better late?

over christmas, when grad schools apps should have been the primary focus, this little puppy was all i thought about. after all, my solitary thoughts on what i enjoyed this year are clearly of utmost importance. people are just dying to know. so, four months later, here they are! guess timeliness is a resolution to adopt next year.

top ten albums of 2010

1) joanna newsom—have one on me

clearly, this album was in my top ten. yet i’m not quite sure what to say about have one on me. it’s so grandiose, there are songs that i’ve heard, but still don’t really know at all. (that’s probably also a sign of my unceasing inability to focus). but that's part of its charm--how a song seems to sound slightly more exotic and interesting when you don't quite know it by heart. there's no way i could ever catch every subtlety on that album, so i expect to remain mystified/intrigued by it for years to come.

2) beach house—teen dream

at the start of 2010, i was decidedly not a beach house fan. devotion was merely okay in my book—subtle, pretty music always seems to take a backseat to sledgehammer-strong pop hooks. while snowbound in chapel hill one weekend, though, i spent the weekend listening to the new album. by monday, all i wanted to do was drive around listening to ‘used to be’. the rest of the album proved to be just as good—summer, snow, or sun.

3) kanye—my beautiful dark twisted fantasy

kanye’s back. finally! after waiting for him to deliver for the past three years, his newest vision is so over-the-top, it’s still blowing my mind. grandiose barely begins to describe it—who else would put an auto-tuned bon iver to work? (side note: and who honestly thought that auto-tuned bon iver was worth a shit? but add a gil scott-heron track, and hey presto! actually pretty compelling stuff.) i wouldn’t say that kanye’s rapping is really any better, but his ability to meld different genres and recruit an awesome roster of mcs is what really makes the album great.

4) the love language—libraries

if anything sounds like chapel hill and/or summer, it’s the love language. and what’s more exciting for a chapel hill band than getting signed to merge, the hometown heroes’ label? the love language’s major indie debut, while probably not one of the best-selling (or best-known) albums of the year, has become my go-to in almost every weather and mood. stuart mclamb’s reverb-drenched vocals, the sweet organ, and irresistible pop hooks sound just as good in the mountains as they do on rosemary street.

5) arcade fire—the suburbs

what’s there to say about the arcade fire? they always deliver, at least in my book. this summer’s album was no exception—with surprisingly dance-y songs like ‘sprawl ii’, along with songs that are just now starting to sink in. it was also really nice to see win butler take a (slightly) less self-righteous stance in his lyrics—living in the suburbs isn’t always an exclusively awful thing. after all, once in a while everybody needs something from target, yeah?

welp, it appears i’ve run out of albums i truly enjoyed in 2010. so, maybe on to those that i should have heard?

6) wild nothing—gemini

dude’s from right up the road in blacksburg, which is intriguing. the only bands i’ve heard of from hokieland are of the frat persuasion: not nearly as interesting. i’m not really into shoegaze, but wild nothing’s quick rise to prominence has me curious.

7) best coast—crazy for you

so the above statement was fallacious: i heard this album, listened to it a good bit during the month of september. and actually really liked it! but let’s be honest: there’s a reason best coast is a buzz band. the album is hugely front-loaded, and by the end of it, all the girl group vocals and weed references in the world couldn’t entertain me. she just spent thirty recorded minutes being totally fixated on…a dude. it’s 2010! there are so many awesome/important things out there…to be writing similar songs, all about being unrequitedly in love with a guy, is lame. especially when said dude is wavves. still, her sound fuses a really interesting combination of past & present that i find really great. plus, after reading her appearance in pitchfork’s ‘guest list’ column, i think we’d probably be besties.

8) deerhunter—halcyon digest

another band i hate hate hated. and then my guy friends opened for them in 2008, right after microcastle came out—so i had to go see them. not sure if it was the new songs or the three minibottles of wine i had, but they were awesome—just the right fusion of hazy doo-wop vocals, awesome guitar, and arty, druggy noise. they opened for spoon when i was in alabama this past spring, and were pretty incredible—maybe even deserved the headlining slot. bradford cox has a really interesting way of approaching pop hooks, which has hopefully gotten even better on the new album.

9) sufjan—the age of adz

sorry, sufjan. i wanted to be in love with the new album, i really did. and it was pretty good, the little i heard. but, you were just a victim of unfortunate timing—coming in the mail the same day as the new kanye, you never really stood a chance. maybe you’ll be the first big thing in 2011? (note: nope, arthur russell.)

10) big boi—sir lucious left foot

top ten tracks of 2010

1) girls—carolina

yeah, i’m late to the party on this one. but it’s so wonderful, and the new ep is just…everything magical about music, wrapped into one pretty, sad package. bonus: anything that reps (even mentions) the old north state (and, ok, its far-inferior southern sister) is sure to win my heart.

2) the xx—intro

this could go for almost any track on the album—while it won’t change anyone’s life, it sure is sexy.

3) the love language—heart to tell

...and their merge debut definitely didn’t disappoint. with a track for every mood, and enough reverbed vocals to sink a ship, libraries was my singalong favorite of 2010. the first single was exactly what i love about pop music: addictively catchy, eminently danceable, with witty lyrics.

4) joanna—good intentions paving co.

any other day of the week, i’d say ‘good intentions’ was the best pop song joni mitchell ever wrote--travel’s used as a metaphor for relationships, just like court & spark or hejira. but it’s 2010, and just another bit of brilliance from joanna.

5) best coast—crazy for you

see? i wasn’t hating on best coast earlier. i truly did obsess over this song for a good two weeks—its retro guitar jangle was just too much for my inner girl to deny. plus, though she’s certainly no shakespeare, the lyrics capture that sense of giddy inertia that comes with the beginning of a relationship.

6) arcade fire—sprawl ii

my roommate still comments on how much i listen to this song--which is fair. it was on repeat for about a month this summer, which is about as much playtime as it deserved. so, so good.

7) beach house—walk in the park

is stevie knicks still in the game? because this song reeks of vintage fleetwood mac. this ultimately became my favorite track off teen dream.

8) kanye west—monster

out of all the outrageous tracks on the new album, this one’s only outdone by the one about the porn star. jay-z, rick ross, bon iver, and nicki minaj—who i normally detest, but actually manages to blow everyone else out of the water? jeez. plus, the most ludicrously hilarious line: have ya ever had sex with a pharaooooooooooh?

9) rihanna--what's my name

I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW. rihanna? really? her? really. i like her new sound...kinda dark and trashy good fun. still not impressed with drake, though. unnecessary 69 reference? lame.

10) tennis--marathon

this song is SO. FREAKIN'. CUTE. haven't heard the rest of their stuff, but this kept me bopping to work all of august.

partie deux to come.