BOOM! The penultimate round up of 2010, includes brothers and sisters from NME, The Guardian, Vice and Getintothis offering their thoughts on the year in music.
Andy Kelly: Getintothis Contributor:
Andy’s Top 10 Albums:
1. Neil Young: Le Noise
Andy said: ‘Just Neil and an astonishing production job from Daniel Lanois, this album feels like a career summary, dealing with all the big issues of love, death and war. The old git’s best for a long time.‘
2. The National: High Violet
‘One of those records that just sounds like it has always existed, exuding effortless majesty.The band stole the show with their set at Latitude too.‘
3. Belle & Sebastian: Write About Love
‘The God Help the Girl side project hinted that a major return to form was coming and it was duly delivered with this, their best since If You’re Feeling Sinister.‘
4. The Besnard Lakes: Are The Roaring Night
‘While the world waits to see if Kevin Shields‘ long awaited reworking of MBV‘s Loveless will finally emerge (it remains on Jan 2011 release schedules at the mo’) Besnard Lakes take his dream-noise template, throw in a few Fleetwood Mac-style harmonies and deliver a modern classic.‘
5. Dean and Britta: 13 Most Beautiful Songs For Andy Warhol’s Screen Tests
‘Dean Wareham continues the Velvets obsession evident in his Galaxie 500 and Luna years, soundtracking an exhibition of Warhol’s silent screen tests with these atmospheric gems aided by long-term collaborator Britta Philips. “I’m not a young man anymore,” was all too resonant!‘
6. Phosphorescent: Here’s To Taking It Easy
‘Here’s to making the best alt country album of the year complete with a great vocal from Matthew Houck. Another great export from Athens, Georgia‘
7. Avi Buffalo: Avi Buffalo
‘If the record didn’t quite match the quality of their festival-opening turn at May’s ATP, it confirmed we had a new guitar hero in our midst. That high-pitched vocal will no doubt continue to divide opinion.‘
8. John Grant: Queen Of Denmark
The ex-Czars front man finds redemption backed by Midlake with a beautiful album of piano/keyboard-led ballads and singer-songwriter MOR. Wonderful gig at Static Gallery this year too.
9. LCD Soundsystem: This Is Happening
‘Didn’t quite live up to Sound of Silver but it’s my grower of the year, more of James Murphy’s seemingly never-ending ideas emerging with every listen.‘
10. Yeasayer: Odd Blood
‘Suspect it wasn’t quite what most fans were expecting but this is a genuinely great pop record.‘
Andy’s Special Mentions:
1. Mogwai: Special Moves
‘Only misses out on the top 10 because it’s a live album rather than new material but the Kings of Post Rock used these three nights in Brooklyn to remind everyone they’re not prepared to give up their crown without a fight, no doubt one starting slowly and building into a cacophonous ruck of a finale.‘
2. Perfume Genius: Perfume Genius
‘Lo-fi, dark pop vignettes with one of the tracks of the year in Mr Peterson.‘
Andy Malt: CMU Daily editor
Andy’s Top 5 Albums:
1. Steve Mason: Boys Outside
Andy said: ‘I’ve been such a big fan of Steve’s whole solo career, he having previously recorded as King Biscuit Time and Black Affair, so it’s great to finally see him make a proper go of it. And with such a great album, too.‘
2. Janelle Monáe: The ArchAndroid
‘This album is incredible, so inventive and with a concept running through it that teeters on the edge of genius and insanity. Janelle’s voice is absolutely stunning and so versatile.‘
3. The National: High Violet
‘This record is quietly brilliant. It’s just so understated, but each song resonates so much. There’s something about the frequency of Matt Berninger‘s low voice that’s completely disarming.‘
4. Tinie Tempah: Disc-Overy
‘This is the first album to really successfully pull current UK undergound sounds together and mix them with mainstream pop. I think it marks a real turning pop music. ‘
5. Sleigh Bells: Treats
‘Unlike Tinie Tempah, I don’t think Sleigh Bells are going to have any great influence on the mainstream, but this is a great pop album nonetheless. Great and noisy.‘
Andy Top 5 Tracks:
1. Emika: Drop The Other
‘I have been head over heels in love with this song for pretty much exactly twelve months, ever since the first time I heard it. Really dark R&B. I just wish she’d hurry up and release an album.‘
2. Deftones: Rocket Skates (M83 Remix)
I love Deftones, I love M83. Hence, the combination of both is almost too much to bear. This is such a brilliant remix, creating a totally new track while keeping the essence of the original.
3. Katy B: Katy On A Mission
‘Similarly to Tinie Tempah, I think this track is a precursor to the sort of sounds we’re going to see much more of in the charts in 2011. I love Katy B‘s voice on this track and her intonation on certain words. Brilliant.‘
4. James Blake: Limit To Your Love
‘I have to admit, I’ve not been the massive fan of James Blake‘s other releases that everyone else seems to have been. But, my god, the vocal on this track; it’s stunning.‘
5. The Hundred In The Hands: Commotion
‘I can’t put into words how happy this song makes me feel. Aside from the amazing chorus hook, there’s something about the line “I measure my length along the ground” that grabs me firmly by the ears.‘
Andy’s Memorable Moments:
1. The National playing unamplified in Brixton Academy, November:
Andy said: ‘For the final song of their set, Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks, The National positioned themselves to take full advantage of the acoustics in the 5000 capacity Brixton Academy and played completely unamplified to a silent audience. It was every bit as amazing as that sounds.‘
2. Warpaint mid-song technical collapse, November
‘A guitar stopped working mid-song when Warpaint played The Scala recently. Most bands would have stopped, but while half the band fixed it, the other half went into a drum and vocal improvisation that ended up improving the song.‘
3. Shane MacGowan at the NME Awards, February
‘Shane MacGowan came on stage to introduce the video for his Haiti charity single holding a large portrait of Bobby Gillespie and proceeded to babble incomprehensibly for at least a minute before anyone thought to stop him.‘
4. Rage Against The Machine‘s free show in Finsbury Park, June
‘Getting Rage Against The Machine to Christmas number one last year was a bit of a laugh. They clearly thought it was more important than that, which made the overblown intro video to this show quite funny. The greatest hits set they played was brilliant, though.‘
5. Alan Moore‘s Unearthing, August
‘With live musical backing from Adam ‘Doseone’ Drucker, Jeff ‘Jel’ Logan and Fog‘s Andrew Broder, legendary comic writer Alan Moore delivered a three hour biography of one of his friends in a derelict tunnel under Waterloo station. How’s that for memorable?‘
http://www.thecmuwebsite.com/daily/
Andy Capper: Vice Magazine editor
Andy’s Top 5 Abums of the Year:
1. Bishop Perry Tillis: Times Like These
2. Crass: The Feeding Of Five Thousand (reissue)
3. Rick Ross: The Albert Anastasia EP
4. Gucci Mane: The Appeal
5. Integrity: The Blackest Curse
Andy’s Events of 2010:
1. Andy said: ‘Watching Liverpool beat Manchester United 2-0 in the Kop with my brother, Ben.‘
2. ‘Training with 2 Para at the fake Afghan village in Norwich.‘
3. ‘Eyehategod at ULU then corresponding five day after-party.‘
4. ‘Going to Liverpool ever few weeks to to film Beautiful Liverpool, the follow up to Swansea Love Story.‘
5. ‘Having front row seats at Charles Taylor vs Naomi Campbell at The Hague.‘
http://www.viceland.com/uk/
Stephen Kelly: NME, Guardian and Getintothis contributor:
1. These New Puritans: Hidden
2. Janelle Monae: The ArchAndroid
3. The Arcade Fire: The Suburbs
4. The National: High Violet
5. Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
http://www.nme.com/home
Liza Williams: Getintothis Contributor
1. Arcade Fire: The Suburbs
2. LCD Soundsystem: This is Happening
3. Belle and Sebastian: Write About Love
4. The National: High Violet
5. Best Coast: Crazy For You
Jamie Bowman: Mojo and Getintothis contributor
1. Wolf People: Steeple
‘A towering highpoint of 2010 for me was Wolf People’s brilliant and uniquely English debut. A wonderfully fuzzy and warm mixture of late sixties folk rock, mystic metal and Wicker Man weirdness. Bits of Jethro Tull, Fairport Convention and even Black Sabbath all shared a cider with the modern rockist sludginess of Black Mountain. Explosive drummer Tom Watt even gave the whole a thing a surprising funkiness. They even named a song after my Berkshire hometown Dorney Reach to seal the deal.‘
2. Beach House: Teen Dream:
‘Lovely wide-eyed epic dream pop from this very cool Baltimore duo. Gallic singer Victoria Legrand gave the whole experience an icy Nico-esque allure while the chiming haze of guitars recalled the best of Galaxie 500 and the narcotic splendour of Spiritualized.‘
3. Mugstar: Lime
‘Liverpool’s Mugstar just get better and better and this wonderful second album was a noisy, epic and quite brilliant highlight of 2010. Huge slabs of keyboards fought battles with frenzied riffing and pummelling bass with delicate moments of ambience showing these boys were not just all about sturm and dang.‘
4. Wooden Shjips: Vol. 2
‘I’m cheating a bit here as this was a compilation of singles and rarities from the San Franciscan psychsters but sod it. Fuzzy grooves that seem to go on forever played by very hairy men is an easy sell in my book but these chaps are leaders in a widening field. Features a mental cover of Neil Young‘s Vampire Blues.‘
5. Steve Mason: Boys Outside:
‘Mason’s best work since the still much lamented Beta Band saw him collaborate with pop producer Richard X to stunning effect on this collection of hook laden brilliance. What made the album so affecting was the combination of Mason’s sad musings and fragile mind set combined with the technicolor backing of X’s R’n’B sheen.‘
http://www.mojo4music.com/blog/
John Maher: Getintothis contributor
John’s Top 5 Albums:
1. Plan B The Defamation of Strickland Banks (679)
2. Yeasayer: Odd Blood (EMI)
3. Delorean: Subiza (True Panther)
4. Mount Kimbie: Crooks & Lovers (Hotflush)
5. The Gaslamp Killer: Deathgate (Brainfeeder)
John’s Top 5 Singles:
Singles:
1. Jamie Woon: Night Air (Candent)
2. Holy Fuck: Red Lights (Young Turks)
3. Tensnake: Coma Cat (Permanent Vacation)
4. Brookes Brothers: Last Night (Breakbeat Kaos)
5. Holly Miranda: Waves (XL)
John’s Top 5 Gigs:
1. Kitty, Daisy and Lewis: Zanzibar, Liverpool
2. Wild Beasts: The Kazimier, Liverpool
3. Four Tet: Academy, Manchester
4. Motor City Drum Ensemble: The Masque Theatre, Liverpool
5. ‘This mad gypsy punk night in Prague I can’t remember the name of.‘
Orla Foster: Getintothis Contributor
Orla’s Top 10 Albums:
1. Weezer: Pinkerton (Reissue)
Orla said: ‘Death by The Good Life? Maybe. And could there be a finer way to die? No.‘
2. Best Coast: Crazy For You
‘Wistful melodies and endless reverb brought sunshine into a summer which many of us probably spent sat in front of a monitor in a dark room.‘
3. John Grant: Queen Of Denmark
‘Midlake took this forlorn singer-songwriter under their wing and made his record into a thing of beauty.‘
4. Ash: A-Z series
‘Ambitious and ultimately rather flawed grand project which, all the same, brightened up inboxes across the land on a fortnightly basis.‘
5. Cherry Ghost: This Burning Shoreline
‘A winter warmer from Bolton’s finest folk-tinged sons.‘
Orla’s Top 10 Tracks:
1. The Coral: Butterfly House
Orla said: ‘Swooning, sixties-influenced melodies to transcend any drab afternoon.‘
2. Beach House: Walk In The Park
‘See above.‘
3. Kanye West: Blame Game
‘Unlikely collision of of Avril 14th, soap opera and Kanye’s irrepressible ego-tinged wit.‘
4. Arcade Fire: Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)
‘Stand-out track from sprawling 2010 release.‘
5. Fabienne Delsol: On My Mind
‘Weightless retro-pop you suspect someone fished out of a charity shop treasure trunk.‘
Mike Doherty: The Fly & Getintothis contributor
Mike’s Top 5 Albums:
1. The National: High Violet
2. Foals: Total Life Forever
3. Capac: Pastels
4. Tallest Man on Earth: The Wild Hunt
5. Gil Scott-Heron: I’m New Here
Mike’s Memorable Moments:
‘I’ve had the pleasure of seeing four of these five acts live in 2010, Foals and Gil-Scott Heron on the same night. I just needed The National to announce a Christmas Day gig in town then everything would have been complete – but you can’t have everything.
Mike’s Top 5 Tracks:
1. The Twilight Sad: The Room (Mogwai Remix)
2. Music Go Music: Explorers of the Heart
3. The Vaccines: Blow It Up
4. Civil Civic: Run Overdrive
5. Chapel Club: All The Eastern Girls
http://www.the-fly.co.uk/
Amy Roberts: Getintothis contributor
Amy’s Top 5 Albums:
1. Gil Scott-Heron: I’m New Here
2. Male Bonding: Nothing Hurts
3. Marnie Stern: Marnie Stern
4. Scout Niblett: The Calcination Of Scout Niblett
5. The Big Four: Slayer, Metallica, Anthrax and Megadeath: Live In Sofia
Amy’s Top 5 Gigs:
1. Hole: Academy, Manchester
Amy said: ‘Courtney Love might be a massive dickhead, and a vaguely talentless one at that, but the 14 year old girl in me still practically pissed herself with joy at this gig. So f*ck off.‘ (Getintothis review)
2. Organ Freeman: Chew Disco (Vol 8), The Shipping Forecast, Liverpool
‘Shit-core Wirral upstarts Organ Freeman turned up, stripped down to some ridiculous rent-boy style tighties and practically tore the place down. Worth it alone for the synchronicity of the awful/wonderful Dracula Dance. ‘
3. Japandroids, Apple Cannon, Cold Ones: Korova, Liverpool
‘Russ from Cold Ones hanging from the rafters, ear bleeding noise from Apple Cannon and Japandroids on a total high-octane and nearly exhausting charm offensive. Made me want Japandroids babies. True story. ‘
4. Blood Red Shoes, Titus Andronicus, Male Bonding, Crocodiles: The Zanzibar, Liverpool:
‘Hotter than hell, Blood Red Shoes were a bit of a let down, but every other band was blazing. At the peak of iverpool Sound City 2010, this gig packed out The Zanzibar and had one buzz of an electric atmosphere.‘
5. Teeth, Is Tropical, New Young Pony Club: Korova, Liverool
‘I don’t know what it was about this gig considering I’m not so into NYPC, but they fucking killed it. Teeth and Is Tropical too were on top form, with the former starting an amateur circle pit which warmed my heart. Even the auld ones at the back were dancing. ‘
Matt Eland: Getintothis contributor:
1. Pulled Apart by Horses: Pulled Apart by Horses
2. Grinderman: Grinderman 2
3. Wavves: King of the Beach
4. The National: High Violet
5. Los Campesinos: Romance Is Boring
Dave Monks: Radio Merseyside
1. The Coral: Butterfly House
2. Chief: Modern Rituals
3. Cherry Ghost: Beneath this burning shoreline
4. The Hundred In The Hands: The Hundred In The Hands
5. Broken Bells: Broken Bells
6. The Drums: The Drums
7. Magic Theatre: London Town
8. Shellsuit: Shellsuit
9. Maps & Atlases: Perch Patchwerk
http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/liverpool/hi/tv_and_radio/
Robin Brown: Seven Streets Co-Editor
Robin’s Top 5 Albums:
1. Interpol: Interpol (Robin said: ‘Generally depressing‘)
2. Steve Mason: Boys Outside (‘Mainly depressing‘)
3. Vampire Weekend: Contra (‘Not depressing‘)
4. Salem: King Night (‘Depressing and terrifying‘)
5. Dangermouse and Sparklehorse: Dark Night Of The Soul
Robin said: ‘I feel like I should’ve included some Liverpool bands but that scene left me too far behind a while ago. By next year I’ll probably have a decent ‘best Liverpool albums of 2010’ sorted out. Obviously a shout to Forest Swords is required, but it seems like so much nepotism.
http://www.sevenstreets.com/
Craig Pennington: Bido Lito! editor
1. The Soft Pack: The Soft Pack
2. Steve Mason: Boys Outside
3. Best Coast: Crazy For You
4. The Coral: Butterfly House
5. The Black Angels: Phosphene Dream
Craig’s Top Gigs:
1. The Sand Band: Static Gallery, October
2. The Soft Pack: Korova, February
3. The Brian Jonestown Massacre: Academy, Manchester, May
4. Various Artists at Inside Pages Festival: Static Gallery, Liverpool October
5. Wild Beasts: The Kazimier, Liverpool, May
http://www.bidolito.co.uk/
David Lloyd: Seven Streets co-Editor
1. Arcade Fire: Suburbs
2. Junip: Fields
3. Forest Swords: Dagger Paths
4. Future Islands: In Evening Air
5. Laurie Anderson: Homeland
