It's as Soft as a Baby's Beard

10 Facts about E's beard

The Clarity is Chilling

This is not indicative of my mood or in any way explanatory of my absence this past week - and it most definitely is not an endorsement of the general idea - but the AV Club has put together a provocative list of suicide songs and it's too good not to share. Matthew Sweet's Someone to Pull the Trigger should probably be added to the list, but you'd expect that from me.

Sometimes pain begets beautiful art.

Lisztomania!

Be the envy of all your hipster friends - NPR helps you catch up with the year's best releases (so far) as chosen by listeners. C'mon, you don't want to be left out come 12/31 when you've only heard a fraction of what will make the cool lists this year!

Seasons Flying Past Til They Blur

NPR's All Songs Considered is quickly becoming a favorite resources. Yes, I'm definitely aging. They've posted their annual listener poll have have quite a few of the expected nominees:

NPR Poll: What Are Your Top 10 Favorite Albums of 2008.

You can also write-in a favorite from the year, as I did, here. Results will be posted in early December.

It's All Mixed Up

Looking for something to groan about? How about Yahoo's "25 Best Alternative Rock Bands of the 1990s?" As mellowy cool a sound as Mark Kozelek generated through Red House Painters (Cars' cover All Mixed Up rocks rolls,) I can hardly see him at #2! And doesn't Tom Waits at #1 completely defy the author's own rule to only include artists that started in the early 90s?! And no Jellyfish?!?!?! Bah!

I'm done with this.

Lime and Limpid Green, a Second Scene

Billboard.com is featuring the 25 best rock posters. I've seen 25 better posters elsewhere, but some of these are pretty good, particularly Pennywise, The Beatles (naturally), The Decemberists, and of course, Pink Floyd.

I Was Crying, Left to Die in this Godforsaken Place

Grammy nominations were announced today. Kanye, Winehouse, blah blah. I can't bring myself to say much more. Blah.

Story here.
Full list here.

U Say U Want a Leader

Purple Rain is reportedly the greatest soundtrack of all time, but A Hard Day's Night, Trainspotting, and The Graduate (personal favorites) rank in the top ten too.

In what is quickly becoming one of the only (arguably) useful purposes of magazines in a time that the Interwebs trump print on breaking news, Vanity Fair is featuring their 50 greatest soundtracks in their next issue. In other words, they want to sell magazines and they're looking for cheap publicity. It doesn't get much cheaper than Too Poppy, so here you go.

How About Some Information Please

Wow. What a week in new releases:

Bjork - Volta
The Clientele - God Save The Clientele (have they not heard of the Smithereens?)
Elliott Smith - New Moon
Of Montreal - Icons, Abstract Thee
Travis - The Boy With No Name

In the UK:

Manic Street Preachers - Send Away the Tigers
The Boo Radleys - The Best of the Boo Radleys

And the top new release for this week?

Paula Abdul - Greatest Hits - Straight Up!

Naturally.

It Got A Lot of Laughs from A' Lots of Folk

For Way2Poppy, who loves his story songs, here are the AV Club's 26 Songs that are as good as short stories. What, no Fountains of Wayne?

People Are Stupid

Spinner has the 20 worst lyrics ever. For an amusing three minutes, read them.

I Tell Them There's No Hurry I'm Just Sitting Here Doing Time

I'm tiring of this story. The latest from the Beatles camp is that there is no imminent plan to release their catalog for digital download. Wtf? Rolling Stone has the brilliant idea of just ripping the CDs. No shit. But compare the songs from those CDs with newer releases like 1 and Love and you'll understand why we fanatics want remastered digital releases!

Rolling Stone is also playing the list game this week by asking for the best solo Beatles tunes. As of 3/16, I'd have to say:
Paul McCartney - Maybe I'm Amazed
John Lennon - Watching the Wheels
George Harrison - What Is Life
Ringo Starr - Photograph

Don't Recognize the Times That It Says Are Mine

I'm a bit depressed looking over country feedback's best of 2006 list along with all the others because I realize how much I've really missed this year. I resolve to stay much more current in 2007. With that said, I did actually pick up a few new albums this year and here are my favorites of 2006:

1. Jon Auer - Songs From The Year of Our Demise
My reaction to this album transcends any year actually. It is easily one of my favorite albums in the last 5 years, if not 10. The material is dark and introspective with a definite recurring theme of mortality, whether pertaining to life or relationships. Nonetheless, you can definitely hear that one of the Posies was responsible for this because it is well grounded in hooks and melody. I think it came to me at the right time in my life because I had quite a personal response to it. Now it will forever remind me of the huge life changes my family and I have seen this year. A true masterpiece.
MP3: Six Feet Under
MP3: Four Letter Word

2. Pernice Brothers - Live a Little
I didn't even own this one a month ago and now it's easily no. 2 on my year-ender. What an incredible pop album. I've heard about him for many years, but now I know first-hand that Joe Pernice is a popcraft genius. The tunes and the lyrics make for a nearly perfect album. What makes me so happy is that now I can travel back in time and discover each release that I've missed. That will make my new year!
MP3: Somerville

3. L.E.O. - Alpacas Orgling
This one is extremely fun and quite well done. A power pop supergroup led by Bleu set out to create an album that essentially was an homage to ELO. I never thought this would actually ever be released, but thankfully it was and they succeeded in their goal and then some. Jeff Lynne has to be beaming with pride wherever he is. And it was so good to hear Andy Sturmer singing lead vocals for part of a song. Very awesome all around.
Stream at theirspace

4. Roger Joseph Manning Jr. - The Land of Pure Imagination / Solid State Warrior
As great as it was to hear one of the two principal Jellyfishers back with a solo album, it just wasn't instant for me. At first, I thought it lacked a certain edge that only Sturmer's sarcasm and wit could bring. But then the more I listened, the more submerged I became in the syrupy and goopy pop goodness I expect from Manning.
Stream here

5. Wisely - Parador
I never even heard of this guy until Not Lame sent me a special email telling me it's the best album of the decade. Well, I'm used to this type of hyperbole from Not Lame so I didn't think much of it, but then I listened to the album and they were nearly right. It's a grown-up album as odd as that sounds. It's just so well crafted and musically diverse that it's the type of album (I keep saying album because it is a nice complete work) that you can stop listening to it for a few months until a tune pops up on shuffle and you wonder why you stopped listening in the first place. The best part? The cover is an artistic rendering of a poppy. Very nice.
Video: Parador

With the top five out of the way, here are a few more:

Nice to hear from you again:
The Beatles - Love
The Charlatans UK - Simpatico
Gin Blossoms - Major Lodge Victory
Guster - Ganging Up On The Sun
Keane - Under the Iron Sea
Mates of State - Bring It Back
Snow Patrol - Eyes Open
World Party - Dumbing Up
Pete Yorn - Nightcrawler

Not so much:
Glen Phillips - Mr. Lemons
A cover of I Want a New Drug?! Man, talk about jumping the shark!

Still waiting for my copy from Japan:
TV Eyes

Local guys done good:
The Envy Corps

Top Ten Most Played Tunes between December 1, 2005 and December 31, 2006:
1. Jon Auer - Sundown
2. Nada Surf - Always Love
3. Guster - One Man Wrecking Machine
4. Jon Auer - Six Feet Under
5. Jon Auer - Bottom of the Bottle
6. The Charlatans UK - When the Lights Go Out in London
7. Dixie Chicks - Not Ready to Make Nice (my Since U Been Gone of 2006)
8. Jon Auer - Song Noir
9. Wisely - Parador
10. Snow Patrol - Open Your Eyes

I told you I liked Jon Auer!

Happy New Year!

We drank a toast to innocence we drank a toast to time

Comeback Album:
Gin Blossoms: Major Lodge Victory

Most Disappointing Release:
Live: Songs From Black Mountain

Best New Discovery:
Blue October: Foiled

Best Beatles-Related Album:
The Beatles: Love

Most Annoying Song:
James Blunt: You're Beautiful

Most Amazing Rediscovery:
Josh Clayton-Felt: Spirt Touches Ground (lead singer of School of Fish)

Most Amazing Tribute Album
L.E.O.: Alpacas Orgling

Can't Stopping Listening Release:
Modern Skirts: Catalogue of Generous Men

Stupidest Song:
Neil Diamond: Oh Mary

Best Jellyfish-Related Release:
Roger Joseph Manning: Solid State Warrior/The Land of Pure Imagination

Best Power-Pop Release:
Wisely: Parador

Best Podcast:
The Onion

Best & Most Surprising Duet:
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoff: Under The Covers Volume 1

Most Boring Album:
Keane: Under the Iron Sea

Album with the most potential not listened to yet:
The Charlatans U.K.: Simpatico

Prettiest Voice:
Hayley Westenra: Odyssey

Top 10 Most Played Songs:
Modern Skirts: Seventeen Dirty Magazines
L.E.O.: Goodbye Innocence
Gin Blossoms: Jet Black Sunrise
Gin Blossoms: The End of the World
Modern Skirts: City Lights
Guster: Satellite
The Muppets: Rainbow Connections
Roger Joseph Manning Jr.: Too Late For Us Now
Guster: Lightning Rod
Wisely: This Is Everything

Best Recommendation by TooPoppy:
Jon Auer: Songs from the Year of Our Demise

Most Emotional Moment:
Andy Sturmer's Voice: L.E.O.: Goodbye Innocence

Most Promising of 2007 sor far:
Pernice Brothers: Live A Little

There Was Something So Pleasant About That Phase

Happy New Year! Before we move on to 2007, let's look back on the past year. Here are country feedback's top picks of 2006 (he forgot how to post on here because it's been so long - we gotta change that!):

These are in no particular order. An asterisk means I really, really liked it. So, my top 10 albums for 2006 are...

- *Cat Power, "The Greatest"
- *Band of Horses, "Everything All The Time"
- Peter Bjorn and John, "Writer's Block"
- *Cold War Kids, "Robbers and Cowards"
- Tokyo Police Club, "A Lesson in Crime"
- *Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins, "Rabbit Fur Coat"
- Neko Case, "Fox Confessor Brings the Flood"
- Tapes 'n Tapes, "The Loon"
- Jennifer O'Connor, "Over the Mountain, Across the Valley, and Back to the Stars"

Honorable Mention:
- Belle and Sebastian, "The Life Pursuit"
- Alexi Murdoch, "Time Without Consequence" (a close #11)
- Yo La Tengo, "I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass" (a few good songs, yes, but really this makes it on album title alone)
- The Decemberists, "The Crane Wife"
- TV on the Radio, "Return to Cookie Mountain"
- Arctic Monkeys, "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not"

Best reissue of 2006 - or EVER, for that matter:
- R.E.M., "And I Feel Fine...:The Best of the IRS Years 1982-1987" (I'm a completist with them so this is tough to say, but really, if a person only buys one R.E.M. album it has to be this one)

Album that will show up on EVERY other top 10 list but
really only had 2 good songs in my opinion:
- Gnarls Barkley, "St. Elsewhere"

Best single of 2006:
- "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley

Should Auld Acquaintance Be Forgot

Can't get enough of the year-end lists? The excellent blog Largehearted Boy has an incredibly and inconceivably exhaustive list that is continually updated. That'll kill a couple days at work during the holiday doldrums.

What's Your Name? Who's Your Daddy?

Too-cool-for-you Pitchfork wrapped up its 200 Greatest Songs of the 1960s today with 20-1. I think music lists have become the conversational icebreaker for the hipster crowd. So instead of "nice weather we're having" it's "Beach Boys at #1?! Bwah ah aha hha hhah LMAO!" I've glanced over the top 60 and I gotta believe Waterloo Sunset should be higher and the lack of Time of the Season is a travesty. God Only Knows might be right at #1, although Day in the Life or Like a Rolling Stone are right there too. But seriously, no You Know My Name, Look Up the Number?! Ridiculous.

Eh, blah. Friday afternoon surfing for you. Now go enjoy your weekend.

I Can't Get No Satisfaction

Like A Rolling Stone is the best song of all time? Really? Really?

Rolling Stone has released their 500 Best Songs of All Time issue. Apparently there hasn't been a really great song since about 1972 according to their list. Pretty predictable and lame if you ask me. Kinda like their magazine has been since the early 90's.