the first great album of 2007 is here. get it now, kids.

10. Arctic Monkeys – Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not

OK, so they’re a bit overhyped and they do get kind of tedious to listen to after the 1000th spin, but there is no denying that they put out one of the most energetic rock albums of this year. They hit hard and fast, and they’re so damn catchy. There’s a reason that this album became the fastest selling rock album in British history. (And yes, that means they beat the Beatles.)

9. Hard-Fi – Stars of CCTV

Put in the best of Kasabian and the Kaiser Chiefs into a blender, throw in some good ol’ rage and frustration, and you get Hard-Fi. Hard-Fi captured perfectly the angst of growing up in suburban England with their snappy lyrics and finger-licking good synth beats.

8. The Album Leaf – Into the Blue

In a year with forgettable post-rock albums and merely ok trip hop records, The Album Leaf got it right. The subtle bleeps and bloops drifting over the huanting melodies are at once poignant, beautiful, and absolutely riveting.

7. Mates of State – Bring it Back

Maybe I’m a bit biased, because I really didn’t give this album a chance until I saw them live, where they put on one of the best shows I have ever seen. Regardless, this Nor Cal duo’s trippy hooks and fun beats shouldn’t be missed. Their fourth album sounds fuller, richer, and catchier than their previous ones, making for a complete and utterly enjoyable listening experience.

6. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Show Your Bones

I’m a bit afraid to admit that I didn’t like Fever to Tell, out of fear that I might be jumped by a raving band of indie-hipsters, but it’s true. For some reason, the YYYs previous album seemed inaccessible to me, and I couldn’t deal with Karen O’s jittery voice. Somehow, all of that has changed, and in my opinion, Show Your Bones trumps Fever to Tell in every possible way. Perhaps it’s the fact that they sound more mature and laid back. Regardless, this is one damn good album.

5. Voxtrot – Mothers, Sisters, Daughters, and Wives/Raised by Wolves

Alright, Voxtrot didn’t release a full album this year, but they released two awesome EPs, three including Your Biggest Fan. One listen is enough to convince anyone that they may be the hottest indie band from Texas since Spoon. I was almost convinced that they sounded just like a band I would’ve gone to school with (this is a good thing).

4. Justin Timberlake – FutureSex/LoveSounds

Please, hold the laughter until I’m done. JT’s newest album happens to be one of the finest incarnations of modern pop I have ever heard. The wicked synth beats are enough to lose yourself in, and Timberland has truely outdone himself in producing this album. Some have compared this album to Prince and Michael Jackson, and i must say, those comparisons aren’t unwarranted. I have no idea what the album title means, but i do know one thing: this album is hot.

3. Gnarls Barkley – St. Elsewhere

Really, what more needs to be said? We’ve all heard Crazy 1,239,324,294 times. DangerMouse has done it again – another fresh and impeccable album.

2. The Decemberists – The Crane Wife

How often does an indie band jump to a major record label and put out their best album yet? Almost never, but the Decemberists have managed to do it. Theming the album from a Japanese folk tale, the Decemberists have managed to take their sound to the mainstream with stunning success, albiet with a few less pirate hooks. Hopefully this album will draw some well deserved critical acclaim and a few more fans.

1. Belle and Sebastian – The Life Pursuit

I’m sure I’m going to get more than a couple protests for this one, but I don’t think I had as much fun with an album this year than with this one. Snappy and catchy as ever, Belle and Sebastian roll on with their 7th album. Even after so long, Belle and Sebastian manage to stay fresh, blending their retro ’60s pop influences with candy coated pop perfection.

Honorable Mention:
Asobi Seksu – Citrus
Ratatat – Classics
Junior Boys – So This is Goodbye
Dresden Dolls – Yes, Virginia…
Yo La Tengo – I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass
Flaming Lips – At War With the Mystics

Bomb of the Year:
The Killers – Sam’s Town
This one was tough… the year was filled with what I thought were merely mediocre albums, but I think this one topped them all just because Brandon Flowers claimed that this was “the best album of the past 20 years”. It isn’t.

Snow Patrol – Eyes Open

I will be honest, I didn't really know what to expect from this album. Their last release, Final Straw, was a brilliant album that made my top 10 for 2004. I was hooked by its lush anthems, and I believe I called them, "the band that out-coldplays Coldplay." Well, for Eyes Open, you can throw those Coldplay comparisons out the window. I mean that in a good way.

Snow Patrol has embraced a mainstream approach on the new album. Gone is the quiet procession of chords, replaced by a much more bombastic attitude. Think of Goo-Goo Dolls meets Britpop. Again, I mean this in a good way. Fans of Final Straw may find the new sound rather startling, but give the album some time. You will thank me later.

the spinto band – nice and nicely done

it's rare nowadays that i'm caught off guard when it comes to awesome bands, but that's exactly what happend when i first heard the spinto band. they kinda sound like a poppy we might be giants, without the insanely jerky vocals. i should be studying calculus, so i'll just a hijack a review from amazon. he probably says it better than i could anyways.

"Nice and Nicely done is that perfect mid ninties indie album you never heard because it came out ten years later. Catchy hooks, smart choruses and a marching rhythm section lead you through a world of backyard gnomes, WB reruns, and of course, Atari. Utilizing two main singers, Nick Krill and Thomas Hiughes (who play guitar and bass respectivly), and led by Krill's Stephen Malkumus style vocals, the Spinto Band deftly manuever the indie rock totem pole without ever getting stuck in the same place. Oh Mandy, a beautiful mandolin driven tribute perfectly captures the bands irresitably poppy sound, while current single "Direct to Helmet" jitters its way into your brain thanks to Jeff Hobsons impecable marching drum beat, Hughes' matching bassline, and group harmonys that would make even Brian Wilson crack a smile. Forget Pavement reissues, catch it before the hype and see a band that is right now making music to live by. Nice and Nicely done does not disappoint."

sample track below. check it out.

the spinto band – oh mandy

hard-fi – stars of the cctv

so i was flipping through channels last night and i caught hard-fi playing on jimmy kimmel. i’m seriously impressed with the music on late night shows now. i remember discovering death from above 1979 and kaiser chiefs on late night tv too. anyways, hard-fi has been a band i’ve wanted to check out for a while now. they were a finalist on the mercury prize shortlist, and after listening to stars of the cctv, it’s obvious that the nomination was well deserved. they are easily one of the most energetic bands i have heard this year. with smart lyrics and heavy synth, they will probably attract many comparisons to the kaiser chiefs and kasabian, both of which are not without merit. they’re already huge in england, and judging by the kasier chiefs’ sucess last year, i won’t be suprised if they start making waves on this side of the pond as well.

hard-fi – cash machine
hard-fi – hard to beat

doves – the last broadcast
beck – sea change
hard-fi – stars of the cctv
maximo park – a certain trigger
antony and the johnsons – i am a bird now
the magic numbers – self titled album
death from above 1979 – romance bloody romance

embrace – out of nothing

the first thing i will admit: there is nothing groundbreaking here. if you're looking for the cutting edge or if you're an indie hipster who scoffs at listening to albums more than 3 months old, embrace is not your cup of tea.

i am a sucker for all things british. even a decade after their releases, oasis and radiohead still top my playlists. embrace takes the tried and true and perfects it. it may be a bit formulaic, but boy does it sound good. add a touch of melancholy, anthemic riffs and ballads, and slow, deliberate drumming, and you get out of nothing. coldplay, take note. this is what britpop is supposed to sound like.

embrace – ashes

arctic monkeys – US release – february 21
the stills – without feathers – unknown date
the walkmen – a hundred miles off – may 23
the streets – the hardest way to make an easy living – april 11
snow patrol – untitled album – spring
the shins – sleeping lessons – late spring
TV on the radio – untitled album – late spring
scissor sisters – untitled album – june
dj shadow – untitled album – may
groove armada – untitled album – june
the concretes – in colour – march 13
DFA – the remixes: chapter one – april 4
embrace – this new day – march 27
morrissey – ringleader of the tormentors – early spring
the secret machines – ten silver drops – april 18
pretty girls make graves – elan vital – april 11
regina spektor – begin to hope – late spring
yeah yeah yeahs – untitled album – march 28
saigon – the greatest story never told – march

great. as if i wasn’t behind in my “to listen” list already. still, there’s some pretty exciting stuff on the horizon. the only problem is that i only have a gig left on my ipod. time to delete some worthless bands, i guess. the bravery, anyone? either that or it may be time to upgrade. i hate deleting music. by the way, i take checks and credit cards.

wanted list:
art brut – band bang, rock and roll
jenny lewis – rabbit fur coat
dj shadow – funky skunk
miles davis – the cellar door sessions 1970
isolee – we are monsters
cat power – the greatest

rocking out to: embrace – out of nothing
chilling out to: mylo – destroy rock and roll

Hold them under a microscope (or microphone?), and you can see that they’re definitely still an indie outfit. There’s something unrefined about their music, but don’t worry — they make that sound like a good thing. You might wonder, where’re the postprocessed sound effects? Why aren’t the drums shoved right up in my ear canal? I don’t know, but I like it. For people who are hesitant to pick up anything described as “indie,” you probably don’t need to worry too much about the ‘usual’ pratfalls of the indie rock bands. The vocals are clean and the lyrics are as accessible as they are competent. In fact, one of the things I like most about this band is the voice of Alex Turner the frontman. You gotta love the way he belts out his lines with a combination of confidence and defiance (the British accent helps, too). Find the video of I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor and see for yourself just how strange it is that a bunch of kids in their late teens can rock out this hard. Can you imagine if you saw something like that at your high school battle of the bands? Their swagger alone would leave everyone else in the dust.

When people in their twenties and beyond try to sing about adolescent dystopia, they tend to overreach and the music ends up sounding contrived. On the other end of the spectrum, teenage garage bands typically lack the necessary components to put together a good album. That’s where Arctic Monkeys comes through. Here, the band members possess enough technical prowess to make their teenage ramblings sound amazing. Perhaps it’s their ability to appeal to adolescent sensibilities with a general sense of earnest that makes them seem fresh and exciting.

If you’re looking for something fun to listen to, find a copy of their new album Whatever They Say I am, That’s What I’m Not and take your pick. There are enough songs here to keep your ears happy for quite a while. As for the outlook, I have no idea where they’re going to go from here, but it’s going to take some doing to top their debut album. If their next one fails to debut at #1, it could very easily be considered a huge disappointment. Way to set the bar, kids.

~aW

i almost gave up before listening to the arctic monkeys.

they rock. hard.

arctic monkeys is a group of 19 year old brits who decided to start a band. sounds pretty typical, but how many garage bands have a debut album that is the fastest selling rock album of all time and a single that debuted at number 1 on the UK pop charts? the last group to do that was ultrafeminist popgroup back in 1996 who shall remained unnamed. (hint: one of them is married to david beckham’s left foot.)

enough about the hype. how do they sound? i guess the best analogy is franz ferdinand on steriods, but it’s a weak comparison at best. i haven’t heard anything in a while that’s made me want to get up and dance around, but thats one dry spell thats been brought to a close. the guitars howl and the drums crash incessantly, exactly how good rock-out band should. alex turner’s voice is suprisingly raw for a scrawny teenager, and it’s simply astonishing what this young supergroup has been able to accomplish on a debut album. i can’t wait to see what these guys come up with next, although if they want to become true rock stars, they have to OD on drugs or break up. hopefully they’ll wait until they put out a couple more awesome albums before any of that happens.

arctic monkeys – i bet you look good on the dancfloor