Song of The Day #184

"Beach Point Pleasant" by Ducktails

An early artifact of the now-overdone chillwave movement, "Beach Point Pleasant" sounds exactly how you would expect--although Ducktails seem to be able to make more intricate, interesting music than the many, many beach-inspired, lo-fi, synth-y groups that have since popped up.

Pitchfork's Worst Album Covers of 2010

With all the "Best Of" junk, it's nice to talk about some 2010 stuff that absolutely sucked. Enter this list: Pitchfork's so-called Worst Album Covers of 2010. It's a treat, albeit a hideous one, every year to peruse this list for its disgusting artwork and snooty comments, and 2010's is no exception. I won't go through it in detail because, well, the pictures are worth a thousand--or at least ten--words. I must say, though, it's amazing how aesthetically displeasing many elder rockers' album covers are. (Jeff Beck, Ringo, Richard Thompson, etc.) Oh, and here it is.

Greg Kot's Top Albums of 2010

Even if I don't always see eye-to-eye with him, I like Greg Kot. He does a good job hosting Sound Opinions, and his writing is usually nice to read (even if he sometimes comes off as the stereotypical hapless, middle-aged white man desperately trying to cling to the hipness he once had). That I see him at concerts from time to time only increases his likability in my mind.

Here's his list of his favorite 2010 albums. As one might expect, it's a little middle-aged-white-guy-y, but that's mostly okay... The top ten, as usual, is posted after the jump, and if you want to see the rest--which includes a top 20 and some written explanations--click here.

Song of The Day #183

"Bbydhyonchord" by Aphex Twin

What's the title mean? I don't know, but I do know that this is a nice, laid-back, percussive slice from the wonderfully underrated pie that is DrukQs. Although I've dug Aphex Twin for a while, it wasn't until recently that I truly realized his genius; the man is arguably the most important electronic producer of this generation (even if he's a little creepy looking).

Mojo's Best Albums of 2010

I like Mojo for their articles--their lists not as much. Think of Mojo as NME's older brother: more mature and with better taste, but still undeniably British--British to a fault, even. (They're also a little baby boomer-centric sometimes.) That said, they remain moderately relevant with their 2010 Albums list. The list--which includes some sub-lists such as best song ("Tightrope"), best reissue (The Promise), and various best-albums-from-a-specific-genre lists--contains some nice surprises (Sam Amidon, Robert Wyatt, Gonjasufi, Swans to name a few) but certainly falls into the sorta-popular British music magazine trap of obsessing over people like Paul Weller and MGMT. There are also some things I've never heard nor heard of, though, which makes it semi-interesting. Without further ado, here's the top ten, but, at least for now, you're gonna have to actually buy the magazine to see the rest of the top 50.

Song of The Day #182

"Fix Me" by Black Flag

This isn't your father's Black Flag (assuming your father is Henry Rollins), but rather the O.G. lineup with frontman Keith Morris, now of super-awesome punk revivalists OFF!. "Fix Me" is just what you want out of an early hardcore tune: self-loathing, hatred, distortion, and a runtime under one minute. Beautiful.

Song of The Day #181

"Funk Release Valve" by Drexciya

Whenever we're deep in Neptune's lair, we need a little funk release valve to relieve the stress. You know? Seriously, though, this tune further proves that as brainy as Drexciya were, they never forgot about the dancefloor or having fun.