I'll tell you what's not Rock and Roll...

this is not rock and roll (what do you expect? she just married this guy's kid). You tell every person you know living in or around McHatten that it's time to pack up the Etsy shop and come home. Time to find a new revolution, cause music ain't it. (as the excellent montage-metaphor-new-single below demonstrates. Thanks for that one, btw, I'm still trying to unpack all of my feelings about it, expect a post soon.)

2009

OK so beyond any bashing coming from the right, the end of the year is finally here..forget any list, forget any recommendations. I just wish these new-school cats would take some cue from their elders. Super groups! Perhaps if all the pop stars actually got together and put out some epic long song like this, the radio would just hit the loop button and walk away, rather than trying to fit the song in once every hour...this is for you Briggs!

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas

Unreleased Bad Boy track from back in the day (possibly recalled due to the Peter Gunz single that became a hit around that time, which uses the same sample) . Ma$e, The Lox; you know what it is.

Best of? Surely thou jest

The subject of today's lecture is Drew's picks for Best Albums Of The Decade. I was going write a long, archly witty breakdown of his list, one entry at a time, but then I took one glance at it and knew that Drew was tripping. It was safe and appealing to everyone of course, as I predicted. But never did I expect to see Radiohead and Aphex Twin showing up three times EACH. Or has been Q-Tip delivering 'The Renaissance', or fucking CLUTCH showing up within 1,000 miles of a best-of anything. What's more, I thought "boy this list is really reminiscent of the kind a certain shitty magazine would make". The kind whose music editors voted 'Toxic', 'American Idiot', and 'Get Your Freak On' as the three best songs of this decade. FUCK THAT! Next!

Rolling Stone's Best of Decade	Drew's List
	50. Queen's of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf/Rated R
	49. Auburn Lull - Alone I Admire*/Cast from the Platform
	48. Clutch - Blast Tyrant/Robot Hive Exodus
	47. Q-Tip - The Renaissance
	46. Justin Timberlake - Future Sex/Love Sounds
	45. Ben Kweller - Sha Sha
	44. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Show Your Bones**
	43. Modest Mouse - Good news for people who love bad news/The Moon and Antarctica
	42. Peter Bjorn and John - Writers Block
	41. Boards of Canada - Geogadi/The Campfire Headphase
	40. Reflection Eternal - Train of Thought
	39. Aesop Rock - Labor Days
	38. The Strokes - Is This It?/Room on Fire
	37. Sufjan Stevens -Illinois
	36. Mars Volta - De-loused in the Comatorium
	35. Bad Plus - These are the Vistas
	34. Ryan Adams - Cold Roses**
	33. Drive-By Truckers - The Dirty South
	32. Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
	31. Wilco -Yankee Hotel Foxtrott
	30. Spiritualized - Let it come on Down
	29. Gillian Welch - Time the Revalator
	28. Daft Punk - Discovery
	27. David Byrne and Brian Eno -Home
	26. Joanna Newsome - The Milkeyed Mender
	25. Four Tet - Rounds
	24. Radiohead - In Rainbows
	23. Tool - Lateralus
	22. RJD2 - Deadringer
	21. The Hold Steady - Boys and Girls of America**
	20. King Khan and the Shrines - What Is!
	19. Ryan Adams and the Cardinals - Jacksonville City Nights**
	18. Bonobo - Days to Come
	17. Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
	16. Deftones - White Pony
	15. Chihei Hatakeyama - Mini Moriala
	14. Low Motion Disco - Keep it Slow
	13. Air France - No Way Down
	12. Fujiya and Miyagi - Transparent Things
	11. Tom Waits - Alice
	10. Tom Waits - Blood Money
	09. Radiohead - Amnesiac
	08. Aphex Twin - Hangable Auto Bulb
	07. Drive-By Truckers - Decoration Day
	06. Radiohead - Kid A
	05. Peter Gabriel - Up
	04. Aphex Twin - 26 Mixes for cash
	03. Yo La Tengo - And Nothing Turned Itself Inside out
	02. Aphex Twin - Druqks
	01. Brian Eno - Another Day on Earth

**Same band, different album
* Not released during this decade

90s News

Billy Corgan and Jessica Simpson are dating. Yes that's right, that means Corgan and Nick Lachey have been in the same vagina! Hopefully some hot gash and a little dose of the limelight will pull him out of the epic slump he's been in. Yo Billy, why don't you get D'arcy off the farm and James out of that boy band, and starting writing some cool songs again you douche! Jimmy won't even play with you anymore, he doesn't need the heroin that bad. You also need to disown those last few aborted children of records that you put out as 'Smashing Pumpkins' or Zwan (including the 44 song poop-fugue you're about to release), have Alan Moulder and Flood dial you in some good tone, and stop wearing limited edition shiny gold Dunks!! Alright, brahda? And if you make a sex tape with Pete Wentz banging the Simpson sisters, SEND IT TO US.

eulogy

Alright, before I start slamming Drew's list (and I will), I gotta first show some respect. To Jay Bennett because he passed away this year - due to lack of health insurance... probably due to lack of record sales... probably due to being kicked out of Wilco - and because the whole Yankee Hotel Foxtrot drama was probably the best mainstream 'moment' of this bullshit decade. If Jeff Tweedy thinks he's ever going to make music as good as when Jay was in the band, he's kidding himself. Kanpai, brother Jay, and goodbye.



Can we get a list of essential sidemen who leave the band, foreshadowing its decline? Matt Sharp, John Cale, Lou Barlow are a few names. Who else?

Decade

Ok, this decade comes to a close shortly now...Has anything from it actually put a footprint in your life? Anything remotely close to our previous decades? The 50's had Little Richard and Elvis, the 60's; the Beatles and Bob Dylan,...70s and 80s and 90s; you've got Bowie, Michael Jackson and Nirvana...

So with the death of hip-hop sometime in the late nineties, and the rise of pop along with it; the 2000's have been an identity crisis for music. The rise of Independent radio gave way to regurgitating bands, playing the same music from 20 years ago, just without the edge or even close to the attitude from which it came. If artists did find something original, it was done well. Peter Gabriel and Brian Eno proved that even in their 60's it was possible. (perhaps they had had practice)

...and here it is. Music I think you should listen to, like, and appreciate.

50. Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf/Rated R
49. Auburn Lull - Alone I Admire/Cast from the Platform
48. Clutch - Blast Tyrant/Robot Hive Exodus
47. Q-Tip - The Renaissance
46. Justin Timberlake - Future Sex/Love Sounds
45. Ben Kweller - Sha Sha
44. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Show your Bones
43. Modest Mouse - Good news for people who love bad news/The Moon and Antarctica
42. Peter Bjorn and John - Writers Block
41. Boards of Canada - Geogadi/The Campfire Headphase
40. Reflection Eternal - Train of Thought
39. Aesop Rock - Labor Days
38. The Strokes - Is This It?/Room on Fire
37. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
36. Mars Volta - De-loused in the Comatorium
35. Bad Plus - These are the Vistas
34. Deltron 3030 - Deltron 3030
33. Drive-By Truckers - The Dirty South
32. Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
31. Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrott
30. Spiritualized - Let it come on Down
29. Gillian Welch - Time the Revalator
28. Daft Punk - Discovery
27. David Byrne and Brian Eno - Home
26. Joanna Newsom - The Milkeyed Mender
25. Four Tet - Rounds
24. Radiohead - In Rainbows
23. Tool - Lateralus
22. RJD2 - Deadringer
21. The Hold Steady - Boys and Girls of America
20. King Khan and the Shrines - What Is!
19. Ryan Adams and the Cardinals - Jacksonville City Nights / Cold Roses
18. Bonobo - Days to Come
17. Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
16. Deftones - White Pony
15. Chihei Hatakeyama - Mini Moriala
14. Low Motion Disco - Keep it Slow
13. Air France - No Way Down
12. Fujiya and Miyagi - Transparent Things
11. Tom Waits - Alice
10. Tom Waits - Blood Money
9. Radiohead - Amnesiac
8. Aphex Twin - Hangable Auto Bulb
7. Drive-By Truckers - Decoration Day
6. Radiohead - Kid A
5. Peter Gabriel - Up
4. Aphex Twin - 26 mixes for cash
3. Yo La Tengo - And Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out
2. Aphex Twin - Druqks
1. Brian Eno - Another Day on Earth



I suppose this could be some jarbled mix tape or randomish listing of shit I listen to. I hope you do to.

Stop me if you've heard this one before...

You guys have heard this Ladyhawke, right? Her eponymous debut album is catchy in a really blasé way. The production is very 'American Idol winner'. Apparently her press guy wants to conjure up favorable associations with Stevie Nicks. Yeah, no. Below is the video for 'Magic', the best song on the album by far. Ladies and gentleman, my pick for American Idol 2010... Ladyhawke!

Misc.

Man, I can't wait for Drew's best-of 2000 list. If it's anything like his '09 list, I'm gonna have to warm up with a stiff drink and these Avril Lavigne demos. Safe and appealing to everyone, no doubt.

So, Donna Lewis. What's with all this talk about the 2000s? I'm still stoked on the 90's! It's true, the decade in which not a single girl touched my pee pee, and I can't get it out of my head. It was a time when white people weren't totally boring and bearded, and only Cher used AutoTune. This video is a nice example. Low-budget with a Cranberries vibe. Time was, you could turn on channel 32 and shit like this would come at you constantly. And since I'm closer to 30 now than 20, I'm starting to think she's hot. Also, if you've got the Sylk 130 remix, HIT ME UP!

feels like, I'm standing in a timeless dream

of light mists, of pale amber rose

feels like, I'm lost in a deep cloud of heavenly scent

touching, discovering you

those days, of warm rains come rushing back to me

miles of windless, summer night air

secret moments, shared in the heat of the afternoon

out of the stillness, soft spoken words

Music you should listen to from this year

Alright folks, here it is. Probably less or more diverse than anyone else, but I don't judge, just hate or love.

Top 25 Albums of 2009 :

25: Between the Buried and Me - The Great Misdirect (more of the same)
24: The Doves - Kingdom of Rust (doesn't fair with their previous)
23: Sally Shapiro - My Guilty Pleasure (exactly what the title says)
22: Royksopp - Junior (the first of theirs I actually like)
21: Bottin - Horror Disco (Scary Dance floor, need more)
20: Isis - Wavering Radiant (Argh!)
19: Black Moth Super Rainbow - Eating Us (cooler show of the year)
18: Woods - Songs of Shame (if they didn't space out, this wouldn't be here)
17: Girls - Album (#1 to #99 to #17)
16: Teengirl Fantasy - Album (out of nowhere and probably gone forever)
15: Basement Jaxx - Scars (Yoko Ono still has it)
14: The Field - Yesterday and Today (....)
13: The Wiyos - Broken Land Bell (opened for Willie and Dylan and killed it)
12: JJ - No.2 (the Lil' Wayne remix puts the original to shame)
11: Air -Love 2 (whew)
10: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Album (proves the past is better)
09: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Its Blitz!? (liking the electronic vibe)
08: Kurt Vile - Childish Prodigy (the future looks bright)
07: Luke Vibert - We Hear You (loud and clear)
06: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes - Up from Below (Om Nashi Me)
05: Bob Dylan - Together Through Life (Best concert of the year)
04: King Khan and BBQ Show - Invisible Girl (not bad for a duo)
03: Chihei Hatakeyama - Saunter (bliss)
02: Four Tet/Burial - Moth/Wolf Club? (wheres the full length)
01: Lindstrom and Prins Thomas - II (Boosh!)
Chihei Hatakeyama - Saunter (bliss)

...in the meantime

New Era

The end of the Decade is near. Another 10 years of music...was any of it good? I've started compiling my list of what was good and others have already finished. I'll have my list by next weekend. Where's yours?