The 11 Best Songs of 2011 (so far)

Today, the killer band Gomez gave our humble little blog a shout out on their Facebook page and stirred a frenzy of fans.  They argued whether our top eleven list accurately depicted their best songs. The issue shouldn't have been whether our list accurately depicted the band, it should have been could anyone make a list that would accurately depict their catalog.  I would argue that it would be impossible.  Music is such a personal experience, each person loves a band for a different reason.  Each person's list would reflect their own personal connection to the band.  The point of these lists is to never be the end-all, be-all authority on what the best songs are by a band (although it is a little ego-boosting when people love my lists), the point is to start a conversation.  I don't want to know what you don't like about my list.  I want to know what your favorite 11 songs would be.

So as we hit the half way point of 2011...let's hear what your favorite songs are so far.

Here are the 11 Best Songs of 2011 (so far):

1.  Shell Games - Bright Eyes
2.  Under The Cover of Darkness - The Strokes
3.  Get Away - Yuck
4.  Holdin' On For Black Metal - My Morning Jacket
5.  Virgin - Manchester Orchestra
6.  Uberlin - R.E.M.
7.  Future Starts Slow - The Kills
8.  This is Why We Fight - The Decemberists
9.  Under the Knife - The Rural Alberta Advantage
10.  Cool Out - Jeff the Brotherhood
11.  Dear Rosemary - Foo Fighters

Buy these songs now!!!

The 11 Best Side Project/Solo albums of 2011 (so far)

This week another project from the Dispatch family comes out.  Chad Urmston under the moniker Chadwick Stokes has a very strong solo release hitting the digital shelves.

Dispatch is a very interesting band considering their huge popularity on the east coast...while out on the west coast nobody even knows who they are.  It's rare to see a band whose popularity is regulated to a region of the country.  Even in today's digital world where everything should be equal, Dispatch still remains an east Coast legend while on the west coast they might as well be a unsigned act.  On the east coast they have a legion of die-hard dedicated fans and on the west coast they wouldn't even be on the guest list to their own concert.

This year, Chad isn't the only one branching out from his main band to go out on his own.  Here's a list of the best side projects and solo albums so far.

Here are the 11 Best Side Project/Solo albums of 2011 (so far):

1.  Middle Brother - Middle Brother (Dawes, Deer Tick, Delta Spirit) - Daydreaming live
2.  Radical Dads - Mega Rama (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah)
3.  David Lowery - The Palace Guards (Cracker)
4.  The Elected - Bury Me In My Rings (Rilo Kiley)
5.  Chadwick Stokes - Simmerkane II (State Radio, Dispatch)
6.  Panda Bear - Tomboy (Animal Collective)
7.  Eddie Vedder - Ukelele Songs (Pearl Jam)
8.  Fruit Tree Foundations - First Edition (Idlewild, Twilight Sad, Frightened Rabbit)
9.  Graham Wright - Shirts vs. Skins (Tokyo Police Club)
10.  Miracle Parade - Hark and Other Lost Transmissions (Everyday Visuals, Rilo Kiley)
11.  Alex Turner - Submarine EP (Arctic Monkeys)

Buy Chadwick Stokes - Simmerkane II now!

The 11 Best Debut Albums of 2011 (so far)

All these albums are solid and every one of these artists is someone you should keep your eye on.  But there's one artist in particular I want to point attention to and that's The Weeknd.  An unknown artist who came from nowhere that has taken the blog world by storm with his first mix-tape/album.  Here's the kicker...he's giving it away for free.  What is original about the debut isn't just the music itself but the method in which he's distributing it.  The Weeknd has all but abandoned the traditional style of distributing music and fully embraced the 21st century.  Without a publicist or marketing department, he's managed to become well-known all on his own.  While the major labels are fighting tooth and nail for the fraction of floor space left on retail floors, the new emerging artists are passing them by...by embracing the future.

The 11 Best Debut Albums of 2011 (so far):


1.  Yuck - Yuck
2.  James Blake - James Blake
3.  The Head and the Heart - The Head and the Heart
4.  The Weeknd - House of Balloons
5.  Foster the People - Torches
6.  The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar
7.  The Naked and Famous - Young Blood
8.  The Vaccines - What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?
9.  Cults - Cults 
10.  Ringo Deathstar - Colour Trip 
11.  EMA - Past Life Martyred Saints

Get The Weeknd's album, House of the Balloons for free!

The 11 Best Songs By Gomez

If you read this blog you know that I really respect bands who try to evolve rather stay stuck in the same groove over and over.  Gomez is one of those bands that’s been evolving from day one.  Even on their debut, I remember friends initially discouraged by them because they thought the band was struggling to find their sound.  But they weren't struggling at all, their revolving style was their signature sound.  In the 90s, when Brit pop was defined by a bunch of bands trying to water down the Beatles…Gomez took what was expected of their genre and turned it upside-down.  Seven albums later, the band has consistently re-invented themselves making their chaotic evolution their niche.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Gomez:

1.  Silence (Split The Difference)

2.  Shot Shot (In Our Gun)

3.  How We Operate (How We Operate)

4.  Win Park Slope (New Tide)

5.  Buena Vista (Abandoned Shopping Trolley Hotline)

6.  Whipping Picadilly (Bring It On)

7.  Bone Tired (New Tide)

8.  Rie's Wagon (Bring It On)

9.  Get Myself Arrested (Bring It On)

10.  Revolutionary Kind (Liquid Sun)
11.  Hamoa Beach (How We Operate)

Buy Gomez's new album, Whatever's On Your Mind, now!!

The 11 Best Songs By Bon Iver

This weekend, our culture lost two sidemen.  Two sidemen that may have been small parts of a bigger machine, but were integral to that machine's distinct existence.  First and foremost was the loss of Clarence Clemmons, the infamous sax man from the E Street band.  Usually, a sax player is a last second thought and is only thrown into the song to add texture.  But Clemmons added more than flavor.  He added melody...he added a unique sound that didn't just enhance Bruce's gritty songwriting, it elevated his songs to another level. Clemmons sax solos in Bruce's songs are as memorable as the songs themselves...and many times...they are the reason they are memorable.

Ryan Dunn may not have been as integral to the show Jackass...but his input added a certain camaraderie.  As a friend of Bam's, they fed off each other, and created pacing and tone that turned stupid idiots doing stupid idiotic things into an art form on par with Looney Tunes and the physical comedy of the silent movie era.  Jackass may not be the Bruce Springsteen of our generation...but when their movies outgross all the other movies at the box office they're definitely impacting our society.

You may wonder why I would include Ryan Dunn (from Jackass) in a memorial for Clarence Clemmons.  The better question is why am I using them to preview a best of songs for Bon Iver.  Justin Vernon took a few months in a cabin and released Bon Iver's debut...considered of the most important albums of the past decade.  He instantly became one of the most used sidemen in the business.  He had multiple side projects (Gayngs, Volcano Choir, Anais Mitchell), made appearances in the unlikeliest of places (Eau Claire High School Jazz Band, S. Carey, Kayne West) and even dropped in to be a part of the Twilight Soundtrack craze.  In our society, sometimes front men get all the credit.  It's not that they don't deserve credit but many of them could not have done it without a supporting staff.  Kayne's latest album uses Justin Vernon through-out it, creating a pace, a tone, and elevating it to his best release to date.  Kayne should get most of the credit...but even the best can't do it alone.  Maybe that's why Vernon hired himself a band this time around.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Bon Iver:

1.  Skinny Love (For Emma, Forever Ago)
2.  Blindsided (For Emma, Forever Ago)
3.  For Emma (For Emma, Forever Ago)
4.  Bruised Orange (Broken Hearts and Dirty Windows)
5.  Flume (For Emma, Forever Ago)
6.  Bracket, WI (Dark Was The Night)
7.  Creature Fear (For Emma, Forever Ago)
8.  Blood Bank (Blood Bank)
9.  Come Talk To Me (7-inch split with Peter Gabriel)
10.  Re: Stacks (For Emma, Forever Ago)
11.  Wisconsin (For Emma Bonus Track)

Buy Bon Iver's new self-titled album now!!!

GBU: Free Music Fridays - Warm Weather EP

I have done a free Friday in awhile.  Stumbled upon this EP this week courtesy of I Guess I'm Floating.  Have to say I was very impressed.  It's light, dancy, and has the perfect summertime vibe.  I'm sure we will be hearing a lot more from these guys in the very near future.  You know that I rarely pitch new bands...so take note.

Get Warm Weather - Dances EP - FREE!!

The 11 Best Songs By Sebadoh

There are some albums that not only define a band’s career, they define an entire genre.  When it comes to lo-fi, in my opinion, nothing tops Sebadoh’s Bakesale.  Being re-issued this week with another 25 bonus songs, it’s the perfect example of doing more with less.  Some people might argue for one of the Doh’s early releases like III or Smash Your Head…even Bubble and Scrape are a better example.  Many will say that by Bakesale, the band had already sold out.  But making more accessible music and staying lo-fi aren’t necessarily opposites.  On Bakesale, The Doh kept their less is more mentality while pushing the creative mastery to the point of perfection.  Bakesale is so good…it redefined the genre they had helped create.

That’s why when doing this list, it would have been unfair to include the songs from Bakesale because the list would have literally been the tracklist to Bakesale…just in a slightly different order.  So, today we give Bakesale the notoriety it deserves and look at the rest of the best.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Sebadoh...minus Bakesale:

1.  Think (Bubble and Scrape)
2.  Soul and Fire (Bubble and Scrape)
3.  Willing To Wait (Harmacy)
4.  Beauty of the Ride (Harmacy)
5.  Vampire (Smash Your Head On The Punk Rock)
6.  Spoiled (III)
7.  Everybody's Been Burned (Smash Your Head On The Punk Rock)
8.  Love Is Stronger (The Sebadoh)
9.  The Freed Pig (III)
10.  On Fire (Harmacy)
11.  Thrive (The Sebadoh)

Buy Sebadoh's reissue of Bakesale...now!

The 11 Best Songs By Woods

There’s a gift at being good at being lo-fi.  Just because you have a 4-track in your bedroom and a guitar doesn’t mean that you have what it takes.  In fact, it’s probably harder to be a good lo-fi artist than it is to be a mainstream pop artist.  Yes, you heard that right.  In a genre where less is more, there are no bells or whistles to cover up your faults.  You have to be good at the most basic level of music.  Lo-fi artists are like bikini models.  Just because you have a cute face and a dream isn’t enough. When you strip down and take everything off, if you’re not able to hold your own…you’re left out on your own. 

Woods has made a solid career of doing more with less.  Basked in the days of bands like early Sebadoh and Daniel Johnston, they return with the biggest and best album to date.

Here are the 11 best songs by Woods:

1.  Suffering Season (At Echo Lake)
2.  Rain On (Songs Of Shame)
3.  Death Rattles (At Echo Lake)
4.  Military Madness (Songs Of Shame)
5.  Bone Tapper (At Rear House)
6.  Broke (How To Survive + In The Woods)
7.  Blood Dries Darker (At Echo Lake)
8.  Time Fading Lines (At Echo Lake)
9.  Be Still (At Rear House)
10.  Til the Sun Rips (At Echo Lake)
11.  To Clean (Songs Of Shame)

Songs compliments of Daytrotter.


Buy Woods new album, Sun and Shade...now!!

The 11 Best Guest Spots By Eminem of the 00s

It's great to see rock stars who don't take themselves too seriously.  This week, the Foo Fighters tour rider was leaked to the internet.  For those who don't know, a tour rider gives venues specifics on what artists want in their dressing room when it comes to food and drink...and what accommodations they need for their crew.  Nothing too scandalous for the Foos, in fact, their rider makes me like them even more.  Instead of sending a typical tour rider, telling venues what they wanted in things like...words, the Foos sent out a coloring book.  You check it out here at the smoking gun.

As serious and as angry as rock music can be at times, it's refreshing to see artists having a little fun with their celebrity-hood. Eminem is also one who likes to play a joke here and there.  In fact, he's the first one in line when it comes to making fun of his own fame.  And it doesn't stop when it comes to the humor on Em's new EP with Royce 5'9".

Here are the 11 Best Guest Spots by Eminem of the 00s:

1.      Renegade (Jay-Z - Blueprint)

2.      Outro (Obie Trice - Cheers)

3.      Gatman And Robbin (50 Cent – The Massacre)

4.      Drama Setter (Tony Yayo – Thoughts of A Predicated Felon)

5.      We Ain’t (The Game – The Documentary)

6.      It Has Been Said (Notorious B.I.G. – Duets The Final Chapter)

7.      Don’t Approach Me (Xzibit – Restless)

8.      On Fire (Lloyd Banks – Hunger For More)

9.      Rush Ya Clique (Outsidaz – Night Life EP)

10.  Chemical Warfare (The Alchemist – Chemical Warfare)

11.  Touchdown (T.I. – T.I. vs TP)

Buy Eminem's new collaboration album with Royce 5'9"...Bad Meets Evil:  Hell the Sequel.

The 11 Best Songs By Fucked Up

Many musicians say their only in bands for the music.  Most of them are liars.  At the end of the day, most musical artists would love to be atop the charts while driving around in a Ferrari and sleeping in a hot tub with swimsuit models.  You know what band really means it when they say it?  Fucked Up.  It’s not because of their epic twelve hour concerts or their endless supply of 7-inch singles in a digital world.  It’s the fact that they’re called…Fucked Up!  You’re not getting radio play with that name.  Target and Walmart are not going to carry your albums.  And there’s no way anyone on American Idol is going to be covering your tunes…no matter how poppy or catchy they are.  Fucked Up doesn’t have to worry about that.  Their music a crushing wave of massive punk, filled with all the energy that’s missing from music today.  While the mainstream is striving for vanilla ice cream, Fucked Up delivers a monster truck.  Daring doesn’t do the band justice.  Calling them cutting edge would just be insulting.  Fucked Up is fucked up…and it fits them perfectly.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Fucked Up:

1.  David Comes To Life (Hidden World)
2.  Son of the Father (Chemistry of Common Life)
3.  Invisible Leader (Hidden World)
4.  Black Albino Bones (Chemistry of Common Life)
5.  Teenage Problems (Couple Tracks)
6.  Fate of Fates (Hidden World)
7.  Police (Epic In Minutes)
8.  Toronto FC (Couple Tracks)
9.  Magic Word (Chemistry of Common Life) 
10.  Porcelain on Porcelain (David's Town)
11.  Circling The Drain (Epic In Minutes)

Buy Fucked Up's new punk opera, David Comes To Life...now!!