Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Halfway through '07 List

Alright, since we're a little past the halfway point of 2007, i'm a little curious to find out out people's top 5 albums of the year thus far:

My list (in order):

1. Kings of Leon--Because of the Times
2. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!--Some Loud Thunder
3. Arcade Fire--Neon Bible
4. The White Stripes--Icky Thump
5. Wilco--Sky Blue Sky


Biggest Disappointments (in order):
1. Interpol--Our Love to Admire
2. Bright Eyes--Cassadega
3. Wilco--Sky Blue Sky (great album, but I expected something better than a great album. The back half is what kept it on the top five).

Most Anticipated for 2nd half:
1. Iron and Wine
2. Kanye West
3. Band of Horses
4. Stephen Malkmus (if it gets out in 2007)
5. Sigur Ros

Still undecided on:
1. Modest Mouse--We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
2. Ryan Adams--Easy Tiger



j.s.

8 comments:

Daniel Szombathy said...

Arcade Fire's Neon Bible is my #1 so far.

I really dig Elliot Smith's New Moon. This collection is reminiscent of my favorite era of Smith: Either/Or and Good Will Hunting.

Modest Mouse's We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank is a good jam, but maybe not a top five of the year. "Fire It Up" is my #1 2007 summer jam. "Missed the Boat" and "Little Motel" are great chill jams, too.

What about Peter Bjorn and John's Writer's Block? That's got a ton of great singles.

And The Shins' Wincing the Night Away is finally growing on me. Might not be a top five, but it's worth mentioning.

Has anyone got Baby 81 by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club? I like "Weapon of Choice", but haven't listening to the whole album yet.

Tim Horsman said...

Nice post. I pretty much agree with your choices, though I'd definitely add The Shins instead of Wilco (anything shy of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is a let down for me, I refuse to give bands a chance to be different or try something new). I'll listen to the Iron & Wine and give it a shot, but I wouldn't say I'm excited about it.

jason shrontz said...

yeah, since you mentioned it, i just downloaded peter bjorn and john's "writer's block," from ruckus.com and it is pretty great. probably top 5 worthy. i know i missed a few on my top 5 just cause i haven't had the finances to stay as up to date on new music as i would have liked to. hence, my undecided category. but, when all is said and done, i don't think anything could change my top 3--kings, clap your hands, and arcade fire.

as far as the wilco album goes, i think its great, but i just dont think the beginning is very interesting. i have to disagree though about yankee hotel foxtrot. loved it, but in the long run, i listen to a ghost is born a lot more. love the handshake drugs.

would love to hear the new shins, too.

j.s.

Jason Heron said...

Interpol's Our Love to Admire as the biggest disappointment of 2007? I could smell that shit coming from a mile away - and I don't mean the album. What's with Interpol fans doggin' on Interpol? Is it the sign to Capitol? Is it "Heinrich Maneuver?" What? I don't understand. I think the album is great, and I feel bad for Interpol, because it seems as though the odds are against them with this one - it seems that fans were simply waiting to dump on this - but maybe I'm wrong.

Top 7 for 2007 so far:
1. Arcade Fire
2. Kings of Leon
3. Interpol
4. Stars of the Lid
5. Peter Bjorn & John
6. Low
7. The Besnard Lakes

The more I listened to the new Wilco album, the less I was interested, and I found my self actively hating "Shake it Off." It's not a bad album at all, I don't think, but I didn't find myself returning to it again and again, as I have previously to their other albums. And as far as Yankee vs. Ghost, I'm completely on the fence. Depends on the time of day, I guess. Yankee at night, and Ghost late morning.

I too still need to hear the new BRMC, and I'd like to pick up The National's new album, because what I've heard I've enjoyed.
We could possibly hunger strike for the new Malkmus album, if anyone wants to.

Tim, just found a $25 gift card to (Smog)'s website. Got your address from the Harshmans. It's in the mail! Happy Christmas in August, buddy!
Soltero for life!

jason shrontz said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
jason shrontz said...

biggest disappointment of the first HALF of 2007. I'm sure i'll be disappointed again before the year is done. maybe even enough to knock interpol off the list. also, i didn't know so many interpol fans hated it. i'm glad you don't. and i hope it soon grows on me, cause i love the band. i'm still giving it mild rotations. so far, there are certain lyrics/choruses/transitions that really pull me out of the album.

j.s.

monroes said...

the funds for album purchases have been sapped in my corner. plus, i come from quite a different ghetto of the musical neighborhood. however, i am not ashamed to make it known on this blog that one of the two albums i did purchase these past six months was by far satisfying, albeit out of the vein of many of the bands mentioned here. check out Circa Survive's latest "On Letting Go." the maturation of scene kids learning how to craft music and lyrics in order to pull youngsters from the wreckage of popular rock music.

Jason Heron said...

Big mistake not including Panda Bear's Person Pitch in my top of 2007. I'd place the album in my top 5 easily.

About the Interpol album: I'm sure there are plenty of fans who love it. I'm not sure what the fanbase is doing. However, I know it's not doing that well critically, which is new for the band. On Metacritic.com, they've dropped from the 80s to the 70s, which is considerable, I'd say, especially for a band of their quality and creativity.

I've been thinking more about my last comment though, and wondering if I sound as though I'm doing the same disservice to Wilco as some fans may be doing to Interpol. I'm not sure. I guess I just got bored listening to Sky Blue Sky and not bored listening to Our Love to Admire. But now I sound like an 8th grader.
I might as well use the 8th grader's rubric as well. Sky Blue Sky is more gay than Wilco's previous 2 efforts, and Our Love to Admire is not as stupid as some people seem to think it is.