Well 2011 has come and gone. Here are the albums I enjoyed the most, in no particular order:
Des Ark – Don’t Rock the Boat, Sink the Fucker
Jay-Z & Kanye- Watch the Throne
Feist – Metals
DJ Quik- Book of David
Bon Iver, Bon Iver
My Morning Jacket – Circuital
The Weeknd mixtapes
Shabazz Palaces- Black Up
Radiohead – King of Limbs
Wilco – The Whole Love
Spank Rock- Everything is Boring and Everyone is a Fucking Liar
TV on the Radio- Nine Types of Light
Panda Bear – Tomboy
R.E.M. – Collapse Into Now
ARCADE FIRE- THE SUBURBS
GIRL TALK- ALL DAY
BIG BOI- SIT LUCIOUS LEFTFOOT
ERYKAH BADU- NEW AMERYKAH PT. 2
JONSI- GO
SLEEPY SUN- FEVER
THE BLACK KEYS- BROTHERS
SPOON- TRANSFERENCE
HOW TO DRESS WELL- LOVE REMAINS
ALOHA- HOME ACRES
MOUNTAIN MAN- MADE THE HARBOR
PHOSPHORESCENT- HERES TO TAKING IT EASY
LCD SOUNDSYSTEM- THIS IS HAPPENING
THE HEAD AND THE HEART – S/T
KANYE WEST – MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY
IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER:
1. MOUNTAIN MAN – ANIMAL TRACKS
2. TWIN SISTER – LADY DAYDREAM
3. SMALL BLACK – WEIRD MACHINES
4. DAM FUNK – I WANNA THANK YOU (FOR STEPPIN INTO MY LIFE)
5. DRAKE – OVER
6. CRYSTAL CASTLES & ROBERT SMITH – NOT IN LOVE
7. THE NAKED AND FAMOUS – YOUNG BLOOD
8. ARCADE FIRE – WE USED TO WAIT
9. ARIEL PINK’S HAUNTED GRAFFITI – ROUND AND ROUND
10. YEASAYER – O.N.E.
11. BIG BOI – SHUTTERBUG
12. TORO Y MOI – TALAMAK
13. SUFJAN STEVENS – IMPOSSIBLE SOUL
14. GAYNGS – THE GAUDY SIDE OF TOWN
15. TUNE-YARDS – REAL LIVE FLESH
16. KANYE WEST – ALL OF THE LIGHTS
17. FOALS – BLACK GOLD
18. ARCADE FIRE – SPRAWL II (MOUNTAINS BEYOND MOUNTAINS)
19. TWIN SHADOW – CASTLES IN THE SNOW
20. GORILLAZ – STYLO
21. PHOSPHORESCENT – TELL ME BABY (HAVE YOU HAD ENOUGH)
22. BIG BOI – SHINE BLOCKAS
23. THE HEAD AND THE HEART – DOWN IN THE VALLEY
24. ERYKAH BADU – WONDOW SEAT
25. R. KELLY – NUMBER ONE HIT
Top 25 Songs of 2009.
1. Dirty Projectors – Stillness is the Move
2. Mos Def – Auditorium
3. Monsters of Folk – Dear God
4. Washed Out – Feel It All Around
5. Animal Collective – My Girls / Also Frightened
6. Glass Candy – Candy Castle
7. Health – We Are Water
8. Girls – Hellhole Ratrace
9. Minus The Bear – Into the Mirror
10. Raekwon – Cold Outside
11. Miike Snow – Cult Logic
12. Papercuts – Future Primitive
13. Phoenix – 1901
14. Sail A Whale – See You Inside
15. Conor Oberst – Roosevelt Room
16. Gang Gang Dance – House Jam
17. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Dragon Queen
18. Bon Iver – Bracket, WI
19. Atlas Sound – Walkabout
20. The Cave Singers – At The Cut
21. Dawes – When My Time Comes
22. Blakroc – Hoochie Coo
23. jj- Ecstasy
24. Wilco – One Wing
25. Nite Jewel – What Did He Say
Favorite Albums:
Mos Def – The Ecstatic
Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion
Dirty Projectors – Bitte Orca
Papercuts – You Can Have What You Want
Raekwon – Only Built For Cuban Linx 2
Wilco – Wilco the Album
Phaseone – White Collar Crime Mixtape
Russian Circles – Geneva
Magnolia Electric Co. – Josephine
Phoenix- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Q-Tip – The Renaissance
Beach House – Teen Dream
these were the things I enjoyed the most this year.
1. LOS ANGELES LAKERS
“the easiest team to root for” reclaims its rightful throne. anything less this year will be disappointing. we love ron ron. we love crazy buzzer beaters like this one.
2. bellingham washington
we moved here and it is dope. really cold though it turns out.
3. sasquatch
that video pretty much sums it up. tons of dancing, sweating, living goin on for three days and some insane live performances including (but not limited to): animal collective (!!), mos def (!!!!!!), erykah badu, explosions in my mind, yyys, bon iver, crystal castles, chromeo, tvotr, murder city devils, king kahn (insane), santigold, girl talk, fleet foxes and beach house…. not sure how they will top that next year.
4. holy fuck
managed to see these dudes twice in a day and about 4 times in a few months. they bring it, one of the best shows you could hope to see.
5. the lodge
too many good times were had here to count, miss all you homies.
photo by amart.
6. projector
watching everything on a projector is the way to go. we will never use a tv set again. whats the point when you have a wall? now we have league pass hooked up to it so we never leave the house.
7. rooftops
dudes are tight and also tight bros.
8. tour
the road was hard this year, so tour dropped a few spots in this years standings, but we still had a shit ton of fun and managed to do it twice and hit a bunch of new spots. thanks to everyone who came.
9. raaaaaaandy
that movie funny people sucked but one good thing came out of it, aziz ansari’s character RAAAAAAAANDY. quoted this shit probably the most all year…
10. Canada (Vancouver)
managed to make it out of there alive twice but didnt really to spend enough time there. but as randy would say, that shit is craaazy.
2008 started out great and pretty much was consistently (mostly). this picture was taken new years day cruising up the 5 with my friends amart and josh prince. it doesnt really feel that long ago. but apparently it has been. these are the best things this year.
1. barack obama
could not be more stoked to have this dude take over this year. this is as close as i got. even dilley voted for him.
2. my morning jacket
i was lucky enough to see this band, one of my favorites, 3 times this year. all 3 times they blew my mind. they put out a great album and put on a better show than anyone. and they cover kool and the gang.
3. livin the drife part 2
this summer’s tour was epic. we played many fun shows with some really cool folks like hockey, paper brain, devon williams, pokey lafarge, springtime panther, dot matrix, and many others. our van died in the best possible location and didnt take too long to get fixed. everyone took good care of us and we had the time of our lives. still not sure how we survived olympia.
4. the love house
this year i moved out of the coolest house ever aka love house. so many good times went down. so many dinners and acoustic sessions. i will always miss this home.
5. nyc
never really been there until a week ago. now its one of my favorite places. epic!!
6. la lakers
the additions of pau and trevor have put us over the top. we will win the championship this year. i was lucky enough to see them beat the kings this year.
7. tv on the radio- dlz
best song to come out this year. some kids covered it.
8. consenual/lodge
these two houses are inhabited by really awesome people. i spent more time at these houses than at my home. managed to record and play shows at both. thank you to those who live there.
9. naomi klein- the shock doctrine.
best book this year hands down.
10. roger waters
we still don’t need no education. seeing dark side of the moon performed in its entirety twice in a week was nuts.
11. basketball
somehow bball made a huge resurgence this year (playing wise). thank god. reys cross overs, adams kobe move, dilley on the boards, and kenny doing his best white trevor ariza. sick!
12. r.e.m.
will always love this band even if their new album is ehhhhh. saw them three times and had a great time each time.
13. summer heights high
the musical in the last episode is one of the funniest things i have ever seen in my life. fuck you miss!
14. graham nash “simple man”
listen to this song on repeat.
15. the constantines
i listened to this band A LOT this year. somehow i still dont have their new record though. anyway they kill.
16. james franco
homeboy happened to be in the two best movies of the year- milk and pinneapple express. good lookin dude.
17. chris rock – kill the messenger
so many good quotes came from this. “I DONT GIVE A FUCK!”
18. the hold steady
best bar band in the world!
19. street scene
in one day we saw mgmt, the new pornographers, foals, beck, spoon, cat power, tv on the radio and justice.
20. detroit octane
best parody rock band ever.
21. bon iver
hate to jump on the bandwagon but homie wrote the songs that killed this year, particularly flume and wolves.
22. capitol hill block party
in one day we managed to see the cave singers, darker my love, fleet foxes, jaguar love, kimya dawson and the hold steady. we ate some ginger snaps, jay puked in a bag and got mistaken for franz from the hold steady and we got a bunch of shitty jones soda for free. all in all it was a great time.
23. august weddings
congratulations kyle and denali, brian and cara!
24. my bloody valentine
k-swish took me to the ultimate reunion show. my bloody valentine at the santa monica civic. words cannot describe.
25. stereogum.com
wasted more time on this web site and found more good tunes here than anywhere else.
26. darker my love
only managed to catch these dudes in seattle but their new album is excellent.
27. sigur ros
one of the best albums this year, this band kills me live.
28. the tree in moorpark
best new hang out. 3rd of july fireworks went down in history.
…..
worst of 2008
kanye west
zach and norah make an infinite porno
vampire weekend
adams pedal board getting jacked
boston celtics
1. barack obama.
2. ian mackaye q and a sesh.
3. we’re all friends now
4. finishing no logo.
5. tv on the radio – dear science.
6. graham nash.
7. pwrfl pwr
8. palinaspresident.us
9. hard rock hotel.
10. snow angels.
1. true love (above)
2. the end of the world
3. alice in wonderland party
4. paul westerberg – 49:00
5. pineapple express
6. coconut records – west coast
7. josh williams’ photography (instant nostalgia)
8. the cave singers
9. pizzatopia
10. xo
1. my morning jacket – “remnants”
2. new sigur ros
3. semi pro (srsly)
4. detroit octane doing barack obama-sistible on conan
5. gay marriage
6. ebay
7. del’s deal (wtf?)
8. emma my cat
9. extras
10. only good thing about tuesday all time funniest attempt at postgame interview. you look good michelle!
oh and by the way FUCK THIS GUY- you didnt even play asshole…
1. santa cruz, ca
twin lakes, the red room, the boardwalk, the balcony, west cliff, michoacan, britania arms, love house. this town rules. what the fuck??
2. tour
hey jealousy, embassy suites, van diesel
3. larry hosford and his all star band
4. new guitar new amp new 8 track
5. bjork live at shoreline may 19, 2007.
6. whidbey island
7. sonic youth daydream nation show
8. des ark
9. lucero/big star weekend october 20 2007
10. neil young
11. ghostface killah
12. jeff tweedy/blue grass festival
13. spencer reunion
14. big sur
15. stella
16. planet earth
17. the hold steady
18. radiohead
19. magnolia electric co.
20. the arcade fire
21. flawless victory
22. san francisco
23. the fishtank (r.i.p.)
24. the shipwreck (r.i.p.)
25. singing lucero on the beach 3 am
26. cicadas / giraffes? giraffes! / silian rail (3-way tie)
27. im not there
28. salvador dali
29. van morisson
30. sealions
i spent the past week jamming with a new band that should be called “spencer again” but probably won’t. it was really fun. the soundtrack for the drive back today consisted of-
blood brothers ‘burn piano island burn’
des ark ‘loose lips sink ships’
every time i die ‘hot damn’
ten grand ‘this is the way to rule’
cicadas ‘consult the bones disgusting skulls’
cursive ‘happy hollow’
…
guess what kind of mood i was in.
here are the top ten of the past week.
1. only real fans/make-up/ooh ooh ooh ooh song (3 way tie)
2. sillian rail
3. i’m not there soundtrack
4. salvador dali
5. mom’s cookies
6. my grandparents dancing
7. el pollo loco dollar menu
8. the drums
9. jay-z and nas “success”
10. ultimate frisbee
ye and mos rhyming.
everyone knows kanye is a creative lyricist yet eveyone still knocks him on his rhymes. here are the top 5 reasons for each on graduation.
best
1. “im like a fly malcolm x/buy any jeans necessary” – good morning.
2. “if you admire somebody you should go head tell em/people never get the flowers while they can still smell em” – big brother.
3. “i played a big role in chicago like queen latifah” -everything i am.
4. “goodbye to the naacp awards/goodbye to the india arie awards/theyd rather give me the nigga please award” -everything i am.
5. “lauryn hill said her heart was in zion/i wish her heart still was in rhymin” -champion.
worst
1. “i told jay i did a song with coldplay/next thing i know he got a song with coldplay/in the back of my mind im like no way jose/translate espanol no way jose” -big brother. you cant rhyme coldplay with coldplay!
2. “im like gnarls barkley/meets charles barkley” -the glory. same thing, bro!
3. “do anything for a klondike/id do anything for a blonde dyke” -stronger. nah……..
4. “since prince was on apolonia/since oj had isotoners” -stronger. also, nah.
5. “how many ladies in the house?/how many ladies in the house without a spouse/something in your blouse got me feeling so aroused” -i wonder. ugggghhhhhhhhh……….
these lines kill me. i left off anything from “homecoming” and “bittersweet,” because i deleted those songs. i mean seriously theres no real reason why these two dudes should be on the same album:
so far, october is crazy…
1. yesterday after two days of continuous work by myself and billiam on a song formerly titled mortimer johnson, my flash card started failing and we lost the song. this is probably the best thing i’ve recorded yet and pretty devastating blow.
2. radiohead has a new album that the whole world will hear at the same time in a few short days.
3. i got neil young tickets for 50 bucks a piece. just when i think things things couldnt get any worse you go and do something like this…and totally redeem yourself!!!
4. britney spears lost custody of her kids, finally.
5. stereogum released drive XV a tribute to r.e.m.’s automatic. my particular favorite is dr. dog’s version of find the river.
6. comedians of comedy released a dvd of their show at the troubadour in december. i got get my hands on this.
7. ian mackeye didn’t die.
8. guitar hero 3 announced its tracklisting
9. jimmy eat world played at the catalyst. they brought the hits of course, but managed to play blister and crush so that was cool.
10. wu tang cleared the first ever beatles sample.
Filed under: top ten
1. brand new socks
2. larry hosford’s web site
3. tofu
4. jason molina
5. nirvana
6. hand claps
7. phil
8. singing lucero songs on the beach at 4 in the morning.
9. dominos on the company dime!
10. william jennings
today i joined last.fm this is my page. i think this site and the idea is really interesting and it has made me think about the way i listen to music a lot already. for instance, it obviously only logs the music i listen to on itunes, which excludes a lot of other times i’m listening to music, but honestly thats mostly only vinyl. im listening to al green right now. i rarely bust out cds. therefore according to the site my top ten artists are as follows:
1. Elliott Smith 3,304
2. Wilco 1,711
3. Jay-Z 1,596
4. Sufjan Stevens 1,299
5. Feist 1,192
6. Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy 1,166
7. Neil Young 1,072
8. Lucero 1,020
9. R.E.M. 945
10. Cat Power 888
not sure if thats what i’d really say for my real top ten… but yeah i listen to a lot of jay-z. anyways i recommend this site, everyone should join and check it out. i think i had more to say about it, but i cant remember,,
1. birds fled from me – “drove for”
2. magnolia electric co. – “no moon on the water”
3. ryan adams – “starting to hurt”
4. thom yorke – “harrowdown hill”
5. crosby stills nash and young – “almost cut my hair”
Filed under: top ten
july is over and this is late.
1. sonic youth – reena
2. tour
3. des ark @ the plymouth st. house
4. fireball
5. william jennings dont rest your weary head on the tracks
6. planet earth
7. location
8. guitar center credit card
9. tiger bike gang
10. honesty
Filed under: top ten
1. jay-z – brookyln high
2. david cross – bank of america video
3. the lakers (specifically luke walton)
4. david sedaris
5. girl talk – night ripper
6. sleeping with sweat pants on
7. elixir
8. nirvana – in utero
9. envrnmntl
10. a change would do you good.
keaton collective 
