2006 was a banner year for music lovers everywhere. Critically acclaimed albums dropped from everyone ranging from superstars Sonic Youth, Pearl Jam, Deftones, and the Dixie Chicks and debut albums from supergroup-esque The Raconteurs and Gnarls Barkley. There were bands like The Strokes restoring our faith in the hype machines of old, strong sophmore efforts from The Killers, Clipse, and Nelly McKay, and an impossible number of amazing debuts emerging through websites, blogs, and good, old-fashioned print magazines. Even veterans Tom Waits, Bob Dylan, and Johnny Cash released gems. Time will only tell, but if these debut artists live up to half the potential they’ve displayed this year, 2006 will go down as one of the strongest years of the decade.
Such a year makes a Top Ten list nearly an impossible task. I had three or four definites and about 40 potentials. I eliminated discs that weren’t as good as their predessors (Mogwai, The Flaming Lips, The Mars Volta, Copeland {one of the biggest disappointments this year}, Keane, Snow Patrol, The Dears, and Muse), and I booted records from genres that I’m not really familiar with (Tool, The Roots, Corrinne Bailey Rae). While I will happily defend all of my choices, if you were to take numbers 5 - 25 and shuffle them any way you choose, the order that resulted would (sadly) be just as good.
Here goes nothing . . .
10. 
Silversun Pickups - Carnavas
My friend John over at Some Strange Ideas turned me on to this disc. He picked it up from Jim Adkins (from a little-known band called Jimmy Eat World). It’s no surprise that the boys from JEW are fans of Carnavas - they do say, after all, that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. JEW should be very humbled by the attention.
9. 
Destroyer - Destroyer’s Rubies
Dan Bejar is a genius. He seems to delight in bending the genres he plays around in, whether its his fingertipped involvement in the power pop of The New Pornographers or the indie-meets-glam sound of his solo project, Destroyer. Destoyer’s Rubies finds Bejar submitting his claim to be Canada’s premier lyricist. The improvement of his skills with a pen are only rivaled by the emergence of Destroyer as a touring group to be reckoned with. Plus, Dan gets 50 cool points for calling Chapel Hill’s Merge Records home.
8. 
The Hold Steady - Boys and Girls in America
Early in the year, this spot would have gone to Buckcherry’s 15. It was the most fun I’ve had with a CD since The Aunt Bettys self-titled debut, as 15 delivered an unapologetic mix of sex, drugs, and rock and roll. When I picked up Boys and Girls in America, my first impression was that The Hold Steady was trying to nail down the title of "America’s Best Little Bar Band," but I didn’t think that they were truly anything special.
As it turns out, BaGiA is a grower, not a show-er. The Hold Steady has an intelligence that their peers don’t always share, referencing Jack Keroac and weaving tales of love lost peppered with, yes, sex, drugs, and rock and roll.
7. 
Grizzly Bear - Yellow House
And here we have the first appearance that indirectly resulted from a stellar live show. Brooklyn natives Grizzly Bear crafted a beautiful, fragile work of art with Yellow House. What solidified their place on this list was their scene-stealing support of fellow NYC’ers TV On The Radio (who, incidentally, are nowhere near the top of my list, due to a major label debut that reeked of too much avant garde/self-indulgence/pretention. IMHO, of course) Watching them recreate their album sound, deftly exchanging a bass for an oboe, recorder for a keyboard, and sharing lead vocal duties only deepened my appreciation for the skill that went into developing Yellow House.
6. 
Midlake - The Trials of Van Occupanther
So, my wife and I are at Caffe Ladro in Queen Anne with some old friends visiting from Vancouver. Beautiful sounds are emminating from the speakers overhead, so I take a break from the conversation and my pie and complement the barista on her choice of music, wondering just who the hell was this? "Um . . . it’s the new Midlake album. I think they’re, like, from Europe or something."
Actually, they’re hometown heroes from my former domain, Dallas (Denton, to be exact), and I did catch a show of theirs way back when, encouraged to do so by some college friends who were close to the band (or dated them - I forget which). Let me assure you, they were not this good. Midlake has come a long way from those early days, picking up fans as noteable as Jason Lee, who directed the video for "Balloon Maker" and landed them a spot on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.
Trials catches Midlake embracing Grandaddy, Buckingham-era Fleetwood Mac, and worshipping at the altar of Blue Oyster Cult to the sounds of Neil Young. Midlake wisely lets their harmonies blend with the layers of electronics, horns, and acoustic guitars. In a just world, Zach Braff woud have had "Roscoe" or "Head Home" change Natalie’s life.
5. 
Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not
The British press had already annointed Arctic Monkeys as the saviours of modern music by the time that the album dropped stateside. So, they had a lot to live up to by the time American ears really had a chance to digest it. The frentic pace and Brit-centric lyrics didn’t do quite as well over on this end of the world, but after years of having Coldplay, Travis, and Keane etc, shoveled through our earphones, I don’t think we Yanks were ready for it. ‘Tis a shame - the lads play a great amagalation of chaotic rock, pulling influences from Oasis, Blur, and the Libertines and bolstered by the keen wit of Alex Turner.
4. 
Editors - The Back Room
NYC based Interpol stormed onto the scene a couple years back, having never met a Joy Division or Echo and the Bunnymen single they didn’t like, and wearing that fact proudly on their Versace sleeves. Editors trotted behind them, watched them falter on their sophmore effort, and quietly released a better album than Turn On The Bright Lights and especially Antics. In a way, it’s unfair to discuss the two bands together, but it’s nearly impossible to separate them. However, Tom Smith does so effectively t with the strength and power of his lyrics. He dips into the heaviness that things like cancer and death bring with a lyrical imagery that Paul Banks just doesn’t exhibit ("You burn like a bouncing cigarette on the road; all sparks will burn out in the end"). Musically, they listened to the same records that Interpol did, but hey - even Oscar Wilde claimed, "Talent borrows. Genuis steals."
3. 
Jeremy Enigk - World Waits
I was a big fan of Sunny Day Real Estate, I liked The Fire Theft, and I was enraptured by Return of the Frog Queen. What I’m trying to communicate is that I was absolutely salivating at the prospect of Jeremy’s long awaited second solo effort, and his wonderful appearance at Bumbershoot only made it worse. World Waits was worth the, uh, wait. And then some. Jeremy’s vocals soar, as he sings every note like his life depended on it. It’s easy to see why SDRE was instrumental in (should be blamed for?) the exposion of "emo". Musically, he has replaced the occasionally overbearing orchestration of Frog Queen with a lighter, more atmospheric sound that fills every nook and cranny of World Waits. His arrangements are pitch-perfect, with nearly no wasted notes.
2. 
Cold War Kids - Robbers and Cowards
Cold War Kids could be described as a couple parts of chaotic minimalism like The White Stripes, a bit of Spoon-like pop perfection, a depressing, Velvet Underground pulse, and vocals that owe their very soul to Jeff Buckley. The banging piano, seemingly random drum beats, and a guitar that cuts a wide swath through the noise. It’s music you can move to with lyrics that will make you weep. Frontman Nathan Willet takes us on a journey filled with characters straight from the Southern Gothic of a Flannery O’Conner short story. He investigates the tragedy of a family caught in alcoholism in "We Used To Vacation", pities a brother who killed his sister’s rapist in "Saint John", and laments the slow, painful death in "Hospital Beds." So, so good.
1. 
Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s - The Dust of Retreat
My friend Jacob started blabbering on and on about this band back in May. Our tastes tend to overlap, so I decided to check them out. I had already heard that they were named after Gwyneth Paltrow’s character in The Royal Tenenbaums (+50 cool points). Their iTunes bio listed the rumor (joke?) that their music was based on how they feel while watching Woody Allen (+100 cool points). In a rare stroke of wisdom, I bought the entire album without previewing a single track. It was one of the greatest musical decisions of my life.
Describing Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s is not an easy task. They lack the literary conceit of The Decemberists, or the giddy hippie-ness of Cloud Cult, though lyrically and sonicly, they live on the same street. It’s a street that appears to be very near the midwestern culture of Over the Rhine, though Margot has even better instrumentation. Their use of trumpets, Rhodes organ, melodica, banjos, and full-time cello (though even that’s becoming a bit of an indie staple) could have been a collosal, pretentious mess, but Margot manages to combine those elements with Richard Edwards’ poetic tales of love and drug use ("Jen Is Bringing the Drugs") and stealing a lover from someone else ("Skeleton Key") into things of such beauty that it makes such sad stories seem quite appealing.
Yeah, so that’s it - I hope it was informative, convincing, and encouraged you to buy something new, and I eagerly await comments agreeing with my exquisite taste.
I uneagerly expect your mocking laughter.
(click the link below for the Honorable Mentions)
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Posted by klnussbaum
Posted by klnussbaum
Posted by klnussbaum
