here's my NINE albums of the year, for 2004.
my songs of the year will be posted later.
9. the go! team - thunder lightning strike
kieran m. is to be thanked here. it doesn't get much FUNNER than this. it feels like i'm at a football rally every time i listen to one of their songs. pus her voice makes me cream my pants.
8. modest mouse - good news for people who like bad news
i probably listened to 'float on' 10,000 times this year.
7. franz ferdinand - franz ferdinand
these guys sound even better live. if you were fortunate enough to see them live, or hear a live set on cbc radio 2 earlier this autumn, you'll know what i mean. these guys make great pop music.
unfortunately, i can't see them being able to progress far musically down the road. but who knows? no need to worry about that for today.
6. stars - set yourself on fire
beautiful and fun, stars' latest offering is full of great melodies. stand out tracks include 'ageless beauty', 'he lied about death', and 'reunion'.
5. pinback - summer in abaddon
elvis presley, thank you very much. even though 'fortress' is far and away my favourite song, the rest is really great too.
4. the arcade fire - funeral
forgive the lameness here, but i want to move into their neighbourhood.
songs such as 'tunnels', 'wake up', and my favourite, 'rebellion' are absolutely epic. if only they sounded better live! no, that's not fair, it's just that the singers voice just seems to not hold up well, at least from what i've heard anyway.
along with broken social scene, the arcade fire are making canada, NOT THE UK the indie country of the world.
3. the walkmen - bows and arrows
this album has the single of the year. 'the rat' is biggest kick ass song of 2004, and if you don't feel the same way, i'll question your authority and'll be willing to put you in the dock.
not a lot grabbed me about this cd when i first bought it, but, funny enough, after vacuuming the house with it in my discman, i finally connected with it. to this day, 'my old man' is one of my favourite rock songs, and i'm not sure why. it's just one of those things. 'what's in it for me', 'house of savages', and 'thinking of a dream i had' are all great tunes.
2. u2 - how to dismantle an atomic bomb
many of you know how i felt about u2 following all that you can't leave behind, and to be honest, i wasn't altogether excited about the prospect of a new release. however, i find these songs to have more of an edge than those from the 2000 effort, and don't believe they sound as though they've been run through a trial process to make sure the mass public will accept them.
that said, bono still gets on my nerves, but i guess i'll just try and ignore him. he does a lot of good things re: poverty, aids, etc. and for that i commend him to no end.
1. wilco - a ghost is born
album. of. the. year. i've enjoyed wilco for about one, maybe two years now, but wasn't all that excited about their new cd. not sure why, but i had a hard time getting into the hype.
the first song i downloaded was the 11 minute migraine more commonly referred to as 'less than you think'. sweet mother of mercy. it just doesn't get better than this. the first 2-3 minutes are obviously the most...important? but the noise buildup throughout the latter stages is brilliantly beautiful. tweedy said it was supposed to reflect the awful headaches he had been going through at the time. hopefully not anymore.
anyway, as i listened to the album, i found myself immediately drawn to 'at least that's what you said'. who knew they were capable of such good guitar work? from there, spiders was another song that i was drawn to, as its structure and sound reminded me of 'backdrifts' by radiohead. really good song.
but as it stands today, songs like 'company in my back' and 'wishful thinking' along with with 'less than you think' make this album for me. such amazingly beautiful songs not only set this album apart from everything else this year, but to me, is my favourite work since radiohead's amnesiac.
to emphasize its greatness, it has the feel of a 2000 version of the joshua tree. i don't expect anyone else to feel the same way, but to me, it just has that same vein to it.