OKAY, so as I went through this little exercise I strayed from my intended format but here they are. Positive feedback and further listening suggestions welcomed!2/08: The Babies - s/t (Shrimper Records)Of all places, I first heard the single "Run Me Over", on the radio in the car with my father while visiting him in his new home in Florida (Cassie's voice was unmistakable) sometime mid-March. I hadn't seen the Babies play since their absolute earliest of shows at that point. I think this album is brilliant. I'm not a music journalist, so I'm not going to go into detail about the variety of textures, fullness and sparseness all put to perfect use, but this record is a perfect example of how great a band can be when you have multiple strong songwriters who compliment each other well.
"Meet Me In The City"2/15: La Sera - s/t (Hardly Art)
I heard La Sera's "Sleeptalking" right after "Run Me Over" on the radio in Florida (stupid way to first hear amazing music made by people isn't it?) Anyway, it's hard to pick just one track to share off this album, because there is a great range of sounds on it, but I think "Devils Hearts Grow Cold" rests somewhere in the middle even though it is one of the slower songs on the record. if you pep his one up or strip it down you could get somewhat of an idea as to what to expect (and enjoy!) from the rest of the record.
video for "Devils Hearts Grow Cold"4/05: Bill Cosby & His White Puddin' Pops - The Passion of the Pops (Haunted Horse/Krazy Punx)Ah, the ULTIMATE PARTY BAND! Members of Cause co-Motion!, Beachniks & more - this was the band I had heard about for years (mostly from serge but also from some of those involved) in the context of "Too bad you missed the Puddin' Pops, you would have LOVED THEM! Well, even though these tracks were recorded in 2005 - they didn't see the light of day until this year and for any fan of good times, the brentwoods, the mummies, rock n roll or parties, this is as real as it gets!
"Nah Dude" live in 20054/12: Vivian Girls - Share The Joy (Polyvinyl)Cassie & Katy each make this list again for the third album from the Vivian Girls. Cassie sings in a higher range on a few songs on here which I don't think i had ever heard - it sounds great and adds a new element to the songs.
Share the Joy is equal parts dark, dreamy, catchy, tough and fun. "I Heard You Say" aside from being one of my favourite tracks also represents the album pretty well. There are some negative comments from "dudes" on youtube for the video for "Take It As It Comes" - a charming nod to girl group melodramas ala the Shangri-la's - obvs. said dudes are idiots. I really like this track - some of Cassie's spoken parts sound like she's reading aloud in class, but have you ever tried recording a spoken bit in a song? It's really tough! There are some really great unexpected turns in the melody, it's super catchy and it's whimsy (along with the more
La Sera-esque "Dance (If You Wanna)" helps to lighten the album a bit. So take that, dudes who complain on YouTube.
video for "I Heard You Say"video for "Take It As It Comes"4/12: Quintron - Sucre du Sauvage (Goner)
I've been following Mr. Quintron and Miss Pussycat since 1998 or 1999 and they have never disappointed me!
Recorded in a museum while Mr. Q had a residency there, Side A picks up where 2008's "Too Thirsty for Love" left off though substituting it's "dance music" vibes back to quirkier, more comfortable (to me at least) analog sounds. -Dance-Party-ready, Organ & Drum Buddy rich avant-garde go-go. Side B is instrumental/atmospheric Quintron ala The Frog Tapes.
side note: The only time I ever successfully drunkenly lured a girl I'd met that night home from a dance party, we were just talking in the living room and she mentioned New Orleans and I started gushing about Quintron. I then took her into my room to show her my framed 8x10 of him above my door. After which I said "we don't have to stay in here - I just wanted to show you that". After which she suddenly decided she had to be up early the next morning and left. I just laughed to myself when I realised what had happened due to my love for Quintron - it was totally worth it to me and nothing good was going to come from that anyway, so saved by Quintron most likely. After all these years (13? 14?!), Quintron is still my hero.
5/11: Nerve City - Sleepwalker (Sacred Bones)
I've been following lo-fi psych-garage solo project Nerve City for a few years and have loved everything released so I guess it's no surprise that anything they release will end up on a top ten list for me. This might be the catchiest release to date.
5/17: Amor de Dias - Street of the Love of Days (Merge)
YEARS AGO, a friend (either Kris from Malmo or maybe Kevin or even Gary?) told me that indie power-couple Alasdair MacLean of the Clientele and Lupe from Pipas were starting a band/making a record together - I was immediately just waiting until I could pre-order it (always been a big fan of both The Clientele and Pipas). The album at times feels more like a mix of his songs and Lupe's rather than a whole album that blends both of their styles ( A straight Lupe track, a straight Alasdair track, a Lupe track with an Alasdair guitar solo, an Alasdair track with Lupe vocals, etc.), but it works and its brilliant (and both of their whispery vocals combine well.) In light of this, I've included one of Lupe's and one of Alasdair's. A mix of spanish guitar & rhythms as well as jazzy & bossa rhythms, by far the most serene album of my top ten this year.
9/13: Neon Indian - Era Extrana (Mom + Pop)
I know it may seem strange that I of all people with my penchant for wild, untamed, noisy lo-fi garage and trash should like Neon Indian, but I in fact total dig Neon Indian and have since first hearing 2009's Psychic Chasms. Hear me out ;) - true, this record will most likely come to grace Urban Outfitters & H&M's across the world (if it isn't already), but it's also damn good. Alan Palomo uses charmingly analogue synth sounds (some of which I haven;t heard put to good use since the likes of Paul McCartney's "Wonderful Christmastime") to build Neon Indian's wall of sound much in the same was as the Jesus & Mary Chain used guitars, reverb and fuzz to build theirs and his occasional guitar licks add the perfect scuzzy edge to the warm blissful beeps and blips. At the hear of it all: great melodies and vocals awash in echo & reverb and understated just enough to maintain their grasp on indie/lo-fi cred. 2009's "Deadbeat Summer" (off Psychic Chasms) is still one of my favourite songs from that year and this album delivers more along those lines. It is definitely less avant-garde electronic than the last record and more of a pop album, but that sensibility is still there and in tact.
10/17: Veronica Falls - s/t (Slumberland)
A highly anticipated release given their amazing singles and live performances, I waited too long to get this record because they only had it on CD when I saw them this past fall. Having friends like these guys make records like this makes you wonder why you even bother trying to make records yourself. An energetic dark and dreamy pop triumph, this band and album is just incredible I don't have any comment other than letting the tracks stand for themselves.
11/22: Sea Lions - "Everything You've Always Wanted to Know About Sea Lions But Were Afraid to Ask" (Slumberland)
Another LP that I've been super pumped for after a string of amazing cassettes and singles - and Sea Lions also DO NOT DISAPPOINT! The few tracks that have been previously released are welcomed and no less exciting than the rest of the tracks each of which feels like a bonus treasure. Again, I don't want to go on to compare Sea Lions to other bands that I enjoy because ultimately they are uniquely Sea Lions so again, I'll let the tracks speak for themselves! If I had to narrow this list down to my top three favourite albums of 2011, this record would surely be on that list, most-likely at the top. I'm just so pleased to have a Sea Lions LP at last!
