitar riff to Gummere sending his vocals into the stratosphere, teetering on chaos on the chorus … hot! “Ferocious”, “Shadow Box”, “Get Black”, and “Discoteca” shake, shudder, and shriek with a hooky recklessness that can only be called super. Throughout the record, the appeal lies not only in their tense-pop (there are plenty of hooks), but also in the guitar work. All Music Guide’s Mark Deming describes them wonderfully, “[the guitars] are fused with a precision that makes the hedonistic abandon of their music all the more stunning.” Steve Albini recorded these ten tracks and really brings out the noise while keeping the oddball melodies out front.

28. Pernice Brothers – Discover A Lovelier You, (Ashmont) 76.38
The first three tracks of this Pernice Brothers record are what I call a set of mind-blowing pop. As Pernice goes further away from the orch-pop of his earlier work, he puts a stake in the heart on these three tracks. “There Goes The Sun” has a mid-80s new wave moodiness, “Saddest Quo” is one of the five best songs Pernice has written, and “Snow” is one of his most unique (the herky-jerky rhythm, the vocals-through-nearly-clenched-teeth), probably the best three-track sequence of any record in 2005. “My So-Called Celibate Life”, “Dumb It Down”, “Say Goodnight To The Lady”, and “Pisshole In The Snow” are all great tracks, but they are what one can expect from Pernice: strong melodies, good hooks, and his trademark breathy-but-heavily-enunciated vocals. I mean, I love this kind of shit! Love it. For whatever reason, I didn’t listen to this record as much as I have past Pernice releases. Maybe I’m too familiar or as a friend said, “Chris, you are spoiled.” And I think I agree – I’ve been tuned into Pernice since 1998’s Overcome By Happiness and he continues to put out quality release after quality release. Lately, he’s been easily flirting with different instrumentation and genres, but it’s all based in great pop songwriting. I sit here listening, and the response is, “Yeah, another great Pernice Brothers record. What else is new?” I guess, I’m not listening as much … actually, I spun Overcome By Happiness a lot this year. Hmm.

27. Fine China – The Jaws Of Life, (Common Wall Media) 74.17
The excellent opening track, “Rated R-Movie”, of the new Fine China record begins with an exhausted and mournful organ riff, on the chorus Rob Withem sighs, “All the others wear black and I want to be cool like that”. On the second track, “Don’t Frown”, he tiredly complains, “The radio has got my ears/ringing, I gotta get away from here/the people of the town/don’t seem to hear the same sound” which seems about right. It also sets the mood for The Jaws Of Life – the record is full of irritation, weariness, frustration, jealousy, paranoia, even anger. If that isn’t enough, there are addictive melodies, solid hooks, and sing-along choruses. Withem’s lead guitar riffs jangle like mad, and his rhythm stabs at the eardrums while Greg Markov and Thom Walsh provide a solid rhythm section (Markov with extremely deft bass lines, and Walsh with a steady beat, perfectly placed fills and cymbal crashes). While they are still deeply mining mid-80s Brit pop, there is a more distinctive voice on this record. This is easily, easily Fine China’s best record and it’s a shame if you haven’t heard it (because you probably haven’t! And you think you are a discerning music listener!). In addition to “Movie”, check out “Are You On Drugs?”, “The Cells Divide”, “I Can’t Fall Asleep”, and “My Worst Nightmare”.

26. Oranger – New Comes And Goes, (Eenie Meenie) 74.21
Everyone knows that I’m a Power Pop geek-freak, so it’s no surprise that Oranger find themselves hanging out near the halfway point of my countdown. There is definitely a heavy late-70s/early-80s classic Power Pop vibe to the record (with some more modern sounds like those from Superdrag, Sloan, Velvet Crush, and Ted Leo), but the songs are really hot – awesome melodies, hooks, hooks, and more hooks, crazy guitar solos, and whacky drum rolls. “Sukiyaki” is a rollicking foot stomping jam (see my Top 50 Songs List, #30), a quirky bass and mod guitar rhythms drive the awesome “Crooked In The Weird Of The Catacombs”, “Outtatoch” is like Lou Reed fronting ELO, “Radio Wave” has classic Power Pop verse/chorus dynamics complete with huge guitar riffs and cheesy keyboard riffs. The flow from start-to-finish is nearly perfect.

25. Mando Diao – Hurricane Bar, (Mute) 74.61
As I said in my review of “You Can’t Steal My Love”, on Mando Diao’s debut (Bring ‘Em In), the band aped Oasis, Tom Jones, and The Stones, now we find a heavy Libertines’ influence. The melodies are as reckless as Doherty and Barat wrote ‘em (who really were tapped in to Jones and Strummer and Jagger/Richards, but who’s keeping track). The thing about Mando Diao is the vocal delivery (Gustaf Noren and Björn Dixgård handle the duties), especially those from Dixgård (he’s the one with the eerily Tom Jones-like voice). It’s sad how often these guys are compared to The Hives and The Strokes (although, like The Hives, they are from Sweden and play exuberant Nuggets inspired dirty rock; and like The Strokes, they look fucking cool), because they write some amazing tunes. You can probably detect what I think makes a good song – yeah, 1) melody, 2) hooks, 3) big choruses. These Swedes take it to the next level with a reverence to the roots of rock (not just The Beatles and The Stones, but Motown and Buddy Holly) and then take them up about 20 notches. The guitars are dirty, distorted, and played with a ferocity reserved for the most earnest punk rockers and metalheads of years gone by. Check “Clean Town”, “God Knows”, “Down In The Past”, “This Dream Is Over”, and “White Wall”. By the way, the album cover design for Hurricane Bar is just terrible; I think it’s the baby poop/brown/orange tint.

24. 13 & God – 13 & God, (Anticon/Alien Transistor) 74.65
Even ten-fifteen years a collaboration between an American and a German group seemed unlikely – especially to pull it off relatively quickly. A politician once told me, “Things are different In the Internet age.” His profoundity haunts me. This left-field collaboration of Anitcon/American rappers, Themselves, and German glitch-pop guru’s Notwist is 13 & God. There has been speculation on how much collab was in the boration, and I have no real idea; I can only guess. All I do know is what the songs, themselves, tell me. The most striking things about the record are the dark ambience and the application of various samples (lyrical and sounds). It isn’t until about the 17th listen, you start to pick up the complexity of the record – combining elements of electronic music, weirdo hip-hop, and straight up melody. This is a mood record, but one that demands to be played straight through. I love the moody-pop of “Perfect Speed” and “Men Of Station” as much as Doseone’s unique delivery on “Ghostwork” and “Tin Strong”. There is plenty of sound experimentation that oddly complements the melodic passages in a really unique and interesting way. An aside of sorts: I was able to catch 13 & God on tour and watching the members of both acts switch instruments, perform the vocals, and feed off each other seemed to make the songs richer much fuller, much more complete, and even weirder in the live setting.

23. Brakes – Give Blood, (Rough Trade) 70.26
There is nothing I hate more in rock n roll more than the ironic/joke band. The Darkness (no thanks), They Might Be Giants (not for me), Ween (forget it), etc. etc. etc. Even some of Beck’s goofiness scratches my nerves raw. I just can’t stand it. So when I first heard Brakes song “Heard About Your Band”, I was, “Oh fucking hell.” Then, the Problem. For no particular reason, I woke up one morning humming the melody. I shook this off and a week or so later I was at the local record store and Give Blood was on a listening station. I put on the headphones and skipped through the tracks and liked what I heard. I didn’t buy it. Yet, I was still curious because the record was put out by Rough Trade (a pretty reliable label), so I put in my Insound shopping cart. Sure, there is plenty of jokey songs on the record (from the thirty second “Pick Up The Phone” to the ten second Cheney bashing “Cheney” to the unfortunate single “All Night Disco Party”), but there are some actual bonafide songs. “NY Pie” is a country-jangle tune that isn’t too far from Belle & Sebastian or The Boy Least Likely To. “Heard About Your Band” is a great kiss-off to careerist young bands that don’t understand what it means to play rock because you have to. “I Can’t Stand Beside You” is like The Fall doing 80s metal. “Sometimes Always” is a slow-building Velvets-JAMC rocker. “You’re So Pretty” is a lovely piece of twee-jangle-pop with a tremendous hook. Overall, this is a fun record and I even warmed up to some of the silliness … just don’t play “All Night Disco Party” around me.

22. The Fall – Fall Heads Roll, (Narnack Records) 75.29
Last year saw the stateside release of The Real New Fall LP (Formerly Country On The Click), which was the best Fall record in years. Fall Heads Roll fails to live up to its predecessor’s greatness. The problem is difficult to peg. The rules of what makes a good record don’t really apply to Mark E. Smith. First off, I want to say Fall Heads Roll is not a bad record (hence, the ranking you see), but it lacks the energy and twisted genius that saturated The Real New Fall LP. I think the most glaring deficiency is the lack of MES proto-poetry, it seems like there aren’t as many words on this record. The best Fall records are where the band’s music plays the perfect foil to MES ruminations and proclamations – the words and music battle each other creating tension and/or release. Now, we do have a few of these moments, “Pacifying Joint”/"What About Us", “Assume” (a great tune with a brilliant line, “If you assume, then you are Hume” – referring to Scottish philosopher David Hume), “Blindness” (I prefer the version on the Narnack Records sampler), and “Midnight Aspen”. Another area where The Fall have succeeded beyond belief is when they take on conventional pop songcraft (in The Fall lexicon, this is typically referred to as The Brix Years or Brix-era Fall), and there are two excellent instances of this, on “Breaking The Rules” (a wonderful indie-pop jaunt) and “Clasp Hands” (a track that finds MES in a very good mood). There is no real standout experimentalism either (I should clarify, it’s there, it just doesn’t standout), perhaps because MES has delved deeper into what some Fall geeks refer to his most recent “Garage Rock Era” (see the cover of The Move’s 60s garage rock classic, “I Can Hear The Grass Grow” included on the record). Maybe the most eye-opening is the loose theme of part of FHR, an anti(?)-drug (not limited to illicit drugs, but the proliferation of pills as solution to a myriad of ailments) message. “Pacifying Joint” is an indictment of bleary eyed stoners that fill Manchester’s streets (MES talked about this a couple interviews, - one in Pitchfork where he said, “… there's a lot of skunk damage in Manchester, I'll tell you that.” And later, “Well, I've got a lot of young mates, and the skunk is like 30 times more powerful, isn't it... I'm not a pothead, you see, so I don't fucking know about it, I'm just commenting on it.” In another interview – which I cannot locate, when asked if he did drugs, MES replied, “I have a pint.”), and “What About Us” shakes a finger at doctors giving out pills to old ladies (an aside: it’s odd how both tracks utilize basically the same melodic/rhythmic elements, they almost seem to be covers of one another. This finds me vacillating between believing it’s a genius move or just plan lazy songwriting … I’m inclined toward the former, especially taking in the lyrical themes). “Midnight Aspen” is a loose tribute to Hunter S. Thompson, and one can’t help but wonder if MES was annoyed at HST’s excessive drug use that contributed to his deteriorating health which has been cited as the major reason he shot himself. Or maybe MES sees HST as lucky to leave this world of suffering and injustice. Or maybe it’s none of that. Nevertheless, Fall Heads Roll found plenty of time pricking through my eardrums and scratching my grey matter.

21. The Decemberists – Picaresque, (Kill Rock Stars) 75.45
The best thing about this release by The Decemberists is the evidence that Colin Meloy has grown into a tremendous songwriter. It’s unmistakably a Decemberists record, but the vaudeville/depression (or whatever) era novelty is gone. Curiously, I hear, like, mid-80s R.E.M throughout this (especially see “We Both Go Down Together”). “The Engine Driver” is stellar; “On The Bus Mall” has great melody drenched in melancholy and loneliness; “The Sporting Life” resonates with any sport-challenged-anti-jock; “The Infanta” is a bold, driving song stocked with tension and weirdness. Meloy has also reigned in his trebley-warble-croon, so that it doesn’t overtake the tunes and weigh down the melodies. It’s this balance between a more universal or even timeless sound with the quirkiness of past Decemberists records that makes Picaresque their most compelling record.
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The Top Fifty Favorite Albums Of 2005 - Pt.2

40. Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks – Face The Truth, (Matador) 74.52
When a near-legendary band breaks up, and the lead singer releases his/her first solo record, the expectations are nearly always unrealistically high. The singer is typically dogged, never being able to meet those critical expectations for the entirety of his/her subsequent output (see also Frank Black, Morrissey, Bob Mould, Ian Brown, etc.). This is definitely the case with Mr. Stephen Malkmus. Ever since Pavement broke up and he released his first solo record, the man has been held to a standard that is probably unfair. His first record wasn’t as bad as people said, and the follow-up 2003’s Pig Lib wasn’t as good. On Face The Truth, Malkmus gets it just right with the strongest and most cohesive batch of songs he has committed to record in years. Who knows why this happened, but he has found a way to embrace his past (“Freeze The Saints”, “Mama”, “Post-Paint Boy”) while integrated the sub-genres and noise he’s found since leaving Pavement (“Pencil Rot”, “No More Shoes”, “Kindling For The Master”). To me, I say, “Finally.” This record is a total breath of fresh air and confirmed why I fell in love with Malkmus’ songwriting so many years ago.

39. The Books – Lost And Safe, (Tomlab) 75.77
The Books ability to weave found sounds/recordings/etc. into their melodies is absolutely fascinating. I don’t know how this truly translates to a good album with good songs, but it is compelling. “Be Good To Them Always” is the strongest track on the record with the sound of a bouncing kick ball provided the beat, a whacked-out-backwards cello anchored by a gentle and downcast acoustic guitar. The track possesses an interesting take on dual lead vocals with Nick Zammuto singing along with the found samples, cut-and-paste together to form a poetic tome, really taking this track to another world. “An Animated Description of Mr. Maps” is jarring and confusing, yet entirely satisfying. “It Never Changes To Stop” begins with one of the prettiest instrumental passages in any indie rock song. The record cuts a serious and artsy-fartsy tone, a track like “Venice” is hilarious (sparse instrumentation under a kooky play-by-play of a painter called “Maestro” creating his work of art) and a welcome respite. At times, Lost And Safe is a tough listen, but in the right environment and the right frame of mind, it’s exactly what I wanted hear.

38. Gorillaz – Demon Days, (Virgin/EMI) 72.18
I bet Damon Albarn never dreamed he would have made another Gorillaz record when he started the project five years ago. I never dreamed I would be so enthralled with a Gorillaz record. Demon Days is a sinister, paranoid, ugly, moody record of experimental pop. I’m not totally surprised that the record charted, it’s got melody (on a few tracks), it’s hooky, lots of hip-hop elements and plenty of guest stars (some eye-opening, others not so much: De La Soul, Neneh Cherry, MF Doom, Ike Turner, Shaun Ryder, Dennis Hopper). “Feel Good Inc.” is a great pop song with Albarn’s wonderful lazy rap and a hook to die for. De La Soul give it a decidedly Outkast-flavor. There are some secret hits though – namely, “Dare” which has the troubled ex-Happy Monday Shaun Ryder delivering an immensely memorable performance over a farty-moog bass line and tiny synth melody/riff. “El Manana” is a great blend of classic Brit pop and minimal electronic balladry (the melody is achingly beautiful). The jabbing Wire-esque guitar riff, feedback squalls, Psycho-ish synths of “O Green World” are equally funny and menacing. Albarn’s vocals adapt to the vibe of each song, but like the whole record, exude cynicism, skepticism, paranoia, exhaustion, fear, and is moody as hell.

37. Annie – Anniemal, (679 Recordings) 72.42
Annie is one of the most exciting new artists to emerge in the last few years. She has an amazing voice, a tremendous knack for melody and can craft the most addictive hooks. You are a discerning music listener and ask, “So CMS why is this record at #37?” I’ll tell you. *sigh* About half the songs on Anniemal are mind-boggling-great dance-pop, whereas, the other half is extremely pedestrian. For every “Heartbeat” there is a “No Easy Love”, for every “Chewing Gum” there is a “Happy Without You”. This is just not a great record. Now, before you get all wound up … “Chewing Gum”, “Heartbeat”, “Me Plus One”, “Greatest Hit”, “Always Too Late” are all great, great songs (“Chewing Gum” hands down is the best track on this record). But that’s only half the record. Thus, Annie fell in at #37.

36. Ivy – In The Clear, (Nettwerk America) 73.45
Ivy return to the sophisticated indie-pop of Apartment Life and Realistic after flirting with electronica (ala St. Etienne) on Long Distance (this is their first record of original material since that record). This is much better. The record is extremely consistent (maybe too much so, as the songs tend to blend together) and the melodies are so pop perfect. Dominque Durand is one of the greatest vocalists out there; her voice isn’t just a blend of cute-n-sexy, but a wonderful European sultry, a slow burn of sexuality and confidence; and the music reflects Durand’s vibe. “Thinking About You”, “Tess Don’t Tell”, “Four In The Morning”, “Ocean City Girl” are the high marks. One surprise is Girls Against Boys vocalist Scott McCloud (I think it is him – sounds like him, but he’s listed as Scott McLoud) contributes some accompanying vocals to the breathtaking closer, “Feel So Free”.

35. The Juan Maclean – Less Than Human, (DFA/Astralwerks) 74.14
Man, sometimes I just kick myself. “Give Me Every Little Thing” really should have made my Top 50 Songs list. There is so much right with that song: the funky bass line, the hook is so perfect, the Kraftwerk-y disco beats and synth lines, the way the song just builds and builds at the end – it’s both funny and seriously crafted – the song works on so many levels whether you hear it on the dance floor or on your headphones. I also dig “AD 2003”, an odd little minimal track that is the perfect starting point for The Juan Maclean’s debut full-length. “Love Is In The Air” juxtaposes a cheesy flute melody with extreme teeny-tiny beats. “My Time Is Running Out” takes notes from the more musical and melodic moments of Aphex Twin and infuses it with disco. There is a dance mix quality to the record that means you can put it on track one and let it ride. And I did just that a lot in 2005.

34. Engineers – Engineers, (The Echo Label) 73.66
It seemed every time I went to a record store, watched a television show or commercial, turned on the cool radio station, some song with more-than-a-hint of shoegazer was playing. Engineers are definitely tapped in that now-classic (and more widely accepted) 90s sub-genre. I’m not complaining at all. From the opening acoustic guitar strums that give way to a precious of preciousest melodies to the multi-guitar ladened freakout of “One In Seven”, Engineers create a spacey-floaty atmosphere of guitar jamz and breathy melodies. The dynamics are extreme, but rather than shifting abruptly, they ride a bendy line, swerving and swelling, crescendos of driving bass and down-tuned guitar chord progressions, nice harmonies creep in and out of the mix, and the emphasis is on mood as much as melody (and Engineers have plenty of melody). There is a heavy influence of Pink Floyd (kind of like how Super Furry Animals pulls the Pink Floyd sound into their songs) throughout the disc as well. This record sounds great played super loud, or at a more tolerable volume. Check out: “Come In Out Of The Rain”, “One In Seven” and “Forgiveness”.

33. Of Montreal – The Sundalic Twins, (Polyvinyl Record Co.) 69.42
The Sundalic Twins suffers from the same fate as Anniemal; this record probably would've rated higher if it wasn't so obviously half-great. The thing that annoys me about this Of Montreal record is the inclusion of a terrifically great bonus EP where every song is tops, yet the last half of the proper record contains some of Kevin Barnes’ worst songs. It’s just ... annoying. But when TST is on, it’s so on. “Requiem O.M.M. 2” kicks off the record with an unbridled enthusiasm. “Wraith Pinned To The Mist And Other Games” is a bizarro-disco tune propelled by a slinky bass line. “Forecast Fascist Future” and “The Party’s Crashing Us” are noisy doses of classic Elephant 6 indie-psych. “FFF” has some tremendous changes and a flawless melody, and “The Party’s” got so much going on, but never is overburdened due to the perfect chorus. “So Begins Our Alabee” is one Barnes’ best songs (see my Top 50 Songs List, #18). The bonus EP has four tracks that exemplify everything that make Of Montreal one of the greatest and most enduring bands out there today (see “Art Snob Solutions” and “Keep Sending Me Black Fireworks”). I don’t know if I will ever understand why Barnes chose to put those songs on the EP rather than replacing the weirder and more experimental songs on the proper full-length.

32. The Clientele – Strange Geometry, (Merge Records) 72.58
When I first listened to Strange Geometry (I’ve been into The Clientele ever since their debut), I kept thinking about Mojave3. The record almost sounds exactly like a Mojave3 record, you know this Byrds/Beach Boys/Dylan-hybrid thing. For some reason, Strange Geometry kept creeping into my rotation. Typically, Clientele records are on the extreme end of the down-way-low spectrum; and that’s cool and all (not every day am I in the mood for The New Pornographers or various classic power pop or whatever uptempo rawk is pleasing my ears). Sure, there are plenty of mellow tunes on this record, but it’s the faster songs that really got my attention: “Since K Got Over Me”, “E.M.P.T.Y.”, “My Own Face Inside The Trees”. It was a nice angle to compliment the band’s trademark sound. And they still craft some of the most elegant jangle pop in the world – “(I Can’t Seem To) Make You Mine”, “K”, “When I Came Home From The Party”, “Geometry Of Lawns”, “Spirit” – these tunes are their bread and butter and they are so tasty. The major misstep by The Clientele is the spoken word “Losing Haringey”. Now, the music is very, very nice – a wonderful cascading Byrds-y jangle – but the prose poem is too much. The second the song starts, I hit the skip track button (actually, I tend to not get to it until the speaking starts because the track begins with an electronic noise that is similar to the beginning of “K” – which is the fourth track, and even though “Losing Haringey” is the eleventh track, I can get confused if I’m preoccupied with something else. So if I’m not paying attention, I’ll get the first few words – let’s say I’m listening to the entire record on my home stereo and I’m in the kitchen preparing dinner, and the song comes on, I run as fast as I possibly can trying to get to the disc player to skip the track – there have been times when I’ve totally wiped out going around the corner, or times when I’ve run with a half chopped onion, tears streaming down my face or times when I’m on the sofa reading a book or magazine and I practically kill myself falling over our coffee table… it’s pure danger! The worst time was when I was on the bus, elbow-to-elbow, bundled up in my heavy wool coat, scarf and gloved hands and the track comes – I clumsily get my glove off trying not elbow the elderly woman in the seat next to me, then stabbing my hand into the inside pocket of my coat, clamoring for my iPod – I can’t simply move past the track because I’ve got the damn hold button on – so I can pull it out, take it off hold, and skip to the next track, or an entirely different record or song. All the while, people are frowning at me, making noises with their mouths, staring like I’m some freak). Not good.

31. Bloc Party – Silent Alarm, (Vice) 74.43
There are many things to love about Bloc Party and their post-post-punk jamz. A lot of that has been said by a lot of other more adept and knowledgeable writers. I think there is a lot of hype that has ignored the actual songs. But that’s nothing new. I still can’t get over “Banquet”, a song that blew my mind in 2004. “Helicopter” and “Like Eating Glass” and “Luno” and “Little Thoughts” (probably the most underrated Bloc Party song) still get me moving like a sorority girl at a Franz Ferdinand concert when “Take Me Out” comes on. The thing I absolute appreciate about Bloc Party’s songs is twofold: they are consistently hooky and there is ever so much a hint of shoegaze sensibility (the layered guitars, the way they ring out longer than they should, the blasts of overdrive). The album cover design is one of my favorites of all time too.
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The Top Fifty Favorite Albums Of 2005 - Pt.1

All right, here we go – my Top 50 Favorite Albums of 2005. As in the past, I will start off by saying: 1) this is not a definitive list (I did some research and learned from looking at 5 other 2005 year-end lists, I didn’t even hear over 150 records that comprised those best-of lists; and of course, there are records that I didn’t hear and would’ve loved, or records that I got into too late to make my list, or records that I’m too thick in the head to comprehend their excellence, etc.); 2) I am applying the Album Quantifier Model score (e-mail me if you need more info) which is one indicator of ranking; and 3) I may like records a lot that didn’t have the best songs, and the converse applies. The key to understanding the list is this question I asked myself: “How often did I reach for the record and listen to it straight through?” The answer was a major determinant of where the record finally ended up in the rankings. I will be posting ten each day all week, so be sure to check back often!!!

50. Charlotte Hatherley – Grey Will Fade, (Double Dragon) 74.05
As (now ex-) guitarist for Irish wunderkids, Ash, Charlotte Hatherley developed a familiarity with finely crafted songs full of plenty guitar muscle, indelible hooks, and sweet melody. This is her first solo record (although, she did contribute a few tracks over her nine years with Ash) and its chock full of slick-ear-bleeding-guitar-power-pop. Hatherley is at her best on the rockinest tracks that are typically marked by quick vocals and jarring changes (see “Kim Wilde”, “Paragon”, “Why You Wanna”, and “Bastardo”). The record exhibits a definite songwriting prowess, but something doesn’t feel quite right (The sequencing? The slick production? The sameness? I can’t quite put my finger on it). Two things are undeniable about Grey Will Fade: 1) the hooks are always there and always catchy; and 2) she has a way with rhythm. Hatherley has given us the most promising release of 2005. Oh, in case you missed my Top 50 Songs, “Bastardo” is absolutely a perfect song. Also check out: “Summer”, “Why You Wanna”, “Grey Will Fade”

49. Joy Electric – The Ministry Of Archers, (Tooth & Nail) 73.84
Honestly, the best part of Joy Electric recent output is the weird blippy-glitchy-robot-psych-instrumentals. They have a peculiarity that sucks you in and forces you to ask the most important of all questions: “Why?” Outside the instrumentals, The Ministry Of Archers is another what-you-expect record from Joy E. While Martin has his formula (dictated partly by his all-analog-all-the-time methodology, and partly by his consuming fire to write the perfect pop song), it still resonates with me. “The Ministry Of Archers” bangs hard with its near-industrial beat is followed by “Most Terrible Archer” with its tiny beats and trebley synth lines ---> the pych-synth of “Become As Murderers”, ---> the sinister beat heavy “A Hatchet, A Hatchet”, ---> a bizarre instrumental “Hornets Horns”, ---> followed by the strongest track on the record, “Quite Quieter Than Spiders” (which borrows the haunting riff from The Shins’ “New Slang”) … you get the picture. TMOA flows beautifully from song to song – the instrumentals adding another much needed dimension to the Joy E listening experience.

48. The Soundtrack Of Our Lives – Origin Vol. 1, (Republic/Capitol) 72.21
This record was probably the toughest of all for me to stomach this year. Anyone who knows me or read my previous year-end write-ups knows the praise I heap on this Swedish band. I guess the biggest problem I had with this TSOOL record is that it sounded more retro than ever. The band had always been able to balance preciously on the precipice of retro by infusing their songs with 21st Century rip-offs and timeless pop sensibility. For the most part, Origin Vol. 1 doesn’t do that. And for the most part, the songwriting is still there. “Heading For A Breakdown” is a great single (whereas, “Bigtime” was a poor choice for a single – ton of potential but it was on a road to nowhere with one of the laziest hooks ever) and one nice side trip they took was on the psychedelic ballad, “Midnight Children”. “Transcendental Suicide” is a tremendous rocker with Pete Towshend poses and Jagger swagger, but it seemed more mimicry. “Age Of No Reply” at times is catchy as hell and revolves wonderfully, but it had a Behind The Music outtake feel. The proto-punk of “Mother One Track Mind” is a real fist pumper, but I’ve heard it all before. Despite all of my griping, the record continued to find its place in my rotation all year long, and while I did plenty of track skipping, when I settled on a track, I turned it up and sang at the top of my lungs. AND TSOOL is the best live band going right now – their concert early 2005 at the Fine Line in Minneapolis was pure rock n roll domination.

47. Echo & The Bunnymen – Siberia, (Cooking Vinyl) 72.25
From the opening jangle of “Stormy Weather” to the closing piano-based Brit balladry of “What If We Are”, Siberia is the consummate Echo & The Bunnymen record. Like The Go-Betweens, the Bunnies have been making great records in a rediscovered Phase 2 of their band life. The aforementioned opener, “Stormy Weather”, is a wonderful track of that exhibits so much of the Bunnies oeuvre – tremendous guitar work (both electric and acoustic), a solid hook, and Ian McCulloch’s trademark vocals. “Parthenon Drive” finds the band perfectly in sync, recalling their breakthrough 1987 self-titled release. Highlights abound, this is their guitar record – check out the haunthing guitar flourishes on “In The Margins” and “Everything Kills You”; the dirty-screwed-down-blues-crunch on “Stormy Weather”, “Parthenon Drive”, “Of A Life”; the tricky riffs on “Make Us Blind”; the white disco-funk of the title track; and 80s nostalgia of “Sideways Eight”. Lots of guitar! McCulloch and Sergeant may not be stretching out (and should they?), but they release a solid record capturing their past, and updating with just enough “today”.

46. Pitty Sing – Pitty Sing, (Or.Music) 70.67
The biggest problem with this record: it’s so goddamn slick. Not in that good pop slick like Prefab Sprout. I can deal with that. This is just slick like … The Killers. Ewww. There is this 80s Pretty In Pink soundtrack vibe that is nearly overbearing – it’s very reminiscent of the era’s obscure Christian alternative pop scene (see Common Bond, Crumbacher, early-The Choir, Vector). Pitty Sing is just such a bizarre record – lots of filler clogging up the arteries, but the heart beats on. It’s the heart of this record that pulls it into my Top 50. What changes my tune every so slightly is the strength of melody/hook of songs like “Hanging On Me”, “Bleeding Hearts”, “Anyway”, “Telephone”, “Radio”, and “Go Cry”. I’m sure you’d agree with me.

45. Ryan Adams & The Cardinals – Cold Roses, (Lost Highway) 71.31
Oh, Ryan Adams – you are dissed, scorned, held up as the poster child of everything that is wrong with snobby-shit-talking-indie-gone-superstar-poser-ism. You even took Paul Westerberg too seriously and made an ass of yourself, drunk on stage in Minneapolis, bringing more hate for no fault but your own. You aren’t punk. You tend to whine too much, or to play nice when there’s no need to (what’s with that requested interview and then sequel with Pitchfork writer Amanda Petrusich?). I happen to agree with Westerberg, you do need your teeth kicked in. Maybe you’ll finally get a goddman sense of fucking humor. Listen to “Folk Star”. And why the fucking hell did you put Cold Roses out as a double album? Fuck me. Honestly. Shit. You make it so easy to hate you. And, you sound like a brat (I’ve heard the call to DeRo). This is what you should say: “Listen to my record, Cold Roses. Play: “Sweet Illusions” and “If I Am A Stranger” and “Magnolia Mountain” and “When Will You Come Back Home?” and “Beautiful Sorta” and “Cherry Lane” and “How Do You Keep Love Alive” and “Easy Plateau” and “Let It Ride” and “Rosebud” and “Cold Roses” and “Dance All Night” and “Life Is Beautiful” and “Friends”. And then you shut the fuck up.” If you said that, I’d love you more than I already do.

44. Blood On The Wall – Awesomer, (The Social Registry) 71.24
This brother-sister lead combo of Ben and Courtney Shanks (guitar and bass, respectively; both share lead vocal duty) and Ida drummer Miggy Littleton form a wonderful power trio that hearkens back to late-80s/early-90s post-punk-indie-rock. While that is an accurate, and definitely tepid, classification, I prefer to say that Blood On The Wall are what the offspring of Lynrd Skynrd would sound like if they were influenced by Royal Trux, The Pixies, and Sonic Youth. Yeah, they are that cool. “Right To Life Tonight” is a track that is centered by a fucked-up blues riff and has Ben taking the lead vocals, shrieking like Jonathan Richman, Gordon Gano, or Darren Hayman. On “Heat From The Day” Courtney talk/sings over a blanket noisy-extreme-riffage. Her delivery is less frantic and more laid-back-freak-cool like Jennifer Herrema or Kim Gordon. “Dead Edge Of Town” is a driving tune propelled by a muted bass line and tribal drumming while Ben noodles around coaxing a variety of ghost-like howls from his guitar, then extenuates it all with blasts of Psychocandy feedback. The highlight is the frosty-jerk-laden “Reunite On Ice” – lots of super-fast-riffing, high-to-low bass progressions, and tom heavy drumming. The track is the complete package, showing all that makes Blood On The Wall awesomer (No he didn’t!!!).

43. The Go! Team – Thunder, Lightning, Strike, [US version] (Memphis Industries) 76.42
On the surface this band is just plain annoying. The cornerstone of this hypothesis is the prevalence of cheerleader chanting across the whole record (which definitely contributed to my reluctance to play it). This is treading close to novelty. But I’m one to stick with records I purchase with my hard-earned casheesh, and the payoff did come. What The Go! Team lacks in melody and annoys in indie-rock-cheerleading, they gain in pure exuberance, the power to maintain the groove, and get your ass shaking. “The Power Is On” blew me away last year (a track where the cheerleading actually works to the max). When this finally hit the US shore at a more friendly purchase price, I snapped it up quickly. “Junior Kickstart” with its Stax of horns and Sonic Youth guitars is a whopper (“Ladyflash” is another), “Huddle Formation” has a twee-C86 influence and “Panther Dash” with its 70s cop movie vibe has a killer groove. It’s the new-ish songs included on the US release (“We Just Won’t Be Defeated” and “Hold Yr Terror Close”) that concern me a bit. They are decent (the latter being too precious for its own good), but nothing like the strongest tunes from the original UK release.

42. Marbles – Expo, (spinART) 69.19
Most of you know that Marbles is Apples In Stereo creative guru, Robert Schneider’s solo side project. Expo hits the indie-pop world as the Apples remain on hiatus (in flux? disbanded?). I only bought this because I’m a huge fan of Schneider and the Apples, and I'm a completist. I went into listening with no expectations. So I wasn’t surprised, when … I’m going to get this out of the way … I realized that this is an extremely flawed record – half of the songs just don’t work, whether due to a poor melody, poor execution, or poor arrangement. But I forgive Schneider for this, I mean, when the other five tracks are simply perfect pop, it more than makes up for the subpar. Typically, Schneider has been unfairly criticized for aping the sounds of his heroes with the usual suspects Brian Wilson, The Beatles, and assorted 60s Nuggets. On Expo, Schneider tapped into ELO’s Jeff Lynne, but the results come off less derivative (the best example is the not-so coincidentally titled, “Magic”). “Cruel Sound” is a minute-and-a-half of pure pop brilliance, “Circuit” has a weird electro-meets-calliope vibe, and “Out Of Zone” has some neat studio trickery to complement an amazing melody and chorus. The record closes with the epic “Move On” (check the electronic vocal effect and think ELO) – equally touching and sad; a melancholy end to the end of the record.

41. Kathleen Edwards – Back To Me, (Zoe) 70.50
Canadian singer/songwriter Kathleen Edwards made the best Ryan Adams record this year. Back To Me’s center is the songs “In State” and “What Are You Waiting For?” – while the songwriting is tremendously standard – but solid – alt.country (which is the major drawback of this record, the music doesn’t compel you to listen), the delivery is so utterly sincere and truly heartfelt that the words she sings become overbearingly real, and, thus, the music is an appropriate backdrop (the more her vocals and her words stand out, the more compelling). Edwards’ vocals exude a heartbroken vulnerability, but it’s the spit and vinegar she puts into each line that is so disconcerting. Edwards' is like when Mr. Adams is at his best, she may be lonely, but she’s confident and pissed. It’s such a welcome affront to what a “country gal” is expected to sing about (see also, the track “Independent Thief”), she transcends the stereotype that a woman who speaks her mind is a bitch or worse. There is femininity to the record that other alt.country female songwriters lack (or contain too much of). The real testament is that she injects so much emotion in such a unique way into each of the songs she has written, striking such a sweet balance – it can only be called great songwriting. This record is one of 2005’s big surprises.
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