This post is to continue the conversation that Miss Molly began with her post cansei de ser sexy, specifically Martha's response.
Martha brings up an interesting point; one that I hadn't crossed my mind. How much does the paparazzi contribute to the making of gossip, how much is the celebrities, and how much do we, as the public consuming this media, contribute? It's not a simple question to answer, and I don't want to propose that I have it all figured out.
However, we live in a capitalist society where the gods Supply and Demand rule. There are plenty of celebrities and, consequently, plenty of celebrity gossip. The public demands the gossip, almost nonstop, then we get bored. We're tired of Lindsay Lohan's alcohol issues, we no longer care about which one of the Olsen twins has an eating disorder. We need something new and the media supplies it, occasionally when there isn't really anything there.
What I'm saying is that it goes both ways. As the media-watching public, we're guilty of demanding a certain amount of celebrity gossip. On the other hand, the media needs to keep people interested. Magazines need readers, subscribers preferably. MTV needs viewers. How do they keep those subscribers and viewers? Give them what they want.
I agree, some celebrities pull through and do something good with their status. Martha mentioned Angelina Jolie. Bono is another (though U2 should give it up). These two realized that they are in a position to make change on a much grander scale than most people (though I hasten to add that most people, i.e. you, do have the power to make changes). I applaud those two for their efforts. They are noble and necessary.
Here's what I propose: Let's hold celebrities accountable. I have no delusions of getting rid of celebrity gossip but I think that the public has - we have - the ability to demand that our celebrities use their status to make changes. I want Paris Hilton to advocate for animal rights. I want Usher to teach voice lessons to kids whose schools cut music funding. We point out every other fault that celebrities have, why not point out their lack of humanitarian efforts?
Martha also mentioned that "sometimes the kitschy ending of an episode of "Grey's" is just enough to lull me into a restful sleep." And that's fine. That’s the entertainment side of television which, as I mentioned in my previous post, is still valid and, yes, necessary. Sometimes we need an escape, and allowing television to entertain us is a wonderful escape. I'm no different. My worry is that many people only follow that escape. Many people aren't aware of "the terrifying changes to our global environment, the unprovoked preemptive strikes and their consequences, and bigoted legislature and issues we need to take action upon" as Martha stated.
I'm not accusing Molly or Martha of this, I'm simply restating the point I made in my last post: television is a valid medium for entertainment, but that's not it's full potential. It also has the capability to educate.
I love and respect you both. I hope we can continue this conversation.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Friday, January 18, 2008
Re: cansei de ser sexy
This post is a response to this post by my good friend Miss Molly.
cansei de ser sexy is a interesting post to read, especially for me. Molly and I have talked about my distaste for celebrity gossip and television in general. Call me an elitist, I just don't like it. Some of it has to do with advertising, but that's not the extent of it.
I really appreciate Molly's ideas on why she enjoys celebrity gossip, etcetera, and I'm very glad to know that, at least for her, watching television is not an escapist thing. Molly uses television as a way to relate to those around her. This is a natural thing, I think. People look for ways to bind them to those they love and respect. Molly uses television; I use music. In short, Molly is saving up conversations for later, and that’s great. Not only is she being entertained, but she doesn't cut herself off from those around her. Rather the contrary.
Molly said one thing in particular that struck me, and that is this: "[H]igher culture ... tends to be more exclusive than something we can all do: turn on a TV." Essentially, this is true. Television is a very easy thing to do, and it's relatively inexpensive. On top of that, people are almost looked down upon for not watching TV, and even more so if they don't even own a television.
This gets to another reason I don't particularly enjoy television: I don't like the feeling of being conditioned to do something, especially when most media outlets are owned by six companies. This is probably hypocritical of me to say; I'm sure there are things that I do that are equally conditioned in me as television is in most others.
I recently (finally) got around to watching a wonderful film called Good Night, and Good Luck. It is about broadcast journalist Edward R. Murrow who, in the 1950's, took a stand against Senator Joseph McCarthy, a fear monger exploiting the Red Scare to his own advantage. The film follows Murrow who decided to take a stand against McCarthy at great cost to himself. Other journalists were afraid to say what he said for fear of being labeled a communist themselves.
One of the things the film highlights, aside from saying that journalists should be watchdogs, not lap dogs, is the role of television in society. Murrow argues, eloquently, that television can be a tool for educating as well as entertaining saying, "let us dream to the extent of saying that on a given Sunday night the time normally occupied by Ed Sullivan is given over to a clinical survey of the state of American education, and a week or two later the time normally used by Steve Allen is devoted to a thoroughgoing study of American policy in the Middle East."
I'd like to note than I'm only arguing that television should do more than entertain. As Murrow says at the close of the film, "[if] this instrument is good for nothing but to entertain, amuse and insulate, then the tube is flickering now… . This instrument can teach, it can illuminate; yes, and it can even inspire. But it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise it is merely wires and lights in a box. Good night, and good luck."
Indeed.
cansei de ser sexy is a interesting post to read, especially for me. Molly and I have talked about my distaste for celebrity gossip and television in general. Call me an elitist, I just don't like it. Some of it has to do with advertising, but that's not the extent of it.
I really appreciate Molly's ideas on why she enjoys celebrity gossip, etcetera, and I'm very glad to know that, at least for her, watching television is not an escapist thing. Molly uses television as a way to relate to those around her. This is a natural thing, I think. People look for ways to bind them to those they love and respect. Molly uses television; I use music. In short, Molly is saving up conversations for later, and that’s great. Not only is she being entertained, but she doesn't cut herself off from those around her. Rather the contrary.
Molly said one thing in particular that struck me, and that is this: "[H]igher culture ... tends to be more exclusive than something we can all do: turn on a TV." Essentially, this is true. Television is a very easy thing to do, and it's relatively inexpensive. On top of that, people are almost looked down upon for not watching TV, and even more so if they don't even own a television.
This gets to another reason I don't particularly enjoy television: I don't like the feeling of being conditioned to do something, especially when most media outlets are owned by six companies. This is probably hypocritical of me to say; I'm sure there are things that I do that are equally conditioned in me as television is in most others.
I recently (finally) got around to watching a wonderful film called Good Night, and Good Luck. It is about broadcast journalist Edward R. Murrow who, in the 1950's, took a stand against Senator Joseph McCarthy, a fear monger exploiting the Red Scare to his own advantage. The film follows Murrow who decided to take a stand against McCarthy at great cost to himself. Other journalists were afraid to say what he said for fear of being labeled a communist themselves.
One of the things the film highlights, aside from saying that journalists should be watchdogs, not lap dogs, is the role of television in society. Murrow argues, eloquently, that television can be a tool for educating as well as entertaining saying, "let us dream to the extent of saying that on a given Sunday night the time normally occupied by Ed Sullivan is given over to a clinical survey of the state of American education, and a week or two later the time normally used by Steve Allen is devoted to a thoroughgoing study of American policy in the Middle East."
I'd like to note than I'm only arguing that television should do more than entertain. As Murrow says at the close of the film, "[if] this instrument is good for nothing but to entertain, amuse and insulate, then the tube is flickering now… . This instrument can teach, it can illuminate; yes, and it can even inspire. But it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise it is merely wires and lights in a box. Good night, and good luck."
Indeed.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Hi, My Name is Timmy Troubadour and I'm Starring in a Film
At the end of last semester, my friend Laural told me that she was going to be filming her senior project during January. Laural created her own major: Directing for the Stage and Screen. In her proposal for this major she said that her senior project would have something to do with Shakespeare's Hamlet in some way.
So, in December, she held auditions for her screen adaptation of Heiner Müller's six page play Hamletmachine. It’s a dense piece of work, but it's fantastic. I auditioned and was cast in the role of Hamlet, one of two speaking roles in the film (I know, right? Who wants to hear me talk?).
It's been an interesting and exciting experience but it's very different than my background in stage theatre. Unlike theatre, you spend a few hours rehearsing (in our case, about half an hour for each scene) and then simply do it. If you don't like it, you do it again. Even when you do get it right, you do it again. And again because the director wanted a different camera angle. And again because you flubbed a line. And again because the lighting needs to be changed.
But once you've finished a scene; once the director has said "cut" one final time, you can forget all of your blocking and all of your lines.
Filming is a new beast to me, and I can't yet tell if I'm doing it right or not, or if I'm doing it well. I haven't seen much of what we've filmed, and even the stuff I have is not anywhere near complete. Laural still has to edit everything together to create a cohesive whole, and she is doing a little bit of animation over the top of some scenes. For example, in one scene Ophelia will have a clock animated over her heart, and in another, three boxes will have video clips over them to simulate television screens.
We'll wrap up filming in the next two weeks or so and Laural will spend the next month or two editing, animating and working with the composer on a score. Sometime in April the final product will premier on campus. It will be just shy of twenty minutes long (probably; the script we're working from is seventeen pages long). At that time, Laural will get feedback from viewers and professors that she can, ideally, use later on in life. The actors (myself included) will be critiqued and examined in every way and that’s the end of it.
I'm still learning all of the parallels between film and theatre. I'm still learning what mistakes I can and can not make. I'm still learning just about everything. I'm even relearning how to act. This whole experience is new to me.
So, in December, she held auditions for her screen adaptation of Heiner Müller's six page play Hamletmachine. It’s a dense piece of work, but it's fantastic. I auditioned and was cast in the role of Hamlet, one of two speaking roles in the film (I know, right? Who wants to hear me talk?).
It's been an interesting and exciting experience but it's very different than my background in stage theatre. Unlike theatre, you spend a few hours rehearsing (in our case, about half an hour for each scene) and then simply do it. If you don't like it, you do it again. Even when you do get it right, you do it again. And again because the director wanted a different camera angle. And again because you flubbed a line. And again because the lighting needs to be changed.
But once you've finished a scene; once the director has said "cut" one final time, you can forget all of your blocking and all of your lines.
Filming is a new beast to me, and I can't yet tell if I'm doing it right or not, or if I'm doing it well. I haven't seen much of what we've filmed, and even the stuff I have is not anywhere near complete. Laural still has to edit everything together to create a cohesive whole, and she is doing a little bit of animation over the top of some scenes. For example, in one scene Ophelia will have a clock animated over her heart, and in another, three boxes will have video clips over them to simulate television screens.
We'll wrap up filming in the next two weeks or so and Laural will spend the next month or two editing, animating and working with the composer on a score. Sometime in April the final product will premier on campus. It will be just shy of twenty minutes long (probably; the script we're working from is seventeen pages long). At that time, Laural will get feedback from viewers and professors that she can, ideally, use later on in life. The actors (myself included) will be critiqued and examined in every way and that’s the end of it.
I'm still learning all of the parallels between film and theatre. I'm still learning what mistakes I can and can not make. I'm still learning just about everything. I'm even relearning how to act. This whole experience is new to me.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Top Ten Albums of 2oo7
It's a week into the new year, and I still haven't had to write 2oo8 yet. Aside from just now. I'm still in 2oo7. So before anything exciting happens in aught eight, here's my Top Ten Albums of 2007.
10) the Locust - New Erections
When I first heard the Locust I laughed them off as being too heavy and ridiculous. Thirty second long bursts of noise? That's not music. That takes no talent. Wrong! This album is so complex that I couldn’t begin to learn how to play the parts in a million years. These guys do some incredible things with incredible precision at incredible speeds. This isn't noise; it’s well written and focused bursts of energy. Every single note on this record is intentional. New Erections is the Locust's longest recording (twenty-three minutes) to date, and it is as dense as a brick of lead. Multiple listens are required in order to even begin to absorb this beast but with song titles like "the Unwilling...Led by the Unqualified...Doing the Unnecessary...For the Ungrateful" and "God Wants Us All to Work in Factories" you can’t really go wrong. Also, see them live. It will blow your skull.
Favorite Tracks: "Book of Bot," "We Have Reached An Official Verdict: Nobody Gives a Shit"
9) Against Me! - New Wave
Last year, I included a list of bands that I was excited to hear new music from. Against Me! is one of the bands that delivered, and then some. I picked up this record the day it came out simply because I happened to be at the record store that day. At first listen I wasn't as impressed with New Wave as I had been with previous recordings. It's a highly polished record produced by Butch Vig (the man behind Nirvana's Nevermind and the Smashing Pumpkin's Siamese Dream). Tegan Quin of Tegan & Sara sings guest vocals on "Bourne on the FM Waves of the Heart." The slick sheen on the record turned me off at first because I was expecting the gritty sound of their earlier work. Subsequent listens changed my mind entirely. It's a straight up pop record written by a punk band and it’s great from start to finish. Tracks like "Piss and Vinegar" and "Americans Abroad" retain the group's grittier sound, while "Bourne on the FM Waves" and "Thrash Unreal" are pop gems.
Favorite Tracks: "the Ocean," "Up the Cuts"
8) the Bad Plus - Prog
Anything that Dave King (drummer of the Bad Plus) touches turns to gold. He's in four bands (the Bad Plus, Happy Apple, Halloween, Alaska and the Gang Font feat. Interloper) as well as doing studio work and one off bands. Happy Apple also released a record this year and I would probably put it on this list, however I just got it a few days ago and haven’t had a chance to listen to it yet. Front to back, Prog is the strongest release in the Bad Plus catalogue. Jazzed up covers of pop and rock songs are intermingled with original compositions by the band members. Every song on here is great. This isn't shtick, it's art.
Favorite Track: "Physical Cities"
7) Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
This was a surprise album for me this year. I've found that my tastes don’t generally include this sort of quiet, solo, introspective style, but damn it all if Justin Vernon (known here as Bon Iver, a misspelling of the French phrase for "good winter") didn't make one of the most stark and beautiful albums of the year. This album is catharsis. This album is Northwestern Wisconsin and heartache rolled into one. This album is beautiful. It's orchestral in a stripped down way, and Vernon's croon only adds to the loneliness that the music evokes. I love this record, and you should too.
Favorite Track: "Skinny Love"
6) Explosions in the Sky - All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone
This is the most realized album that Explosions in the Sky have made, and for some reason it makes me think of winter. Songs like "Catastrophe and the Cure" and "So Long, Lonesome" are so perfectly orchestrated that one stray note or extra beat would throw off the whole album. I don't really like listening to just one song from this record; it's best heard as a whole, which is a testament to the ability of the band to craft albums as a whole. This album, along with Bon Iver's Skinny Love are not only two of the best albums of the year, but also the loneliest.
Favorite Tracks: "the Birth and Death of the Day," "So Long, Lonesome"
5) Iron & Wine - the Shepherd's Dog
I never got into Iron & Wine's early work. I always liked it, but it wasn’t really something I sat down to listen to. That all changed when Sam Beam released his third full length album, the Shepherd's Dog, under the Iron & Wine moniker. My friend played the track "White Tooth Man" for me and I was enthralled by the sitar that fades in to begin the song. After listening to the whole album and fell in love with the things Beam does with his voice and what he's done musically. What I love the most about the album is how much each song works to create the whole. Every song is strong, but the whole album is more than the sum of its parts. That's such a rare feat these days that I have to love it.
Favorite Track: "White Tooth Man," "Boy with a Coin"
4) Building Better Bombs - Freak Out Squares
Before picking up this record I had only heard one song by Building Better Bombs ("Lookout!"). Then I saw Freak Out Squares at Cheapo. On purple vinyl. Naturally, I bought it. In the past four days, it's spun on my record player’s spindle over twenty times. One member of the group (Stef Alexander) is better known by his nom de rap, P.O.S., and two more members are also in indie hip hop crew Mel Gibson and the Pants (who are featured in a moment). That said, Building Better Bombs' Freak Out Squares is one of the best punk/hardcore albums I have ever heard. It starts with a train wreck ("This is a Gang") followed by a car wreck ("No Handouts"). From there, they continue to take their punk influences and infuse them with the hip hop and indie influences from their other groups, even including a little melody in the mix. Energetic from start to finish it fits punk conventions by being less than half an hour (27 minutes), but, other than that, doesn't quite fit the genre. Which is why I like it. It's too hard for the indie kids and too melodic for the hardcore kids. And just right for me.
Favorite Track: "No Hospitals"
3) Streetlight Manifesto - Somewhere in the Between
Last year I said that if Streetlight Manifesto released anything then it would make this list. That was bold of me. I was worried that they would release something… shitty. I should not have worried. Thomas Kalnocky is an amazing songwriter and Somewhere in the Between showcases not only his talent for writing songs, but the talent of every musician in the band. The horns are bright and tight, the bass lines are solid, and the drums are fast and precise. This record got flack for being too similar to Everything Goes Numb, Streetlight's debut album, but I don't see that as a bad thing. For me, I was every bit as excited while listening to Somewhere as I was when I first heard Numb nearly four years ago. Maybe that huge gap between albums had something to do with that, but either way, songs like "We Will Fall Together," "Somewhere in the Between" and "Forty Days" make me drop everything to marvel at the brightness of the horns, the tightness of the rhythm section, the guitar licks and the lyrics. The only downside to this album is that it's so short. Ten songs? I'm craving just a little more.
Favorite Tracks: "Would You Be Impressed?" "Forty Days"
2) Mel Gibson and the Pants - Sea vs. Shining Sea
Mel Gibson and the Pants sort of blindsided me with goodness. I had heard their tracks with P.O.S. and Cecil Otter so I was intrigued by them. When I finally got the chance to hear more, I became militant about sharing Sea vs. Shining Sea with my friends. This is a new kind of hip hop; there really isn't anything like it. Indie, drum n' bass and hip hop fused into one live band who collaborate with anyone and everyone they can get into the recording studio. Guests Harold Sanders, Crescent Moon, Sims, Mike Mictlan and Dessa flow in and out of this album making it stronger, but not stealing the spotlight. Which is kind of the point. I expected to like this record, but I didn't expect to fall in love the way I did. I can't get enough of this.
Favorite Tracks: "Stress Fracture," "Spurs of Steel"
And now, the best album of 2oo7:
1) Aesop Rock - None Shall Pass
I don’t even know where to start with this brilliant outing by Aesop Rock. The beats are stellar, the guest artists are sick (John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats!), and Aese himself? Flow. He's made of pure flow. Blockhead, producer of half of the album, is simply on fire here. Check the title track, "Bring Back Pluto" and "Getaway Car" for proof. Aesop Rock knows what he's doing, and this album showcases that talent. He knows which words to stress and how much. I've rocked this album more than any other released this year (though it's a close call; I rocked Mel Gibson and the Pants about the same number of times), and I haven't gotten sick of it. Even the hidden track isn't a throwaway track, and it contains one of the best lyrics of the year: "If Noah had the benefit of hindsight on his ship, they could'a snatched two unicorns and left behind the motherfuckin' pigs." Go get this album. Now.
Favorite Tracks: "None Shall Pass" "Coffee" and the hidden track "Pigs"
Runners Up:
the Weakerthans - Reunion Tour
"Civil Twilight" is a beautiful song, and this whole record is great, but I didn’t get into it like I got into Reconstruction Site.
Brother Ali - the Undisputed Truth
Scathing and amazing, but it was ousted by Aesop Rock.
Circa Survive - On Letting Go
This record is technically perfect which is why it didn’t make the list. Where Juturna was a band exploring a new sound, On Letting Go is a band perfecting a sound. It's a great album, but not as exciting as their early work. (NOTE: That distinction is important. Earlier I said that Streetlight Manifesto's Somewhere in the Between is similar to their first album, but that this is a good thing. On Letting Go just doesn’t excite me as a new album in the way Somewhere in the Between does.)
Gogol Bordello - Super Taranta!
Again, this is a band comfortable in their sound and it’s a fun album to listen to but it’s a hair shy of their previous record, Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike.
Sage Francis - Human the Death Dance
Another great album ousted by an album that's just a hair better. Sorry Sage, Mel Gibson took this one home. Maybe next time.
Last year I included a section titled "What I'm excited for." Here's what made the list and what I thought of it:
Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution - Didn't release anything.
Streetlight Manifesto - Made the list, see above.
Dessa - Didn't (really) release anything.
Circa Survive - Oh, so close to making the list.
Say Anything - Hit and miss. That's what you get for releasing a double disc. Though if I were making a top ten songs of 2oo7, "Baby Girl, I'm A Blur" would be near the top.
Against Me! - Made the list, see above.
Big D and the Kids Table - Didn't hear it. Oops.
Straylight Run - Good, but not that impressive.
Here's what I'm excited for this year:
the Doomtree crew album (and all Doomtree releases that are being held until the crew album drops). Glassjaw is rumored to have an album in the works and I'll probably go ape (dos mil) shit when (and if) it drops. I'd still love to hear new Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution material as well. On top of that Murder by Death is recording and supposedly releasing a new record in a month or two. Other than that, there isn't much that I know of coming out in the coming year. At least, nothing that's been announced. Keep me in the know.
Last year I also had a few runner ups that I grew to love. Cecil Otter's Rebel Yellow and the Decemberists' the Crane Wife probably would have ousted My Chemical Romance's the Black Parade and Saosin's Saosin were I writing that list today.
10) the Locust - New Erections
When I first heard the Locust I laughed them off as being too heavy and ridiculous. Thirty second long bursts of noise? That's not music. That takes no talent. Wrong! This album is so complex that I couldn’t begin to learn how to play the parts in a million years. These guys do some incredible things with incredible precision at incredible speeds. This isn't noise; it’s well written and focused bursts of energy. Every single note on this record is intentional. New Erections is the Locust's longest recording (twenty-three minutes) to date, and it is as dense as a brick of lead. Multiple listens are required in order to even begin to absorb this beast but with song titles like "the Unwilling...Led by the Unqualified...Doing the Unnecessary...For the Ungrateful" and "God Wants Us All to Work in Factories" you can’t really go wrong. Also, see them live. It will blow your skull.
Favorite Tracks: "Book of Bot," "We Have Reached An Official Verdict: Nobody Gives a Shit"
9) Against Me! - New Wave
Last year, I included a list of bands that I was excited to hear new music from. Against Me! is one of the bands that delivered, and then some. I picked up this record the day it came out simply because I happened to be at the record store that day. At first listen I wasn't as impressed with New Wave as I had been with previous recordings. It's a highly polished record produced by Butch Vig (the man behind Nirvana's Nevermind and the Smashing Pumpkin's Siamese Dream). Tegan Quin of Tegan & Sara sings guest vocals on "Bourne on the FM Waves of the Heart." The slick sheen on the record turned me off at first because I was expecting the gritty sound of their earlier work. Subsequent listens changed my mind entirely. It's a straight up pop record written by a punk band and it’s great from start to finish. Tracks like "Piss and Vinegar" and "Americans Abroad" retain the group's grittier sound, while "Bourne on the FM Waves" and "Thrash Unreal" are pop gems.
Favorite Tracks: "the Ocean," "Up the Cuts"
8) the Bad Plus - Prog
Anything that Dave King (drummer of the Bad Plus) touches turns to gold. He's in four bands (the Bad Plus, Happy Apple, Halloween, Alaska and the Gang Font feat. Interloper) as well as doing studio work and one off bands. Happy Apple also released a record this year and I would probably put it on this list, however I just got it a few days ago and haven’t had a chance to listen to it yet. Front to back, Prog is the strongest release in the Bad Plus catalogue. Jazzed up covers of pop and rock songs are intermingled with original compositions by the band members. Every song on here is great. This isn't shtick, it's art.
Favorite Track: "Physical Cities"
7) Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
This was a surprise album for me this year. I've found that my tastes don’t generally include this sort of quiet, solo, introspective style, but damn it all if Justin Vernon (known here as Bon Iver, a misspelling of the French phrase for "good winter") didn't make one of the most stark and beautiful albums of the year. This album is catharsis. This album is Northwestern Wisconsin and heartache rolled into one. This album is beautiful. It's orchestral in a stripped down way, and Vernon's croon only adds to the loneliness that the music evokes. I love this record, and you should too.
Favorite Track: "Skinny Love"
6) Explosions in the Sky - All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone
This is the most realized album that Explosions in the Sky have made, and for some reason it makes me think of winter. Songs like "Catastrophe and the Cure" and "So Long, Lonesome" are so perfectly orchestrated that one stray note or extra beat would throw off the whole album. I don't really like listening to just one song from this record; it's best heard as a whole, which is a testament to the ability of the band to craft albums as a whole. This album, along with Bon Iver's Skinny Love are not only two of the best albums of the year, but also the loneliest.
Favorite Tracks: "the Birth and Death of the Day," "So Long, Lonesome"
5) Iron & Wine - the Shepherd's Dog
I never got into Iron & Wine's early work. I always liked it, but it wasn’t really something I sat down to listen to. That all changed when Sam Beam released his third full length album, the Shepherd's Dog, under the Iron & Wine moniker. My friend played the track "White Tooth Man" for me and I was enthralled by the sitar that fades in to begin the song. After listening to the whole album and fell in love with the things Beam does with his voice and what he's done musically. What I love the most about the album is how much each song works to create the whole. Every song is strong, but the whole album is more than the sum of its parts. That's such a rare feat these days that I have to love it.
Favorite Track: "White Tooth Man," "Boy with a Coin"
4) Building Better Bombs - Freak Out Squares
Before picking up this record I had only heard one song by Building Better Bombs ("Lookout!"). Then I saw Freak Out Squares at Cheapo. On purple vinyl. Naturally, I bought it. In the past four days, it's spun on my record player’s spindle over twenty times. One member of the group (Stef Alexander) is better known by his nom de rap, P.O.S., and two more members are also in indie hip hop crew Mel Gibson and the Pants (who are featured in a moment). That said, Building Better Bombs' Freak Out Squares is one of the best punk/hardcore albums I have ever heard. It starts with a train wreck ("This is a Gang") followed by a car wreck ("No Handouts"). From there, they continue to take their punk influences and infuse them with the hip hop and indie influences from their other groups, even including a little melody in the mix. Energetic from start to finish it fits punk conventions by being less than half an hour (27 minutes), but, other than that, doesn't quite fit the genre. Which is why I like it. It's too hard for the indie kids and too melodic for the hardcore kids. And just right for me.
Favorite Track: "No Hospitals"
3) Streetlight Manifesto - Somewhere in the Between
Last year I said that if Streetlight Manifesto released anything then it would make this list. That was bold of me. I was worried that they would release something… shitty. I should not have worried. Thomas Kalnocky is an amazing songwriter and Somewhere in the Between showcases not only his talent for writing songs, but the talent of every musician in the band. The horns are bright and tight, the bass lines are solid, and the drums are fast and precise. This record got flack for being too similar to Everything Goes Numb, Streetlight's debut album, but I don't see that as a bad thing. For me, I was every bit as excited while listening to Somewhere as I was when I first heard Numb nearly four years ago. Maybe that huge gap between albums had something to do with that, but either way, songs like "We Will Fall Together," "Somewhere in the Between" and "Forty Days" make me drop everything to marvel at the brightness of the horns, the tightness of the rhythm section, the guitar licks and the lyrics. The only downside to this album is that it's so short. Ten songs? I'm craving just a little more.
Favorite Tracks: "Would You Be Impressed?" "Forty Days"
2) Mel Gibson and the Pants - Sea vs. Shining Sea
Mel Gibson and the Pants sort of blindsided me with goodness. I had heard their tracks with P.O.S. and Cecil Otter so I was intrigued by them. When I finally got the chance to hear more, I became militant about sharing Sea vs. Shining Sea with my friends. This is a new kind of hip hop; there really isn't anything like it. Indie, drum n' bass and hip hop fused into one live band who collaborate with anyone and everyone they can get into the recording studio. Guests Harold Sanders, Crescent Moon, Sims, Mike Mictlan and Dessa flow in and out of this album making it stronger, but not stealing the spotlight. Which is kind of the point. I expected to like this record, but I didn't expect to fall in love the way I did. I can't get enough of this.
Favorite Tracks: "Stress Fracture," "Spurs of Steel"
And now, the best album of 2oo7:
1) Aesop Rock - None Shall Pass
I don’t even know where to start with this brilliant outing by Aesop Rock. The beats are stellar, the guest artists are sick (John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats!), and Aese himself? Flow. He's made of pure flow. Blockhead, producer of half of the album, is simply on fire here. Check the title track, "Bring Back Pluto" and "Getaway Car" for proof. Aesop Rock knows what he's doing, and this album showcases that talent. He knows which words to stress and how much. I've rocked this album more than any other released this year (though it's a close call; I rocked Mel Gibson and the Pants about the same number of times), and I haven't gotten sick of it. Even the hidden track isn't a throwaway track, and it contains one of the best lyrics of the year: "If Noah had the benefit of hindsight on his ship, they could'a snatched two unicorns and left behind the motherfuckin' pigs." Go get this album. Now.
Favorite Tracks: "None Shall Pass" "Coffee" and the hidden track "Pigs"
Runners Up:
the Weakerthans - Reunion Tour
"Civil Twilight" is a beautiful song, and this whole record is great, but I didn’t get into it like I got into Reconstruction Site.
Brother Ali - the Undisputed Truth
Scathing and amazing, but it was ousted by Aesop Rock.
Circa Survive - On Letting Go
This record is technically perfect which is why it didn’t make the list. Where Juturna was a band exploring a new sound, On Letting Go is a band perfecting a sound. It's a great album, but not as exciting as their early work. (NOTE: That distinction is important. Earlier I said that Streetlight Manifesto's Somewhere in the Between is similar to their first album, but that this is a good thing. On Letting Go just doesn’t excite me as a new album in the way Somewhere in the Between does.)
Gogol Bordello - Super Taranta!
Again, this is a band comfortable in their sound and it’s a fun album to listen to but it’s a hair shy of their previous record, Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike.
Sage Francis - Human the Death Dance
Another great album ousted by an album that's just a hair better. Sorry Sage, Mel Gibson took this one home. Maybe next time.
Last year I included a section titled "What I'm excited for." Here's what made the list and what I thought of it:
Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution - Didn't release anything.
Streetlight Manifesto - Made the list, see above.
Dessa - Didn't (really) release anything.
Circa Survive - Oh, so close to making the list.
Say Anything - Hit and miss. That's what you get for releasing a double disc. Though if I were making a top ten songs of 2oo7, "Baby Girl, I'm A Blur" would be near the top.
Against Me! - Made the list, see above.
Big D and the Kids Table - Didn't hear it. Oops.
Straylight Run - Good, but not that impressive.
Here's what I'm excited for this year:
the Doomtree crew album (and all Doomtree releases that are being held until the crew album drops). Glassjaw is rumored to have an album in the works and I'll probably go ape (dos mil) shit when (and if) it drops. I'd still love to hear new Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution material as well. On top of that Murder by Death is recording and supposedly releasing a new record in a month or two. Other than that, there isn't much that I know of coming out in the coming year. At least, nothing that's been announced. Keep me in the know.
Last year I also had a few runner ups that I grew to love. Cecil Otter's Rebel Yellow and the Decemberists' the Crane Wife probably would have ousted My Chemical Romance's the Black Parade and Saosin's Saosin were I writing that list today.
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