Favorite Albums of 2004

1

The Futureheads
The Futureheads
Sire

The Futureheads has been the only non-Roc-A-Fella release that I was excited enough to go and buy on its release date in fucking for-ev-er. I first heard these Brits on the amazing Rough Trade Shops' Post Punk Volume 1 compilation. Although their contribution, a 7" version of the punchy Jam-sendup "Robot," became a personal mixtape staple, I was slow to research 'em and just assumed they were another in the long line of obscure 70's post-punk castoffs. Not so.

This, their debut LP, pulses with manic energy; guitars skitter and tempos shift without a concern for staid verse-chorus-verse structure. Hardly without touchstones (Gang of Four, Wire, The Jam, etc), The Futureheads establish their sound with a refreshing focus on melody. Vocal harmonies abound here and it makes for one of the most propulsive and dynamic rock
albums in recent memory.

An impressive, exciting debut.

Hounds of Love

2

Madvillain
Madvillainy
Stones Throw

There were massive expectations in the benz n' a backpack set for this one. Both Doomer and Madlib had been teetering a little too close to Ryan Adams on the prolific-ness scale leading up to this release, but lo and behold Madvillainy was a blunted-out masterpiece just like the kids banked on. Metal Face shows off a new stunted flow (altogether different from the manic Doom heard on leaked versions of the album) that just makes digesting crazy shit like "written in cold blood with a toothpick" that much easier.

"Best MC with no chain you eva heard" indeed.

Figaro


3

Devendra Banhart
Rejoicing in the Hands
Young God

The pre-'04 Devendra was all Tiny Tim ramshackle and the shit was just uncomfortable to listen to. Apparently, most of his material before Rejoicing had only been released because of consistent urging from his hippie friends and those at Young God. It's not altogether a surprise, then, that his two albums this year sound light years more focused. Turning the quiver knob considerably down, Devendra thankfully ditches kitschy melodrama and puts together a consistent album of stripped-down, fragile, finger-pickin' beauty.

This is the Way

4

Ghostface Killah
The Pretty Toney Album
Def Jam

"It's so motherfuckin' soulful man."

Holla

5

Joanna Newsom
The Milk-Eyed Mender
Drag City

The power to turn J. Beaumont's tide of hate ain't nothin' to scoff at. A divisive character in indie-geek circles (refreshingly unique angel or pouty, grating elf?), Newsom sinks or swims depending on how ya feel about her wildly fey vocals. I tend to embrace a considerably broad spectrum of vocal styles and don't place much stock in relative on-keyness, making the histrionics of The Milk-Eyed Mender seem more like enthusiastic sincerity than talentless pretension.

Whether the vocals make or break your enjoyment of the album, the harp playing (mostly unaccompanied) is prickly and gorgeous and should be heard by every boy and girl in the neighborhood. See for yourself.

Swansea

6

Kanye West
The College Dropout (Advance Version)
Bootleg/Roc-A-Fella

Not to sound too much like a snide "told ya so" internet rap nerd, but the leaked version of The College Dropout is considerably better than the official Roc-A-Fella release. Why?

• Original, sample-clearance-be-damned version of "All Falls Down." Crisper drums, less clutter and Lauryn Hill for christsakes.
• Intro and interlude-less version of "Slow Jamz" that doesn't fucking kill the mood. That "Smooooookey Roooooobinson" nonsense that last 1:30 makes the wait for Twista's verse almost unbearable.
• NO SKITS.
• Solid songs from the leaked version that didn't reappear:
  
• "The Good, the Bad & the Ugly" (GLC kicks off the song with "good morning America/ good morning to Erica/ who gave me good head while watching 'Good Morning America.'" Wow.)
• "Keep the Receipt" (featuring ODB (RIP). Kanye goes crazy on this one: "Now ya'll gon stop talkin' that shit that you talkin'/ your broke ass mom couldn't afford that abortion/ so tell me how the hell she gonna afford that coffin." Yup he went there.)
• "Home" (less cheesy "Family Business." See The Pretty Toney Album.)
• Reminds you of a time when Kanye was just a self-involved asshole with a God complex, not a ubiquitous self-involved asshole with a God complex.

Keep the Receipt (feat. ODB)

7

Cam'ron
Purple Haze
Roc-A-Fella

I've dropped so much proverbial ink on Cam and the Dips, it kinda makes me tired thinking about summarizing why I love this album. Internal rhymes, homo-gutter beats, crazy over-the-top posturing, etc. This shit is just entertaining. Here's what I said when Purple Haze dropped.

Down and Out (feat. Kanye West & Syleena Johnson)

8

Franz Ferdinand
Franz Ferdinand
Domino

Fickle hipster flavor of the month? Derivative flash in the pan? This year's Interpol?

Backlash not withstanding, this album's full of great tunes. Like The Futureheads, FF don't mask their Anglo accents or influences, they just stomp through an album full of dancefloor rockers with charm and vigor. These sharp-dressed fellows never met a high-hat they won't ride right to the disco and goddamn it I'm following 'em there.

Jacqueline

9

M.I.A./Diplo
Piracy Funds Terrorism Volume 1
Hollertronix

Like Cam, my M.I.A. obsession is well-docmented on this here Slang. Mash-ups are, like, sooooooo 2002.

Bingo (Diplo mix)

10

Various Artists
Golden Apples of the Sun
Bastet

Thank god for Soulseek, otherwise it woulda been impossible to track this one down. Devendra Banhart curated this collection of like-minded freakfolkies with a run of about 1000 copies. Succeeding where most mulit-artist compliations (label samplers, scene retrospectives, etc.) flop, Golden Apples molds a primarily singular aesthetic (acoustic pickery, warbling vocals, rattling, lo-fi percussion) into a definitively cohesive album. It sounds like a band of wild-eyed, road-weary gypsies pluckin' and singin' at dawn, whispering tales of who-knows-what-kinda-life. Consistently haunting and beautiful.

Hunt this down however you can (Soulseek for PC kids, eBay for you other poor souls?)

Jana Hunter - Farm, CA

11-20:

11 Pinback Summer in Abaddon Touch & Go
12 Dizzee Rascal Showtime XL
13 Lali Puna Faking the Books Morr Music
14 MF Doom Mm..food Rhymesayers
15 Ted Leo Shake the Sheets Lookout!
16 Wiley Treadin' on Thin Ice XL
17 Jason Forrest The Unrelenting Songs of the 1979 Post Disco Crash Sonig
18 The Legends Up Against the Legends Lakeshore
19 Animal Collective Sung Tongs Fat Cat
20 Phoenix Alphabetical Astralwerks

Razorblade raves

Ex-Pitchforker/perennial Slang Ed fav Rollie P is in the midst of posting his top 100 songs of '04 complete with mp3 accompaniment (limited time only). Catch up here.

Top 5 Movies

Alright, let's get some group thought going on...Top 5 movies of the year. I'll start you out.

1. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - great cinematography, well acted, detailed direction, and awesome soundtrack.
2. Maria Full Of Grace - Intense portrayl of the life of a mule. Catalina Sandino Moreno plays her role with a true, er, grace.
3. Napolean Dynamite - Awkward non-movie.
4. Closer - natalie portman.
5. Garden State - natalie portman.

Probably Great Albums of 2004 I still have not heard

For the past seven months I have not been paying very close attention to new music, for reasons passing understanding (i.e. my dial-up connection and lack of file-sharing programs). Accordingly, my first list will be the albums of 2004 I've partially heard, heard once, or have never heard, but have a strong feeling that I'd like. These are in no particular order. By the way, feel free to use this list as a holiday wish list. C'mon kid, don't be greedy...

Albums I Ain't Heard Yet 2004:


1 Pinback - Summer in Abadon : While waiting for the Wrens to grace the Knitting Factory stage this passed October, I watched a bearded awkward guy play some crazy songs on an acoustic guitar. One of the songs was Minor Threat. He didn't slow it down. That awkward fellow was Rob Crow, 1/2 of Pinback. I must be slipping in my old age for not owning this yet.


2 Saul Williams - s/t : 'To be honest, some freedom of speech makes me nervous." I must agree, Saul. The poet laureate of hip-hop returns with his second disc. Maybe teaching poetry and embaressing other slam poets got boring.


3 They Might Be Giants - The Spine : I don't care what anyone says, TMBG is the Isaih Thomas and Joe Dumars backcourt of rock and roll. You think you can pin them down, but shit, here comes John, blowing by you with some zydeco crossover, followed up with the other John's garage rock drum machine.


4 Will Johnson - Vultures Await : As I've previously mentioned on this here blog, this man gives me shivers. To be fair, I did try buying this album when it came out, but I typed my credit card number in wrong and the order never went through. Now that I think about it, what a stupid fucking reason.


5 Q And Not U - Power : They went disco? That's cool, like, I guess. I mean, disco can be punk ,right? Sure, er, just like Anthrax was hip-hop...wait... For real, these kids ain't no art hacks, I bet I'd shake my ass in an arhythmic manner if I got this disc.


6 Hot Snakes - Audit In Progress : Remember that scene in Wayne's World 2 with Alice Cooper? John Reis could totally kick his ass. Twice.


7 Ted Leo - Shake The Streets : It took months of listening to a 'Where have all the rude boys gone' mp3 before I finally bought the album. If I buy Shake The Streets now and it doesn't live up to Hearts of Oak, I'll feel let down, and bitter towards Ted for getting my hopes up. I just don't think I could take that kind of dissapointment.


8 Dizzee Rascal - Showtime : I am most certainly not the hip-hop aficionado around these parts or any other parts, but to my untrained ears, Dizzee is post-punk of hip-hop. I don't mind that his words are undecipherable, the gusto behind them is enough to keep me more than interested.


9 The Mountain Goats - We Shall All Be Healed : I hope you die. I hope we both die.


10 Mirah - C'mon Miracle : I first heard this album one awesome weekend this summer in Cape Cod. I failed to follow through on the promise of that visit and I also failed to buy the album when I got home. So I just listened to "You Think It's Like This But Really It's Like This" over and over again, pinning over missed opportunities.

Tommy Ten

Neumu.net's got Doorknobs/Hugger Mugger fav Tom Breihan's top ten albums of 2004 up (possibly for a limited time).

Check it out here.

Top Songs of '04

this took me waaaaay too long. picking the top 20 bordered on arbitrary; undoubtedly I feel all the songs below deserve your attention.

1. modest mouse "float on"
2. the futureheads "hounds of love"
3. t.i. "rubberband man"
4. m.i.a. "galang"
5. ted leo/pharmacists "me & mia"
6. ciara ft. petey pablo "goodies"
7. britney spears "toxic"
8. jon brion "knock yourself out"
9. franz ferdinand "take me out"
10. kanye west "all falls down" (orig. lauryn hill version)
11. leslie feist "mushaboom"
12. alicia keys "you don't know my name (reggae remix)"
13. yellowcard "ocean avenue"
14. usher ft. ludacris "yeah"
15. the killers "mr. brightside"
16. jose gonzales "heartbeats"
17. the diplomats "magic"
18. chromeo "needy girl"
19. felix da housecat "ready 2 wear"
20. the libertines "can't stand me now"

and all the rest...

jadakiss "the champ is here"
lil scrappy "no problem"
fabolous "breathe"
cam'ron ft. syleena johnson & kanye west "down & out"
cam'ron "yeo man"
dizzee rascal "learn"
dizzee rascal "stand up tall"
jay-z "what more can i say (9th wonder remix)"
mase "welcome back"
cut copy "saturdays"
mike jones ft. slim thug & paul wall "still tippin'"
psapp "calm down"
q & not u "wonderful people"
ratatat "seventeen years"
liars "there's always room on the broom"
theodore unit "guerilla hood"
the knife "heartbeats"
dem franchise boyz "white tees"
junior boys "high come down"
nas "thief's theme"
phoenix "everything is everything"
lil jon & the eastside boys ft. lil scrappy "what u gon do?"
the walkmen "the rat"
wiley "wot do u call it"
elliott smith "a distorted reality is now a necessity to be free" (7" version)
the alchemist ft. prodigy & nina sky "hold you down"
pitbull "culo"
bloc party "banquet"
lcd soundsystem "yeah"
terror squad "lean back"
calexico "alone again, or"
mylo "drop the pressure"
common ft. kanye west "the food"
pixeltan "that's the way i like it"
de la soul ft. mf doom "roc co kane flow"
jens lekman "julie"
beanie sigel "feel it in the air"
jadakiss ft. styles p, nas & common "why (remix)"
kings of convenience "i'd rather dance with you"
tv on the radio "staring at the sun"
destiny's child "lose my breath"
the streets "blinded by the lights"
the arcade fire "neighborhood #1 (tunnels)"
snoop dogg ft. pharell "drop it like it's hot"
ac newman "on the table"
crime mob "knuck if you buck"
cee-lo "i'll be around"
kelis ft. nas "popular thug"
lethal b "forward riddim"
masta killa "old man"
rachel stevens "some girls"
animal collective "who could win a rabbit?"

It begins

Ok people, ground rules:

This is designed to be a rolling forum about the year's best _______. Albums, songs, films, fashion faux pas, etc. It will be fun and people will enjoy it. Let's go to work.

Oh yeah: let's comment the shit outta this too, for real!