let all the children boogie

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December 5, 2007

let all the children boogie

is it too early to start compiling year end lists? apparently paste magazine doesn't think so. their current issue proclaims that the national made the finest record of 2007. and while (in the clearing stands a)boxer was indeed a great little record it - in my unflinching opinion - was not the best record of the last year. because every time i listened to that album i couldn't help thinking: this is really good but alligator was so much better.

my nominee for the top record of the year is without a doubt hissing fauna are you the destroyer by of montreal and i refuse to accept any argument to the contrary. because it's brilliant and complex and dark and glorious all at the same time. and it makes me want to move to norway and buy a drum machine and experiment with make-up. i have purchased and/or listened to an obscene amount of music this year and nothing touches this record in my inestimable opinion. but if i absolutely positively had to pick a top five it would go something like this:

1. of montreal ~ hissing fauna.... seriously, if you don't have this record go out and buy it. immediately. and if for some reason you buy it and don't care for it stop by 4808 and we can listen together while i fight you until you admit that you really do in fact like it.

2. random spirit lover ~ sunset rubdown. because even though this record is musically difficult and it might not necessarily be the first record i would reach for to burn a copy for a friend - spencer krug is a genius and this is the kind of record that i really like. it appeals to my inner music geek. and it's such a fantastic record to listen to at unreasonable volumes and it makes my heart happy. and i'm an idiot for not going that show. so there's that.

3. sky blue sky ~ wilco. take that pitchfork! this will never be my favourite wilco record but it is easily their most cohesive fully realized set and it's a fantastic driving record. especially late in the afternoon coming home from wherever i happen to may roam. the plaintive wail of tweedy is my compass.

4. emotionalism ~ the avett brothers. this is a relatively late entry onto this list but i assure you it absolutely deserves to be here. micah recommended this to me right before my trip out west. and this record proved to be a welcome surprise. sort of like josh brolin's performance in no country for old men. and you wonder - where'd that come from? because seriously - dude hasn't been that compelling since he rode his bike off that cliff in goonies

5. live at massey hall 1971 ~ neil young. i guess this doesn't really qualify as a new record. but it was released for the first time in 2007 and as far as live records go it ranks right up there with johnny cash's live at folsom. the sound quality is phenomenal and it's surreal listening to neil play songs like old man and heart of gold and the needle and the damage done and they're all brand new songs that most of the people in the crowd haven't heard yet.

honorable mention: broken social scene presents kevin drew ~ spirit if...; the national ~ boxer; okkervil river ~ the stage names; the everybodyfields ~ nothing is okay; teddy thompson ~ up front & down low; new pornographers ~ challengers; arcade fire ~ neon bible; band of horses ~ cease to begin....langhorne slim electric love letter e.p./engine e.p.s; ghostland observatory ~ paparazzi lighting...

crap! it's been a great year for music. if you don't believe me i'll make you a mix cd. the sexy results series has been retired but volume 1 of tickle me saint elmo has just been completed. and it's not too shabby. i love music.

| By young_christopher | 11:09 PM

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Comments

Hm. Didn't I have to convince you to like Of Montreal? I'm pretty sure I did. Also, I scorn your #3 because that is preposterous.

Posted by: heidi at December 6, 2007 3:32 PM

let the record reflect that due to a personal aversion to a certain outback steakhouse commercial heidi did have to convince me to buy hissing fauna...and it changed me forever so thank you heidi.

Posted by: young_christopher at December 6, 2007 6:07 PM

p.s. disparaging comments about wilco aside - you'll always be in my top five.

Posted by: young_christopher at December 6, 2007 6:08 PM

Agreed on almost all accounts, with the only exception being that Neil Young record, and perhaps only because I haven't heard it. Also, seriously Heidi...I think if you had stood in the rain with Chris, Malone, and me that night in Atlanta, you'd be much more willing to give your heart to Sky Blue Sky. Lastly, I'm thrilled to know that the Avett Brothers have won a place in your heart. It was my way of repaying you for Datarock, which was your way of repaying me for the Unicorns, which was my way of repaying you for Bright Eyes, which - if I remember correctly - was your way of repaying me for Sufjan Stevens.

Posted by: Micah at December 6, 2007 10:40 PM

Look, I gave some ground on that album, after I saw them play (certain songs) live, but I stand by my opinion regarding the album as a whole. Oh...wait...well, what do I know? It's been nominated for a "Best Rock Album" Grammy!

Posted by: heidi at December 7, 2007 3:05 PM

Ten bucks says those damn Foo Fighters will win...

Posted by: Micah at December 7, 2007 5:36 PM

i'd still really like to hear that john fogerty album...if anyone wants to buy it for me for christmas...(hint and hint)...also heidi, opinions are like armpits...

Posted by: young_christopher at December 10, 2007 12:39 AM

Well well well...ya'll knew this couldn't stay up too long without me throwing out some ill-informed and ill-advised opinions. Chris, you are so wrong about everything. Just kidding. To be completely honest, I've been shunning the latest in pop music and visiting past decades trying to unearth music that I had no experience with previously. That's why lately, I've been listening to the Rolling Stones wayyy too much for my own good, and college radio has been my guiding light. So here's my top five for 2007. Mind you, these are not necessarily new, nor are they even "records," per se. 5. The Rolling Stones, Exile on Main Street/Let it Bleed -combine the best songs off of these two albums, and you have one of the greatest records of all time 4. Spoon, Ga Ga Ga Ga -one of the most underrated bands around, this album is way better than Sky Blue Sky 3. 91.7 KTRU radio program "The Vinyl Frontier" -underground hip hop. RIP Pimp C 2. 91.7 KTRU radio program "Blues in Hi-Fi" -James Brown? Robert Johnson? The Temptations? Yes! 1. 91.7 KTRU radio program "Rice Reggae" -reggae (I use the term generally, the genre encompasses diverse styles such as dub and roots reggae) is a highly influential musical style that gets almost NO press stateside. most hipsters tend to think of reggae as "that Marley dude" and something that stoner frat guys listen to. King Tubby, Scientist, Peter Tosh and Lee Perry would like to have a word with them. Honorable mention: Of Montreal Hissing Fauna. Chris is right, it's probably the best album that came out in 2007. But I had to put Spoon up there because no one else did.

Posted by: Nick at December 10, 2007 3:18 PM

and spoon just had to put "the ghost of you lingers" on ga ga ga (ga) and it sinks that record like a stone right out of my top five...although i should have included it in my honorable mentions because i do enjoy that album quite a bit. my goal for 2008 is to buy as many kinks albums as possible. because i'm currently working on this theory that they just might be the most underrated band of all time

Posted by: young_christopher at December 10, 2007 4:49 PM

Good call on the Kinks. A coworker of mine was trying to tell me that the Van Halen cover of "Really Got Me" is superior to the Kinks version. What's really baffling is this is the same guy who is really into Wilco and who made me copies of the aforementioned Stones albums. Because of that alone, he almost tricked me into agreeing.

Posted by: Nick at December 10, 2007 5:45 PM

Oh, and you're right, "The Ghost of You Lingers" totally sucks. And they still try to play it live. They need to cut their losses and agree that that abortion of a song sucks and should never have been on Ga Ga Ga.

Posted by: Nick at December 10, 2007 5:47 PM

Here are my top five: 5. Weezer--Blue Album 4. Weezer--Maladroit 3. Weezer--Green Album 2. Weezer--Puke Album 1. Weezer--Tribute to the Rentals (why won't Matt Sharp return my calls?) Are you surprised by my selections? I'm not. No one makes music like I do.

Posted by: Rivers Cuomo at December 10, 2007 8:56 PM

I had no idea that Rivers Cuomo was living in Dallas, GA these days. Who knew?

Posted by: Micah at December 11, 2007 9:45 AM

Atlas Hugged

December 5, 2007