The Top 25 Albums Of 2010

"The list is life."--Ben Kingsley in Schindler's List

In compiling my list of the 25 best albums of the year, I discovered it was a pretty damn good year for music. Multiple albums on this list have the potential to be regarded as "classics" some day, and a wide range of genres are represented. You may have noticed that this list will only include albums. No singles, downloads, best song from a Saab commercial or your favorite tune from a Grey's Anatomy episode will be represented. If you lack the stamina to sit through an artist's entire recording, then move right along, nothing to see here. As for the rest of you, I will call you "friend."

First things first, the near misses:

Broken Bells/S-T: Multiple moments of brilliance from the marriage of Danger Mouse and the lead singer/songwriter of The Shins, James Murcer. But not enough overall.

Robert Randolph/We Walk This Road: Just short of making my list. T-Bone Burnett's classy production results in better songs than on Randolph's previous album, Colorblind, but also overly restrains the pedal steel virtuoso's scorching guitar heroics. Yes, there is such a thing as too much class.

Hole/Nobody's Daughter: Way, way better than anyone had a right to expect. There's life in this wild child yet.

Stone Temple Pilots/S-T: See my comments directly above.

The Roots/How I Got Over: Why, of why can't I quite fall in love with The Roots? For all the massive talent on display, they always leave me wanting more.

James/Night Before-Morning After: Still pumping out terrific records way past their relevancy in America. Our loss, big time. This collection of two separate EPs may not reach all the way back to the glory days of Laid, but it comes damn close.

Ra Ra Riot/The Orchard: A slight come down from 2008's The Rhumb Line. For now, they will have to settle for being a poor man's Arcade Fire.

Vampire Weekend/Contra: Very creative band that elicits smiles from me whenever I listen to them. Unfortunately, they need to break through being pleasant and cute. Just not enough heft for me.

Ryan Bingham/Junky Star: I have no doubt that this alt-country rocker who won an out of left field Oscar for his song from Crazy Heart has a great album in him. This is almost it.

Sade/Soldier Of Love: Content to pop up once or twice a decade and put out pretty much the exact same album she did last time. Still, it's a pretty damn good album.

Brandon Flowers/Flamingo: Sort of a low key sequel to The Killers second album, Sam's Town, this second ode to Las Vegas has ten fine songs, but misses the muscle of his band.

Ryan Adams/III-IV: Essentially left overs recorded during the making of 2007's great Easy Tiger, this double album further proves my suspicions that this guy rolls out of bed and writes three songs before he cracks an egg or grinds a bean. Not as cohesive as a "proper" album perhaps, but definitely his most rockin' since 2003's Rock N Roll.

Second thing, the brutal disappointments:

Weezer/Hurley: Weezer by the numbers. Not bad, but nothing exceptional here. It's been rumored that some deep pocketed businessman has offered the band $5,000,000 to quit. If they can't do better than this, then maybe they should take it.

M.I.A./Maya: Three killer tunes and a bunch of hard and ultimately unrewarding work. Still, you do get the feeling that she's really trying here. Better luck next time.

Interpol/S-T: Oh, dear. I was really excited about this one. It's not awful, but the best song here is not as good as the weakest song on their first two albums. Maybe they should follow the path of bassist, Carlos D, and quit before they get further behind.

MGMT/Congratulations: Stunningly bad, to the point of being almost unlistenable. Almost entirely devoid of hooks and melody. After their triumphant debut, Oracular Spectacular, they seemingly canned their original brand of strange and wonderful dance rock and decided to become The Grateful Dead of the aughts? Did anyone ask for that? I think not.

Now, on with the show:

25) The Hold Steady/Heaven Is Whenever: The little pub band that could still can. Raised on Westerberg and Springsteen, these guys may never quite hit the heights of their idols, but that doesn't mean they can't get close. This album is the sound of close.

24) Bryan Ferry/Olympia: The suave crooner's first album of primarily original material in 16 years reminds us why we ever liked him in the first place. Collaborating with three of the founding members of his legendary band, Roxy Music (including his former frienemy, Brian Eno!), Ferry came back with his best record in nearly a quarter century.

23) Black Rebel Motorcycle Club/Beat The Devil: Their mixture of blues and Jesus and Mary Chain inspired rock is still a winning stew. Not sure where they came up with the idea for that blend, but it definitely works. Not as good as their 2005 breakout classic, Howl, but within shouting distance.

22) John Legend and The Roots/Wake Up!: One of the two finest old school soul singers (Maxwell being the other), connects with the finest band in late night to cover a cluster of message songs from years gone by. The decision to select songs that were less than obvious was an inspired one. The album feels more like a collection of originals than a grab bag of best known cuts. You've also never heard John Legend being so funky. Here's to hoping The Roots back up the Leg on his next record too.

21) The New Pornographers/Together: A nice bounce back from the relative disappointment of 2007's Challengers. AC Newman, Dan Bejar, Neko Case, and crew remembered where they left their hooks and put them on full display, creating inspired power pop. One has to wonder how big they might be if they called themselves anything else. Like, say, Toad The Wet Sprocket.

20) Scissor Sisters/Night Work: The sisters returned with a brand new mix of ultra-catchy disco influenced pop tunes. Studio 54, where are you?

19) Titus Andronicus/The Monitor: I wouldn't have expected these garage punkers to follow 2008's brilliant, The Airing Of Grievances, with a song cycle about the Civil War, but here it is. While I'm not 100% sure it all works, no rock album this year was more ambitious. The mix of olde timey instruments next to roaring guitars and tonsil shredding vocals is one hell of a ride.

18) Taylor Swift/Speak Now: Yes, I know, all my cred may be lost with this selection. But please tell me the name of the pop singer/songwriter who scripts better tunes than this faux-hillbilly heartbreaker? She is a relentless, self-contained, chart busting apparatus. And I defy you to hear even one song of hers and not spend half the day trying to get it out of your head like shower water in your ear.

17) Grinderman/2: Another year, and another sterling Nick Cave album. This punkier offshoot of his Bad Seeds band improves upon their 2007 debut by being even nastier than that gnarly beast of a record. The cover photo of a seriously edged wolf trapped in a domestic setting may be the best and most evocative of the year. These guys belong to a time when you could kill a man in Reno, just to watch him die.

16) Gorillaz/Plastic Beach: While Damon Albarn's cartoon band may lack a killer single like Clint Eastwood or Feel Good Inc. from their previous two albums, they did come up with their most consistent set of tunes. Using the great and gritty soul legend, Bobby Womack, on two cuts was genius. But using Lou Reed on the brilliant track, Some Kind Of Nature? Well, no other musical surprise this year pleased me more.

15) Broken Social Scene/Forgiveness Rock Record: At first I was a little underwhelmed by this new album from these Canadian art rockers. However, repeated listens convinced me otherwise. While not as strange or off-kilter as their previous releases, the songs are more consistent (if a bit more conventional), and their willingness to record the vocals in a way that made you believe they were no longer embarrassed at the sound of the human voice, proved quite successful. As usual, fellow canucks Feist and Emily Haines of Metric supply sterling support.

14) Gaslight Anthem/American Slang: Another grower. Perhaps not as immediate as their 2008 breakthrough '59 Sound, Slang rewards the patient listener. These Jersey born, Springsteen inspired kinda-sorta punk rockers may be more restrained overall on this record, but no song on any album this year defies my ability to maintain the posted speed limit than Slang's powerhouse divorce anthem, Bring It On.

13) Against Me/White Crosses: Carrying the flag for left wing, politically inspired punk rock, this Florida band proves that force and volume need not sacrifice melody. Produced by studio genius, Butch Vig, this latest batch of rollicking tunes written by frontman, Tom Gabel, delivers the best collection of fist pumpers and table pounders of the year.

12) Kid Cudi/Man On The Moon II-The Legend Of Mr. Rager: Unfairly classified as a Kanye West protege, Kid Cudi continues to make his own variation of highly creative hip-hop tunes. To be fair though, calling Cudi a hip-hop artist is a bit like calling a whale a pretty big fish. It's not really pure hip-hop, he doesn't always rap (or even rhyme), and your just as likely to find live instrumentation as well as a liberal use of sampling. In fact, Moon's first single Erase Me has far more in common with 80's alt-rock than it does with any typical rap artist. This is anything can happen music. Keep your eye on this guy.

11) Robert Plant/Band Of Joy: For my money, this new opus of Appalachia and olde timey (yes, I realize I used olde timey twice in the same article) tunes is even better than the landmark record, Raising Sand, that the one-time Zep wailer recorded with Alison Krauss in 2007. Looser and more beguiling than that admittedly great album, Band Of Joy may be the last word on the Led Zeppelin reunion that so many AOR aged minions have been hoping for. He just doesn't need it.

10) Pete Yorn/S-T: I had all but left Yorn for dead. When your previous album was a duet thingy with Scarlett Johansson, and that album was actually superior to your previous proper solo record, well...dark times, man. But apparently nothing that Black Francis of The Pixies couldn't fix. Easily his best album since his terrific debut in 2001, Yorn plugged in and got raw. No matter what happens from here on out, this album proves that Yorn has more than one trick in the bag. Thank you Black Francis for opening the sack.

9) Kings Of Leon/Come Around Sundown: An unjustly maligned album from an unjustly maligned band. Sundown may not reach the same anthemic peaks as 2008's Only By The Night, but it is every bit as consistent. In turn both muted and bright, Sundown brought back some of the southern sound that KOL purists have found missing from their previous two albums. Whatever, purity-shmurity. These are 13 expertly crafted rockers in what is likely to be considered one day as their "fame hangover" album. Regardless, the morning after was worth the night before.

8) Cee-Lo Green/The Ladykiller: Don't be fooled by the wondrous viral sensation that was The Ladykiller's first single, F*** You, this is no novelty album. Chock full of classic soul, modern production, and that one of a kind Cee-Lo weirdness, this is the best album of his career. His one of a kind voice is more confident in sound and tone, and every tune is a keeper. I once thought that Gnarls Barkley's Crazy would be his mountain top. And there wouldn't be a damn thing wrong with that if it were. Well, to my own amazement, I was wrong.

7) LCD Soundsystem/This Is Happening: I wasn't quite on the James Murphy train before This Is Happening. The previous two proper albums by the one man band had some inspired moments of danceable rock, but also some notable lulls. Well, This is a lull free zone. Nine songs ranging in length from the 3:42 of the hilarious first single, Drunk Girls, to the 9:06 of the all kinds of awesome You Wanted A Hit, this is the sound of Murphy really going for it...and getting there. I should also add that the staggering lead off track Dance Yrself Clean is my favorite opening track off of any album this year. It starts out all quiet and slow then explodes when you least expect it. Be careful if you listen to this for the first time while driving. Controlling your vehicle during that propulsive sneak attack. Staying on the road may be a challenge.

6) Mumford & Sons/Sigh No More: The inventers of the folk rock anthem. No success in 2010 was more out of left field than this one. Four guys from London mixing folk, country, rock and bluegrass? Who would bet on that? What you need to know is this: No other artist has advanced the art of folk music since someone suggested to Bob Dylan, "How 'bout you plug this here geetar into that there amp?" It really is that good.

5) The National/High Violet: This Ohio born, now New York based band is on one hell of a winning streak. Their previous two albums, 2007's Boxer and 2005's Alligator set the standard for moody, almost (but not quite), anthemic alt-rock. Frontman Matt Berninger sings as if he's just been woken from an all night bender and can't seem to shake the effects. The push-pull of Berninger's restraint and the band's slow build to a soar feels much like a futile grasp for some sort of...freedom? Release? Something more mysterious? I'm not sure, but never has futility sounded so grand.

4) The Black Keys/Brothers: Another band born in Ohio (although still based there). This duo of guitarist/frontman, Dan Auerbach and drummer, Patrick Carney, always seemed destined (to me anyway) to end up in the consistently overpraised pile. Sure, their swampy two-man blues rock was good. Very good, even. But did it really add much to the musical landscape? Well, they have now. The secret, appears to be the most obvious one. Write a bunch of great songs and simply be less slavish to convention. The result, Brothers, is a revelation. From the killer opening cut, Everlasting Light (reminiscent of the great Spoon track, I Turn My Camera On), to the lovely closer, These Days, no album was more consistently satisfying this year.

3) Arcade Fire/The Suburbs: The great rock hope delivers again. Not since Radiohead disappeared up their own backsides and stopped writing songs you could sing along to has more responsibility been hoisted upon a rock band. Critics and music snobs alike have been looking for the next important rock band. One that was about more than their music. That genuinely stood for something. U2 and Pearl Jam are getting long in the tooth, and the jury is still out on Coldplay. That leaves us with Arcade Fire. Whom, unlike Radiohead, do not fear that mantle, they actually embrace it. On The Suburbs, you get a sense of a band considering the weight of expectation and giving you both what you want, but not exactly what you expect. If their first album, Funeral, was built around the loss of family, and their second album, Neon Bible, around Bush's failed America (my theory anyway), then The Suburbs is about the big now what? What does all this mean? Where do we go from here? And what do we do when we get there? The key to being a great band is in the reach, not the grasp. And it's clear, that Arcade Fire still haven't found what they are looking for. Here's to the expedition. Wherever it may take us.

2) Jamie T./Kings and Queens: Ok, obviously this is a pretty obscure choice--on this side of the Atlantic anyway. So, I should probably describe what the working class fun house that is Jamie T. sounds like. Imagine if you will, the Arctic Monkeys being fronted by Joe Strummer if Joe were once a member of The Beastie Boys. Marble mouthed and British to the core, Jamie T.'s Kings And Queens is as enjoyable record that I have heard in a long time. You will probably need to refer to the lyrics to figure out what the hell he is going on about, but song titles like The Man's Machine, Castro Dies, and British Intelligence probably give you some idea of the things that concern him in life. Half rapped, half sung, with ideas swirling in from seemingly all over the place, this bratty, deceptively smart assed, limey may never make it on our shores. But that doesn't mean he should be ignored. So there.

1) Kanye West/My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy: Yes, I know, he's a douchebag. If you don't believe it, just ask him. He'll confess to you in song. He is also the most fascinating and mercurial artist in popular music since Prince wore ruffles and said "That ain't Lake Minnetonka." I'm not even sure this is a perfect record. I could've probably done without the Chris Rock profane spoken word routine on the back portion of the album (and I love Chris Rock). That being said, I can't imagine a more ambitious and contradictory album than this one. Eminem's head must be positively spinning. Lacerating both himself and the doubters with an ego that knows no bounds, there really isn't anything else like this out there. I know for some, his theft of poor little Taylor Swift's Grammy moment (get over it, she got a great song out of it and seems to be doing just fine, thank you), will forever be too much for them. And here's the thing, I wouldn't bet against him doing something even more stupid in the future. But if he keeps making albums with songs like Power, Runaway, Monster, and All Of The Lights on it, I'll probably have to forgive him. For me, he is the Allen Iverson of popular music. I will root for him in spite of all better sense because I know what he is capable of. And what he is capable of is true, unadulterated greatness. A capability on full display here and now. It just cannot be denied. So, I won't.

So there it is, that's the list. Feel free to share you own list and know that in the end, the only list that matters is your own.

Sumo-Pop
December 29, 2010