The Revinylization Project: Year in Review

I bought a lot of vinyl this year. The picture above is only a portion of the records I accumulated in 2009. Missing are the old, used, and reissues, but the picture still gives you a taste of how much vinyl was dropped off at my house by the UPS lady. Even with a few releases yet to be released, I bought a lot of records.

And I was good at sticking to the vinyl, so to speak. I bought one album (Beirut) accidentally on CD, another only available on CD (Clem Snide), and a small handful via iTunes. Of course, the fact that most of the vinyl was accompanied by MP3 codes or CD's only encouraged me to buy more. It was simple commitment despite the fact that this town no longer has a reliable source of vinyl. Insound and all their pre-order deals saved the Revinylization Project.

The toughest part was actually listening to the music. The stereo is kept in the basement and I spend most of my time upstairs or in the car. Those albums without a portable option just didn't get many listens. The listening grew easier as Lucia grew up and often requested to go to the basement to play in the area we set up for her. (Before you call child protective services...or vinyl protective services, you should know that the basement is finished.)

As the year comes to a close, many of you have submitted lists of your favorite albums of 2009. (And some of you still have yet to deliver on your promise.) I too have created my own list. As top-10 lists tend to be, this one is fluid. You may find inconsistencies with my best of the decade list, but this is mainly due to oversight and the changing direction of the wind. I may have a completely different list tomorrow. For now, this is what I've got and I'm standing by it.

10. M. Ward - Hold Time

I sometimes refer to this album as He and Her. Of course, Zooey Deschanel has less to do with this record than Ward had to do with the She and Him debut, but you get the point. The record is good and I have not given it it's due time.

9. Port O'Brien - Threadbare

This record didn't grab me right away, but it's a grower. The band's nod to early nineties alt rock draws me back every time...That and Cambria Goodwin's voice.

8. Handsome Furs - Face Control

This married duo put on a great show at Mojo's this year. The energy from that show has held up on vinyl. Say 'yes' to perestroika dance/synth rock from Canada!

7. Yo La Tengo - Popular Songs

"Here to Fall" grabs me every time. The rest of the album holds up as well. I predict with some time and further listening, this one will rise on my all-time list. It's the most complete albums YLT has done in years.

6. Antony and the Johnsons - The Crying Light

I can't listen to this very often because it's that kind of good. The album is truly effectual. Antony's voice is not of our post-modern society. It defies definition and I defy you not to feel something when this record plays.

5. Atlas Sound - Logos

I'm always slow with the Brandon Cox bandwagon, but I'm here to tell you that I get it and I'm on board. Sadly, the creator of such brilliant material is not long for this world.

4. The Flaming Lips - Embryonic

I fully admit it. this one is all hype. And I haven't liked the Flaming Lips for years. Nothing I've heard makes me think that this is a bad album or even one that doesn't belong in my top-5. Let's hope I feel the same after a few listens.

3. Various Artists - Dark Was the Night

I normally avoid compilations, but this one is too good to pass up. It's one of the few that understands both quantity and quality. I even like the My Brightest Diamond track and I hate her.

2. Japandroids - Post-Nothing

I was so close to making this my number 1, but for reasons specified below it sits in the second slot. There's still some part of me that listens with my gut and my gut tells me to like this band. I know that it's beer and lifestyle music, but it's good beer and lifestyle music.

1. Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion

Sometimes the best pick for your year-end list is the most obvious. This record was talked about before Animal Collective were a band. And somehow, it lived up to the hype laid upon it. No one makes music like this. No one. Not Radiohead. Not TV on the Radio. And certainly not Wilco. They sound like no one. They sound big and twisted, unraveling and cross, triumphant and just plain brilliant. How could I not pick this record. It's lasted nearly the entire year without me growing tired of it. I don't even know if I need to hear another record by Animal Collective. This will do just fine.

Others considered for the list (in no particular order):

• Monsters of Folk
• Camera Obscura
• Matt and Kim
• Dinosaur Jr.
• Swan Lake
• Grizzly Bear

Best of the Oughts: Albums 11-20

This list is a nice mixture of things. There are several years represented. the subgenres are all over the place. The first and last comp of the top-100 resides in this ten. There are break-up albums, albums of social protest, rock records, Gypsy music, two-piece bands, seven or eight-piece, etc. It's all here.


20. Various Artists - Dark Was the Night
I generally stay away from compilations for any list, but this one is great from beginning to end and it contains a ton of material. This is maybe my all-time favorite compilation, just ahead of a couple of other Red Hot releases in the 90's.


19. The White Stripes - White Blood Cells
There is nothing like a breakout album chock full of breakout tracks for a band you love. The Stripes were virtually unknown at this point. Then a few singles and their accompanying videos broke things wide open. Soon, every band was guitar and drums with a "the" at the beginning of their name and an "s" at the end.


18. At the Drive-In - Relationship of Command
R once commented that this doesn't sound like anything else I listen to. It doesn't. That's how good this record is. At the Drive-In had a fleeting run, but they went out with a bang. Relationship of Command documents that bang.


17. Spoon - Gimme Fiction
Spoon's decade was way better than their last. This record is what convinced me to begin accumulating their older material. It's so big and danceable. Even a bad show at the Blue Note supporting this album couldn't sour my love for Gimme Fiction.


16. The Shins - Chutes too Narrow
This album was out long before Garden State broke the band. It's crisp production upbeat tempos were a change from Oh, Inverted World, but ever-present are James Mercer's melodies and pop sensibilities.


15. Wolf Parade - Apologies to the Queen Mary
Although the synth-happy tendencies of Wolf Parade/Sunset Rubdown/Handsome Furs is lost in Isaac Brock's production, the result is as hard-hitting a debut as the decade has seen.


14. Beck - Sea Change
Break-up albums are typically angry or empowering. They either tear apart those who have wronged you or build you up with a hopefulness for love-yet-to-come. Then there are records like this one. It tears you down and the only thing that comforts is the assurance that someone else has felt this much hurt.


13. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
Generally, the only knock on this album is that it followed Funeral.


12. Japandroids - Post-Nothing
I might have overshot with this record, but I played it over and over this year, making up for the previous nine. It may fade over the years, but I will always turn to it when rawk is called for.


11. Beirut - Gulag Orkestar
Who would have ever thought Gypsy music would so good and timely? Zach Condon came out of nowhere (by way of New Mexico, the Balkans, and Brooklyn) to deliver one of the surprise sounds of the decade.

Mid-Year Top 10

I did this last year and the trolls showed up in full force. Hopefully this year's list won't be so controversial. It's already late, so that takes away some of the impact. Also, this list could change drastically over the next six months or so, but I will garuntee that all of this top ten will be around when '09 is over.

10. Outer South - Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band
Honestly, I wasn't even going to include this on the list until I started giving the record another listen or two in preparation for this past Monday's show at the Note. The performance did the final convincing.

9. The Crying Light - Antony and the Johnsons
This is an absolutely beautiful record that is sequenced masterfully. This is why albums are always better than singles.

8. Grand - Matt & Kim
They're my default ringtone right now. This record is so poppy and upbeat that I had to include it on the list. It may rise by year's end, depending on my mood.

7. Hold Time - M Ward
Ward follows up his great work on She and Him with this gem.

6. Enemy Mine - Swan Lake
Big, weird, Vancouver, super-group, etc.

5. It's Frightening - White Rabbits
This is a great follow up for the one-time COMO-ians. While Britt Daniel's fingerprints are all over it, the album is certainly proof of this band's worth. I look forward to #3.

4. Face Control - Handsome Furs
Here's another great duo who are also a couple on the side. (Matt & Kim being the other.) Few bands have been able to combine synth beats and rock guitar so effectively...at least with only two members.

3. Dark Was the Night - Various
This sprawling collection of songs from the Red Hot Organization is one of the best compilations I've heard. Many of the tracks are among the best for each artist. The biggest and most pleasant surprise was José González's Nick Drake cover. Why don't more people cover Nick Drake?

2. Merriweather Post Pavilion - Animal Collective
This is on everyone's short list. It will be near the top at the end of the year as well. It's so nice to hear a record that lives up to its hype. This is the next Radiohead/Wilco/TV on the Radio.

1. Post-Nothing - Japandroids
I am a sucker for minimalist anthems. Guided By Voices did it better than anyone, but this band does it with less and rocks more.

Just missed the cut: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Wavvves, Beirut, Iron and Wine, Sunset Rubdown

Need more listens: Clem Snide, Cursive, Sonic Youth, The Thermals, Bill Callahan, Camera Obscura

Still on my list to get: The Eels, Dinosaur Jr, Stuart Murdoch

Things I may have missed: Andrew Bird, Robert Pollard (in my neighborhood, we call him Bob), Ben Kweller, The Decemberists...Let me know if there are more in the comments.

Also, what else is still yet to be released? Leave me some insight in the comments.

Want to see for yourself? Go to Insound and buy some records.

The Revinylization Project: Japandroids - Post-Nothing (and a few other arrivals)

Music
Japandroids are a full bombardment of drum and guitar in your face a la Trail of Dead or Girls vs. Boys. The fact that there's just two of them makes this achievement even more impressive. I really don't understand how two can sound like five. I guess the logic lies somewhere near that eleventh notch on the Marshal stacks.

Normally, I don't go for beer and lifestyle music, but for Japandroids I will make an exception. They make getting drunk with your friends feel earnest again. And if you didn't catch it the first time, they'll repeat it for you.

Insert
There isn't one, except for the download card.

Sleeve
It's black and white with a silly portrait of the band embracing on the cover and a live shot on the backside. It reminds me of the Black Keys' first LP. It's simple, raw, much like the band's sound.

Extras
As mentioned before, purchasers are entitled to a download. Lucky for me since I don't yet have a ultra-glide in the car, I have been able to listen to this album non-stop. The best part is the message on the download card.


Record
The label features the same drawing as on the download card. It's odd how hands in a prayer position sort of resemble a certain piece of female anatomy. Coincidence?

whY?
You knew this band had to be good if they're touring with Sonic Youth while promoting their debut on an unheard-of label (Unfamiliar) after two self-released EP's. Have you stopped reading so that you can order your own copy?

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In the works for the project...

Bill Callahan - Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle
I'm still getting to know Bill Callahan, but this album makes me think I need to explore the catalog a little closer. I can't help but think that Mr. Callahan might be our generation's Leonard Cohen. Anyone care to correct me on this? For a more complete review of this excellent disc, check the bathysphere who love everything Callahan.

Also, I have yet to listen to these...

St. Vincent - Actor
Of course, it may take me a while to get a good feel for this record as the download didn't work at all.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz!
Honestly, I have a bad feeling about this one. It came sort of late, because I was late at pre-ordering and the album was oversold. So, here it is. I'm afraid to listen. I know it's gonna stink.

Magnolia Electric Co. - Fading Trails
I had no idea which record to buy at the Magnolia show the other night, so I grabbed the one with the fuzzy blue cover. Little did I know that the cover featured some nice 60's porn shot. I'll listen to it soon enough, but I'm sure Pizza will chime in with an opinion.

I think that's all the vinyl I have for now. A new shipment of plastic sleeves arrived in the mail today. Now I can protect my records adequately. Oh, and word from Insound is that I have more on the way. Woot!