My Favorite Music of 2011

So someone hasn't blogged much recently, huh? Anyways, there are plenty of reasons for that--namely that I just don't really want to--but I still feel compelled to share my favorite music of the past year with you all over the internet. I'm not gonna write fancy writings telling you why I like this music--just suffice it to say that I like all this stuff because it's good, in some way or another.

These lists were especially tough to compile because, while there weren't any songs or albums that jumped out as being "the best", there was a veritable buttload of really nice releases in 2011 that deserve mention on this here blog (and on other blogs and magazines and stuff). There's not really an overarching theme to the music--we're post-genre, aren't we?--and there wasn't an exact science in choosing what albums/songs went in which order. Mostly I just picked the things that I listened to the most and provided the most intellectual/fun/emotional fodder for me in 2011 (which is why it's not a coincidence that my number one song and album are by the same artist). So, anyways, after the jump you'll find my sixty favorite albums, ninety favorite songs, thirty favorite reissues/compilations, and fifteen favorite EPs of 2011. They all rule. Happy new year.

My Favorite Things (9/30)

Hello, all. So, Spotify is still really cool--but in somewhat accordance to the Slow Listening Movement, I've vowed to stop downloading so much until I've actually, you know, listened to everything. This means I've been doing a lot of listening. A lot of this lot of listening has been directed, though, at finding songs for my new radio show--that's right: my radio show (well, my and my friend's). It's called That Thing, and it's on WBAR from six to eight EST every Friday morning. (The shows'll be archived in case you don't feel like waking up...) Anyways, the show essentially just plays soul from the mid-50s to mid-70s. You should listen one time.

Betty Davis - "If I'm In Luck I Might Get Picked Up"

Brian Eno - "Windows 95 Startup Sound (11 Minute Loop)"

David Bowie - Stage (Live, Boston 1978)

Disco Inferno - The 5 EPs

Hawkwind - Space Ritual

Ike & Tina Turner - "Funkier Than A Mosquita's Tweeter"

Iron Butterfly - "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"

The Last Poets - The Last Poets

The Meatmen - We're The Meatmen... And You Suck

Mikal Cronin - "Apathy"

Twin Sister - In Heaven

Ty Segall - "Finger"

Ultra Vivid Scene - "It Happens Every Time"

Van Dyke Parks - Discover America

Various - Eccentric Soul: Twinight's Lunar Rotation

My Favorite Things (9/18)

"Did she say there was other guys there? Did she say there was other guys there? Were there other guys there? Well, tell me this: how the fuck she know I was with them other girls then?"

I rediscovered R. Kelly's under-appreciated masterpiece, "Real Talk," this week--but my most important musical find is much more earth-shattering, believe it or not. It's Spotify. I got it a few days ago, and it's changed everything; all I have to do is click and drag to get all the free, legal music I want on my computer. It's overwhelming, but it's beautiful. Anyways, it's resulted in a lot of new Favorite Things for me, so this edition of My Favorite Things will include not fifteen, but thirty selections. Enjoy.

The Angels of Light - Everything Is Good Here/Please Come Home

Curtis Mayfield - "(Don't Worry) If There's A Hell Below, We're All Going To Go"

Cybotron - Clear

Dalek - From Filthy Tongues of Gods and Griots

Danny Brown - "Monopoly"

Deerhoof - "Goin' Up The Country (Live)"

Depeche Mode - Ultra

Don Cherry - "Brown Rice"

Essential Logic - Fanfare In The Garden

The Fire Show - Saint The Fire Show

Fire! with Jim O'Rourke - "Are You Both Still Unreleased?"

The Flirtations - "Nothing But A Heartache"

Girls - Father, Son, Holy Ghost

Henry Cow - "Guider Tells of Silent Airborne Machine"

Jackie Wilson - "Higher and Higher"

The Jesters - "Love No One But You"

Jocy de Oliveira - A Musica do Secolo

Kevin Drumm - Sheer Hellish Miasma

Lightnin' Rod - Hustlers Convention

Minutemen - Paranoid Time EP

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Tender Prey

R. Kelly - "Real Talk"

Slim Harpo - Raining In My Heart

Thee Oh Sees - Castlemania

Tom Ze - Estudando A Bossa

UGK - "Underground"

Vandermark 5 - "Further From The Truth (For Walker Evans)"

Willis Earl Beal - "Blue Escape"

The Wonders - "That Thing You Do!"

Youth Lagoon - "July"

My Favorite Things (9/3)

I've been in college nearly a week at this point, and while I have plenty of time to listen to music, I don't have plenty of time to acquire new music. So my favorite things of the past fortnight or so are things we've all heard before--but that doesn't mean they're not good. Anyways, these are them. (I don't feel like including YouTube links anymore...)

Alice Coltrane - Journey In Satchidananda

Alvarius B. - Baroque Primitiva

Amen Dunes - Through Donkey Jaw

Balam Acab - "Oh, Why"

Bonnie "Prince" Billy - The Letting Go

Crass - Stations Of The Crass

Curtis Mayfield - "Pusherman"

Cut Hands - Afro Noise 1

Eagles of Death Metal - "San Berdoo Sunburn"

Expo '70 - "Close Your Eyes And Effortlessly Drift Away"

George Harrison - "Isn't It A Pity"

Laurel Halo - Hour Logic

Prurient - "Palm Tree Corpse"

Terius Nash - "Wake Me When It's Over"

Sun Araw - Ancient Romans

My Favorite Things (8/20)

I haven't been blogging. That's okay; there's more to life. But I still like music, don't you worry--and this, listed below, is the music I've liked most recently. Some of it has just come out, some of it is old but I'm hearing it for the first time, and some of it is music I've liked in the past and am now revisiting. It's just fifteen pieces of good stuff.

Perhaps this is a feature that will pop up with some frequency on Il Buono, but I don't want to make any promises, because broken promises are disappointing, and I don't want to disappoint my legions of faithful readers... Anyways, here's some great music (listed in alphabetical order).

Autechre - Tri Repetae

Bob Dylan - "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright"

Bobby Beausoleil & The Freedom Orchestra - Lucifer Rising OST

The Caretaker - An Empty Bliss Beyond This World

Chet Baker - Chet Baker Sings

Dan Deacon - Spiderman Of The Rings

Eminem - "White America"

Eternal Tapestry & Sun Araw - Night Gallery

The Germs - G.I.

Lightning Bolt - Hypermagic Mountain

Missy Elliott - "Work It"

Mu - "Let's Get Sick"

Ricky Nelson - "Fools Rush In"

Rip Rig & Panic - God

White Mystery - "Overwhelmed"

2011 Mid-Year Report

Hey. How are you? I'm good. I graduated a couple weeks ago, and then I went to Italy, and now I'm home and catching up on all the music I've missed; unfortunately, people do in fact release good music while you're on vacation. Go figure. Anyhow, seeing as it's currently June 25 in the Central time zone, which in my estimation is right around the middle of the year, I thought I'd publish a semi-brief mid-year report recounting my favorite albums, tracks, and other stuff of 2011 so far--and also say what I'm looking forward to for the rest of the year. Below you'll find twenty albums; forty songs; four EPs, reissues, and "other"s; and assorted other musical, er, things. Everything is listed in alphabetical order. So, without further ado, here is the best music of the first half of 2011--or at least what I think the best music is...

Revisiting My Favorite Albums of The 2000s

Notice there's no parenthetical "again" following the titular decade. This is because, drumroll please*, I have not yet before revisited my Favorite Albums of The 2000s list. When I published it at the close of 2009 (and the 2000s as a whole), that was the first and only publishing. But, oh, how the times have changed. In the roughly sixteen and a half months since I released that list, I've heard many new albums--new as in I hadn't heard them before, not as in they recently came out--and reflected more on the old ones. As such, I have a new list. (Granted, one that's pretty similar to the old one...)

As I said many times in several different ways when I initially counted down my favorite albums of this past decade, I have a special attachment to the '00s. I have such an attachment on account of it's the only decade I've lived all the way through, and, as much as I love to wax nostalgic about the '90s, it's the decade during which I truly grew up and began to appreciate the music on this list and every other published on this blog. So, while I may tell myself that the music of the past is "better" music (and perhaps I'm right), there's something about this music, on these albums, that makes them far more enjoyable, identifiable, and meaningful than even the best records from the '70s. I heard many of these when they first came out. I read the reviews. I went to the store. I bought the CD (or record or mp3). And if I didn't hear them within weeks or even days of their release, I heard them maybe a year or two later. This is the music of my generation. Animal Collective is our Beatles, and TV On The Radio our Rolling Stones. (Don't hold me accountable for those analogies; I'm just trying to make a point...)

And so here is the list: 204 albums, all released from 2000 to 2009, presented in a fully overwhelming/overwrought bulk of text. Enjoy.

Revisiting My Favorite Albums of The 1960s (Again)

So one year ago tomorrow, if you recall, I published this. In case you don't recall and don't feel like reading that (which would be perfectly understandable; it's very longwinded) I'll give you the highlights. Basically it said that my tastes in music change and I also hear new stuff all the time blah blah blah I'm republishing my Best Albums of Decades albums list! Yeah!

This time around, though, I'll spare you the color-coordinating and whatnot--and by spare you, I mean spare myself; that took me a long time. I also don't think I'll be writing too many (or any) explanations. The albums can speak for themselves, and, to be honest, I don't think the lists have changed too much. The major difference is that I'm including 102 albums instead of 90. So there.

Everyone knows the music of the '60s. Even if you weren't actually there, experiencing the music firsthand like James Murphy was, you're very familiar with the various strands of rock and pop and soul and jazz that were really created in the '60s and have since gone on to influence the music of every succeeding decade. Though there was certainly interesting music before the 1960s, there was a sort of synthesis of innumerable great concepts and ideas that were put into play during this particular decade. And, of course, this is the decade in which the album really became important. Prior to the '60s, albums tended to just be catalysts for singles. When the notion of the album as an art form was established in the early to mid-60s, music--especially rock n' roll--was changed for the better forever.

You'll notice different types of music on this list than on, say, the 1980s one. No hip-hop on account of it didn't exist yet. There's a lot more jazz on account of the '60s were the best decade ever for jazz. There are a lot of Beatles album on account of they're the greatest and most influential band probably ever. As such, though, this is a tricky list to put together. How does one compare the music of Peter Brotzmann and that of The Rolling Stones? They're both musicians like apples and oranges are both fruits, which is to say they're of the same family (or, perhaps, genus) but certainly not the same species. Well, I compared them anyways, and, spoiler alert, in this particular instance, The Stones came out ahead with Satanic Majesties. (Sorry for the clauses in that last sentence...) Anyways, enough talk. Here's the list.

Revisiting My Favorite Albums of The 1970s (Again)

So one year ago tomorrow, if you recall, I published this. In case you don't recall and don't feel like reading that (which would be perfectly understandable; it's very longwinded) I'll give you the highlights. Basically it said that my tastes in music change and I also hear new stuff all the time blah blah blah I'm republishing my Best Albums of Decades albums list! Yeah!

This time around, though, I'll spare you the color-coordinating and whatnot--and by spare you, I mean spare myself; that took me a long time. I also don't think I'll be writing too many (or any) explanations. The albums can speak for themselves, and, to be honest, I don't think the lists have changed too much. The major difference is that I'm including 102 albums instead of 90. So there.

The 1970s: what a decade! Seriously though, as cringe-inducing as most mainstream '70s culture was, its counterculture was unparalleled. What the brilliant music of the '60s had touched on (psych, free jazz, proto-punk) was fleshed out and explored fully in the '70s by artists of all races all over the world. There was a backlash to the Age of Aquarius, and it manifested itself in some pretty crazy music--seemingly beginning as soon as the calendar switched over to 1970. Step back and think about how violent, aggressive, and, most of all, unprecedented The Stooges' debut was. That was released in 1969. By 1970, they released Fun House, which was doubly as violent, aggressive, and unprecedented. Sly & The Family Stone, who broke ground in terms of integration--both racial and musical--in the late '60s, gave us the dark, free There's A Riot Goin' On by 1971. Just two years removed from the happy hippy days of the '60s. Fast forward to the second half of the decade: This Heat, Wire, The Pop Group, Suicide, Throbbing Gristle... You get my drift? "Tomorrow Never Knows" has nothing on the manic-ness and disturbed angst of the music of the late '70s. This is serious stuff. And seriously good. Punk, post-punk, new wave--not to mention krautrock, deep funk, electronic, and, er, Nick Drake. The 1970s are modern music. Enjoy the albums.

Revisiting My Favorite Albums of The 1980s (Again)

So one year ago tomorrow, if you recall, I published this. In case you don't recall and don't feel like reading that (which would be perfectly understandable; it's very longwinded) I'll give you the highlights. Basically it said that my tastes in music change and I also hear new stuff all the time blah blah blah I'm republishing my Best Albums of Decades albums list! Yeah!

This time around, though, I'll spare you the color-coordinating and whatnot--and by spare you, I mean spare myself; that took me a long time. I also don't think I'll be writing too many (or any) explanations. The albums can speak for themselves, and, to be honest, I don't think the lists have changed too much. The major difference is that I'm including 102 albums instead of 90. So there.

So this post will count down my 102 favorite longplayers from the 1980s. Though I didn't get to witness the '80s firsthand, I've watched enough VH1 and John Hughes movies to get the gist of the decade. Bright colors, Molly Ringwald, et cetera. I've also sampled a lot of the decade's music, from its love-it-and-hate-it-simultaneously cheese pop to its early hip hop to its more darker bits of post-punk, new wave, and proto-indie rock. That last category--"post-punk, new wave, and proto-indie rock"--is arguably my single favorite musical subgenre ever (assuming it's considered a subgenre; it's pretty nondescript, after all). Which makes '80s music really excellent. I don't have much else to add--just read through the list, I guess. Happy April.

Revisiting My Favorite Albums of The 1990s (Again)

So one year ago tomorrow, if you recall, I published this. In case you don't recall and don't feel like reading that (which would be perfectly understandable; it's very longwinded) I'll give you the highlights. Basically it said that my tastes in music change and I also hear new stuff all the time blah blah blah I'm republishing my Best Albums of Decades albums list! Yeah!

This time around, though, I'll spare you the color-coordinating and whatnot--and by spare you, I mean spare myself; that took me a long time. I also don't think I'll be writing too many (or any) explanations. The albums can speak for themselves, and, to be honest, I don't think the lists have changed too much. The major difference is that I'm including 102 albums instead of 90. So there.

This specific post is, as you can glean from its title, about the 1990s. The 1990s were this weird decade that happened a long time ago but because the people who were young during it are now young adults who produce the indie movies and write the blogs that we all watch and read, we are inundated with references to it, whether that means flannel shirts, shoegaze, Pete & Pete, etc. The thing is, I am sort of one of these people. I'm a little on the young side--I only saw Pete & Pete in syndication--but I definitely identify with the culture of the '90s. As such, the music of the '90s is some of my favorite. I love trip-hop. I love shoegaze. I love acid house. I love post-rock. I love Nirvana. So here goes: my favorite albums of the 1990s. Again. (A sidenote: in the spirit of the '90s I'm going to see Godspeed You! Black Emperor tonight at The Vic. Woo-hoo!)

My Most Anticipated Albums of 2011

In under eleven hours (as of press time), it will be 2011. Whoa. Happy New Year, everyone. And if there's one thing that a new year means to a semi-dedicated music blogger, it's a clean slate--a tabula rasa--musically speaking. My Top Albums of 2010 playlist will exist no longer, and in its place I'll create a Top Albums of 2011 one. But what, my friends, will be on that playlist? What will be the best albums of 2011? Well, I don't know--but it's fun to speculate, which is why I've included my fifteen most anticipated albums to (potentially) be released in 2011. Several of these are indeed speculations, as many don't have names or release dates or anything, but all of the albums below, if released, should be awesome. Hopefully. The albums are listed alphabetically by artist, and have their release dates in parentheses (if their release dates are known). Cheers to a happy, healthy, good music-filled new year! See you in 2011.

My Favorite Albums of 2010 (Odds & Ends)

So I've already reflected on my favorite proper albums in this post (which you could also just scroll down to see), but here I'm giving some love to some neat-o 2010 albums that aren't quite "normal" albums--i.e. EPs, mixtapes, compilations, reissues, improvised music albums, and, well, "other." These are albums (around forty in total) that I've loved and listened to throughout 2010 and that deserve recognition. I've listed them in clusters based on the aforementioned categories, and the albums are organized alphabetically within each cluster, which is to say they're not ranked according to favorite. That said, I have bolded my #1 favorite of each bunch and italicized my second favorite. First and second favorite are obviously subject to change, but I feel pretty good about my bolds and italics, so... whatever. Anyways, enjoy (after the jump, obviously).

My Favorite Albums of 2010

This is the best list to make. The album, as a format, is just the most interesting, the most nuanced, and the most fun to discuss of any long- or short-form piece of media. Period. Over plays, operas, movies, whatever. A truly great album is an unparalleled experience, aural or otherwise. That's why this blog exists. That's why I'm eager and able to articulate what I like and how I feel. Albums. They're awesome.

2010 was/is a big year for this writer. He turned 18, which means he's an adult. And he has no idea how to be an adult. (He will now switch to first person narrative.) I truly don't. I mean, I'm perfectly capable of waking myself up, taking the el to school, eating meals on my own, etc. but the intricacies of adulthood--how to manage money, relationships, time, jobs, whatever--are completely beyond me. That I'll be going to college (in the country's biggest, busiest city no less) in the fall only further exacerbates these insecurities. How will I manage to live in the standards in which I'm accustomed to living, and, more importantly and more dauntingly, how will I do something worthwhile--especially in a place where everyone is basically an equal, and often better, version of myself? What's my duty, and how will I accomplish it? Or do I have a duty to fulfill at all? It's a scary world out there, and reading copious amounts of Gide doesn't necessarily make me feel better.

I do have one constant, though. One thing that'll be there for me in New York or wherever I end up. That, as lame as this is to say, is music, is these albums listed below and their brethren from the past and future. As someone who kind of shy and uncomfortable with emotion, I've found something, in music, to let me buckle down and also explain how I think and feel. I can hear something and interpret it and apply it to my life, thereby helping me explain and articulate the emotions that I often try so desperately to hide... I'm getting too over-the-top with this post, aren't I? Anyways, I'll just say that these albums--and albums in general; audio stories and journeys and experiences--have greatly enhanced my life and others', and I look forward to taking them with me as I try to face being a grown-up. Oy.

The albums in question cover plenty of stylistic and emotional ground. 2010's most omnipresent trend seemed to be that of chillwave/H-pop, which in and of itself has many different strains. The whole hazy bedroom pop strain (Wild Nothing and whatnot) didn't really do it for me, so you won't see much of that below. The more kraut-influenced, new age-y strain of the movement does certainly interest me, as it presented a new form of non-abrasive drone that's atmospheric, beautiful, and weird when done correctly. There's the batshit crazy psychedelic strain of H-pop, which I rather enjoy as it's, well, batshit crazy psychedelic music. And then there's the surf-obsessed, chilled-out rock n' roll, which is kinda boring. Right? Right. 2010, though, for me, was a lot about the old guard--or my own personal indie rock old guard. Artists that have delivered genius in the past delivered again (cough, Kanye, LCD, Joanna, Arcade Fire, Robert freakin' Wyatt, cough)... But putting albums by time-proven artists at the top of the list can be a bit unsettling, as I often question whether I'm just putting them at the top because it's easy, because it feels right, because I was anticipating their albums and they were satisfying so they must be the best, right? Maybe right. I don't know. There were enough young'ns, enough new artists, to keep me pleased, I suppose. So who really cares. Right? Right.

In terms of this particular list, it's a list of my 45 favorite studio LPs that were released in 2010. No EPs, compilations, etc. on this list--those will come in a separate list to be published later this week. Also, I know I've waited a little longer to publish the list; however, that's for a variety of reasons: 1) because I've been in school and taking exams and having existential crises about my future that I alluded to above, but now I'm past all of those things (sort of), 2) the year still isn't over, and it was much less over at the beginning of the month when lists started coming out; what happens if a great album comes out on December 21?, and 3) the longer I wait, the more time I have to reflect on certain albums. It's a proven truth that year-end lists are weighted towards albums that came out nearer to the end of the year; new albums are fresher, and they're the ones we're all listening to over and over again in November and December. By waiting a tad longer, I get to reflect, unbiased, a tad longer. Also, I get a chance to pick up and familiarize myself with albums that came out earlier in the year that I hadn't heard and then subsequently hear due to their high placements on certain other publications' year-end lists. Anyways, the point is: here is my list. Here are my albums of 2010.

My Favorite Albums of My Lifetime

About a month ago, I celebrated my eighteenth birthday, which means in the eyes of many--myself not included--I am an adult. An adult. Eek. Thankfully I'm developing a Peter Pan complex, and I have parents I still live with and who care about me, so I don't actually feel as though I've made the transition to adulthood quite yet--and, quite frankly, I'm not sure I ever will.

Anyhow, this momentous milestone has caused me to reflect on the life I've lived so far. It's been a good one, and I won't bore you with an autobiography. What I will bore you with, though, seeing as this is a music blog, is a list of the pieces of music that have defined my lifetime, both for me and for many others.

What this means is that below is a list of the twelve albums I love most that have been released during my first eighteen years, plus a little blurb about why I love each of them. Seeing as the albums hail from a span of nearly two decades and cover a (small) myriad of genres and labels and whatnot, there isn't exactly a common musical theme--nor did I hear most of these albums when they actually came out. What is common is that all of these albums were born in the era of Me, June 1992 to June 2010. (It's important to note that albums such released in 1992 but before June of that year, such as Slanted and Enchanted (released in April), are not eligible.) (A list of my twelve favorite songs from the era of Me is included in brief at the bottom.) Read it all after the jump...

My Favorite Miles Davis Albums and Pieces

Hello there. Today we honor Miles Davis, one of the greatest musicians of the modern era and the jazz musician who takes up the most space on my hard drive. You go, Miles Davis!

Davis' proficiency on the trumpet is well documented; between his unbelievably vast discography as both a frontman and a sideman and all that has been written in praise of him over the past 70 years, very few people don't know who Mr. Davis is, and very few people don't love his music. Besides being extremely technically gifted, he pushed boundaries unlike any other jazz musician--or musician in general--this side of Coltrane or Coleman and still managed to sell a shit ton of records.

He was restless in his ideas; as soon as he had mastered one new form of jazz, he had to go invent or push forward another. Davis went through bebop, hard-bop, post-bop, fusion, free jazz and more throughout his career, putting his stamp on each subgenre. His music ranges from extremely beautiful to extremely bizarre, but when you listen to any of his music, you always know it's Miles Davis blowing that horn (or, in some instances, playing that organ).

So here's to you Miles Davis, the greatest trumpet player there ever was. (Below are my ten favorite Miles albums and twenty-five favorite Miles pieces. Keep in mind that as much Miles Davis music as I've heard and love, there is way more I haven't ever heard and thus won't be on these lists.)

Albums

1. Kind of Blue

It's the highest selling jazz album of all time and the gold standard for pre-1960 jazz. It's one of the finest stretches of recorded music, and it belongs nowhere other than #1.

2. Bitches Brew

His music hinted at insanity before, but Bitches Brew is where Miles completely let loose and began to fuse jazz with rock with funk with the avant-garde.

3. In A Silent Way

4. On The Corner

5. Get Up With It

6. Sketches of Spain

7. Live-Evil

8. A Tribute To Jack Johnson

9. Porgy and Bess

10. Seven Steps To Heaven

Pieces

1. He Loved Him Madly

A previous song of the day and a dedication to Duke Ellington, "He Loved Him Madly" may not be Miles' most famous or most influential piece, but there's something about it and how absolutely nuts it is that makes it my favorite.

2. So What

This is just one of the most iconic pieces of modern music period. Everyone's heard "So What" and just about everyone loves it. It epitomizes jazz, and it epitomizes cool.

3. Bitches Brew

4. On The Corner/New York Girl/Thinkin' Of One Thing and Doin' Another/Vote For Miles

5. Shhh/Peaceful

6. Sivad

7. Miles Runs The Voodoo Down

8. Summertime

9. Black Satin

10. Right Off

11. Mtume

12. Flamenco Sketches

13. Funky Tonk

14. Saeta

15. Pharaoh's Dance

16. Freddie Freeloader

17. In A Silent Way/It's About That Time

18. Yesternow

19. I Loves You, Porgy

20. Calypso Frelimo

21. John McLaughlin

22. Will O' The Wisp

23. Basin Street Blues

24. Motel (Diner Au Motel)

25. Blue Xmas (To Whom It May Concern)

That's what I think. I'm certainly partial to his fusion stuff, but his entire discography deserves to be explored.

Mid-Year Report

Hey, folks! We're about half-way through 2010 now (it's flyin' by, isn't it?) which means it's time to recap the music that's come out in the year's first 50ish percent and also to look forward to the music that'll come out in the next half! Below you'll find lists of my 25 favorite albums, 50 favorite songs, 5 favorite new artists, and 10 most anticipated 2010 albums. So if you haven't heard of or heard some of this stuff, you'd better open up your internet browser and do some listenin'. Enjoy.

2010 has been quite a spectacular year for music so far. Though no significant trends, for me at least, have emerged in independent music, there have been a surprising number of excellent, groundbreaking-ish LPs. (One thing I've noticed is that I'm starting to get old-man taste in music. Most of my favorite releases are from established artists; very few of my 2010 favorites have been made by young, new groups.) Below, in alphabetical order by artist, are those favorites. (Bold indicates and album of the month.)

Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti--Before Today

Beach House--Teen Dream

Bonnie "Prince" Billy & The Cairo Gang--The Wonder Show of The World

Caribou--Swim

Disappears--Lux

Emeralds--Does It Look Like I'm Here?

Erykah Badu--New Amerykah, Pt. 2: Return of the Ankh

The Fall--Your Future Our Clutter

Flying Lotus--Cosmogramma

Gil Scott-Heron--I'm New Here

Gonjasufi--A Sufi and A Killer

Hot Chip--One Life Stand

Jack Rose--Luck In The Valley

Jamie Lidell--Compass

Janelle Monae--The ArchAndroid

Joanna Newsom--Have One On Me

LCD Soundsystem--This Is Happening

Liars--Sisterworld

Owen Pallett--Heartland

Pantha Du Prince--Black Noise

Sam Amidon--I See The Sign

Sun Araw--On Patrol

The Tallest Man On Earth--The Wild Hunt

These New Puritans--Hidden

Titus Andronicus--The Monitor

Now for my 50 favorite songs of 2010 so far (again in alphabetical order by artist, and again bold indicates a song of the month):

Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti--Round and Round

Beach House--Walk In The Park

Beach House--Zebra

Big Boi--Shutterbugg

Bonnie "Prince" Billy & The Cairo Gang--That's What Our Love Is

C Joynes--Broad Church Traveling

Caribou--Odessa

Caribou--Bowls

ceo--come with me

Charlie Parr & Mike Gangloff--This World Is Not My Home

Chris Forsyth--(Now I'm A Pharmacist) Boogie

Crystal Castles--Celestica (Thurston Moore Rmx)

Cults--Go Outside

Cults--Most Wanted

Disappears--Gone Completely

Erykah Badu--Window Seat

Gil Scott-Heron--I'll Take Care of You

Gil Scott-Heron--New York Is Killing Me

Gonjasufi--Duet

Hot Chip--Slush

Hot Chip--Take It In

Jack Rose--Lick Mountain Ramble

James Blake--CMYK

Jamie Lidell--Compass

Janelle Monae--Cold War

Janelle Monae--Wondaland

Janelle Monae feat. Big Boi--Tightrope

Joanna Newsom--'81

Joanna Newsom--Good Intentions Paving Co.

Joy Orbison--The Shrew Would Have Cushioned The Blow

Keepaway--Yellow Wings

Kelis--Acapella

The Knife--Colouring of Pigeons

LCD Soundsystem--Dance Yrself Clean

LCD Soundsystem--Home

LCD Soundsystem--I Can Change

Lindstrom & Christabelle--Lovesick

Michoacan--In The Dark of the Night

Nico Teen--Hungry For Love

Pantha Du Prince--Stick To My Side

Sade--Soldier of Love

Sam Amidon--How Come That Blood

Sam Amidon--Pretty Fair Damsel

Sam Amidon--You Better Mind

Shabazz Palaces--32 leaves dipped in blackness making clouds forming altered carbon

Soom T--Puff That Weed

These New Puritans--We Want War

Titus Andronicus--A More Perfect Union

Titus Andronicus--Four Score and Seven

World Unite/Lucifer Youth Foundation--Heavy Pop

And now for my five favorite new artists of 2010 (even though, as I said before, my taste is growing increasingly old man-esque and I'm not digging new artists as much):

Cults

Daniel Bjarnasson

James Blake

Janelle Monae

Michoacan

And, finally, the ten releases in 2010 that I'm most excited to hear. Some are already out and unheard by me, and some are coming out in the future.

Antony & The Johnsons--Swanlights (October 6)

The Arcade Fire--The Suburbs (August 3)

The Avalanches--TBA (TBA)

Battles--TBA (TBA)

Big Boi--Sir Lucious Leftfoot: The Song of Chico Dusty (July 6)

The Books--The Way Out (July 20)

Devo--Something For Everybody (June 15)

Oneohtrix Point Never--Returnal (out)

Pocahaunted--Make It Real (out)

Rene Hell--Porcelain Opera (out)

There you have it. A hell of a first half for 2010, and here's to hoping the year isn't too top-heavy.

My Favorite Sly & The Family Stone Albums and Songs

The latest inductee into the makeshift Il Buono Rock n' Roll hall of fame, Sly & The Family Stone only existed as a coherent band for about a decade, but their prolific and consistent canon is one of the finest in the history of modern music. Starting as a fun-loving, optimistic bunch of black and white San Francisco hippies who played seriously funky stuff, the Family Stone evolved into one of the darkest, most relevant, and still most funky bands--soul or otherwise--ever. Obviously they're best remembered for the sinister, epochal There's A Riot Goin' On (which is maybe my favorite album of all time), but Sly & The Family Stone put out several great albums and an innumerable collection of great singles. Sly Stone, as messed up as he may be nowadays (see: this year's Coachella), belongs in a very select group of songwriters and musicians right alongside the John Lennons, David Bowies, and Bob Dylans of the world. Sly & The Family Stone are truly one of the most important, innovative, and amazing bands of all time. Here's to them.

My list of my six favorite Stone albums and thirty favorite Stone tunes is below.

Albums

1. There's A Riot Goin' On

2. Stand!

3. Fresh

4. Small Talk

5. Life

6. A Whole New Thing

Songs

1. If You Want Me To Stay

2. Africa Talks To You (The Asphalt Jungle)

3. Thank You For Talkin' To Me Africa

4. Everyday People

5. Hot Fun In The Summertime

6. Family Affair

7. Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)

8. Luv 'n' Haight

9. Runnin' Away

10. I Want To Take You Higher

11. Just Like A Baby

12. Stand

13. Don't Call Me Nigger, Whitey

14. Dance To The Music

15. Let Me Have It all

16. (You Caught Me) Smilin'

17. Life

18. Loose Booty

19. You Can Make It If You Try

20. Spaced Cowboy

21. Sex Machine

22. Babies Makin' Babies

23. Everybody Is A Star

24. In Time

25. Sing A Simple Song

26. M'lady

27. Underdog

28. Skin I'm In

29. Fun

30. Mother Beautiful

That's what I think. Heck of a band, weren't they?

My Favorite Tom Waits Albums and Songs

It's been a while since my last real list, and, well, yeah. Anyways, with these kinds of lists, I've paid tribute to four of the greatest rock n' roll artists/bands in the history of the universe (Beatles, Kraftwerk, Bowie, Sonic Youth), and with this specific one that you are reading right this instant, I am adding a fifth member to Il Buono's pantheon of rock gods. That member is Tom Waits. Waits is one of the best, most prolific, and most consistent songwriters of the past century or two. He's able to change his style without ever sacrificing his identity while putting out albums every couple years--and he's done that for a good three and a half decades now. Obviously his calling card is his voice, which is certainly one of the most distinctly amazing voices in music, but his lyrics and arrangements match the power of his gravelly moan. From beautiful piano ballads to dirty blues romps, the man has covered a lot of musical territory; wherever he goes, though, he's sure to infuse the tunes with a hefty dose of experimenting and another hefty dose of bizarre, intricate storytelling. So here's to you Mr. Waits. You've earned your seat between Florian Schneider and George Harrison.

Oh, and here are my ten favorite Waits albums and thirty favorite Waits songs:

Albums

1. Rain Dogs

2. Swordfishtrombones

3. Bone Machine

4. Orphans

5. Mule Variations

6. Alice

7. Small Change

8. Blood Money

9. Night On Earth (Soundtrack)

10. Closing Time

Songs

1. Tango Till They're Sore

2. Jockey Full of Bourbon

3. Swordfishtrombone

4. Lie To Me

5. Gun Street Girl

6. 16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought-Six

7. Bottom Of The World

8. Goin' Out West

9. Lucinda

10. Big Black Mariah

11. Get Behind The Mule

12. Cemetery Polka

13. The Piano Has Been Drinking (Not Me)

14. Rains On Me

15. A Little Rain

16. Back In The Good Old World (Gypsy)

17. Frank's Wild Years

18. Big In Japan

19. Rain Dogs

20. God's Away On Business

21. Hoist That Rag

22. Reeperbahn

23. 2:19

24. Tom Traubert's Blues

25. Chocolate Jesus

26. Underground

27. Just The Right Bullets

28. The Earth Died Screaming

29. I Hope That I Don't Fall In Love With You

30. Table Top Joe

That's what I think. So there.

My Favorite Sonic Youth Albums and Songs

To honor some of the greatest musical geniuses in modern music (Beatles, Kraftwerk, Bowie thus far), I've put together these "Favorite Albums and Songs" list. It's all I can do to pay tribute to the prolific, classic artists that have truly inspired me/blown my mind. What these artists have in common is their ability to put out consistently innovative and brilliant music over a decently long period of time.

Sonic Youth fits the mold quite well. Since the dawn of the 1980s, the Youth (I really shouldn't call them that, should I?) have been putting out album after album after album of mind-bending rock music while inspiring tons upon tons of other, less talented people to hit their out of tune guitars with screwdrivers. The sound that Sonic Youth developed--a harmonious blend of harshness and hooks, dissonance and consonance--with their guitar-based post-punk is one of the most influential (and best) in the history of rock n' roll.

The band has released sixteen studio albums (I think--not including side projects) and several hundred songs, and few to none of those are duds. That said, some are better than others. So I'm going to rank my favorite albums of songs by this wonderful, crazy bunch of No Wavers.

Albums (Top Ten)

1. Daydream Nation

2. Sister

3. Evol

4. Murray Street

5. Goo

6. Bad Moon Rising

7. Washing Machine

8. Confusion Is Sex

9. Sonic Nurse

10. Rather Ripped

Songs (Top Thirty)

1. Teen Age Riot

2. Expressway To Yr. Skull (a.k.a. "The Crucifixion of Sean Penn" a.k.a. "Madonna, Sean and Me")

3. Silver Rocket

4. Death Valley '69 (feat. Lydia Lunch)

5. (I Got A) Catholic Block

6. Trilogy

7. Shadow Of A Doubt

8. Kool Thing

9. Cross The Breeze

10. Schizophrenia

11. Hey Joni

12. Radical Adults Lick Godhead Style

13. Superstar

14. The Diamond Sea

15. Brave Men Run (In My Family)

16. Tom Violence

17. Freezer Burn/I Wanna Be Your Dog

18. 100%

19. Sympathy For The Strawberry

20. Pacific Coast Highway

21. Pattern Recognition

22. My Friend Goo

23. Do You Believe In Rapture?

24. Bull In The Heather

25. Cotton Crown

26. Star Power

27. The Empty Page

28. Junkie's Promise

29. Disappearer

30. Touch Me I'm Sick

That's what I think. They're definitely a candidate for Joe's Favorite Band if there was such a band. Anyhow, because I like these tribute lists, I have ones planned for Miles Davis, Tom Waits, and Sly & The Family Stone. Stay tuned.