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Top Ten Albums of 2007

Well it’s about time for the End of the Year Music List. The only other decent album coming out this year is Rivers Cuomo’s (Weezer) solo album. So I’ll go ahead and post it now so you can put some good stuff on your Christmas list.

Honorable Mention: Wincing The Night Away by The Shins, Let Me Introduce My Friends by I’m From Barcelona, Lifeline by Ben Harper Barcelona, Nighttiming by Coconut Records, Life In Cartoon Motion by Mika, The Trumpet Child by Over the Rhine

10. Ten New Messages by The Rakes
I stumbled across these guys when I was looking for a YouTube video for Wheatus. I have no idea how they showed up but I clicked and I liked. Similar to The Strokes but more “poppy” and radio friendly.

9. Welcome to the Night Sky by Wintersleep
I picked these guys up based on the recommendation of James. The album feels a little schizo to me. The songs don’t all sound the same and seem all over the page musically. But each one works. Perhaps they don’t flow together as well as they could, but Weighty Ghost may very well be my favorite song of the year, if not for We’re From Barcelona.

8. Shepherd’s Dog by Iron & Wine
It’s Iron & Wine and Sam Beam. How are you going to go wrong? This is different than some of his earlier stuff. It’s much fuller musically with extra musicians and instruments. It sounds like an actual studio album as opposed to a guy in a rocking chair with a guitar whispering. But very good.

7. Lon Gisland by Beirut
Seth turned me onto these guys. And they’re pretty good. Although kind of hard to describe or compare anyone to. The best I could do would be to say 1970’s Russian, melodic, accordion-like carnival music. But that’s probably a bit off. They’re good. Listen and you’ll like. It’s a shame this was only an EP.

6. Cease to Begin by Band of Horses
Their first album was very good. This, their second, is great. These guys know what they’re doing. This album is very layered and deep with instrumentation. I don’t want to say it’s moody music. But it just feels heavy in relation to mood.

5. Icky Thump by The White Stripes
It’s The White Stripes. A band I hated at first but have grown to adore. These guys rock and I think Jack White may be 1 of the most creative guys out there. He produced Loretta Lynn’s last album for crying out loud. This is a good album all the way through. Perhaps the first one on my list that is solid all the way through without skipping. And Icky Thump is great. And the sound they experimented with on the electric guitar to sound like an 80’s keyboard is superb.

4. Girls & Boys by Ingrid Michaelson
I just heard it recently and despite the Old Navy song, this is a good album. Half Feist, half Regina. The songs aren’t as catchy as Feist but aren’t far off. They seem more like club/lounge songs, while Feist is more radio jingly.

3. Neon Bible by The Arcade Fire
The Arcade Fire are amazing. One of the most unique sounds out there. Their first album, Funeral, was much better. But that’s because it was one of the greatest albums of all time. It was a tough act to follow their first album, but this one is good. It’s actually a lot different in sound. Kind of sounds like a really good late 70s, early 80s band that quit making records only to show up in 2007 and make a follow-up. The best of both worlds.

2. Because of the Times by Kings of Leon
I’m not sure why Kings of Leon don’t get more notice. They’re borderline radio friendly. But they could definitely make it to some of the alternative/rock stations. And they’ve got a deep album portfolio that is all solid. They’re country boys (a couple of brothers and a cousin) who live in Tennessee. So basically southern rock. And they’re father was a traveling Pentecostal preacher. So think of those type of guys mixed with The Strokes. They’re not quite like The Strokes. Again, they’re very unique. But one of my more favorite bands. This is a good album to start with.

1. The Reminder by Feist
What more can you say? If you haven’t heard Feist, 1) you either live in a hole, or 2) are still listening to Snow Patrol’s Chasing Cars in loop on your local radio station. Although, if you watch Grey’s Anatomy or any other show that plays cool, trendy music . . . then you’ve heard Feist. I won’t give any commentary for them. I’ll only say this. If you haven’t listened to them, I’ll send you their CD free. And by free I mean I’ll send you a pirated copy.

© 2007 IAmJoshBrown.