Monday, December 17, 2007

End of the Year Wrap-Up

Here they are, the top 13 rock records of the year, voted on by you, the WMUA DJ's:

With a six-way tie at 13:
13. The National - Boxer - Beggars Banquet
13. The Shins - Wincing the Night Away - Sub Pop
13. Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity - Kill Rock Stars
13. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha - Fat Possum
13. Parts and Labor - Mapmaker - Jagjaguwar
13. Queens of the Stone Age - Era Vulgaris - Interscope
12. Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Before the Ship Even Sank - Sony
11. Dropkick Murphy's - The Meanest of Times - Born and Bred


10. Iron and Wine - The Shepherd's Dog - Sub Pop


9. M. I. A. - Kala - Intescope




8. Wilco - Sky Blue Sky - Nonesuch



7. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver - Capitol




6. The White Stripes - Icky Thump - Warner Bros.




5. Radiohead - In Rainbows - Self-released




4. Beirut - The Flying Club Cup - Ba da Bing!





3. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam - Domino




2. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible - Merge


1. Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? - Polyvinyl

My personal top 15:

1 Of Montreal/Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?/Polyvinyl

2 Beirut/Flying Club Cup/Ba da Bing!

3 Nina Nastasia and Jim White/You Follow Me/Fat Cat

4 Panda Bear/Person Pitch/Paw Tracks

5 Budos Band/II/Daptone

6 Animal Collective/Strawberry Jam/Domino

7 Deer Tick/War Elephant/Feow!

8 Kevin Drew/Spirit If.../Arts and Crafts

9 Handsome Furs/Plague Park/Sub Pop

10 Ponys/Turn the Lights Out/Matador

11 Iron and Wine/Shepherd’s Dog/Sub Pop

12 Mum/Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy/Fat Cat

13 Deerhoof/Friend Opportunity/Kill Rock Stars

14 Dinosaur Jr. /Beyond/Fat Possum

15 Deerhunter/Cryptograms/Kranky


My Top 10 Concerts of the Year:

1. Spank Rock/Santogold/Noisettes/Earl Greyhound/Yo Majesty

October 26 at the Filmore in New York City part of CMJ's Music Marathon

In what had to be the biggest rollercoaster showcase at CMJ, Friday night's triumphant performance from Spank Rock and Santogold almost was overshadowed the incredibly horrible openers, The Noisettes and Earl Greyhound.

Yo Majesty played maybe two songs to start it off, which was cool because they were supposed to play the Brooklyn Vegan showcase that I had been to earlier but cancelled. Earl Greyhound was next and they sucked for a variety of reasons, mostly because they were a bad rip-off of The Darkness, who are questionably good in the first place. I couldn’t believe that The Noisettes, the next band, could be any worse, but they proved me wrong, presenting one of the most choreographed, insincere performances of my life. Making life worse was the enthusiasm of the crowd, who didn’t share my opinion of the trio of trash. I was considering leaving, but luckily Santogold came out and the party started. They were a nice warm-up for Spank Rock, where the following things happened:

One of the Spank Rock DJs ran out onstage with a handle of Grey Goose, poured some in an audience member’s mouth, and went back to spinning.

M.I.A. chilled onstage for a while, with 30 or so other friends of Spank Rock.

Yo Majesty took her shirt off and showed off her boobies. I laughed for twenty minutes.

Amanda Blank showed up, she’s pretty cute.

Spank Rock put on the most energetic, amazing performance of the year, and possibly of my life.

I'm pretty sure all the people on stage had at least a handle or wine bottle in their vicinity and many blunts were ablaze at all times, lending a hand in Yo Majesty's boobies popping out. If these activities don't sound fun to you, then don't go to a Spank Rock show ever. For those of you with souls, any time Spank Rock is available for a concert in your area, make sure you attend.


2. Band of Horses/Wolf Parade/Modest Mouse

August 18 at the Download Festival at the Tweeter Center in Mansfield, MA

Other people played (Guster, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Neko Case), but only those three really brought anything interesting to the table. Band of Horses previewed some tracks from their new record, Cease to Begin. Wolf Parade, one of my favorite bands of all-time, played a set composed mostly of their new material, which should be released in early '08. If the performance is any indication of what to expect on the record then it will be one of my favorites of 2008. Also, a jaw-dropping version of "I'll Believe in Anything," from "Apologies to the Queen Mary," made me almost cry with joy. Modest Mouse put up one of the better sets I've seen them play. Plus the crowd almost didn't suck, like most Isaac Brock and Co. shows.

3. Mission of Burma

September 21 at the Pearl Street Clubroom (downstairs) in Northampton, MA

Mission of Burma + downstairs at Pearl Street = orgasm.

4. Man Man

Opening for Modest Mouse on May 2 at Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel, Providence, RI

I've never seen an opener steal a show from the main act as easily as Man Man did in Providence. It didn't help I almost got into a fight during Modest Mouse, but boy did they kind of suck. Their encore almost saved the day as they played the first two tracks from This is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About, Dramamine and Breakthrough. If they had only played Talking Shit About a Pretty Sunset...

5. Islands/Saturday Looks Good to Me/ A bunch of other pretty great bands

The Brooklyn Vegan Showcase at the R-Bar on October 26

The Brooklyn Vegan Showcase had 7 or 8 bands, the very best being at the end. Saturday Looks Good to Me, who I hadn't ever listened to (sad, I know), played some of their new material from Fill Up the Room, out of K Records. Islands came next and played a bunch of new material, which happened to sound a lot darker and sinister and wonderful, much like some of the Unicorns material. Oh yeah, and Subtitle showed up for "Where There's a Will There's a Whalebone."
Saturday Looks Good to Me:

Islands:
Where There's A Will There's A Whalebone













6. Of Montreal/Grand Buffet
March 11 at the Avalon in Boston, MA
I really don't need to go into how amazing Of Montreal is live. Just look at the pictures, watch the video, and behold.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=eJKa89OV1I0

Of Montreal:


Grand Buffet:

7. The National/Shapes and Sizes/Talkdemonic
June 21 at the Middle East Downstairs in Boston, MA


The National:

Talkdenomic:


8. Sonic Youth/Wooden Wand
February 14, The Academy of Music in Northampton, MA
9. Xiu Xiu
October 24, The Blender Theater, New York City, NY
10. Arcade Fire
May 11, The Orpheum Theater, Boston, MA

Friday, December 7, 2007

Weekly Update - 2 Weeks Late

Hey folks,
Sorry I haven't been able to do this in a little while. I hope you haven't missed me too much. Here's some new CD's, music news, and charts for you all to consider when doing your shows next week. Continue rocking the new music, and I'll talk to you next week!
Corey

As always, feel free to email me with any suggestions, concerns, and whatnot:
music@wmua.org

New Music:

Alexis Gideon - Flight of the Liophant
If you dig the white boy rapping of Beck, Subtle, and Why?, you might want to check out Alexis Gideon. He's a pal of Dan Deacon, too, so he's got some street cred. And he was in the hip hop group Princess.
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=57939272

Saturday Looks Good to Me - Fill up the Room
K recs. debut for one of the better bands I saw at CMJ.
http://www.myspace.com/saturdaylooksgoodtome

Jeremy Jay - Airwalker EP
Another band on K Recs. offers a strong 6-song EP. A full-length will be coming in the coming months.
http://www.myspace.com/jeremyjay

Viva Voce - Lovers, Lead the Way! Reissue
Asthmatic Kitty debut from 2003 reiussued. A couple from Alabama, they are recommended for fans of Yo La Tengo, The New Pornographers, and The Mendoza Line.
http://www.myspace.com/vivavoce

Michael Showalter Edits! - from Sandwiches and Cats
I love this guy's comedy, especially when featured in the troupe Stella. Now I have some edits for you to play on your shows, since most of the regular record was rather dirrrty. Also, I should have a legal ID up in spotbox from Mr. Showalter soon!
http://www.myspace.com/michaelshowalter

Why? - The Hollows EP
Single from their upcoming March release on Anticon. There's a bunch of clean versions on the latter half of the record, so pay attention when playing this stuff. Also, there are a bunch of covers from: Xiu Xiu, Nick from Islands, Boards of Canada, and Dump (James from Yo La Tengo).
http://www.myspace.com/whyanticon

Bonnie Prince Billy - Ask Forgiveness EP
8 song EP with a bunch of covers from the folk legend. Includes an R Kelly cover!
http://www.myspace.com/princebonniebilly

Woods - How to Survive in the Woods
2005 lo-fi debut reissued, initially recorded in 2 bedrooms on double casette. FFO: Animal Collective, Mountain Goats, Moldy Peaches
http://www.myspace.com/woodsfamilyband

Recently added to the new to WMUA section:
Why? - Oaklandazulasylum - Anticon - Their debut record!

Upcoming events:
The Magnetic Fields - Iron Horse - Northampton - February 11 and 12
Born Ruffians, Cadence Weapon - Iron Horse - Northampton - February 28
Why?, Cryptacize (ex-Deerhoof) - Iron Horse - Northampton - March 24

Les Savy Fev, Hallelujah the Hills, The Bunnies - Pearl Street Ballroom - Northampton - December 29

Tune in Saturday's program Two Birds and a Stone 11pm-1am for an exclusive interview with Prefuse 73!

Charts, the final of the year:

Rock:
1 BONNIE PRINCE BILLY Ask Forgiveness Drag City
2 SATURDAY LOOKS GOOD TO ME Fill Up The Room K
3 BAND OF HORSES Cease To Begin SUB POP
4 OLD TIME RELIJUN Catharsis In Crisis K
5 ALEXIS GIDEON Flight Of The Liophant Southern
6 WHY? The Hollows [EP] Anticon
7 MARS VOLTA "Wax Simulacra" [Single] Universal
8 JENS LEKMAN Night Falls Over Kortedala Secretly Canadian
9 TOKYO POLICE CLUB Smith [EP] Paper Bag
10 BLACK DICE Load Blown Paw Tracks
11 LAMPS Lamps In The Red
12 NEIL YOUNG Chrome Dreams II Reprise
13 SOUNDTRACK I'm Not There Columbia-Sony
14 A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS A Place To Bury Strangers Killer Pimp
15 JOY DIVISION Closer Rhino
16 BATTLES Tonto [EP] Warp
17 WIRE Read And Burn 03 Pink Flag
18 THURSTON Trees Outside The Academy Ecstatic Peace
19 COHEED AND CAMBRIA Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Vol. Two: No World For Tomorrow Columbia
20 GRIZZLY BEAR Friend [EP] Warp
21 SERJ TANKIAN Elect The Dead Reprise
22 SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Shelter From The Ash Drag City
23 DREAM THEATER Systematic Chaos Roadrunner
24 WEEN La Cucaracha Rounder
25 WHITE RABBITS Fort Nightly Say Hey
26 DAVID BYRNE Knee Plays Nonesuch
27 DEGENERATE ART ENSEMBLE Cuckoo Crow Tellous
28 ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Strawberry Jam Domino
29 THESE ARE POWERS Terrific Seasons Hoss
30 MV AND EE WITH THE GOLDEN ROAD Gettin Gone Ecstatic Peace

Jazz:
1 DIZZY GILLESPIE Live At The 1965 Monterey Jazz Festival Monterey Jazz Fest
2 STANLEY CLARKE Toys Of Men Heads Up
3 TONY BENNETT The Ultimate American Songbook, Vol. 1 Columbia/Legacy
4 MARTY EHRLICH AND MYRA MELFORD Spark Palmetto
5 AMIR EL SAFFAR Two Rivers Pi
6 DAVID LIEBMAN/ROBERTO TARENZI/PAOLO BENEDETTINI/TONY ARCO Dream Of Nite Verve
7 MOUTIN REUNION QUARTET Sharp Turns Blujazz
8 FRED ANDERSON AND HAMID DRAKE From The River To The Ocean Thrill Jockey
9 JIM SNIDERO Tippin Savant
10 DIANA KRALL The Very Best Of Verve

World:
1 EILEEN IVERS An Nollaig: An Irish Christmas Compass
2 COLOMBIAFRICA Voodoo Love Inna Champeta Land Riverboat
3 LENI STERN Africa
4 VARIOUS ARTISTS Roots Of Chicha: Psychedelic Cumbias From Peru Barbes
5 TONY ALLEN Afro Disco Beat Vampisoul
6 DEIRDRE NI CHINNEIDE Celtic Passage SOUNDS TRUE
7 MATT AND SHANNON HEATON Fine Winter's Night Self-Released
8 WAYNE GORBEA Introducing Wayne Gorbea's Salsa Picante worldisc
9 MARIA RITA Samba Meu Warner Music Latina
10 CLARA MORENO Meu Samba Torto Far Out

RPM:
1 PREFUSE 73 Preparations Warp
2 MUM Go Go Smear The Poison Ivy Fat Cat
3 BLACK DICE Load Blown Paw Tracks
4 TURZI A Kemado
5 MALIBU Robo-Sapiens Expansion Team
6 ERNEST GONZALES While On Saturn's Rings Exponential
7 SAN SERAC Professional Frog Man Jake
8 UNDERWORLD Oblivion With Bells Side One
9 DAEDELUS Fair Weather Friends [EP] Ninja Tune
10 SUPERMAYER Save The World Kompakt

Hip-hop
1 GURU "Cuz I'm Jazzy" [Single] 7 Grand
2 LUPE FIASCO The Cool Atlantic-1st & 15th
3 MEDIAN Median's Relief Halftooth
4 ANGIE STONE The Art Of Love And War Concord
5 TERMANOLOGY "Watch How It Go Down" [12-Inch] Brick
6 LITTLE BROTHER "life of the party" ABB
7 MUSIQ Teach Me
8 JILL SCOTT "Hate On Me" [Single] Hidden Beach
9 HEZEKIAH I Predict A Riot Soulspazm
10 AESOP ROCK None Shall Pass Definitive Jux